Posted by Law, Yip-wang on May 31, 1999 at 03:41:04:
In Reply to: Surname "Ling" posted by Ho-yin Lee on June 23, 1998 at 17:57:54:
: Hello. I'm just looking for information on the surname
: "ling" written as �F (big5). Doesn't seem to be common,
: but I believe it has an origin in southern. Thank you!
: -H.Y. Lee
I didn't know the existence of your surname. It is not found among the 504 surnames in the Hundred Family Names. However, I found it in a relatively recent book published in China. The following information is from that book.
Your surname has three different origins. You have to find out with your own family record to determ which one is yours.
(1) Duke Wen of the State of Song (610-519 BC) had a son called ���t(Big5, same in the follwing)whose coutesy name was �l�F. �l�F had a grandson called ���w who worked as a ���v in the state government
and he started to use the word "ling" in his grandfather's courtesy name as his surname. (By the way, Duke Wen's original family name as �l.)
(2)A man by the name of �F�� (family name not known) in the State of Jin during the Spring and Autumn Period (722-481 BC) was saved by a nobleman called ����when he was starving and got stuck in a place called �k��. Later on when Duke Ling of the State of Jin (who ruled the State of Jin during 621-607 BC)was about to murder ����, �F��, who was then working under the duke, turned aroud and rescued ����. His descendants began using the word 'Ling' in their ancestor's name as their surname. (The duke's name "Ling" just happened to be the same word.)
(3) Duke Ling of the State of Qi (���F��) ruled the state during 581-554 BC). His descendants used the word "Ling" (which was actually his posthumous name)as their family name.
By the way, none of those feudal states were in the south. Furthermore, another book says that Ling was from the name of an old, old small state. When the legendary saint �� was emperor (2319-2309
), he had seven friends and one of them was �F�j who was said to be a descendant of (rulers) of the state of Ling.