Tsui is a surname. It is an alternative transcription of two Chinese surnames, namely Cuī (崔) and Xú (徐).
Origins
Tsui may be an alternative transliteration of two separate Chinese surnames, listed below by their Hanyu Pinyin transliteration (which reflects the Mandarin pronunciation):
Cuī (崔), which originated as a toponymic surname from a fief by that name in the state of Qi; a grandson of Jiang Ziya renounced his claim to the throne and went to live in that fief, and his descendants took its name as their surname. It is spelled Ts'ui4 in the Wade–Giles system of transliterating Mandarin (which remains common in Taiwan and was used elsewhere until the mid-to-late 20th century). The spelling Tsui may also be based on the Cantonese pronunciation (Jyutping: Ceoi1; Cantonese Yale: Chēui).
Xú (徐), which originated as a toponymic surname from the ancient state of Xu, adopted by the descendants of Boyi after the state was annexed by the state of Chu. The spelling Tsui is based on its Cantonese pronunciation (Jyutping: Ceoi4; Cantonese Yale: Chèuih); it is nearly homophonous with the above surname in Cantonese aside from the differing tone.
Statistics
The 2010 United States Census found 3,168 people with the surname Tsui, making it the 10,180th-most-common name in the country. This represented an increase from 2,725 (10,748th-most-common) in the 2000 Census. In both censuses, more than nine-tenths of the bearers of the surname identified as Asian, and roughly two percent as White.
People
Academics
Daniel C. Tsui (崔琦; born 1939), Henan-born American physicist
Amy Tsui (born 1949), American demographer
Lap-Chee Tsui (徐立之; born 1950), Shanghai-born Canadian geneticist
Tsui Tin-Chau (徐天就; born 1958), Hong Kong-born Dutch teacher
Ban Tsui (徐志豪; born 1963), Hong Kong-born Canadian Anesthesiologist
Anne S. Tsui (fl. 1970s–present), Shanghai-born American business professor
Tsui Ming-sum (fl. 1980s–2010s), Hong Kong social scientist
Kennie Tsui (fl. 2016–present), New Zealand chemical engineer
Athletes
Tsui Hsiu-li (崔秀里; born 1973), Taiwanese table tennis player
Tsui Fang-hsuan (born 1984), Taiwanese taekwondo practitioner
Tsui Wan Yi (born 1984), Hong Kong fencer
Tsui Chi Ho (徐志豪; born 1990), Hong Kong sprinter
Tsui Wang Kit (徐宏傑; born 1997), Hong Kong footballer
Entertainment industry
Tsui Hsiao-ping (崔小萍; 1923–2017), Jinan-born radio personality in Taiwan
Tsui Fu-sheng (崔福生; 1931–2013), Taiwanese actor
Tsui Ping (崔萍; 1938–20??), Harbin-born Mandarin-language pop singer in Hong Kong
Paula Tsui (徐小鳳; born 1949), Hong Kong singer
Tsui Hark (徐克; born 1950), Hong Kong film director
Tsui Siu-ming (徐小明; born 1953), Hong Kong actor
Elvis Tsui (徐錦江; born 1961), Hong Kong actor
Yvette Tsui (麗心; born 1963), Taiwanese television host
Tsui Wing (徐榮; born 1974), Hong Kong actor
Kate Tsui (徐子珊; born 1979), Hong Kong actress
Roy Tsui (徐家豪; born 1980), Hong Kong lyricist
Jeremy Tsui (徐正溪; born 1985), Chinese actor
Sam Tsui (born 1989), American singer-songwriter
Harrison Tsui (born 1995), Hong Kong fashion photographer
Politics and government
Tsui Kwo Yin (崔國因; 1831–1909), Qing diplomat
Tsui Po-ko (徐步高; 1970–2006), Hong Kong policetable
Caspar Tsui (徐英偉; born 1977), Hong Kong politician
Tsui Shung-yiu (fl. 1970s–2000s), Hong Kong civil servant
Tori Tsui (fl. 2015–present), Hong Kong climate activist
Other
Tsui Sze-man (徐四民; 1914–2007), Burmese-born Hong Kong magazine publisher
Tsui Tsin-tong (徐展堂; 1941–2010), Hong Kong businessman
Kitty Tsui (born 1952), Hong Kong-born American writer and stage actor
Eugene Tssui (崔悅君; born Eugene Tsui, 1954), American architect
Tsui Teh-li (崔德禮; fl. 1990s), member of the executive board of the Boy Scouts of China
Christopher Tsui (born 1981), Hong Kong-born British businessman and racehorse owner
See also
Hui (surname), the Cantonese spelling of another surname transcribed as Xǔ in Pinyin (許)