鄢国是中国西周至春秋时期的一个诸侯国，其历史与鄢姓的起源密切相关。以下是具体介绍：
鄢国最早可追溯至西周初期，其建立者为?姓求言的后裔。求言是黄帝后裔颛顼帝的玄孙陆终第四子，夏朝时其族人被封于郐国（今河南新郑西北部）。周武王灭商后，郐侯因战功被重新分封至鄢地（今河南省鄢陵县北部），建立鄢国，爵位为侯爵，故称“鄢侯”。
鄢国位于中原腹地，核心区域在今河南省许昌市鄢陵县一带。其都城遗址位于鄢陵县彭店镇境内，分内城（紫禁城）和外城，以土夯筑成，地势险要。此地沃野千里，交通便利，历来为兵家必争之地，历史上著名的“郑伯克段于鄢”“晋楚鄢陵之战”均发生于此。
春秋初期，郑国东迁后积极扩张领土。周平王二年（公元前769年），郑武公率军攻灭鄢国，将其地纳入郑国版图，改称“鄢邑”。此后，鄢国故地成为郑国重要城邑，后又属楚国，称“鄢县”。
鄢国灭亡后，其王族后裔及部分国民以故国名为姓氏，称鄢氏，世代相传。这一支被视为鄢姓正宗，尊求言为得姓始祖，主要分布于鄢国故地及周边地区。
2. 帝王赐姓
春秋初期，尧帝后裔中有一名叫“?”（即“岩”的古体字）的勇士，在郑庄公与周王室的战争中立下战功。郑庄公以其名“?”的谐音赐姓“鄢”，称鄢?，并将鄢邑封赏给他。鄢?的后裔以鄢为姓，逐渐迁居四川北部，形成“川北郑邑氏鄢氏族裔”。
- 楚国鄢县尹后裔：春秋时期，楚国吞并鄢国后设鄢县，部分担任鄢县尹的贵族后裔以邑名为氏，称鄢氏。
- 罗国遗民：楚国灭罗国后，在原罗国故地设鄢邑安置罗国贵族，部分留居者以鄢为姓。
4. 少数民族改姓
- 满族：金国时期女真完颜部、鄢札部等，在清朝中叶后多改汉姓为鄢氏。
- 回族：宋朝时期部分西域民族改汉姓为鄢，主要分布于宁夏、云南等地。
5. 其他源流
西汉文帝时期，燕姓家族因避祸或其他原因改为鄢姓，如鄢希巽“易燕为鄢”，其后代主要分布于福建等地。
鄢国灭亡后，鄢姓族人开始向周边扩散。秦、汉时期，部分鄢姓迁居四川北部；魏晋南北朝至隋唐时期，江西、湖南等地逐渐形成鄢姓聚居区。
2. 族谱与分支
鄢姓族谱显示，其分支众多，分布广泛：
- 江西丰城、吉水等地的鄢氏以鄢燧武为始祖，后裔迁徙至湖南、湖北、福建等地。
- 福建永泰麟阳鄢氏则源于明朝鄢识（字知几），其家族因屯田迁居此地，并建有?平庄等防御性民居。
- 湖南湘潭、益阳等地的鄢氏多由江西迁入，形成多个分支。
鄢姓人口总数约39万（截至现代），主要集中于湖北（约占56%），其次分布于江西、贵州、湖南等地。此外，河南鄢陵作为鄢姓发源地，仍有部分鄢姓后裔聚居。
鄢国作为西周分封体系的一部分，其兴衰反映了春秋时期诸侯争霸的历史进程。鄢姓则通过以国为氏、赐姓、改姓等多元途径，成为中华姓氏中具有深厚历史底蕴的一支。鄢陵至今留存鄢国遗址、鄢姓宗祠等文化遗迹，其地名与鄢国历史紧密相连，成为研究周代分封制和姓氏文化的重要实证。
也之，2025-7-12
The origins of YanState and the Yan surname are discussed
Yan State was a feudal state in the Western Zhou and Springand Autumn periods of ancient China, and its history is closely linked to theorigin of the Yan surname.
I. History and Geographical Location of Yan
1. Origins and Feudalization
Yan State can be traced back to the early period of theWestern Zhou Dynasty, and its founder was a descendant of the Yun clan namedQiuyan. Qiuyan was the great-grandson of Lu Zhong, a descendant of Huangdi, andhis clan was granted the state of Kui (now located in the northwestern part ofXin Zheng, Henan Province) during the Xia Dynasty. After King Wu of Zhouconquered the Shang Dynasty, the Duke of Kui was reassigned to Yan (now locatedin the northern part of Yanling County, Henan Province) and established YanState, with the title of Marquis, hence the name "Duke of Yan".
