Rén is the Mandarin pinyin romanisation of the Chinese surname written 任 in Chinese script. It is romanised as Jen in Wade–Giles, and Yam or Yum in Cantonese. It is listed 58th in the Song dynasty classic text Hundred Family Surnames.[1] As of 2008, it is the 59th most common surname in China, shared by 4.2 million people.[2] In 2019 it was the 49th most common surname in Mainland China.[3]
 | |
| Pronunciation | Rén (Mandarin) Cantonese: Jyutping: jam4, Middle Chinese: /ȵiɪmH/ Old Chinese: (Baxter–Sagart): /*n[ə]m-s/ (Zhengzhang): /*njɯms/ |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | Chinese |
| Origin | |
| Language(s) | Old Chinese |
| Other names | |
| Variant form(s) | Yam, Yum, Jen (Mandarin Wade Giles) |
| Derivative(s) | Im (Korean surname) |
The character 任 is typically pronounced (pinyin: rèn; Jyutping: jam6), but as a surname is pronounced "rén," as well as in Ren County in Hebei.
Ancient Surname
editRèn (妊) is a variant of the surname and one of the Eight Great Surnames of Chinese Antiquity. Unlike 任 it is a very rare surname
The Zuo Zhuan states that the surname Ren is a descendant of Fuxi's surname Fēng.
Some consider the two surnames to be related
Notable people
edit- Ren Guang (任光; died 29 AD), Eastern Han dynasty general, one of the Yuntai 28 generals
- Ren Shang (died 118), Eastern Han Protector General of the Western Regions
- Ren Jun (died 204), Eastern Han dynasty military officer
- Ren Yaxiang (died 662), Tang dynasty general and chancellor
- Ren Zhigu (fl. 692), chancellor of Empress Wu Zetian
- Ren Huan (died 927), Later Tang general and chancellor
- Ren Renfa (1254–1327), Yuan dynasty artist and irrigation expert
- Ren Xiong (1823–1857), painter of the Shanghai School
- Ren Xun (1835–1893), painter, brother of Ren Xiong
- Ren Bonian (1840–1896), painter of the Shanghai School, nephew of Ren Xiong and Ren Xun
- Ren Zhu (died 1867), Nien Rebellion leader
- Ren Fuchen (1884–1918), Soviet Red Army commander
- Ren Guang (1900–1941), composer
- Ren Bishi (1904–1950), early Communist leader
- Chih-Kung Jen (Ren Zhigong; 1906–1995), Chinese-American physicist
- Yam Kim-fai (任劍輝, 1913–1989), opera actress
- Ren Mei'e (1913–2008), geologist
- Ren Zhongyi (1914–2005), Communist Party Chief of Liaoning and Guangdong province
- Ren Xinmin (1915–2017), aerospace engineer
- Ren Jiyu (1916–2009), philosopher, scholar
- Ren Rong (1917–2017), general and Communist Party Chief of Tibet Autonomous Region
- Ren Rongrong (任溶溶; 1923–2022), children's literature writer and translator
- Ren Jianxin (1925–2024), President of the Supreme People's Court of China
- Ren Zhengfei (born 1944), founder, chairman and CEO of Huawei
- Ren Wanding (born 1944), founder of Chinese Human Rights League
- Yum Sin-ling (Ren Shanning; born 1948), Hong Kong politician
- Joseph Yam (任志剛, born 1948), Hong Kong statistician
- Ren Zhiqiang (born 1951), Chinese property tycoon and critic of the government
- Gish Jen (Ren Bilian; born 1955), American writer
- Simon Yam (Ren Dahua; born 1955), Hong Kong actor
- Ren Runhou (1957–2014), former Vice Governor of Shanxi province
- Ren Jianxin (born 1959), founder and president of ChemChina
- Ren Yexiang (born 1961), actress
- Vivian Wing-Wah Yam (Ren Yonghua; born 1963), Hong Kong chemist
- Ren Xuefeng (1965–2019), Party Chief of Guangzhou and Deputy Party Chief of Guangdong and Chongqing
- Richie Jen (Ren Xianqi; born 1966), Taiwanese singer and actor
- Yam Kai-bong (任啟邦, born 1978), Hong Kong politician
- Edward Yum (Ren Liangxian; born 1979), Hong Kong politician, son of Yum Sin-ling
- Alex Yam (任梓铭, born 1981), Singaporean politician
- Selina Jen (Ren Jiaxuan; born 1981), Taiwanese singer, member of S.H.E
- Ren Hui (born 1983), female speed skater, Olympic medalist
- Ren Han (born 1984), artist
- Ren Yongshun (born 1985), football player
- Ren Cancan (born 1986), world champion female boxer
- Ren Ye (born 1986), female field hockey player, Olympic medalist
- Ren Hang (1987–2017), photographer
- Ren Suxi (born 1988), Chinese actress and singer
- Ren Hang (born 1989), football player
- Ren Xin (born 1989), football player
- Ren Jialun (born 1989), Chinese actor and singer
- Ren Junfei (born 1990), basketball player
- Ren Hao (任豪) (born 1995), Chinese singer, member of R1SE
- Ren Ziwei (born 1997), speed skater
References
edit- ^ "百家姓" [Hundred Family Surnames] (in Chinese). Guoxue. Retrieved 2014-09-16.
- ^ 中国最新300大姓排名（2008） [300 most common surnames in China (2008)] (in Chinese). Taiwan.cn. 2009-01-06. Retrieved 2014-09-18.
- ^ "新京报 - 好新闻，无止境".
This page lists people with the surname Ren.
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If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.