Xu

Variations in other Chinese varieties and languages

In Wu Chinese including Shanghainese, the surname 徐 is transcribed as Zee, as seen in the historical place name Zikawei in Shanghai (Xujiahui in Pinyin). In Gan Chinese, it can be spelled Hi or Hé.

In Cantonese, 徐 is often transcribed as Tsui, T'sui, Choi, Chooi, Chui or even Tsua.

In modern Vietnamese, the character 徐 is written Từ and Sy when migrating to the English-speaking World, particularly the United States. Other spellings include Hee and Hu.

In Japanese, the surname 徐 is transliterated as Omomuro (kunyomi) or Jo (onyomi or Sino-Japanese).

In Korean, 徐 is romanized as Seo in the Revised Romanization of Korean and written 서 in Hangul.

Origin

According to legend, Ruomu was one of the two sons of Boyi. Boyi successfully assisted Yu the Great with resolving the Flood, so the King conferred one of the eight noble tribal names, Yíng, to the family of Boyi; and simultaneously Ruomu was appointed as the King of the land of Xú. This was the beginning of the establishment of the state Xú. The state has been reigned over by the royal family for more than a thousand years, and had 44 monarchs.

The state of Xú was eliminated by the state of Wú, since then in order to commemorate their ancestral pride, descendants of King Ruo'mu adopted their country's name, Xú, as their surname. Therefore, the surname, Xú, is originated from King Ruo'mu, and it belongs to the noble tribe of Yíng.

The surename Xu also belongs to a branch of surename Zi.

Jiangsu is the province with the highest concentration of the surname Xu.

Notable people with surname

Abbey Hsu (born 2001), American basketball player

Agnes Hsu-Tang, American archaeologist, art historian, and philanthropist

Barbie Hsu (徐熙媛; 1976–2025), more commonly known as Dà S or Big S (大S), Taiwanese actress, singer, and television host

Dee Hsu (徐熙娣; born 1978), more commonly known as Xiǎo S or Little S (小S), a Taiwanese television and film actress

Stephen Hsu, American theoretical physicist and technology startup founder

Hsu Cheng-kuang, Minister of Mongolian and Tibetan Affairs Commission of the Republic of China (2000–2002)

Hsu Chen-wei (born 1968), county magistrate of Hualien Magistrate

Hsu Ching-chung (徐慶鐘), Vice Premier of the Republic of China (1972–1981)

Hsu Chun-yat, Minister of Public Construction Commission of the Republic of China (2014–2016)

Hsu Jan-yau, Governor of Taiwan Province (2016–2017)

Hsu Jo-ting, Taiwanese fencer

Hsu Kuo-yung, Minister of the Interior of the Republic of China

Hsu Li-teh, Vice Premier of the Republic of China (1993–1997)

Hsu Ming-chun, Deputy Mayor of Kaohsiung (2016–2018)

Fictional characters

Xu Ning (徐寧), in Water Margin

Xu Qing (徐慶), from the 19th-century Chinese novels The Seven Heroes and Five Gallants and The Five Younger Gallants

Xu Shang-Chi (徐尚氣), portrayed by Simu Liu in the Marvel Cinematic Universe multimedia franchise, based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name

Colonel James Hsu, in Fallout: New Vegas