Wan is a commonly used Chinese character in China, which belongs to polyphonic characters; In addition, Nanyang also has short names and surnames.

Wan is one of the earliest place names in Nanyang. Wan not only reflects the geomorphological characteristics of the basin, but also reflects its ecological environment. "Shuo Wen Jie Zi": Wan, bend the grass and walk, from the sound. Its meaning: ① It is "high on all sides and low in the middle", which accords with the landform characteristics of Nanyang Basin, which is surrounded by mountains on three sides and low in the middle; (2) The grass is covered by grass, and the grass is lush. In the early Spring and Autumn Period, Chu in the south became more and more powerful, and successively annexed the countries in the Hanshui River basin in the north, and Lu and Shen were also destroyed by King Wen of Chu. After Chu occupied this land, with fertile soil and convenient rivers, Wan Yi was established here as a base to seize the Central Plains. Wan's name is from then on. Later, Wan changed from a domain name to Wancheng, Wanxian, Wanzhou and Shangwan. Today, Nanyang City and Wancheng District both use Wan as their customary abbreviation.