Our answer
Two surnames, Nos. 40 and 41 余 · 于
余 (‘surplus’) is commonest in the south, 于 in Shandong and the north-east; both are pronounced Yú
The short answer
Yu is the pinyin spelling of two separate Chinese surnames, both pronounced Yú: 余, meaning ‘surplus’, ranked 40th in China in 2019, and 于, a preposition meaning ‘at, in’, ranked 41st. Each has about 6.3–6.4 million bearers; 余 is commonest in the south, 于 in Shandong and the north-east.
| In Chinese | 余 and 于; both are written the same in simplified and traditional characters |
|---|---|
| Pinyin | Yú for both, with the second (rising) tone |
| Rank in China (2019) | 余 No. 40, 于 No. 41 (Ministry of Public Security) |
| Other spellings | 余: Yee, Yue, Ee, Eu, U, Oe; 于: Yue, U, Yee; Yü in Wade–Giles |
| Meaning of the character | 余 ‘surplus’ (also an old word for ‘I’); 于 ‘in, on, at’ |
| Most people in | 余: Hubei; 于: Shandong (Fuxi Institution figures, 2013) |
| Population | 余 about 6.33 million, 于 about 6.42 million, each 0.48% (Fuxi Institution, 2013) |
Origins of the Yu surnames
余 (Yú) means ‘surplus’; in classical Chinese the character was also a word for ‘I’, used by Shang kings of themselves. Tradition traces the surname to You Yu (由余), a man at the court of the state of Qin in the Spring and Autumn period, whose descendants used either 由 or 余 as their surname. The family is thought to have started in Shaanxi, between Fengxiang and Xianyang, and later moved to She County in Anhui before spreading south. It is 90th in the *Hundred Family Surnames*.
于 (Yú) is a common preposition meaning ‘in, on, at’. As a surname it is traced to the Zhou royal family, whose clan name was Ji (姬): King Wu of Zhou gave his second son, Yu Shu (邘叔), the small state of Yu (邘) in what is now Qinyang, Henan, and his descendants took Yu as their surname. The family long flourished around Kaifeng and Chenliu in Henan. It is 82nd in the *Hundred Family Surnames*.
A third, rarer surname, 於, is easily confused with 于: the character 於 was simplified to 于 in ordinary writing, but the surname 於 was kept as it is, so the two remain separate names. 於 ranked only 375th in 2013, with about 99,000 people.[3][4][6][7][13]
How Yu is spelled around the world
Outside the mainland, the two surnames usually look different in English, which can tell you which character a family uses.[1][3][4]
| Spelling | Character | Where you see it | Language or system |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yu | 余, 于 | Mainland China | Mandarin, Hanyu Pinyin |
| Yü | 余, 于 | Older Western usage | Mandarin, Wade–Giles |
| Yue | 余, 于 | Hong Kong, as in the actor Shawn Yue (余文樂) | Cantonese |
| Yee | 余 (also 于) | Cantonese, Taishanese and Hakka communities | Cantonese, Taishanese, Hakka |
| U | 余, 于 | Cantonese-speaking communities | Cantonese |
| Ee, Eu | 余 | Hokkien-speaking communities, for example in Singapore | Min Nan (Hokkien) |
| Oe | 余 | Indonesia | From the Hokkien reading |
| Dư / Vu | 余 / 于 | Vietnam (both are rare there) | Vietnamese |
Where the Yu surnames are most common
In the Ministry of Public Security’s 2019 ranking, 余 was 40th and 于 41st, just behind 蒋 Jiang and ahead of 杜 Du. In the Fuxi Institution’s 2013 figures the order was reversed (于 39th, 余 40th), and both had about 0.48% of the population: some 6.42 million people for 于 and 6.33 million for 余.
The two names divide roughly north and south. 余 is a southern surname, typical of Jiangxi, Zhejiang and Fujian and less common in the north; in 2013 the province with the most people named 余 was Hubei. 于 is concentrated in Shandong and north-east China; among China’s 30 largest cities it ranked ninth in both Changchun and Harbin.[1][2][3][4][5]
Famous people named Yu
| Name | Chinese | Known for |
|---|---|---|
| Yu Jin | 于禁 | General under the warlord Cao Cao at the end of the Eastern Han |
| Yu Qian (1398–1457) | 于谦 | Ming dynasty minister of war who led the defence of Beijing in 1449 |
| Yu Hua (born 1960) | 余华 | Novelist, author of *To Live* and *Chronicle of a Blood Merchant* |
| Shawn Yue | 余文乐 | Hong Kong actor and singer, in *Infernal Affairs II* and *Initial D* |
| Ronny Yu | 于仁泰 | Film director, producer and screenwriter |
| Yu Rongguang (born 1958) | 于荣光 | Actor and martial artist who began his career in Hong Kong |
| Yu Wenxia (born 1989) | 于文霞 | Miss World 2012, from Shangzhi, Heilongjiang |
Questions readers ask
What does the Yu surname mean?
It depends on the character. 余 means ‘surplus’ (and was once a word for ‘I’); 于 is a preposition meaning ‘in, on, at’. As surnames both are traced to ancient ancestors rather than to these everyday meanings.
Is Yu a Chinese last name?
Yes. Two of China’s most common surnames are spelled Yu: 余, No. 40 in the Ministry of Public Security’s 2019 list, and 于, No. 41. Smaller surnames such as 俞, 虞 and 喻 are spelled Yu too.
How common is the Yu surname in China?
Fuxi Institution figures for 2013 put both at about 0.48% of the population: some 6.42 million people for 于 and 6.33 million for 余, so together roughly 12.7 million.
How do you pronounce Yu?
Like the French ‘u’ or German ‘ü’: say ‘ee’ with your lips rounded. Both 余 and 于 take the second tone, which rises. It does not sound like English ‘you’.
Is Yee the same as Yu?
Often. Yee is a common Cantonese, Taishanese and Hakka spelling of 余, and is also recorded for 于 in Hokkien and Hakka. Outside the mainland, Yee usually means the same surname that is spelled Yu in pinyin.
Where does the Yu surname come from?
余 is traced to You Yu of the Qin state in the Spring and Autumn period and to Shaanxi; 于 to Yu Shu, a son of King Wu of Zhou, who was given the state of Yu in today’s Henan.
Are 余 and 于 the same family?
No. They are different surnames with different origins: 余 is mainly southern, 于 mainly northern, especially in Shandong and the north-east.
Sources
- Wikipedia, List of common Chinese surnames (Ministry of Public Security 2019 ranking and romanisations; Fuxi Institution 2013 figures) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- The Paper (澎湃新闻), 公安部发布最新百家姓 (Ministry of Public Security 2019 surname report, 20 January 2020) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Yú (surname 余) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Yu (surname 于) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Yu (Chinese surname) · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Behind the Name, Yu (1): 于 · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Behind the Name, Yu (2): 余 · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Yu Hua · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Shawn Yue · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Yu Qian · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wikipedia, Yu Wenxia · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Behind the Name, Yu (3): 俞 · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Wiktionary, 余 · accessed 1 Nov 2026
- Behind the Name, Yu (4): 虞 · accessed 1 Nov 2026
Update log. 1 November 2026 — reviewed. Next review due 1 February 2027. Suggest a correction