Shin Family History

Korean: written 신 in Chinese characters 申. There are actually three Chinese characters for the Shin surname, but two are rather rare and are not treated here. The Shin (申) family is divided into two clans. The Pyŏngsan Shin family is descended from Sam Nŭng-san (삼 능산) who assisted the founding king of the Koryŏ Kingdom in the early tenth century.

To honour him, the king bestowed a new name on him: Shin Sung-kyŏm (申 崇謙). According to legend, one day while he was out hunting with the king, three wild geese flew out of some bushes in front of them. The king challenged his companions to shoot one of them; Shin Sung-kyŏm said he would hit the third goose on the left wing.

He successfully did this and in recognition of his marksmanship, the king bestowed upon him a tract of land in Pyŏngsan County of Hwanghae Province. Shin Sung-kyŏm was later killed in battle while protecting the king. The other clan, the Koryŏng Shin clan, is descended from Shin Sŏng-yong (申 成用), a Koryŏ official whose descendants claimed Koryŏng County in Kyŏngsang North Province as their clan seat.

Compare Sheen 5 and Sin 9. Chinese: Hokkien or Taiwanese Romanization of the surname 辛 see Xin. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 沈. Also Hokkien or Taiwanese Romanization of the surname 申 see Shen 1 and Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 邢 see Xing.

In some cases, possibly also English (Norfolk and Suffolk): variant of Shinn.