The Customs of Names and Naming of Han Nationality in Sichuan

Word generation, also known as word school, refers to the words used to represent family generations in names (mostly words in the middle of names), commonly known as school. Its implication is self-cultivation, family harmony, peace and prosperity. Word generation is an important naming form handed down by China for thousands of years, and it is also a special "ritual" system in ancient China, which has continued to modern times. For various reasons, from 1970s to 1980s, the genealogy of Ci generation began to be unfamiliar to the world, especially among the younger generation.

The ancients said: "It is better to give a child a thousand dollars than to teach him a skill;" Give him a good name, it is better to teach him a skill. "It can be seen that the ancients paid special attention to naming. Ancient parents would think hard about their children's names before they were born. In the eyes of the ancients, a name is not only a label and symbol of a person, but also carries a person's spiritual and emotional will, which can improve fortune and future to a certain extent.

This paper will talk about the past naming customs and naming customs of the Han nationality in Sichuan.

The custom of Han people substituting names for characters originated in the Eastern Jin Dynasty and the Southern and Northern Dynasties. At that time, some children of Han nationality became popular to be named after their generation. By the Song and Yuan Dynasties, the naming custom of substitute characters had been popularized in many areas. Before 1970s and 1980s, most Sichuanese were also named after their word generation. After that, the word generation spectrum was gradually unfamiliar to Sichuanese.

First, the word generation, surname and font size

(1) Substitution characters are usually called school, first line, school order, etc., which are used to indicate the naming order of blood relatives.

During the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, the names of Sichuanese generally consisted of three words. The first word is the surname, which was handed down by our ancestors and cannot be changed. The second word is usually a substitute word (there are also a few families who put the substitute word in the third word). The third word is taken by parents, usually the father.

Names taken by words instead of words are called "surnames" and "spectral names".

According to the 100-volume book "Ming Shi Wang Shi Biao Yi", during the Hongwu period, Taizu saw many descendants and was afraid of the same name. He drew up twenty crosses for the East Palace and the North Wang Shi family, stipulating that future generations must take two names according to their seniority, with the former word taken according to their seniority and the latter word taken according to the "five elements" (in the order of Jin Mu's fire, water and soil).

There were more than 200 years in Shu town in Ming dynasty, and all the kings of Shu were named according to their generations, which had a great influence on the naming custom in Sichuan. By the middle and late Ming dynasty, Sichuan had widely used characters to replace names. For example, the Pu surname in Guang 'an, Sichuan, was named after generations at the latest in the fifth generation. Hongya Li, the ancestor of General Li Jiayu, was also a name handed down from generation to generation in the Ming Dynasty. The royal family in the Qing Dynasty was also named in strict accordance with the generation of characters, and local officials and ordinary people followed suit.

At the beginning of Qing Dynasty, after immigrants entered Sichuan, quite a few people re-established the "word generation spectrum" as the "first batch of immigrants", and some people still used the previous word generation spectrum. When a few immigrants first entered Sichuan, they were not named after the word generation, or there was no word generation, but after two or three generations, they were also named after the word generation, which was used by future generations. For example, 6 kilometers northeast of Dayi County, there are Guojiaba and Guoshangou, all of which are places where the Guo family lives together. In the early Qing Dynasty, he moved to his ancestral home in Guo Fu and entered Sichuan. It was not named after his word generation at that time. After three generations, it began to be named after academic generations.

The name given by seniority is the surname. The surname is usually called "Daming" by Sichuanese.

The words used in the word pedigree do not seem to have much meaning in isolation, but together, they are often a profound rhyme. Generally speaking, it has the significance of educating future generations to strive for progress, respect the old and love the young, be upright and upright, be both loyal and filial, and hand down poems and books. There are several important principles when determining generations: after the ancestors are determined, no matter how powerful the descendants are, they cannot be changed; Contemporaries should avoid homophones and words; When the last word on the genealogy begins to be used, the patriarch or parents have the responsibility to compile a new genealogy for future generations, and the number of words in the new genealogy should be the same as that in the old genealogy.

For example, the generation order of the Li family in Luojiang is: "Virtue is respected at the end of the court, and teenagers are respected at the court. The filial piety is far away, and the ancestors have long worked. "

The second generation of Pu surname in Guang 'an is "Jin Dian Yao, Huating Xianzong, Xinfeng Mei Qing, Junfa Changlong, Jianxing Jiashou, who has made contributions from generation to generation, and has a wide career."

The generation of Roche in Luobugou, Suining: "Less yuan is the country, I am in the court; Hongkai Jing Yun, a native of Daqiwen; Wei Guangxian, Qi Dechang Ming; Loyalty and filial piety are sincere and long-lasting. "

The Liu family in Shuangliu ranks generations according to the hexagram names in Zhouyi, namely, salty, constant, golden, Thai, modest, beneficial, shoe, abundant, companion, ascending, complex, Ben, Xun, Bi, stone and Meng, and stipulates that each generation is named in the order of five elements, namely, water, wood, fire, earth and gold. When the word is salty, the name is biased towards fire; The formation of constant characters must take soil as the radical.

