The origin of surname Bao can be traced back to the reign of Yu, the first emperor of Xia Dynasty. In Spring and Autumn Period, State of Qi gave Bao prefecture as a fief to Jing Shu, a descendant of Emperor Yu. Therefore he was called Bao Jingshu, and his offspring took Bao as their family name thereafter.

The region of State of Qi, where surname Bao originated, is today's Shandong province. Bao people later moved to the regions of Shandong, Shanxi and Jiangsu, etc.

Historical celebrities with surname Bao was few, and the typical representatives are Bao Shuya, a senior official in State of Qi in Spring and Autumn Period; Bao Xuan, a senior official for expostulating with Emperor in Western Han Dynasty; Bao Yu, hydraulician and imperial official in Eastern Han Dynasty; Bao Zhao and Bao Linghui, litterateur in Song Dynasty during Northern and Southern Dynasties; Bao Tongwei, medical expert in Yuan Dynasty and Bao Gao, poet in Qing Dynasty.

By People's Daily Online