Kang is a Korean family name. All together, the holders of this name number are 1,176,847 in South Korea, according to the 2015 national census, ranking 6th largest Korean family name.[1] While the name "Kang" can actually represent 5 different hanja, or Chinese characters, the great majority (more than 1 million) bear the surname 姜.[1] The Chinese surname Jiāng also shares the same 姜 character.
| Kang | |
| Hangul | 강 |
|---|---|
| Hanja | |
| Revised Romanization | Gang |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kang |
Clans whose surname uses the Hanja character 姜 include the clans of Jinju and Geumcheon seat. The majority belong to the Jinju Kang clan (ko) (진주 강씨; 晉州 姜氏) is said to be descended from Goguryeo commander Kang I-sik. The Geumcheon Kang clan (ko) (금천 강씨; 衿川 姜氏) is descended from an ancestor whose ancestral seat was Geumcheon, now part of Seoul.
Clans whose surname uses the Hanja character 康 include Sincheon (ko) and Yeonggang (ko). The Sincheon Kang clan is further subdivided into Goksan (ko) (곡산 강씨; 谷山 康氏) and Jaeryeong (재령 강씨; 載寧 康氏).
