Research On The Surnaming System Expressed From The Bronze Inscriptions In Jin Area

During the period of the Shang and Zhou Dynasty, Surname(性) and Shi (氏) have different meanings, while Surname was used as the symbol of consanguinity, Shi standed for the social station. After the Epoch of Warring States, the inner sense of Surname was commingled and even replaced by Shi. The Social symblizing function of Shi disappeared, and the user of Shi changed from the nobles to the commons. And also, all the people used Shi instead of Surname, the difference between Surname and Shi never existed. This change is called as'the Integration of Surname and Shi', it is a longtime process, and various in professions and regions.To study the integration of Surname and Shi, we shall investigate their formation and regulation. It is hard to put all the countries into the research for their different political systems and custioms. So we choose Jin area which preserves the most plentful and reliable bronze inscriptions, on which numerous names of the officials and artisans were carved by tight rules. We also compare the bronze inscription with characters on potteries, seals, lacquer wares, bamboo silk, and documents, to study the difference of surnaming system between Zhao, Wei and Han, between Jin and other countries, and between pre-Qin and Han dynasty.This paper investigates the surname situation of officials, srtisans and common people in Jin area, including the using custom, surname composition and distribution, in order to get a new understanding on the integration of Surname and Shi.