Liu
Liú surname in traditional Chinese characters | |
| Pronunciation | Liú ([ljǒʊ]) (Pinyin) Lau4 Lâu (Pe̍h-ōe-jī) |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean |
| Origin | |
| Language(s) | Old Chinese |
| Other names | |
| Variant form(s) | Liú (Mandarin) Lau (Cantonese, Hokkien) Lieu (Shanghainese) Lưu (Vietnamese) Yoo, Ryu (Korean) Ryu (Japanese) Liew (Malaysia) |
| See also | Lưu Yoo (Korean surname) |
Liu (simplified Chinese: 刘; traditional Chinese: 劉; /ljoʊ/ or /ljuː/) is an East Asian surname. pinyin: Liú in Mandarin Chinese, Lau4 in Cantonese. It is the family name of the Han dynasty emperors. The character 劉 originally meant 'battle axe', but is now used only as a surname. It is listed 252nd in the classic text Hundred Family Surnames. Today, it is the 4th most common surname in mainland China as well as one of the most common surnames in the world.