Lü
吕 · traditionally 呂 — Lǚ
The 47th most common surname in China
5.6 million bearers, 0.47% of the Chinese population, and the 47th most common surname, as of 2002 (English Wikipedia, "Lü (surname)", accessed September 2026). It is 22nd in the Hundred Family Surnames, in the line 何呂施張.
Where the name comes from
The surname comes from the State of Lü. A branch of the Jiang (姜) clan, said to descend from the legendary Yan Emperor, was enfeoffed at Lü by Yu the Great, according to the Tang-dynasty genealogy Yuanhe Xing Zuan. The first known bearer is Lü Shang — better known as Jiang Ziya — the top general who led the Zhou army to defeat the Shang at the Battle of Muye.
The same name, spelled differently
A Chinese surname is a character, not a spelling. The Latin letters on a passport come from whichever dialect the name was written down from — so these are all 吕.
- LüMandarin — mainland China, Taiwan
- LuiCantonese — Hong Kong (e.g. actor Ray Lui)
- LữVietnamese
- YeoKorean — the 법칙 여 ("rule" Yeo) clan, hanja 呂; older romanisations Ryŏ, Lyuh
The character
Outside a name, 吕 is an ordinary word meaning a musical note.
- Strokes
- 6
- Radical
- 口
- Traditional
- 呂
- As a word
- lǚ