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October 12, 2008 4:03:33 PM CDT

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100 Surnames for 1.3B People Causes Chinese Confusion

Posted Jul 5, 08 8:39 AM CDT in Arts & Living,  World 

(Newser) – The Chinese call them liaobaixing, or "old 100 names," and they are so partial to those 100 traditional surnames, Radio Free Netherlands tells us, that over 90% of the country's population of 1.3 billion share them. The profusion of Wangs, Chen, Lis and Wus creates powerful feelings of kinship, but also wreaks bureaucratic havoc. 

In one hospital, 9-year-old Wang Lan was given medicine meant for another Wang Lan and the mistake was not corrected until staff could check through all 227 Wang Lans in the system. Parents often try to give their offspring inventive surnames to help them stand out from the crowds of Chens. "Auyun," meaning "Olympic Games," has been big this year and many were christened "Hope for Sichuan" after May's devastating earthquake.

Source Radio Free Netherlands

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Survivors search through names of Sichuan earthquake victims. The homogenity of Chinese surnames often leads to mix-ups, some of them tragic.   (Getty Images)
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, right, listens as Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan, left, delivers his statement during a joint opening statement of the China Strategic Economic Dialogue, June 17.   (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
Sisters Wu Nana and Wu Shasha hold a picture of their father, Wu Chunping, who died in a landslide in June. Their mother, Wang Fenglian, and brother, Wu Huihui, were also killed.   (AP Photo/Xinhua, Peng Yang)
Chinese earthquake survivor Wu Guangtian, 92, left, rests with his wife Yang Ancui, 85, in a tent in Chenjiaba town of Mianyang, China's southwest Sichuan province, Sunday, June 8, 2008.   (AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan)
Wang Qishan, vice premier of the People's Republic of China, left, and China's Commerce Minister Chen Deming, right, stand during a signing ceremony to formalize business deals between U.S. and Chinese...   (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
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