Li's generations in Pujiang are as follows: "Chao Xing, the country is rich and the people are safe, the heart of sex is here, and Zuze is here for generations."

The ranking of the Liu family in Anren, Dayi is: "We should set an example and be an official to learn. Human morality can be bright and abundant, just keep the word and say good things. Qing Yu does good deeds, which is a fixed branch. And calm down, ten thousand generations are homologous. "

There are two identical words in a few numeral generations. In order to avoid confusion, there are also some specific treatment methods. For example, the word generation of Daguan Moujia in Dayi is "to grasp the literati as the greatest, to learn and succeed." Cultivation and morality, kindness and peace. "There are two characters. Genealogy clearly stipulates that when naming, the first word in a generation must be placed in the next word in the double name, that is, the third word in the name; The second word, the last word in a double name, is the second word in a name.

(2) Surname is an old custom in Sichuan. Only fathers, grandfathers or elders have the right to take their children's surnames.

The specific naming time is not exactly the same for all ethnic groups in different places. Some children are born within a few days, some are after the full moon, and some have to wait until the child is three years old.

Many famous people in modern Sichuan were named after generations.

For example, Zhang Daqian, formerly known as Zhang Zhengquan, was selected according to the generation of the Zhang family's "honesty first"; Ba Jin's original name was taken according to the Li family's seniority, that is, "ruling the country by Tao Yao, celebrating the family, prospering, diligent in Xiu De, and abiding by scholarly family". His ancestors moved from Jiaxing, Zhejiang, and a new generation was established. Ba Jin is the second generation after entering Shu.

After Li's ancestors were substituted into Shu in the fifth place, they began to be named according to their generations. Li Jieren's father named him Li Jiaxiang according to the generational order of "fair family history and long history of poetry".

According to the custom of Qing dynasty, women generally don't take their surnames, and they don't formally give names. For example, Zhang, who was originally surnamed Zhang, was called after he married the Li family, putting his husband's surname first and his father's surname in the middle, expressing the social concept of "marrying a chicken with a chicken, marrying a dog with a dog" and "marrying a woman and splashing water". For example, Li (189 1 1962)' s great-grandmother, grandmother Li and mother Li can be referred to as Zhou, Peng and Yang for short on many occasions.

The main functions of surnames are: to reflect one's blood relationship, so that the descendants of the family can inherit it in an orderly and clear way, and clearly reflect everyone's position in the blood chain; On the basis of surnames, the clan brand is further strengthened, which provides a powerful reference for preventing future generations from intermarriage (further than the ancient "unmarried surname") and consanguineous marriage; Through genealogy and surname, we can understand the struggle history of this family, carry forward its hard struggle, and carry forward the virtues of respecting the old and loving the young, unity and mutual assistance.

After the May 4th New Culture Movement, some media and progressives advocated the "one name system" and opposed the division of names into surnames and first names. But the impact is very small, only a few people in the city respond, and the vast majority of people still implement the dual name system. After the New Culture Movement, the government began to require women to have names when registering, and began to give girls surnames and nicknames. Many women who had no names in the past also took names during this period. Unmarried women are usually supplemented by their fathers and married women by their husbands.

(3) Font size

In the past, in addition to the surname, there was a word in the name of Sichuanese, also called the font size or name. The relationship between font size and surname is generally literal. For example, as Luo Ting said, the word "Bo Zhang" can be spoken in court, and the articles written are also the best. Of course, this is because the namers are too eager for success.

Li Jieren takes his daughter's surname as Li Yuanshan. According to "the distant mountain is like Dai", Dai is also called Mei. The standard saying is: Li Yuanshan, the word Mei.

Choosing a font size requires some cultural knowledge. In the past, teachers or fortune tellers were usually asked to take care of their children when they were "confused" in rural areas in central Sichuan. After 1930s, all localities began to implement the "one name system" in household registration, conscription, taxation, enrollment and conscription, that is, only one name was recognized, and registrants were allowed to choose between ethnic names and personal names.

At that time, most Sichuanese believed that surnames were more dignified than surnames, and could only be called by people within the family, and outsiders could not call them casually. Generally, you choose a surname to register an account. Therefore, the folk practice the parallel system of names. At that time, newspapers and other media also adopted the method of combining surnames and numbers.

After the 1950s, the people's government adopted the one-person system. Not only in the aspects of household registration, recruitment, recruitment and enrollment, but also in newspapers, radio and other news media. From then on, when the average family named their children, they only took one name. Most families only take surnames, that is, they give their children names according to their generations, and no longer take surnames. During this period, some families only gave boys their surnames and girls other names.

After 1950s, many traditional clan customs were banned as "feudal remnants", and the naming methods of Sichuanese changed.

First of all, some people think that the name is just a symbol with no actual content, which can be changed at will, and even think that replacing the name with words is a factor of "feudal culture", which is completely negative. Therefore, many people no longer use words instead of names. Many names related to political movements began to appear. Such as "resisting America" and "aiding Korea" related to resisting America and aiding Korea. During the Cultural Revolution, people changed their old names, and a large number of fashionable names such as Weidong, Wei Hong, Ge Yong and Xiangdong appeared at one time.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the folk custom of taking a single name appeared again. Babies born in this period account for the vast majority of single names, with a high proportion of duplicate names and homonyms. It is impossible to distinguish the blood relationship of generations from the names, which is prone to the adverse consequences of consanguineous marriage.

