Explore the Family Name Kang
The meaning of Kang
1. Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 康, meaning ‘healthy’ in Chinese: (i) from the first element of Kang Shu (康叔), the posthumous title of one of the sons of the virtuous King Wen of Zhou (1152–1056 BC). Kang Shu was the first king of the state of Wey (衛) (which is located mainly around present-day Hebi and Xinxiang in Henan province). (ii) from the first element of Kang Ju (康居), the name of a state in Central Asia during the Western Han dynasty (206 BC–25 AD). People from this state adopted 康 as their surname. (iii) from Kang (康), the Chinese name of the state of Samarkand in Central Asia. Immigrants from Samarkand in China acquired 康, the Chinese name of their state as their surname, known as one of the ’Nine Sogdian Surnames’. (iv) adopted in place of another Chinese surname, 匡 (see Kuang 2). Some people with the surname 匡 changed their surname to 康 during the reign of Zhao Kuangyin (赵匡胤), known as Emperor Taizu of Song (927–76 AD), the first emperor of the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127 AD), because 匡 happened to be part of the personal name of the emperor, which was taboo in ancient China. 2. Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 亢, meaning ‘high’ or ‘haughty’ in Chinese: (i) from the first element of the placename Kang Fu (亢父), the name of a vassal state (in present-day Jining in Shandong province) in the state of Qi during the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BC). (ii) adopted in place of another Chinese surname, 伉 (Kang in Mandarin pinyin), also sharing the same origin of another two Chinese surnames 抗 (Kang in Mandarin pinyin) and 杭 (pronounced the same as 抗 in ancient Chinese, Hang in today’s Mandarin pinyin), which can be traced back to San Kang (三伉/抗/杭), a noble official in the state of Wey (衛) during the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BC). 3. Chinese: Cantonese form of the surname 耿, see Geng 2. 4. Chinese: Teochew, Hokkien or Taiwanese form of the surname 江, see Jiang 1. This pronunciation is found in eastern Guangdong province, Fujian province, and Taiwan, from where some people migrated to Malaysia, Singapore, and other parts of Southeast Asia. 5. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 簡, see Jian 1. 6. Chinese: alternative Mandarin form of the surname 剛, see Gang 6. 7. Korean: written 강, in Chinese characters 姜, 康, 剛, and 强. There are actually five Chinese characters for the surname Kang. Some records indicate that there are as many as one hundred separate Kang clans, but only four have actually been documented. There is one Chinese character for each clan. The fifth character is an alternate character for the smallest of the Kang clans, and is the result of a scribal error which was introduced in 1908. That segment of the smaller Kang clan which was labeled with the alternate character still uses it and recognizes it as the character for their surname. (i) The largest clan, the Kang family of Chinju (it uses the Chinese character 姜), first appears in the historical record in 597 AD. It is said to be descended from Kang I-shik (姜 以式), a military official in the ancient Koguryŏ kingdom. Kang I-shik valiantly defended the Koguryŏ kingdom against invasions from China. Subsequently, his descendant, Kang Chin (姜 縉), was enfeoffed with Chinju in Kyŏngsang South Province. Chinju henceforth became the clan seat for the Kang family. Many members of the largest Kang clan still live in the area of Chinju of Kyŏngsang Province. (ii) The Chinese character 康 is borne by the descendants of Kang Ho-kyŏng (康 虎景). His 14th-generation descendant, Kang Chi-yŏn (康 之淵) attended the Koryŏ king Kojong when he fled to Kanghwa Island during the Mongol invasions. Kang Chi-yŏn was subsequently enfeoffed with Shinch’ŏn in Hwanghae Province. There are two other clans of this Kang family, but both descend from Kang Chi-yŏn. (iii) The two smaller Kang clans have only a few households in all of Korea. Compare Gang 6. 8. Cambodian: written កាំង, of Chinese origin, but unexplained etymology (probably corresponding to one of the surnames above). 9. Cambodian: written កង, corresponding to the Khmer word meaning e.g. ‘round bracelet’. Compare Kong 9. 10. Southeast Asian (Hmong): variant of Khang 1; in Chinese characters it is written 康 (see 1 above). Some characteristic forenames: Chinese Young, Sung, Yong, Jung, Shin, Sang, Kyung, Hyun, Sun, Myung, Soon, Jae. Korean Chang, Min, Dae, Myong, Moon, Byung, Chong, Seong, Jeong, Chung, Young Woo, Chul.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Kang in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Kang has increased from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it was ranked 1380 but rose to 1084 in 2010, a change of approximately 21.45%. The number of people with the Kang surname also grew significantly, with a count of 23,565 in 2000, which surged to 32,221 by 2010, marking an increase of 36.73%. This trend signifies that for every 100,000 people in the U.S., about 10.92 had the surname Kang in 2010, up from 8.74 in 2000.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #1,380 | #1,084 | 21.45% |
| Count | 23,565 | 32,221 | 36.73% |
| Proportion per 100k | 8.74 | 10.92 | 24.94% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Kang
Regarding the ethnicity associated with the surname Kang, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that the majority identify as Asian/Pacific Islander. From 2000 to 2010, there was a slight increase in this group, from 92.45% to 93.86%. During the same period, there were declines among those identifying as White (from 4.19% to 3.08%), Black (from 0.71% to 0.56%), and American Indian and Alaskan Native (from 0.07% to 0.03%). However, the proportion of individuals identifying as Hispanic showed a rise, from 0.46% in 2000 to 0.67% in 2010. Those identifying with two or more races also decreased from 2.12% in 2000 to 1.81% in 2010.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 92.45% | 93.86% | 1.53% |
| White | 4.19% | 3.08% | -26.49% |
| Two or More Races | 2.12% | 1.81% | -14.62% |
| Hispanic | 0.46% | 0.67% | 45.65% |
| Black | 0.71% | 0.56% | -21.13% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.07% | 0.03% | -57.14% |
Kang ancestry composition
23andMe computes an ancestry breakdown for each customer. People may have ancestry from just one population or they may have ancestry from several populations. The most commonly-observed ancestry found in people with the surname Kang is Korean, which comprises 68.1% of all ancestry found in people with the surname. The next two most common ancestries are Chinese (17.4%) and Northern Indian & Pakistani (3.1%). Additional ancestries include British & Irish, French & German, Indonesian, Thai, Khmer & Myanma, Spanish & Portuguese, and Japanese.
