Origin of the Family Name and Migration Narrative
By Ted Marr, 25th Gen
1948 Bright Creek Family Genealogy contains two rather important articles. They are located on files 1.0024 to 1.0027. The first article is titled: Origin of the Family Name (1.0024-5), while the second one is Migration Narrative (1.0026-7). Besides discussing the origin of the clan’s name, the first article delved deeply into the origin of the line itself. The second article discusses how the line happened to settled at Bright Creek Village. Therefore, the Genealogy is called Bright Creek Family Genealogy.
To understand these two documents, we first translate Classical Chinese into Modern Chinese. If you go to the Chinese section under the same title, you will see that translation. Subsequently, the articles were translated into English.
After the translation passages below, I have analyzed these articles, including a discussion on the authorship and dates of the items.
The following is a Google Translation. Later, I will try to clean up some of the awkward language bit. For now, it provides some semblance of a translation.
File 1.0024-25
The origin of the Ma family’s surname and the analysis of descent
In the Song Dynasty, Zheng Yuzhong was well versed in history and wrote a book about surnames. The book lists thirty-two categories, and the most detailed description is the origin of the Ma family. It is said that the Ma family is a descendant of Boyi in the ancient Xiaqi era. The extravagant contributed a lot to the country, and he was named Ma Fujun. Therefore, Ma Fujun’s descendants use Ma as the surname. This is the Ma clan of the Ying surname, and the court’s given name is used as the surname. However, ZhaoShe was from the time of King Zhou, and as early as the King of Shang Zhou, Jiang Taigong married the surname Ma as his wife. This shows that the Ma clan had existed for a long time, and it was not from Zhao She, who was named Mafu Jun. Some. I also heard that during the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty, the imperial court ordered that the surname be removed, and only one character should be used as the surname. This is convenient for writing. For example, Sima Qian was changed to Ma Qian, but the surname was restored in a short time. A faction surnamed Ma Ying lived in Xianyang during the Qin and Han dynasties. In the Jianwu period of the Eastern Han Dynasty, Ma Yuan was named General Fubo and Xinxi Hou by the court. He was from Maoling. Now Maoling belongs to Fufeng, Shaanxi Province. At that time, everyone called the local Ma family the Fufeng Ma family. During the Dezong period of the Tang Dynasty, Ma Sui lived in Jiacheng, Ruzhou, Henan, and was named the king of Peking County. They belonged to a faction surnamed Ma. In addition, Ma Zuchang’s great-grandfather, Yuehe, was a Mongolian. He served as the commander of the horse infantry in the Mongolian army. His descendants used their ancestor’s official posts and used horses as their surnames, and they were not from the Ma family’s Fufeng faction. Xian is called Yizhi. He was originally from the Geluolu family. His Han surname was Ma. He lived in the west of Jinshan for generations. Later, he lived scattered on the mainland. People with the surname Ma also shared the surname Ma. The faction does not matter. According to the preface of the Ma family tree in Guangxi, in the Jiajing, Wanli, and Tianqi years of the Ming Dynasty, the re-edited Ma family tree was passed down from generation to generation. The Ma family’s ancestor Xiao Kuan Gong began from Henan Kaifeng migrated to the south of Bianhe, Jiangsu. They are descendants of Ma Sui, and they are undoubtedly descendants of General Fubo. There is no doubt that it is very wrong to live in Changshou Township, Maoshan, Zhejiang, according to their genealogy. Maoshan It was originally Shaoxing Juqu Mountain with Sanmao Taoist priests, so it is called Maoshan, while Maoshan in Qiantang, Zhejiang, is already a pseudonym. Changshou Township belongs to Fenghua’s territory. Even if there is a new Maoshan Temple, there is no Maoshan. Therefore, I moved to live here. It seems that people cannot believe it. A daughter of Yuan Yungong married to a family named Dalei Wang. Her grandson was married to Dalei Wang. Dalei belonged to Taoyuan Township, Zhejiang. Therefore, in the old Ma family tree, he was named by Gu Zhengong. It is indicated that Taoyuan Township has been living for generations and moved to Weijia Lane in the east of the county in the thirteenth year of Hongwu in the Ming Dynasty. In the genealogy of the Ma family in Fufeng, Yizhong, it was mentioned that Ma Tingluan, who was a scholar from a university at the time, said that Ma Tingluan and Yuan Yangong were brothers of the same great-grandfather. They did not know that Ma Tingluan was from Leping, Jiangxi, but Ma Duanlin. Yuan Yangong lives in a place called Siming in the east of Zhejiang. Ting Luan and Yuan Yang are in different places. How can they be the brothers of the same great-grandfather? If Ting Luan and Yuan Yang are the same, a great-grandfather’s kinship should be said to have migrated from Jiangxi, not from Kaifeng, Henan. There are many different opinions on the origin of the Ma family name, which makes the Ma family’s origin unclear. Isn’t it all the mistakes of the people who edited the Ma family tree that caused such consequences? The graveyard where Guo Chongtao worshipped Linggong was really ashamed! 1, 0024a_1, 0024b
