Ming Lu

Chinese 卢: from area called Lu, in present-day Shandong province. During the Warring States period (403–221 BC), a descendant of previous dukes of the state of Qi became the high counselor of that state, and was granted the area of Lu. His descendants later adopted the place name Lu as their surname.

Chinese 陆: from the name of the city of Lu in the state of Qi. During the Zhou dynasty (1122–221 BC). The youngest son of a duke of Qi was granted the city of Lu, and his descendants adopted the place name Lu as their surname.

Chinese 鲁: from the name of a different state of Lu, a large area covering parts of present-day Anhui, Jiangsu, and Shandong provinces. This was granted to Zhou Gong, Duke of Zhou, a famous figure in Chinese history, as he was revered by Confucius as the prototypical good adviser. The fourth son of Wen Wang, Zhou Gong was the younger brother and chief adviser of Wu Wang, the founder of the Zhou dynasty. After Wu Wang died in 1116 BC, his 13-year old son succeeded him, but actual power was held by Zhou Gong, acting as regent. Zhou Gong's descendants later adopted the name of the state as their surname.

Chinese 路: from the name of the Lushui river. The characters for the river name contained a written component meaning ‘water’; this component was dropped, leaving only the current character for Lu, which means ‘street’.

Chinese 鹿: from the name of an area known as Wulu ‘Five Deer’, which was granted to a senior adviser of the state of Wei. His descendants adopted Lu as their surname.