Clan name

Clan name may refer to one of the following:

• Chinese clan name (Chinese: 氏; pinyin: shì), one of two types of ancient Chinese surnames distinct from the ancestral name (姓, xing)
• Mongolian clan name, a portion of a Mongolian name
• Roman clan name, a common element of Latin names, usually the second name following the praenomen and before the cognomen
• Scottish clan, a geographically based system of family groupings (and, historically, of government) in Scotland
• Xhosa clan name, a respectful way of referring to a Xhosa person, after the name of a prominent ancestor

Although clan names today tend to be restricted to the above named cultures, many other nations have traditionally been sub-divided into clans. For historical details, see the entry at Clan.