One of Guangxi Ma’s Genealogical Book, Analysis of the Debate on the Origin of the Surname
The world respects the well-known and important historical annals and diagrams in ancient times. I am now re-editing the Ma family tree. I must first find out the ancestral roots of the beginning of their Ma family. We cannot let the world respect the re-edited Ma family tree, but we cannot make people humiliate and despise it. The original Ma family tree was related to their descent. The Ma family tribe in Dongxiang County delineated a red line, taking Ningxian as the first ancestor of the mountain, thinking that the Ma family who lived in Mingzhou developed from Ningxian. , But they were passed down on the genealogy of later generations, only written in Gu Zhen’s posthumous name, and there is no record of the name of Yuxian. This is a contradiction, a little far-fetched; otherwise, his brother’s name is Zhongliang, and he Is his son’s name Zhongyuan? And some people just ordered and asked to copy the old scores as they were. Whose fault is the confusion caused by this! In the past, I watched their Ma family Kuiqiao’s four-bedroom genealogy, with Zhong Neng Zhonglian and Zhong Liang’s name on it recorded the time of his birth and death was wrong. I consulted the Ma family. There are a few older people in here who are well-cultured and prestigious. Ask them to check and read them carefully, study and discuss them many times, and finally, they all suspect that they have made a mistake. The development of the lineage branch of a family’s genealogy is only for seeking roots and passing them on from generation to generation. Since the Ma family in the Northern Song Dynasty, Xiaokuan was born in Wu Geng, Wu Geng was born in Yuan Zhan, Yuan Yan was a scholar in high school, Yuan Yang was buried Jian’ao after his death, and Yuan Yang’s grandson Yun Tan was in Jian’ao’an. A home translation. Da Yougong and his younger brother Daxian chose to settle in Guangxi Town. Later, their Ma family members respected Yun Xiang as the ancestor who opened up the homestead to live in. He changed his name to Hui; he moved to live under the cypress trees in Wushan. This is the beginning of the name Mahu. Their Ma family ancestors are noble and worthy of respect. Their Ma family has grown and grown to this day. It is a prosperous family with a large living area and a large population. Now they have re-edited the genealogy of the Ma family. I have written the preface to the front. Don’t repeat it, just because there were some errors in the first two times’ prefaces. I am afraid that their Ma family’s descendants will pass on the mistakes from one generation to the next or believe in those mistakes, so I have written these, the debate and analysis of the development of the Ma family’s lineage branch, here.
1.0026-7 translation in English comes from Google translate. Later when I have time, I will clean up the language. For now, however rough is the translation, it provides some level of information.
In ancient times, people of the same tribe gathered to live together. When the people changed and the times changed, some people living in different places were not recorded in the genealogy, and eventually they were isolated so that their origins could not be traced back. Is this the meaning of the whole clan?
After investigation, the Ma family was originally a descendant of the Ying surname Boyi. The first emperor of Qin unified the surnames throughout the world. Moreover, the Ma family supported the wind, the Bo Dong Han talents emerged in large numbers, and the Fu Bo generals’ family, the most famous is the later Han Ma Rong, who lived in Maoling for generations. Set up a lecture hall to teach the disciples in the front, but there is a female music as a companion in the back. The world calls him a Taoist romantic. In the Western Jin Dynasty, You Malong defeated the bald tree function of the Xianbei people in Hexi and regained Liangzhou. There was Maxian in the Southern Qi. Qian was the governor of Yuzhou, and Ma Yin was the king of Chu, later Liang. In Dezong of the Tang Dynasty, there was Ma Sui, who was calm and courageous, and intelligent. He defeated Tian Yue and pacified Dinghe (the area of Yuncheng and Linfen in Shanxi today). Tang Dezong gave Ma Sui the two inscriptions “Chen Fu” and “Tai Heng,” painted his images in Lingyan Pavilion, and gave the posthumous title of Tai Fu Zhuang Wu after his death.
