Famous Name - Li

It was not until the early Middle Ages that surnames were first used in order to distinguish between numbers of people bearing the same personal, or christian, name. With the growth of documentation in the later Middle Ages such names became essential, and a person whose distinguishing name described his trade, his place of residence, his father's name or some personal or physical characteristic, passed that name on to his children, and the surname became hereditary. The surname Li is of local origin, belonging to that group of names based on the name of the dwelling place or locality where the original bearer once lived or held land. In this instance, the name is traceable to the Old Chinese word 'Li' denoting a plum tree. By extension therefore the name came to denote one who lived near a plum tree. It was customary to refer to a person by a single outstanding geographical feature which was situated near their home as this made identification easier. Whilst the surname Li is most commonly found in Hong Kong, common variants found in mainland China include Ling, Lai and Le. Surnames of Chinese origin are short and easy to pronounce and have rarely been changed upon arrival in America.

Copyright © The Historical Research Center International, Inc, 1999.
All rights reserved. No reproduction without permission.