Laibu Clan

Overview

The Laibu clan is a Manchu surname recorded in Volume 53 of the officially compiled *Comprehensive Genealogy of Manchu Clans of the Eight Banners*. Their ancestral home was in Zhakumu and Fola. One branch of the Zhaqika clan of the Plain White Banner resided in Zhakumu and submitted to the Qing dynasty at the beginning of the dynasty. His great-grandson, Hecheng'e, served as a third-class imperial bodyguard, participated in the campaign against Zhoushan in Zhejiang, and participated in naval battles, earning the title of Yunqiwei (a hereditary title). After his death, the title was inherited by his younger brother's grandson, Zhuntai. A third-class imperial bodyguard was a rank within the emperor's bodyguard system, while Yunqiwei was a separately granted hereditary title.

The Daimeng'a branch of the Plain Yellow Banner resided in Fola and submitted to the Qing dynasty during the Tiancong reign. His sons, Saiyinbu and Humin, served as assistant secretaries. Among their grandchildren, Shuogan served as the Grand Canal Transport Commissioner, Yuegan and Daerhua as deputy commanders-in-chief, Haxiku as a principal clerk, and Egan as a scribe. The Grand Canal Transport Commissioner was responsible for the transport of grain; the deputy commander-in-chief was a high-ranking military officer of the Eight Banners; and the principal clerk and scribe were primarily within the administrative system of government documents.

The two branches of the same surname thus exhibit different banner affiliations, ancestral residences, and career paths. The Zhaqika branch also has a Yuegan, but they cannot be combined into one record simply because they share the same name as a descendant of Daimeng'a. The blood ties, official tenures, and variations in place names and personal names between the two branches still require verification of the original printed text and resumes.