Ruzhou has lived in Jiacheng for generations. The famous people of civil and military loyalty are the Shu Han, Wuchang, and Baimei Maliang. Since the Five Dynasties, the prestigious clan has spread throughout the world. Ma Zheng was a doctor of Wuyi against the Liao Dynasty, and Ma Zhen contributed to the creation of 300 miles of Jinghu Lake. At that time, Fenghua Prefecture was praised by Guangping Ma. At that time, the De Lianluo School had Jinhua Ma Daoguan, and Jeju was a loyal, honest and respectable person. Marshall. At that time, they often dominate.
Time is like a galloping horse. There is no record in the genealogy. Finally, the lineage is not known. The genealogy records that some people live in Putian, Fujian, some live in Yuezhou, some live in Ninghai, and some live in Tiantai. Some people live in Dongyang, some live in Yaojiang, and some live in Taoyuan. They are called the wealthy family.
The ancestors of Guangxi, Jian’ao, and Xima Lake originated from Maoshan. Their ancestors came from Ruzhou, Bianjing, originally from the Fufeng Ma clan. Later, they were naturalized and settled in Jian’ao starting from Yunkun, whose ancestral tomb is in Jian’ao; naturalization Settling down in Guangxi Bailiang Bridge started from Yunxiang; because the Gu Yongdong Inspection Division is located 5 miles east of Juzhang City, Xiaoxi Town, the eldest son is very good at inspecting the history of the inspection division. He loves the scenery here and brings The younger brother built a house and settled here. Naturalized and settled in Xima Lake, the tenth generation descendant Jue Xuyun started from Yunqian. He lived under the cypress trees of Wushan for generations. Because Xima Lake is close to Wushan, the descendants are divided into two villages, Qianma Village and Qianma Village. Divided into two tribes, the Qingshiqiao faction comes from Mingzhong, and the Huicao faction comes from Zizhen. His grandson Dianshi (county magistrate) Yiyuan, and his younger brother Wenzhong settled in Cheqiao Lane, and there are still treasures passed down. As for Tingzhen settled in Fancheng, Huguang, Sun Yating settled in Hangzhou’s Kun Tuan, Ting Wei settled in front of Huanggonglin Temple, Wen Huai Wen Gui Wenxiang settled in front of Juncheng Temple, Wen Chun settled in Xiguo Wai Daxiang After the bridge, his step-children moved and settled in Fenghua again, Wenji settled in Taizhou, Wenkai Wenmu settled in Xishan after the lake, Wenhong settled in Ningbo Lishe, Wenlan settled in Tongpenpu Lizhai, Changyun settled in Beijing, Zongxian settled outside the west gate of Suzhou, Yuxun settled in Chuanshan, Yongjin Yongjian and Yougao settled in Zhoushan, Cheng Yun Chengren and his grandfather settled in South Jinhua, Shedian Yaotou Yuandao settled in Shaanxi, Quan settled in Shandong, always They settled in Ma Mu Mountain in Fuzhou. These were all settled down for business and trade or holding official positions. The clansmen can no longer record them in detail. Yunxiang’s son Gu Zhen has lived in Taoyuan Township for generations.
During the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty, he migrated and settled in the current small teaching field Wisdom Bridge in the east Weijia Lane of the county. Ma Tinghuai was selected as a cabinet scholar in the examination of Zhong Daoguang Wuxu Ke. His younger brother Chen Jiao was examined by Zhongji Haien, and their father, Shi Longzhe He taught at the Xian’an Palace. He was admitted to Jixi Enke in the Jiaqing period. He was appointed the magistrate of Guangning County, Guangdong. He was promoted to the prefecture by decree. His grandfather Deda was a son of the country. , My uncle was a tribute student in Yongzheng Bingwu year. He was originally a student of Changhua County. Uncle Dexin was a student of Ba Gong in the imperial examination of Qianlong Yiyou. Di Chanchao was his descendant. Later, he inherited a family tree and was born in Jinshi. I don’t know who it is if the eighth-generation Sun Xuan of the Imperial Academy has written. After a few words, the handwriting is illegible and unrecognizable. The handwriting is not enough to be an article for future generations to know. Because of the deletion and polishing, the expression is very strange and bizarre. In addition, the handwriting of the predecessors cannot be imitated by future generations. It makes it difficult to show the strengths and weaknesses, shortcomings and advantages, and the truth is confused. What is the use of this genealogy? Therefore, I will continue to have more than others. Please edit the genealogy to verify the historical origin of the tribe..
