Posted by K.L. Liems on August 31, 2000 at 21:38:16:
In Reply to: Lian vs. Lin posted by Benson Kwong on August 28, 2000 at 16:49:33:
Thanks for letting me know. To my great shame I must admit I have absolutely no idea about what would be a common Chinese name, or a very uncommon one. Also, if you say that a large number of the population is called "Lin" ,or any other name for that matter, does that mean that all these people are related in some way, as in having the same ancestors? Or originating from a certain region?
: Although Chineseroots.com identified Liem as a variation of Lian, the probability of that vs. a "Lin" origin is perhaps 1:100. "Lian" is a very rare surname in China, whereas "Lin" might be as much as 2% of the entire population (my estimate). These statistics are based only on personal experience. I have never met a "Lian," but have known dozens of "Lin's."