Xin Family History

Chinese:: Mandarin form of the surname 辛 meaning ‘hot and spicy’ or ‘suffering’ in Chinese: (i) from the placename Shen (莘) the name of a fief (originally located in Heyang in Shaanxi province later moved to Chenliu in Henan province during the Shang dynasty (1600–1046 BC)) granted to descendants of Qi the second king of the Xia dynasty (2070–1600 BC). When the name of the fiefdom was adopted as a surname the written form of the Chinese character was simplified to 辛 which was pronounced the same as 莘 in ancient Chinese. (ii) said to be traced back to Gao Xin Shi (高辛氏) the title of the legendary king Di Ku (or Emperor Ku) who lived prior to the Xia dynasty (2070–1600 BC). Mandarin form of the surname 信 meaning ‘believe’ in Chinese: from the first element of Xin Ling (信陵) title of Wuji (died 243 BC) prince of the state of Wei known as one of the Four Lords of Warring States Period (475–221 BC). Mandarin form of the surname 忻 possibly traced back to Xin Du (忻都) a name appearing during the Yuan dynasty (1206–1368 AD) but the exact bearers of this name were unknown.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022