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Famous Chinese People

Name these famous people of Chinese descent.
Includes Taiwan and Hong Kong
In some Chinese names, the family name comes first!
Quiz by Quizmaster
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Last updated: August 8, 2016
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First submittedJanuary 2, 2013
Times taken9,909
Average score50.0%
Rating4.00
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 / 18 guessed
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Clue
Person
Founding father of the People's Republic of China
Mao Zedong
Probably the most famous Chinese philosopher, born in 551 BC
Confucius
Founder of Daoism
Laozi
Jeet Kune Do founder and movie star who died suddenly in 1973
Bruce Lee
"Rush Hour" martial artist who does his own stunts
Jackie Chan
7'6" basketball player
Yao Ming
Led China towards a market economy from 1978 to 1992
Deng Xiaoping
Kuomintang leader who retreated to Taiwan after fighting the Communists
Chiang Kai-shek
Paramount leader of China since 2012
Xi Jinping
"Charlie's Angels" and "Kill Bill" actress
Lucy Liu
First president of the Republic of China in 1912
Sun Yat-sen
Architect who designed the Louvre Pyramid
I. M. Pei
World famous concert pianist
Lang Lang
Christian basketball player who sparked "insanity" in New York
Jeremy Lin
Famous designer of wedding dresses
Vera Wang
Court eunuch credited with inventing paper
Cai Lun
First emperor of China
Qin Shi Huang
China's first astronaut in space
Yang Liwei
+3
Level 82
Jan 21, 2013
Also Yo Yo Ma is much more famous than Lang Lang, but I guess he is American, and born in France, but his parents are Taiwanese.
+4
Level 70
Jul 24, 2014
Yo Yo Ma is also a cellist and not a pianist.
+2
Level 82
Jan 28, 2017
I didn't say he was a pianist or that he fit the clue, just that he's much more famous.
+4
Level 88
Jul 7, 2018
Sigh.
+2
Level 83
Nov 30, 2015
I would say Lang Lang was more famous. I suppose it's a matter of opinion.
+3
Level 89
Jan 28, 2017
Never heard of Lang Lang before, but I've definitely heard of Yo Yo Ma.
+5
Level 80
Jan 29, 2017
Never heard of Yo Ma Ma before, but I've definitely heard of Lang Lang.
+3
Level 58
Jan 30, 2017
Never heard of Lang Lang before, but I've definitely heard of Yo Yo Ma. Kek!
+3
Level 84
Aug 16, 2017
Another vote for Yo Yo Ma. I would've guessed that Lang Lang was a panda in a foreign zoo or something like that.
+4
Level 88
Jul 7, 2018
Exactly what I thought. Trained concert panda.
+1
Level 65
May 10, 2021
Now this is what you call a Wikipedia vote! I vote Yo-Yo Ma, but probably the reason I know him is because I play cello.
+1
Level 65
Jun 9, 2021
I knew both of them
+2
Level 67
Jan 28, 2017
Should have got Cai Lun. I know it was the least guessed answer but it was also on the most important people in history quiz.
+2
Level 73
Jan 30, 2017
Ieoh Ming Pei... Still alive at nearly 100 years old. Architecture seems to be an occupation that makes you live older, since also world-famous Oscar Niemeyer lived and worked well passed its 100th birthday.
+1
Level 57
Feb 4, 2017
I knew E M Pei
+3
Level 74
Oct 29, 2017
how about I M Pei?
+2
Level 88
Jan 24, 2020
U R?
+1
Level 82
Jun 20, 2019
electromagnetic pulse?
+2
Level 69
Feb 7, 2017
Accept Shi Huangdi for Qin Shi Huang please? It's the Chinese Romanisation, and also used in some western literature
+1
Level 69
Aug 28, 2017
please :P
+4
Level 26
Sep 23, 2018
And Ying Zheng, which is the name of Qin Shi Huang.
+2
Level 65
Jun 9, 2021
And Qin isn't his last name.

His last name was Ying

+2
Level 76
Jan 23, 2018
I understand Lucy Liu is born and bred in America. Jeremy Lin the same, and Vera Wang. Probably other non-Chinese on the list, too. On the other hand, it's surprising how few Chinese are actually known in the 'west' considering their lengthy history and population...

Anyway Liu would be easy to replace with someone like Zhang Ziyi (RushHour2, Memoirs of Geisha, Hero). Empress (dowager) Cixi (pretty much the last real leader of 'royal' China) might be known by anyone who reads history. Jack Ma (alibaba) should be quite known by now. Oh, and John Woo (director of many famous films). Just to name a few possibilities.

+1
Level 85
Jan 8, 2022
It is bizarre (and insulting) to describe a Chinese person who was born abroad as "non-Chinese" simply because of the geographical location of their birth.
+2
Level 50
Jul 7, 2022
Actually, it is the other way around. It is insulting to put people like Jeremy Lin and idk Simu Liu in a group of "Famous Chinese People" when they have grown up and identified as American their whole lives and are solely and only American people. It's like no matter how American they are, they will only be seen as Chinese or Asian. Like you wouldn't put Robert De Niro, Nicholas Cage, Al Pacino or Leonardo DiCaprio in a list of "Famous Italian People" just because they have Italian heritage, they would be considered American actors. Why should it be any different for Jeremy Lin, Simu Liu, Vera Wang, Lucy Liu etc.

It's just really sad for Asians born overseas. Even if they were born and raised in lets say the USA, they will still always be seen as Asian in the USA and if they go back to Asia, they will only be seen as a Westerner.

+1
Level 85
Dec 18, 2022
So, according to you, the classic film actress Joan Fontaine is Japanese, not American. After all, she was born in Japan.
+2
Level 88
Jul 7, 2018
Who would know the 1,274th person in space? Get up there early or be Stephen Hawking or no one will remember.
+1
Level 65
Jun 9, 2021
@ In some Chinese names, the family name comes first!

Actually,all of Chinese names, the family name comes first!

So Mr. Quizmaster will be Mr. Hostetler Dan