surname Xiahou
My surname is Xiahou. My father said my ancestor is Xiahou Dun and Xiahou Yuan. Do you know the etymology of the surname Xiahou?
vote up1vote down

Replies

I was surprised since Chinese surnames are so rarely two characters!It depends on what characters (chinese letters) are used, but Wikipedia says Dun and Yuan's Xiahou are spelled 夏侯. Wikipedia says 夏 can mean 'Xia dynasty' or 'Summer'. 侯 means 'Marquis/Lord'. As Dun and Yuan were both descended from a Marquis, this makes sense! The Xia dynasty was the first dynasty and semi-legendary. Your surname probably means Summer Lord or Xia Lord. Hope this helps!Sources:
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E5%A4%8F
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E4%BE%AF
vote up1vote down
It's definitely Asian, maybe Chinese?
vote up0vote down