Abstract: The appellations as seen in the royal commands suggest that the ruler-subject relation in the context of the Zhou Dynasty evolved over time,and did not completely equal the familial order.In the Western Zhou period,the appellations mainly included individual names and official titles,indicating that the contemporary ruler-subject relationto some degree transcended the familial order.During the Spring and Autumn period,by contrast,numerous kinship terms can be seen in the royal commands,suggesting that the element of kinship strengthened in the political order of this time.The dynamic for such a transformation is that the inept Zhou rulers who faced a new political environment utilized the kinship as a strategy to strengthen their connection with regional lords,consolidate the Zhou community,and distinguish themselves from the so-called “barbarians”.Viewing the kinship as a strategy offers a new path to the study of the lineage organization in early China.

Key words: appellations, the ruler-subject relation, kinship, politics