Chapter 3 Section 2 single name and double name

Some people in the pre-Qin period had single names and some had double names, but generally speaking, there were more single names and fewer double names.As far as Confucius and his disciples are concerned, they are almost all single names. "Historical Records: Biography of Zhongni's Disciples" lists a total of 77 people, and only a few have double names.In the Han, Wei and Jin Dynasties, single names still had a clear advantage.There were slightly more double names in the Southern and Northern Dynasties, but in the Tang and Song Dynasties they gradually became more dominant.For the literati and bureaucrats in the Qing Dynasty, double names seemed to have an absolute advantage.

The reason why a person's name has changed from a single name to a double name is a manifestation of the complexity of naming and character selection.The reasons for the double name are as follows: First, single names are not easy to express ideological desires.For example, Yan Hui, Su Qin, Liu Bang, and Zhou Yu couldn't express a complete meaning, but they were not as good as Zheng Shi, Du Yannian, Yu Dingguo, Tan Daoji, Wang Zhen'e, etc., who could fully express their ambitions, ambitions, and wishes. Second, the more complicated the way of naming and selecting characters later, the more extensive the materials used, such as citing scriptures, using allusions, and using the names of ancient people. A single name is not as convenient as a double name.

Thirdly, people’s idea of ​​expressing blood relationship and sequence of seniority through names gradually strengthened, and characters for seniority appeared; people of the same generation share a symbol of seniority, and choose another character to represent themselves. Formed a dual-name pattern.