Father of ChinaSun Yat-sen (孫逸仙 pinyin: Sūn Yìxiān; Cantonese Yale: Syùn Yaht-sìn) (November 12, 1866 - March 12, 1925) was a Chinese revolutionary leader and statesman, the founder of the Kuomintang and the first provisional president of the Republic of China. In the 1930s he was posthumously given the title "Father of the Nation" (國父 Guófù), which is currently used in Taiwan. In the mainland, he is commonly referred to as the "forthgoer" (革命的先行者) and is mentioned by name in the preamble to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China. He developed a political philosophy known as the Three Principles of the People. Names Full name: Sun Wen (孫文 Sūn Wén) Family name: Sun (孫 Sūn) Given name: Wen (文 Wén) Courtesy names: * Yixian (逸仙 Yìxīan) * Deming (德明 Démíng) Sobriquets: * Rixin (日新 Rìxīn) * Nakayama Shou ( 中 山 樵 a name used in Japan while in exile; meaning 'The Woodcutter of the Middle Mountain'; Zhōngshān Qiáo) Known most commonly in China as: Sun Zhongshan (孫中山 Sūn Zhōngshān) * In the Republic of China, his name is officially written as "National Father (space) Mr. Sun Zhongshan" ( 國 父 孫 中 山 先 生 ), where the one-character space is a traditional homage symbol. BiographyHe was born to a peasant family in Cuiheng Village, Xiangshan County (香山县) of Guangdong Province, in southern China. The county has been renamed Zhongshan in his honor. At age 13 he went to live with an older brother, who had immigrated there as a laborer and become a prosperous merchant, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Sun studied at the Iolani School in Honolulu (1879-1882) and ultimately earned a medical degree in the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese ...
