Interpretation of the Tang Clan Totem 

[Definition] "Tang" (唐) is related to "Tao" (陶 - pottery). Tang refers to a tribal leader whose profession was pottery making. 

[Origin] The ancient Emperor Yao initially lived in Tao and was later enfeoffed in Tang (present-day Tang County, Hebei), hence he was known as Tao Tang Shi. After Yao’s death, Emperor Shun enfeoffed Yao’s son, Dan Zhu, as the Marquis of Tang, establishing the State of Tang west of present-day Yicheng, Shanxi. During the Xia Dynasty, Dan Zhu’s descendant, Liu Lei, moved to Lu County (present-day Lushan County, Henan). In the early Western Zhou Dynasty, King Cheng of Zhou destroyed Tang and granted its former lands to his younger brother, Shu Yu. Later, a descendant of Liu Lei living in Lu County was re-enfeoffed as the Marquis of Tang to oversee the ancestral sacrifices to Emperor Yao. This State of Tang, located in present-day Fangcheng County, Henan, was conquered by the State of Chu in 505 BC. His descendants adopted the state name as their surname, which became the Tang clan.

• Ancestral Founder: Tang Yao (Emperor Yao)

• Ancestral Homeland: Fangcheng, Henan

• Prefectural Seats (Junwang) and Hall Names: Jinchang, Beihai, Jinyang; Shanrang Hall (Hall of Abdication)

• Current Ranking / Population: 25th / Approx. 9.17 million

• Song Dynasty "Hundred Family Surnames" Rank: 64th

• Extant Genealogical Records: 332 volumes