Xiang (surname)

Not to be confused with Xiang (surname 項).

Xiang is the pinyin romanization of the Chinese surnames: Xiàng (Chinese: 向; Xiàngⓘ) and Xiāng (Chinese: 相). It means “to go forward”

It originated from several sources. First, from Xiang, an ancient state (located in Shandong province), destroyed in the early Spring and Autumn period.[1] Secondly from Xiang, an ancient state located in Henan province, which was destroyed in the late Western Zhou dynasty. Thirdly from the first character of the personal name Xiang Fu (向父), the style name of Bi, son of the Duke Huan in the state of Song.

  1. ^ Patrick Hanks, Peter McClure, and Richard Coates, The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland