title: Tai (surname)
text: # Tai (surname)
  
  Tai is a surname in various cultures.
  
  ## Arabic
  
  Tai or al-Ta'i, at-Ta'i (الطائي), also spelled al-Ta'i or at-Ta'iy, is an Arabic name. In ancient times it originated as a nisba indicating affiliation with the Tayy tribe.
  
  * Hatim al-Tai (Hatem ibn Abdellah ibn Sa'ad at-Ta'iy, died 578), Arab poet
  * Dawud Tai (Abu Solaiman Dawud ibn Nosair al-Ta’i, died 770s or 780s), Sufi mystic
  * Sultan Hashim Ahmad al-Tai (1945–2020), Iraqi Minister of Defense under Saddam Hussein
  * Ashraf Tai, Burmese-born Pakistani martial artist who states that he is a descendant of Hatim al-Tai
  
  ## Chinese
  
  Tái is the Pinyin romanisation of the Chinese surname written using the character 邰. According to traditional stories recorded in the Shuowen Jiezi, it originated as a toponymic surname referring to the city by the same name.
  
  * Tai Chih-yuan (邰智源; born 1965), Taiwanese comedian
  * Samuel Tai (邰正宵; born 1966), Hong Kong-born Taiwan singer
  
  Tái is also the Pinyin romanisation of the Chinese surname written using the character 台.
  
  * Tai Xiaohu (台晓虎; born 1998), Chinese diver
  
  Tai may also be the Wade-Giles transcription of Dai (戴); see that page for people with that Chinese surname.
  
  ### People
  
  * Tai Beng Hai (born 1965), Malaysian field hockey player
  * Tai Chen-yao (1948-2017), Taiwanese politician
  * Tai Cheuk-yin, Hong Kong politician
  * Tai Chih-yuan (born 1965), Taiwanese comedian
  * Tai Hung-hsu (born 1987), Taiwanese football skier
  * Tai An Khang (born 1994), Malaysian badminton player
  * Tai Tak-fung (born 1948), Chinese political figure
  * Tai Tzu-ying (born 1994), Taiwanese badminton player
  * Tai William (born 1997), Taiwanese speed skater
  * Tai Xiaohu (born 1998), Chinese diver
  
  ## Japanese
  
  As a Japanese surname, Tai could be written with the single characters 太, 台, 泰, or 載, as well as numerous two-character combinations from one character read ta (e.g. 田, 多) and another read i (e.g. on-yomi of 衣 or kun-yomi of 居 or 井). People with these surnames include:
  
  * Ichiro Tai, Japanese electrical engineer
  * Miyuki Tai (born 1980), Japanese badminton player
  * Yūki Tai (泰 勇気, born 1977), Japanese voice actor
  
  ## Korean
  
  Tai is an alternative spelling of the Korean surname Tae (Korean: 태; Hanja: 太). In a study by the National Institute of the Korean Language based on 2007 application data for South Korean passports, it was found that 28.5% of people with that surname spelled it in Latin letters as Tai in their passports, vs. 57.1% as Tae.
  
  ## Other
  
  * António Taí (born 1948), Portuguese footballer
  * Eric Tai (born 1964), New Zealand actor of Tongan descent
  * Katherine Tai, American diplomat
  * Kobe Tai (born 1972), stage name of an American pornographic actress of Asian descent, changed from Coby Ty to sound "more ethnic" for marketing purposes
  * Daniel Tai (born 1977), New Zealand boxer
  * Jordan Tai (born 1982), New Zealand boxer and kickboxer
  * Soaeb Tai (born 1989), Indian cricketer
  