Among the many surnames in our country, Chen is the fifth largest surname in terms of population. The surname Chen was first derived from the surname Gui, a descendant of Emperor Shun. After King Wu of Zhou established the Zhou Dynasty, he found Hu Gongman, a descendant of Shun, and granted him a title in Chen to establish the State of Chen. At the time of Duke Ming of Chen, the state of Chen was destroyed by Chu. After the fall of the state, the descendants of the state of Chen took the name of the original state as their surname, so they had the surname Chen.
In addition to the name of the country, the surname Chen is also derived from other surnames, one of which was renamed by ethnic minorities. According to "Book of Wei·Guan Shi Zhi", during the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Xianbei aristocrat Hou Mochen changed his surname to Chen after he moved the capital to Luoyang with Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
1. Changes of the Chen surname
After thousands of years of reproduction and reproduction, people with the Chen surname have spread all over the land of China, forming communities such as Yingchuan, Runan, Xiapi, Guangling, The Chen family centered on Donghai and other places. The migration of the Chen surname from its place of origin to the south began with Chen Bo, the Taiwei of the Western Jin Dynasty, who moved his family south to present-day Danyang County, Jiangsu Province. Later, his grandson Chen Shida became the county magistrate of Changcheng (now Changxing, Zhejiang), so people surnamed Chen moved to Zhejiang. Chen Baxian established the Chen Dynasty in the Southern Dynasty, which made the Chen family famous for a while and spread over the vast area between the Yangtze River and the Yuejiang River. During the reign of Emperor Gaozong of the Tang Dynasty, people surnamed Chen entered Fujian, Guangdong and other places. After the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, the Central Plains region suffered from long-term wars, and a large number of people with the surname Chen moved south and even developed overseas, thus further strengthening the team of people with the surname Chen in Jiangnan. Today, the surname Chen has become the fifth most common surname in mainland China and the most common surname in Taiwan.
2. The surname Chen is brilliant and brilliant
Throughout the past and present, people with the surname Chen have left a glorious mark in the history of their family.
In the Spring and Autumn Period, there was Chen Yuan, one of Confucius' disciples. Chen Sheng, the leader of the peasant uprising in the late Qin Dynasty, pioneered a peasant uprising in Chinese history. In the early years of the Han Dynasty, Chen Ping assisted Liu Bang, and in the late Han Dynasty, there was Chen Lin, a great writer who was one of the "Seven Sons of Jian'an". In the late Western Han Dynasty, Chen Tang attacked the Xiongnu many times. During Wang Mang's reign, Chen Zun gained great power and was named Jiaweihou. During the Three Kingdoms period, Chen Deng conspired with his father to drive a wedge between Lu Bu and Yuan Shu. "Three Kingdoms" by Chen Shou of the Jin Dynasty is one of the most popular history books among the "Twenty-Four Histories". During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, there were famous generals such as Chen Qingzhi and Chen Bozhi. The most famous person named Chen during this period was Chen Baxian, the founder of Chen in the Southern Dynasty.