Author: Situ-Yitang of the Jin Tang 鄞塘Area.
Analysis of the authorship and dates of these two articles
The first article (1.0024-25) is unsigned and undated, while the second one (1.0026-27) is signed by a “鄞塘司徒一堂” or “司徒一堂” Situ-Yitang of the Jin Tang 鄞塘Area. But, it is undated. For our understanding of these two documents’ content, we need to when were these two documents written and by whom. Now, there was a famous writer during the Qing Dynasty who resided in Ningbo and went by the pen-name “司徒一堂” Situ-Yitang. It is customary for ancient Chinese scholars to use a pen name.
Also, historical records show he was the editor of a “ZheiJiang Ningbo Genealogy” for a Wong Family1 at a location called 它山堰村Tashan Yan village, which was made famous for its water control construction during the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, the Wong family was thereafter called Tang Yan Wong Family (Tang Dynasty Yan Village Wong Family) 唐堰王氏2. This Wong family’s genealogy, edited by Situ-Yitang, was written in 清道光十九年 or Qing Emperor Xuanzong 宣宗 in the 19th year of his Dao Guang Reign 道光. That is 1839 CE.
So, in all likelihood, this is the same person who also penned the second article, “Relocation Narrative (1.0026-7)”. This second article would have been written about the same period as the Tang Yan Wong Family Genealogy. It so happens we do have a major Bright Creek Ma Family Genealogy edition in the year 1847. It is the only edition out of the eleven with two Prefaces. This same writer also authored the second Preface of the 1847 Edition of the Bright Creek Ma Family Genealogy. It would stand to reason that the Ma Family when they created this 1847 edition they invited this famous writer to write this important article on the Relocation Narrative to Bright Creek, and he also provided a second Preface.
In the 1948 Genealogy, the second article immediately follows the First article, “Origin of the Name of the Lineage,” which has no authorship or date. Based on the layout position of the entire Genealogy, where these two articles appear, immediately following the “Rules of inclusion of each individual into the genealogy tree,” I would strongly surmise that the first article was also penned by this same individual “司徒一堂” Situ-Yitang. At a later time, if opportunity permits, we should investigate whether the literary styles of all these three articles; so we could further determine, based on writing styles, whether the same author wrote them.
However, at present, I strongly believe that they were penned by the same Situ-Yitang of the Jin Tang 鄞塘Area. If that is the case, then both of these two articles could be considered to be of the period 1847.
We need to ask what motivated the ancients of 1847 to spend the money and effort to have these two articles and a second Preface written? Let me suggest that they did it because persistent questions were being raised regarding the Bright Creek MA family’s origin. Did the ancients migrate from Maoshan, Ningbo, or JianAo, Ningbo to Bright Creek? More importantly, were they of the “classical Fufeng MA family that traces all the way back to Huang Di of 4000 years ago, or were they really of foreign origin, the Gelolu Uyghurs?
In the days of the Qing Dynasty, the Hans were under control by a foreign race, the Jins/Jurchens. To be considered a real Han is not only important psychologically but also raises one’s social standing: “I AM A REAL HAN.” The 1275 Edition Preface stated that the MA family is of the Fufeng MA, but then it hedged and said, “well, we really don’t know for sure.” Throughout history, from 1275 until 1847, there were no other editions that seem to be concerned about the family origin issue; that is, not until 1847.
The fact that this was written in 1847 and not, say 1275, casts suspicion on the editors’ motive. The most significant suspicion is that there must be a persistent “rumor” and “folklore” that suggests the Bright Creek MA family is not really 100% Han. Please note that the 1275 Preface is entitled, 宋扶風氏馬宗譜序 Song Dynasty Fufeng Ma Family Genealogy Preface. Is that not definitive enough? It is not because, in that Preface, it even raised the issue that it is not sure where did the famous Ma Yun Yen’s ancestors come from. Therefore, the ancients needed to have Situ-Yitang of the Jin Tang 鄞塘Area, a famous writer, to write these two articles.
It is interesting to note that even after 572 years and many editions, the 1847 Editors felt compelled to re-state the issue. There must have been huge pressure from the oral tradition folklores which compelled these editors to commission these two articles.
However, as I stated from the beginning, there is nothing black and white in understanding these historic documents. Each of you needs to make your own best judgment based on the interpretation of what is in front of us.
Finally, I believe the key information in the 1938 Census Report further justified my interpretation of why the Ancients of 1847 commissioned these two important pieces of documents to be written by a famous historian.
Footnotes
