| 阮 | [ ruǎn ] surname Ruan, small state during the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC) located in the southeast of modern-day Gansu Province |
| 阮 | [ ruǎn ] ruan, a four-stringed Chinese lute |
| 阮元 | [ ruǎn yuán ] scholar-official in the Qing dynasty (1764-1849) |
| 阮咸 | [ ruǎn xián ] see 阮[ruan3] |
| 阮安 | [ ruǎn ān ] Nguyen An (1381-1453), aka Ruan An, Vietnamese architect and engineer, principal designer of the Forbidden City |
| 阮崇武 | [ ruǎn chóng wǔ ] Ruan Chongwu (1933-), third governor of Hainan |
| 阮晉勇 | [ ruǎn jìn yǒng ] Nguyễn Tấn Dũng (1949-), prime minister of Vietnam 2006-2016 |
| 阮琴 | [ ruǎn qín ] see 阮[ruan3] |
| ⇒ 中阮 | [ zhōng ruǎn ] zhongruan or alto lute, like pipa 琵琶 but bigger and lower range |
| ⇒ 大阮 | [ dà ruǎn ] daruan or bass lute, like pipa 琵琶 and zhongruan 中阮 but bigger and lower range |