During the Tang and Song Dynasties, people with the surname Chen also had a large number of famous people and talented people. In politics, during the Tang Dynasty, there were prime ministers Chen Shuda, Chen Xilie, and Chen Yixing; during the Song Dynasty, there were Chen He, who fought against the eunuchs, and Chen Junqing, who was upright. In terms of literature and poetry, there are Chen Ziang, Chen Hong and Chen Tao in the Tang Dynasty; Chen Pengnian, Chen Shidao and Chen Yuyi in the Song Dynasty. In addition, there are thinkers and writers Chen Liang and painter Chen Juzhong. A number of peasant uprising leaders also emerged during the Tang and Song Dynasties, such as Chen Shuozhen, the female leader of the peasant uprising army in the late Tang Dynasty, and Chen, Chen Dong, and Chen Sanqiang during the Southern Song Dynasty. In addition, famous people with Chen names in the Tang and Song Dynasties include the eminent monk Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty whose real surname was Chen, and the famous general Chen Xuanli. In the Yuan Dynasty, there was Chen Youliang, the general of the Red Scarf Army; in the Ming Dynasty, there were the Sanqu writer Chen Duo, the patriotic poet Chen Zilong, the writer Chen Jiru, and the travelers Chen Cheng and Chen Chen; in the Qing Dynasty, there were the travelers Chen Gongyin, Chen Wenshu, Chen Weisong, Chen Hang, Chen Duansheng, and Chen Li, and thinkers Chen Jian, Chen Xianzhang, Chen Que, painter Chen Hongshou, etc. Among the generals and prime ministers are Chen Zilong, a famous general who fought against the Qing Dynasty in the late Ming Dynasty, Chen Hongmou, a scholar of Dongge University during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, and Chen Huacheng, who died heroically in the Opium War. The peasant uprisings were led by Chen Kai, the leader of the Tiandihui in the late Qing Dynasty, and Chen Yucheng and Chen Decai, the young generals in the Taiping Rebellion. In the Qing Dynasty, there were also classics scholars Chen Huan, Chen Li, Chen Qiaochong, and writer Chen Li. In modern times, there are democratic revolutionaries Chen Zuoxin and Chen Tianhua, proletarian revolutionaries Chen Tanqiu, Chen Yannian, Chen Yi, Chen Geng, Chen Yun, early Communist Party leader Chen Duxiu and National People's Congress Vice Chairman Chen Shutong, and senior Kuomintang generals Chen Lifu, Chen Guofu and Chen Cheng. wait. There are also modern historians Chen Yinke and Chen Yuan, famous scholars Chen Wangdao, mathematician Chen Jingrun, writer Chen Yan, famous poets Chen Sanli and Chen Qubing, painter Chen Hengke, opera musician Chen Yanheng, playwright Chen Moxiang, and film artist Chen Boer. In addition, there are many famous overseas Chinese figures, such as Chen Yixi, who benefited the country, patriotic industrialist Tan Kah Kee, Sun Yat-sen's close friend Chen Youren, etc.
3. Chen’s name
1. Chen Sheng, leader of the peasant uprising
Chen Sheng, courtesy name She, was from Yangcheng. When Chen Sheng was young, he made a living by working as a long-term laborer for others. One time, he and his companions were resting in the fields. He said to his companions: "If some of us become rich in the future, don't forget our old friends!" They all laughed. , said: "You work hard for others to farm, how do you get wealth?" Chen Sheng sighed and said to himself: "Oh, how can a sparrow understand the ambition of a swan goose!"
BC In 209, Chen Sheng, Wu Guang and others were conscripted to garrison Yuyang. When they reached Daze Township, continuous heavy rain delayed their journey. According to the laws of the Qin Dynasty, they should be executed. Chen Sheng and Wu Guang decided to revolt. Taking advantage of people's superstition, they wrote the words "King Chen Sheng" on a piece of white silk and stuffed it into the belly of a fish caught by someone else. The soldiers came back from buying the fish and were surprised to find the words on the piece of white silk. In the middle of the night, Wu Guang quietly ran to a ruined temple near the barracks, lit a bonfire, pretended to bark like a fox, and then shouted: "Da Chu Xing, King Chen Sheng." After hearing this, the soldiers in the whole camp were even more shocked and shocked. Afraid.
Chen Sheng and Wu Guang saw that the time was ripe for an uprising, so they killed the two officers leading them and launched an uprising in Daze Township. The uprising team developed rapidly and established the Zhang Chu regime in Chen County, with Chen Sheng proclaiming himself king. Then Chen Sheng sent troops to attack Zhao, Wei and other places, and sent the main force to attack the Guanzhong area. However, due to the counterattack of the Qin army's superior force, Chen Sheng was defeated and killed by the traitor Zhuang Jia.
