Buddhist surname
In East Asian Buddhism, monks and nuns usually adopt a Buddhist surname and a Dharma name, which are combined in the surname-first East-Asian naming order. Since the 4th century the standard Buddhist surname has been Shi (Chinese: 釋, Korean: Seok, Vietnamese: Thích,[1] Japanese: Shaku), which is the first syllable of Shijiamoni, the Chinese word for Shakyamuni.[2] This practice was introduced by the Jin dynasty (266–420) monk Dao'an in around 370, when he stayed in Xiangyang,[3] and became general practice in China after 385.[2] Previously Chinese monks and nuns used several other Buddhist surnames, typically designating the ethnonational origin of their foreign preceptors.[2]
| Shi | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese name | |||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 釋 | ||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 释 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Vietnamese name | |||||||||||||
| Vietnamese | Thích | ||||||||||||
| Korean name | |||||||||||||
| Hangul | 석 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Japanese name | |||||||||||||
| Hiragana | しゃく | ||||||||||||
| Shinjitai | 釈 | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
The most notable early surname was Zhu (Chinese: 竺; pinyin: Zhú; Wade–Giles: Chu2; Jyutping: Zuk1),[4] which came from Tianzhu (the Chinese word for India).[5] Jingjian (292–361) or Zhu Jingjian was the first nun of China. Daosheng (c. 360–434) or Zhu Daosheng was one of the last influential monks to use Zhu rather than Shi.[2]
Other Buddhist surnames included:
- Zhi (Chinese: 支) which came from Yuezhi or its successor state, the Kushan Empire.[6] Examples include Zhi Qian and Zhi Dun.
- An (Chinese: 安) which came from Anxi (the Chinese word for Arsacid). Examples include An Xuan and An Shigao.[7]
- Yu (Chinese: 于) which came from Yutian (the Chinese word for Khotan).[8]
- Kang (Chinese: 康) which was a designation for Sogdiana. An example is Kang Senghui.[9]
- Bo (Chinese: 帛) which came from the Chinese word for the surname of several Kucha kings, Bo (Chinese: 白).[10]
The adoption of a Buddhist surname signifies the ordinand's severance of family bonds and their full devotion to the teachings of the Buddha.[2]
References
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 905.
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 802.
- Zürcher, Erik (2013). "Buddhist Influence on Early Daoism: A Survey of Scriptural Evidence". In Silk, Jonathan A. (ed.). Buddhism in China: Collected Papers of Erik Zürcher. Brill. p. 113. ISBN 978-90-04-25093-2.
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 1058.
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 913.
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 1055.
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 37.
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 1040.
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 414.
- Buswell and Lopez, p. 127.
- Buswell, Robert E., Jr.; Lopez, Donald S., Jr. (2014). The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism. Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-15786-3.