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| ANCESTRY BREAKDOWN | COMPOSITION |
|---|---|
| Korean | 68.1% |
| Chinese | 17.4% |
| Northern Indian & Pakistani | 3.1% |
| Other | 11.4% |
Possible origins of the surname Kang
Your DNA provides clues about where your recent ancestors may have lived. Having many distant relatives in the same location suggests that you may all share common ancestry there. Locations with many distant relatives can also be places where people have migrated recently, such as large cities. If a large number of individuals who share your surname have distant relatives in a specific area, it could indicate a connection between your surname and that location, stemming from either recent ancestral ties or migration.
Based on 23andMe data, people with last name Kang have recent ancestry locations in South Korea and China.
| RECENT ANCESTRY Location | Percentage |
|---|---|
| Seoul, South Korea | 69.20% |
| Busan, South Korea | 46.10% |
| Gyeongsangnam Do, South Korea | 34.30% |
| Jeollabuk Do, South Korea | 34.00% |
| Daegu, South Korea | 32.40% |
What Kang haplogroups can tell you
Haplogroups are genetic population groups that share a common ancestor on either your paternal or maternal line. These paternal and maternal haplogroups shed light on your genetic ancestry and help tell the story of your family.
The top paternal haplogroup of people with the surname Kang is C-CTS2657, which is predominantly found among people with East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry. Haplogroup C-CTS2657 is descended from haplogroup C-M217. Other common haplogroups include O-CTS723 and C-CTS8579, which are predominantly found among people with East Asian & Indigenous American and East Asian & Indigenous American ancestry. Other surnames with similar common haplogroups are: Kim, Park, Choi, Han, Chung, Oh, Jung, Hwang, Chang, Pak.
The most common maternal haplogroups of people with Kang surname are: D4b2b, F2, D4. These most commonly trace back to individuals of East Asian & Indigenous American and European ancestry.
Paternal Haplogroup Origins C-M217
Your paternal lineage may be linked to Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan, the Mongolian conqueror that lived from 1162 to 1227 CE, was likely a member of haplogroup C-M217, and may be responsible for the spread of one of its branches. Half of a percent of all men on Earth, and 8% of men in the region reaching from northeastern China to Uzbekistan, may descend from Genghis Khan. His lineage is most common in Hazara, Mongolian, Uygur, Chinese Kazak, and Inner Mongolian Han populations.
Your maternal lineage may be linked to the Han
Members of haplogroup D are found in both northern and southern Han Chinese populations at low to moderate frequencies. The Han people, who all share the same language and similar cultural practices, are the largest ethnic group in the world, with about 1.2 billion people. Historical evidence shows that Han people are descendants of the ancient Huaxia tribes that come from northern China, and Han language and culture only expanded into southern China in the last 2,000 years. The spread of Han people and culture from northern to southern China was likely driven by warfare and famine in the north.
What do people with the surname Kang have in common?
Spoiler alert: it's complicated. People with the same last name are usually no more genetically similar than a randomly sampled group of people from the same population. That said, people with the same surname are more likely to have similar ancestries than randomly sampled individuals. The reason is the tendency of people with similar cultural or geographical backgrounds to preferentially mate with one another. That's why people who share a surname may be more likely to share traits and tendencies in common than people within the general population. Check out the percentages below to see the prevalences of tastes, habits, and traits of people with your surname compared with prevalences among 23andMe users.
Preferences
Chocolate Ice Cream
Prefers chocolate flavored ice cream over other flavors.
"Kang" Surname 28.2%
23andMe Users 41.3%
Traits
Misophonia
When sounds made by others, like the sound of chewing or yawning, provoke strong emotional reactions in an individual.
"Kang" Surname 27.1%
23andMe Users 27.9%
Habits
Sugary Drink
Drinks one or more sugary drinks per day.
"Kang" Surname 16.6%
23andMe Users 21.1%
Wellness
Migraine
A severe headache characterized by intense pain, sensitivity to light and sound, and often accompanied by nausea and vomiting.
"Kang" Surname 10.0%
23andMe Users 16.4%
Are health conditions linked to the last name Kang?
The short answer is that, if there is an association between surname and health, it's usually more about your ancestry than your name. Individuals with a given surname are no more genetically similar than the general population but often have similar ancestries. The populations of people associated with those shared ancestries often have sets of genetic variations, also known as alleles, in common. Some of those alleles are associated with a greater likelihood of developing certain diseases.
Disease variant frequency by ancestry
Disease allele frequencies in populations associated with the surname Kang are shown below. Important Note: not everyone with a disease allele will develop these health condition