Gallery of Yuen Ka Tseong's family tree from Kuala Lampur

Submitted by lausanching on
Yuen Ka Tseung, by lausanching

Yuen Yiu Chu was a  國學士 (Guó Xuéshì) generally referred to the students enrolled in the Taixue 太學 or Guozijian (國子監), which were the highest imperial national universities located in the capital. He is not a officer yet in Qing Dynesty.

In an ancient family genealogy book (族譜, zupu) from the Qing Dynasty, the term 職員 (zhíyuán) 
means that the ancestor held an honorary government title or low-level official rank that was purchased from the imperial government. During the Qing Dynasty, the imperial court suffered severe financial crises due to wars, famines, and floods. To raise funds, the government allowed wealthy commoners (such as rich farmers, merchants, or gentry members) to donate money or grain to the state. In return, the government granted them a "purchased title" (捐銜, juānxián).
 
the term 出繼 (chūjì) translates to "given for adoption (within the clan)" or "adopted out."
It means a couple gave one of their biological sons to a brother or a relative within the same lineage who had no male heirs, specifically to carry on that relative's family line and ancestor worship.
 
 
序生 (xùshēng) is a combination of two words used as an official title. It means that your ancestor was a Xiucai (秀才) / Shengyuan (生員), which is a licensed scholar who passed the first level of the imperial civil service exams.Therefore, 序生 literally means "A student of the state school," which was the formal designation for a 秀才 (Xiucai)
 
廩生 (lǐnshēng) is a highly prestigious academic title. It means the ancestor was an Elite Imperial Stipend Scholar—the highest-ranking type of Xiucai (秀才) available at the local government level during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.The full formal title for this status is 廩膳生員