2. Geographical location and territory
Yan State is located in the hinterland of the CentralPlains, the core region in this area of Yanling County, Xuchang City, HenanProvince. The ruins of its capital city are located in Pengdian Town, YunlingCounty, divided into inner (Forbidden City) and outer cities, which are builtwith earth and are dangerous. This place is a land of thousands of acres andconvenient transportation, and it has always been a place where soldiers mustfight, and the famous "Zhengbok Duan Yu'an" and "Jin and Chu'anBattle" occurred here.
3. Decline and Transformation
In the early Spring and Autumn period, after the easternrelocation of the State of Zheng, it actively expanded its territory. In thesecond year of King Ping of the Zhou Dynasty (769 BC), Duke Wu of Zheng led histroops to conquer Yan and incorporated its territory into the State of Zheng,renaming it Yanyi. Subsequently, the former territory of Yan became animportant city in the State of Zheng, and later came under the control of theState of Chu, where it was known as Yanxian.
II. Origin and Development of the Yan Surname
There are mainly the following origins for the Yan surname:
1. Using the country as the surname (authentic lineage)
After Yan State was destroyed, its royal descendants andsome of the common people adopted the name Yan as their last name, thus formingthe Yan clan, which has been passed down through generations. This branch isregarded as the authentic Yan clan, with Yan Qiuyan considered the foundingancestor, and is mainly distributed in the former territory of Yan State andits surrounding areas.
2. Royal Patronage of Last Names
In the early Spring and Autumn period, among the descendantsof Emperor Yao, there was a brave warrior named "Yan" (an archaicform of the character "Yan"), who distinguished himself in thebattles between Duke Zheng of Zheng and the Zhou royal family. Duke Zhengbestowed upon him the surname "Yan" as a pun on his given name"Yan", and granted him the fief of Yan. The descendants of Yan Yaneventually migrated to northern Sichuan, where they became known as the "YanClan of the Northern Sichuan Zheng Prefecture".
3. Taking the town as one's surname
- Descendants of Yin, the governor of Yan County in ChuState: During the Spring and Autumn Period, after Chu State annexed Yan State,Yan County was established, and some of the noble descendants who served as thegovernor of Yan County took the name Yan as their last name.
- Luo Guo Yimin: After the fall of Luo State, the remnantsof the Luo nobility were resettled in Yan, a city established in the formerterritory of Luo State, and some of them adopted Yan as their surname.
4. Changing surnames for ethnic minorities
- Manchu: During the Jin Dynasty, the Jurchen Wanyan clanand Yanzha clan, among others, often adopted the Chinese surname Yan after themid-Qing Dynasty.
- Hui people: Some Western ethnic groups during the SongDynasty changed their Han surnames to Yan, mainly distributed in Ningxia andYunnan.
5. Other origins
During the reign of Emperor Wen of the Western Han Dynasty,the Yan clan changed their surname to Yan for reasons such as avoiding danger,and their descendants are mainly found in places like Fujian.
III. Migration and Distribution of the Yan Surname
1. Early Migration
After the demise of the State of Yan, the people of thesurname Yan began to spread to the surrounding area. During the Qin and Hanperiod, some of the surnames of Yan moved to northern Sichuan; During the Wei,Jin, and North and South Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Jiangxi,Hunan and other places gradually formed areas with the surname of Yan.
2. Family tree and branching
The genealogy of the surname of Yan shows that its branchesare numerous and widely distributed:
- The Yan clan in Fengcheng and Jishui, Jiangxi, trace theirorigins back to Yan Shuiwu, and their descendants have migrated to places likeHunan, Hubei, and Fujian.
- The Yan family in Yongtai Lianyang, Fujian Province,originated in the Ming Dynasty from the Yan Zhi (literally known as Zhi Ke),whose family moved here because of Tuentian and built defensive houses such asShengpingzhuang.
The Yan clan in Xiangtan and Yiyang of Hunan Province movedin from Jiangxi Province and formed several branches.
3. Modern Distribution
As of the present day, the total population of the Yansurname is approximately 390,000, mainly concentrated in Hubei (accounting forabout 56%), with smaller numbers also found in Jiangxi, Guizhou, and Hunan,among other places. Additionally, Yanling in Henan, the birthplace of the Yansurname, still houses a portion of the descendants of the Yan surname.
IV. Historical and Cultural Significance
As a part of the feudal system established during theWestern Zhou Dynasty, the rise and fall of Yan State reflect the historicalprocess of the Spring and Autumn period when various states vied for power.
The Yan surname has become one of the surnames with profoundhistorical roots in Chinese surnames, and Yanling still retains cultural relicssuch as the ruins of Yan State and the ancestral temple of the Yan surname,which are closely linked to the history of Yan State and serve as importantevidence for studying the feudal system and surname culture during the ZhouDynasty.
Yezhi, 12-07-2025