A 2013 study found that it was the 126th most common surname, being shared by 1,470,000 people or 0.110% of the population, with Jiangsu being the province with the most.

[1] The surname Yīn can date to the fall of the Shang (Yin) dynasty in 1046 BCE.

After the dynasty's collapse, surviving ruling family members collectively changed their surname from 子 (pinyin: zǐ; Wade-Giles: tzu; the royal surname) to the name of their fallen capital and country, Yin (殷).

There is a diaspora in the area south of the Yangtze River near the Wu region of China, and after the time of the Qing dynasty, immigration to Taiwan and Southeast Asia.

A 2013 study found that it was the 126th most common surname, being shared by 1,470,000 people or 0.110% of the population, with Jiangsu being the province with the most.