| Yi | |
| Pronunciation: | Yì (Pinyin) E̍k, Ī (Pe̍h-ōe-jī) |
| Language: | Chinese |
| Language origin: | Old Chinese |
| Variant: | Yi, Yih (Mandarin) Yick or Yik (Cantonese) Ek, Yee (Hokkien) |
Yi (易) is a Chinese surname. In Cantonese it is transliterated as Yick or Yik, the Chinese commercial code (CCC) of which is 2496. It is also rarely spelled as Yih or Ie, depending on where it is originated.
According to the book Hundred Family Surnames, the Yi family originated from Jiang (姜) family who moved to Yi county (present day Chang county in Hebei province). The other place of origin is Yi county (present day Yi county in Hebei province). During the period of Qin dynasty, the Yi family were mainly situated at Shandong and Henan. At the end of Eastern Han dynasty until the beginning of Southern and Northern Dynasties period, they started to scatter across the central plains, and moving toward present day Hunan province.
Yi surname ranks 106th among other family surnames in mainland China with members up to more than 1.7 million, making 0.12% of total Chinese population. A 2013 study found that it was the 114th most-common name, shared by 1.75 million people, or 0.130% of the population, with the largest province being Hunan.[1]