Tom Genealogy

Origins and History

Guangdong Province

Geographically, Guangdong ( 廣東 ), formerly known as Kwangtung or Canton province, is located on the south coast of China and separated from the north by a few mountain ranges collectively called the Southern Mountain Range. The combined watersheds of the West, North and East rivers and comprise what is known as the Lingnan ( 嶺南 ) region, and these rivers drain into and form the Pearl River Delta. Guangdong topography is higher in the northeast and lower in the southwest. The eastern and northeastern parts are mountainous, the central region is hilly with bench terraces, and in the south – the Pearl River Delta is an alluvial plain.

Historically, Guangdong was far removed from the center of Chinese civilization in the north China plain. After China’s first emperor, Qin ( 秦 ) Shi Huang, conquered the six rival kingdoms and united China ( 221 BC), he ordered the conquest of the region comprised of the present-day Guangdong and Guangxi provinces, and northern Vietnam, then known as Nanyue( 南越 ) and established its capital of Panyu ( 番禺 ) near Guangzhou, formerly known as Canton.

Nanyue, or southern Yue, was the name of the indigenous people of the region. By the Tang Dynasty, through intermarriage and cross-cultural interactions, the term Yue had largely became a regional designation rather than a cultural one. The conquest was completed by 214 BC and General Zhao Tuo ( 趙佗 ) was appointed to command the garrison and he asked Qin Shi Huang to send 500,000 people from Central China to help settle the region. In was also in 214 BC that the Ling Canal, 70 km north of Guilin, was completed – which linked the Yangtze River, via the West River, with the Pearl River.

The dominance of Han Chinese in the Guangdong region resulted from several periods of mass migrations from the fall of the Han Dynasty onward. Specifically, the An Lushan Rebellion (755) resulted in a 75% increase in the population of Guangdong between 740s & 750s and 800s – 810s. The death toll of the An Lushan Rebellion, including suppression and famine, is estimated to be about 36 million people. The arrival of more migrants resulted in the local population was gradually assimilated into Han Chinese culture.

"It was customary for many centuries to send political offenders, and also some criminals, into exile in remote parts of the empire. Few of these ever returned to the north, and their descendants settled in the area to which the original exiles had been consigned. In the T'ang period the region of Canton was a favourite place for such exiles, and many Cantonese families trace their origin to seventh-century officials who were sent away to what was the a raw frontier province. The practice continued in the Sung period ( 960 -1278 ) but in Ming times Kwangtung and the far south were no longer considered fit places for exiles to go. They were henceforth sent to the newly-acquired south-western province of Yunnan." 1

Tom Origins in Guangdong province

Tan Hong-zhi ( 譚宏帙 ) was born in 901 AD and died in 974 AD and is acknowledged in various Tom clan genealogy books as the first Tom to arrive in Guangdong province. He had lived in Qianzhou [ current name: Ganzhou ( 贛州) ], Jiangxi and to avoid social turmoil and moved to Shashui( 沙水 ) Village, Nanxiong ( 南雄 ), and subsequently returned to Qianzhou. Genealogy books for the Tom clan in Guangdong begin with Tan Hong-zhi as the first generation.

China provinces

The Tom clan settled in four locations prior to the migration to the Pearl River Delta: Shixing ( 始興 ), Conghua ( 從化 ), Longmen ( 龍門 ), and Renhua ( 仁化 ).

The group in Shixing began with General Tom Tian ( 談瑱 ), of South & North Dynasty ( 南北朝 ) (479-581 AD). They resided in Shixing and nearby counties. The population was about 10,000. The genealogy of this group was compiled.

The group in Conghua 從化 began with scholar Tom Heng ( 譚恆 ) in Sung Dynasty (960 – 1279 AD.) They lived in Conghua area, and their population was small. Not much recorded about this group.

The group in Longmen ( 龍門 ) began with scholar Tom Rui Qi ( 譚銳奇 ) who moved from Geyang ( 戈陽 ), Jiangxi, Providence to Longmen, Guangdong Province. Their population was also small and has not written records.

The fourth group is the largest in Guangdong who resided in Renhua 仁化, Guangdong. The White Water (Bai-shui) ( 白水 ) Tom family is in this group. The Renhua group began with Tom Bak Tong ( 譚伯倉 ), the Minister of Department of Justice in Sung Dynasty. He was the grandson of Tom Fan Ett and was born in 988 AD and died in 1061 AD. He retired in Pengshanli, Renhua. This group compiled immaculate genealogical records, and each family of this group has kept up with their genealogical studies. The history of this branch of Tom family can be traced, by ancestor, as early as 901 AD.

Tom Bak Tong had eight sons. His sixth son, Tom Jale An ( 譚朝安 ), had the most descendants and became the first Tom to settle in Taishan ( 台山).

Starting with Tan Hong-zhi, it was during the first 12th generation that Tom Hen Lin ( 譚天麟 ) became the first Tom to settled in White Water ( 白水 ), Taishan. He moved from a place near Shaoguan ( 韶关 ), just south of Renhua. Tom Hen Lin lived in a village named "Old Village" (舊村 ), just outside the northwestern part of Taicheng ( 台山市 ) an area now known as "5 horse returning to the trough" ( 五馬歸槽 ) . In all the Tom genealogy books I have seen, Tom Hen Lin as the 12th generation is now used as the first generation of the Tom clan in Taishan - one genealogy book has both the generational orders running in parallel, i.e., the 12th generation has a 1 st generation beside it and so on.

Comments on the Origins and History of the Tom Clan:

Generally, so far - much of the information supports the view of the State of Tom origins in Shandong, however, perhaps it can be reconciled with the four brothers view of the Tom origins.

As you might have noticed, I have not listed my sources in the traditional academic format would make this general overview difficult to read. For now, I just wanted to convey a general sense for the origins and history of the Tom Clan. As, additional translations are completed and other English sources become available- I will begin to document and cite all the facts appropriately. Please forgive me until then.

If you have additional information that you would like to share - I will be more than happy to acknowledge you and your sources.

In essence, I see the origins and history of the Tom Clan in the following segments:

1. Origins, history and migrations within Shandong province.

2. History of Tom Clan migrations out of Shandong - relationship to the Hakka migrations

3. Origins, history, and migration within Guangdong province.

4. History of the Tom Clan, as part of the overall overseas Chinese migrations, out of China to various countries.

1 C. P. FitzGerald, The Southern Expansion of the Chinese People , Praeger Publishers, 1972

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