2. Chen Shou, the author of "Three Kingdoms"
Chen Shou, courtesy name Chengzuo, was a native of Anhan, Brazil County (now Nanchong, Sichuan). He studied under the famous scholar Qiao Zhou since he was a child. When he grew up, he served as the chief official of General Wei in the Shu Han Dynasty. Later, he became an important official around the emperor who managed memorials. In the late Shu Han Dynasty, he was demoted by Liu Chan to an unranked clerical clerk - Shu Zuo. After the establishment of the Western Jin Dynasty, Emperor Wu of the Jin Dynasty promoted him as Xiaolian and made him responsible for compiling the history of the country. His "Three Kingdoms" is regarded as one of the "Four Histories" of historical masterpieces.
It is said that when Chen Shou was about to compile the "Three Kingdoms", he accidentally met a Liangzhou governor named Ding one day. This man was a descendant of Ding Yi and Ding brothers. Chen Shou said to him very arrogantly: "If you give me a thousand dendrobium rice, then I will write a very good biography for your fathers." The governor ignored him, so Chen Shou actually There is no biography for the Ding brothers. Therefore, people at that time despised him as a person. However, "Three Kingdoms" written by Chen Shou has concise writing and detailed records. It is an important historical material for studying the period of the Three Kingdoms and also became the blueprint for later "The Romance of the Three Kingdoms".
3. Drunk Eyes Painting Chen Hongshou
Chen Hongshou, whose courtesy name is Zhanghou, whose childhood name is Lianzi, whose given name is Xu'an, whose nickname is Laolian, whose nicknames include Xiaojingming, Laochi, Huichi, Huisheng, etc., is from Fengqiao, Zhuji, Zhejiang. A famous painter in the late Ming Dynasty.
Chen Hongshou loved painting when he was young. It is said that when he was five years old, his mother asked him to borrow a bamboo sieve from his uncle's house. When he saw the newly painted wall table at his uncle's house, he couldn't help but paint a portrait of Guan Yu. . In the painting, Guan Yu is stroking his beard with one hand and holding "Spring and Autumn" in the other. He is eight or nine feet long and looks so energetic that his uncle kowtows in fear. When Chen Hongshou was 10 years old, he became a disciple of famous painters Sun Huo and Lan Ying. According to Zhou Lianggong's "Records of Reading Paintings", when Chen Hongshou was a boy, he took home the stone carvings of the Seventy-Two Sages written by Li Gonglin, a scholar in Hangzhou, and copied them repeatedly, and asked Lan Ying for advice on the copy. Lan Ying said it was very similar, and he was very happy. After copying it again, he asked again, and Lan Ying said that it was no longer the same, and he was even happier. It can be seen that Chen Hongshou realized from an early age that he should not imitate the past, but should create his own style by learning from the achievements of his predecessors.
Chen Hongshou’s painting interests mainly focus on figure painting. When he was 14 years old, as soon as his works were put on the market, people would pay for them. When he was 15 years old, he was invited to make longevity pictures and essays for people. His representative works include "Water Margin Leaves", "Bogu Leaves", "Nine Songs", "The Romance of the West Chamber" and other embroidery illustrations, all of which were woodcut by famous craftsmen and praised by contemporary international scholars as "representatives of many thoroughly unique styles that emerged in the seventeenth century." The first person in art", he is the author of "Baoluntang Collection", "Avoiding Chaotic Grass", etc.
Although Chen Hongshou was an outstanding painter in the late Ming Dynasty, his life was rough. When he was young, he went to Beijing several times to take exams but failed. He had no choice but to sell his paintings to save money and enter the Imperial Academy. After seeing through the darkness and corruption in the government, he left. After the establishment of the Qing Dynasty, a friend named Wang persuaded Chen Hongshou to take the exam. He wrote in a poem: "The two kings do not persuade me to become an official... A pair of drunken eyes can see the green mountains.
"He was both nostalgic and desperate for the Ming Dynasty, and finally became a monk and died at the age of 55