How to Write 尹 (yǐn) — Meaning “Yin (a surname); to govern”

Imagine a person (尸) sitting in a chair, holding a pen (the left-falling stroke) to sign official papers — that is a governor (尹). This visual of a seated official with a writing tool helps link the shape to the meaning of governing or a surname.

The stroke order is: 1. horizontal fold (𠃌), 2. left diagonal (丿), 3. horizontal (一), 4. left-falling stroke (丿) that starts on the horizontal line and goes down-left. A common mistake is to stop the last stroke too short or confuse it with the similar shape of 尸; the final stroke must extend clearly below the horizontal line.

尹 has an extra left-falling stroke at the bottom compared to 尸 (corpse, 3 strokes, no extra stroke). 尺 (ruler, a unit of length) ends with a right-falling stroke (捺) instead of a left-falling one, and its meaning is completely different — a measurement unit versus a surname or governor.

In modern Chinese, 尹 is almost exclusively used as a surname, such as in 尹先生 (Mr. Yin). It is not common in everyday speech, but it appears in historical terms like 府尹 (prefect). Culturally, Yin is a well-known surname in China, notably shared by actress Yin Tao.

Common words containing 尹 include: 尹先生 (yǐn xiān shēng) — Mr. Yin; 姓尹 (xìng yǐn) — Surname Yin; 府尹 (fǔ yǐn) — Prefect; local governor in ancient China.