(A) the characteristics of the times

In addition to replacing names with words mentioned above, Sichuanese have some interesting characteristics. From the difference between urban and rural areas, the names of rural people tend to be simple, while the names of urban people tend to be elegant. From the perspective of industry, businessmen are named after money, soldiers are named after martial arts, and teachers are named after Confucianism.

From the characteristics of the times, each era has the characteristics of naming words of each era. For example, during the Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, Sichuanese often used words related to traditional culture, traditional concepts and traditional moral norms: loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, righteousness, honesty, benefit, court, seal and so on. Secondly, there is often a custom of naming according to the ranking order. Common ones are:

1, the order is Bo, Zhong and Ji, and the third word is according to seniority;

2. According to the sequence of "five elements" in Jin Mu, there are many specific ways to take it: (1) Use its radicals: for example, when the eldest brother is named, use iron, copper, beryllium, terbium, etc. Next to the gold, and when the second child is named, the phase, rafter, machine and shovel beside the wood are used. (2) Use words with the same attributes and similar meanings, such as gold, copper, wood, snow, fire, thunder, fierce, sun, earth and mountain. (3) Use this word directly. 3, the order is the order, according to big, two, three, four, five.

/kloc-at the beginning of 0/950, when Sichuan was liberated, some people named their children "liberation" and "new life". Great Leap Forward, Three Red Flags, People's Commune High Tide 1958, many people name their children with the words "Yue", "Leap Forward", "Red Flag", "Gong", "She" and "Commune". After the Great Leap Forward, it once became fashionable to give children in towns single names, such as Zhang Wei, Li Wei and Wang Jun, which can be seen almost everywhere.

In the 1960s and 1970s, I loved to name my children with "red", "east", "soldier" and "Wei". In the traditional sense. Until the 1970s, Sichuanese generally hoped to have more children, which was also reflected in the naming. Many people named their first child "De (De) Group", hoping to have another group. If the first child is a daughter, some will be named "Zhao (Chao, Zhao) brother" and "Sheng brother", hoping to attract younger brothers.

After 80, some people gave their children a "foreign name"; In the 1990s, computers and the Internet became fashionable. Some people like to use computer and Internet terms to name their children, such as Moton and Internet. The custom of taking more than one name has caused the common phenomenon of primary and secondary school students sharing the same surname and the same name, which has caused many unnecessary misunderstandings.

(2) Nicknames

Nicknames are also called milk names, baby names and milk names. The average child is given a random name on the day of birth or a few days later, which is not very elegant. Parents have the right to give their children nicknames, and even other elders, neighbors and brothers can give their children nicknames. Sichuanese believe that if nicknames are cheap, children will grow up easily. Therefore, "dog wazi" and "Li wazi" are common.

There is also a class called "Big Wazi", "Second Wazi", "Third Wazi", "Big Sister" and "Yao Sister" in order of birth. Guo Moruo once wrote: "My mother said that when I was pregnant, I dreamed that a little leopard bit the jaw of her left hand and woke up. Therefore, my birth name is Bowen. " When Li was born, just after Duanyang, his parents named him Duan Wan, commonly known as Duan Wazi.

(3) mbth, nicknames and nicknames.

In Sichuan, there are also folk customs of taking other people's foreign names, nicknames and nicknames. It is usually taken by outsiders, and the parties may not necessarily know and agree. Some parties also resent these nicknames.

The method is generally as follows:

According to the physical appearance. Those with pockmarked faces are often called "pockmarked" according to their surnames; Short people are often called "short people"; Tall people are called "big men"; People with disabled feet are often called "Ji #" according to their surnames; People with disabled hands are called "claw hands"; Fat people are called "fat people"; People who wear glasses are called "glasses" or "four-eyed dogs". After entering the 1980s, outsiders often referred to young and middle-aged men with glasses they didn't know as "Brother Eye".

According to occupation. For example, acquaintances call him "Guo" in the tinker. In the 1980s, male taxi drivers were usually referred to as "brothers" and female drivers as "sisters".

According to his deeds, Zhao Erfeng, the governor of Sichuan in the late Qing Dynasty, killed many people and was called "the butcher Zhao" by the people. Li is old in his class and has great appeal. His classmates call him "Li Da" and "Gong Jing".

According to the educational background, the doctor surnamed Sun is often called Dr. Sun.

(4) pen name

Very popular among intellectuals. The reasons for using pseudonyms are extremely complicated. In the past, in order to avoid "literary inquisition", many intellectuals used pseudonyms when publishing articles. For example, Guo Moruo, a famous scholar in Sichuan, used more than 30 pen names. Jie Li, a famous Sichuan writer, wrote novels under the pen name "Lao Lazy" when he was young. Li Yaotang's pen name is Ba Jin. This custom still existed during the Cultural Revolution. After 1980s, the number of published works and its influence were related to the evaluation of technical titles, and the number of people using pseudonyms decreased greatly. I only see it in the literary and art circles today.