Hundred Surnames

Author: (Song) Anonymous
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: A collection of classic ancient Chinese elementary education texts. "Hundred Family Surnames" includes over four hundred surnames, most of which are single-character surnames, with a few compound surnames as well. The over four hundred surnames are carefully organized into four-character lines of rhyming text, making it easy to read and recite, and it was widely popular in village schools. In the Song Dynasty, it was extensively used as a primary reading textbook alongside "A Thousand Character Classic," holding equal status. Of course, the impact of such a dry list of surnames also relates to China's traditional concept of clan and kinship.