Tai (surname)
Tai is a surname in various cultures.
Arabic
Tai or al-Ta'i, at-Ta'i (الطائي), also spelled al-Ta'i or at-Ta'iy, is an Arabic name. In ancient times it originated as a nisba indicating affiliation with the Tayy tribe.
- Hatim al-Tai (Hatem ibn Abdellah ibn Sa'ad at-Ta'iy, died 578), Arab poet
- Dawud Tai (Abu Solaiman Dawud ibn Nosair al-Ta’i, died 770s or 780s), Sufi mystic
- Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Tai (born 1944), Iraqi Minister of Defense under Saddam Hussein
- Ashraf Tai, Burmese-born Bangladeshi martial artist who states that he is a descendant of Hatim al-Tai
Chinese
Tái is the Pinyin romanisation of the Chinese surname written using the character 邰. According to traditional stories recorded in the Shuowen Jiezi, it originated as a toponymic surname referring to the city by the same name.[1]
- Samuel Tai (邰正宵, born 1966), Hong Kong-born Taiwan singer
Tai may also be the Wade-Giles transcription of Dai (戴);[2] see that page for people with that Chinese surname.
Japanese
As a Japanese surname, Tai could be written with the single characters 太, 台, 台, or 載, as well as numerous two-character combinations from one character read ta (e.g. 田, 多) and another read i (e.g. on-yomi of 衣 or kun-yomi of 居 or 井).[3] People with these surnames include:
- Yūki Tai (泰 勇気, born 1977), Japanese voice actor
Korean
Tai is an alternative spelling of the Korean surname Tae (太, 태). In a study by the National Institute of the Korean Language based on 2007 application data for South Korean passports, it was found that 28.5% of people with that surname spelled it in Latin letters as Tai in their passports, vs. 57.1% as Tae.[4]
Other
- António Taí (born 1948), Portuguese footballer
- Eric Tai (born 1964), New Zealand actor of Tongan descent
- Kobe Tai (born 1972), stage name of an American pornographic actress of Asian descent, changed from Coby Ty to sound "more ethnic" for marketing purposes[5]
References
- ↑ Chao, Sheau-yueh J. (2000). Genealogical Research on Chinese Surnames. Genealogical Publishing Company. p. 169.
- ↑ Chao 2000, p. 168
- ↑ Breen, Jim (2011). Japanese Names Dictionary. Electronic Dictionary Research and Development Group. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ↑ 성씨 로마자 표기 방안: 마련을 위한 토론회 [Plan for romanisation of surnames: a preparatory discussion]. National Institute of the Korean Language. 25 June 2009. p. 61. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
- ↑ Kobe Tai (30 November 1998). "Kobe Tai". Read Junk (Interview). Interview with Damon Shavers. New York City. Retrieved 11 September 2015.