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Chang Family History

Chang Name Meaning

Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 常 which means ‘lasting forever’: (i) said to be borne by descendants of Chang Yi (常儀) and Chang Xian (常先) officials during the reign of the legendary Huang Di the ‘Yellow Emperor’ (c. 27th century BC). (ii) from Chang (常) the name of a fief (located in present-day Tengxian in Shandong province) that was granted to the grandson of Kang Shu the younger brother of King Wu of Zhou (c. 1087–1043 BC) and founder of the state of Wey (located around present-day Hebei and Xinxiang in Henan province). (iii) from Chang (常) a fief (located in present-day Changzhou in Jiangsu province) that was granted to descendants of the kings of the state of Wu (located mainly in present-day Jiangsu and Anhui provinces) during the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BC). (v) adopted in place of another Chinese surname 恒 (Heng in Mandarin pinyin meaning ‘lasting permanent’) which could be traced back to Duke Si of Heng an official in the state of Chu during the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BC). People with this surname changed it to Chang (常) during the reign of the emperor Zhao Heng (趙恒 known as Emperor Zhenzong of Song 968–1022) in the Northern Song dynasty because their surname 恒 happened to coincide with the personal name of the emperor which was taboo in ancient China. Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 昌 which means ‘prosperity’: it is said to be from the name of Chang Yi (昌意) son of the legendary Huang Di the ‘Yellow Emperor’ (c. 27th century BC). Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 暢 which means ‘fluent uninhibited’: the surname is borne by descendants of a noble family who lived in the state of Qi (located mainly in Shandong province) during the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BC). Chinese: Mandarin form of the surnames 張 章 and 仉 see Zhang 1- Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 曾 see Zeng . Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 臧 see Zang .7: Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 程 see Cheng 8: Chinese: Hakka form of the surname 鄭 see Zheng 9: Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 陳 possibly based on its Cantonese pronunciation see Chen 10: Chinese: variant Romanization of the surnames 江 蔣 and 姜 see Jiang 1-1 Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 莊 see Zhuang .1 Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 鐘 see Zhong 1 Korean: written 장 in Chinese characters 張 meaning ‘to extend’ 蔣 denoting a type of plant in ancient Chinese but now used only as a surname 章 meaning ‘chapter’ or ‘sentence’ and 莊 meaning ‘serious’. All of the 33 Korean Chang clans had their origins in China and all but three use the same Chinese character for their surname namely 張. This is one of the ten most common surnames in Korea. (i) The Chinese character 張 is borne by the descendants of Chang Chŏng-p’il (張 貞弼) the son of a Chinese military official who together with his father fled from political instability in China in 888 AD. He ultimately settled in An-dong County North Kyŏngsang Province. (ii) The Chinese character 蔣 is borne by descendants of Chang Sŏ (蔣 壻) a Chinese Song Dynasty general who immigrated to Korea in the 12th century AD. Chang Sŏ settled in the Asan area of Ch’ungch’ŏng South Province. (iii) The Chinese character 章 is borne by the descendants of Chang Chong-haeng (章 宗行) a late 12th-century immigrant from China. The family settled in and around Kŏch’ang County in South Kyŏngsang Province. (iv) The Chinese character 莊 is borne by the descendants of Chang Suk (莊 俶) who settled in the Kŭmch’ŏn district of modern Seoul in the early fifteenth century. Another Chang family clan seat was established in the Chŏnju area in the late nineteenth century by Chang Sŏk-hwang (莊 錫滉). One of the ancestors of this Chang family was the Taoist philosopher Chuang Tzu. 莊 is a comparatively rare surname. Compare Jang 5.1 Southeast Asian (Hmong): variant of Cha 5; in Chinese characters it is written 張 (see 4 above).

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Chong, Zhang, Cheng, Tang, Hong, Jiang, Xiang, Hang, Sang, Shang

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Where is the Chang family from?

You can see how Chang families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Chang family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1841 and 1920. The most Chang families were found in USA in 1920. In 1891 there were 8 Chang families living in London. This was about 32% of all the recorded Chang's in United Kingdom. London had the highest population of Chang families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Chang surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Chang ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, Cook and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Chang. 43% of Chang men worked as a Cook and 100% of Chang women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. .

View Census Data for Chang | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1939

  • Cook
    43%
  • Seaman
    29%
  • Laundryman
    29%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    100%
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What Chang family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 14,000 census records available for the last name Chang. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Chang census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

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Passenger Lists

There are 77,000 immigration records available for the last name Chang. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

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Draft Cards

There are 17,000 military records available for the last name Chang. For the veterans among your Chang ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Chang lifespan?

Between 1941 and 2004, in the United States, Chang life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1954, and highest in 1960. The average life expectancy for Chang in 1941 was 41, and 75 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Chang

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