Bok is a surname.

Origins

As a

Chinese surname Chinese surnames are used by Han Chinese and Sinicized ethnic groups in China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, and among overseas Chinese communities around the world such as Singapore and Malaysia. Written Chinese names begin with surnames, unlike the ...

, Bok transcribes the

Hokkien The Hokkien () variety of Chinese is a Southern Min language native to and originating from the Minnan region, where it is widely spoken in the south-eastern part of Fujian in southeastern mainland China. It is one of the national languages in ...

pronunciations of various surnames spelled in

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

Pinyin Hanyu Pinyin (), often shortened to just pinyin, is the official romanization system for Standard Mandarin Chinese in China, and to some extent, in Singapore and Malaysia. It is often used to teach Mandarin, normally written in Chinese for ...

as Mu (e.g. 'herder'; 'elegant') or Mo (). Hokkien spellings of Chinese surnames are often found in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

and

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

, where many descendants of Chinese migrants can trace their roots to the

Fujian Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capi ...

province of China. The

Dutch surname Dutch names consist of one or more given names and a surname. The given name is usually gender-specific. Dutch given names A Dutch child's birth and given name(s) must be officially registered by the parents within 3 days after birth. It is not u ...

Bok comes from the Dutch word for

billy goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...

, . Similarly, the

Jewish surname Jewish surnames are family names used by Jews and those of Jewish origin. Jewish surnames are thought to be of comparatively recent origin; the first known Jewish family names date to the Middle Ages, in the 10th and 11th centuries CE. Jews have ...

Bok, a variant spelling of

Bock Bock is a strong beer in Germany, usually a dark lager. Several substyles exist, including: *Doppelbock (''Double Bock''), a stronger and maltier version *Eisbock (''Ice Bock''), a much stronger version made by partially freezing the beer an ...

, originated from the German word for billy goat, . Bok is the spelling in

Revised Romanization Revised Romanization of Korean () is the official Korean language romanization system in South Korea. It was developed by the National Academy of the Korean Language from 1995 and was released to the public on 7 July 2000 by South Korea's Min ...

of one

Korean surname A Korean name (Hangul: ; Hanja: ) consists of a family name followed by a given name, as used by the Korean people in both South Korea and North Korea. In the Korean language, ''ireum'' or ''seongmyeong'' usually refers to the family name (''seon ...

meaning 'divination' (

Hanja Hanja (Hangul: ; Hanja: , ), alternatively known as Hancha, are Chinese characters () used in the writing of Korean. Hanja was used as early as the Gojoseon period, the first ever Korean kingdom. (, ) refers to Sino-Korean vocabulary, wh ...

: ; referred to in Korean as or ). The character used to write this surname, Radical 25, is also used for the Chinese surname now pronounced Bǔ in

Standard Mandarin Standard Chinese ()—in linguistics Standard Northern Mandarin or Standard Beijing Mandarin, in common speech simply Mandarin, better qualified as Standard Mandarin, Modern Standard Mandarin or Standard Mandarin Chinese—is a modern standar ...

. The largest

Korean clan Bon-gwan (or Bongwan) is the concept of clan in Korea, which is used to distinguish clans that happen to share the same family name (clan name). Since Korea has been traditionally a Confucian country, this clan system is similar to ancient Chinese ...

bearing this surname, the , claims

common descent Common descent is a concept in evolutionary biology applicable when one species is the ancestor of two or more species later in time. All living beings are in fact descendants of a unique ancestor commonly referred to as the last universal comm ...

from , one of the four generals who overthrew

Gung Ye Gung Ye ( – 24 July 918, r. July 901 – 24 July 918) was the king of the short-lived state of Taebong (901–918), one of the Later Three Kingdoms of Korea. Although he was a member of the Silla royal family, he became a victim of the power st ...

of the state of

Taebong Taebong (; ) was a state established by Gung Ye () on the Korean Peninsula in 901 during the Later Three Kingdoms. Name The state's initial name was Goryeo, after the official name of Goguryeo, a previous state in Manchuria and the northern K ...

in 918 and installed King Taejo in his place as the first king of the

Goryeo dynasty Goryeo (; ) was a Korean kingdom founded in 918, during a time of national division called the Later Three Kingdoms period, that unified and ruled the Korean Peninsula until 1392. Goryeo achieved what has been called a "true national unificati ...

. As a Swedish surname, Bok originated as an ornamental surname, from '

beech Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...

'. Bok is also a Slovenian surname, of unexplained origin.

Statistics

In the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

, there were 1,751 people with the surname Bok and five with the surname Bók as of 2007, up from 1,197 in 1947. The 2000 South Korean Census found 8,644 people in 2,663 households with the surname Bok; 7,471 of those were members of the Myeoncheon Bok clan. The

2010 United States Census The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

found 738 people with the surname Bok, making it the 31,383rd-most-common name in the country. This represented an increase from 599 (35,522nd-most-common) in the 2000 Census. In the 2010 census, 73.71% of the bearers of the surname identified as

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

, and 21.41% as

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

Notable people with the surname

Bart Bok Bartholomeus Jan "Bart" Bok (April 28, 1906 – August 5, 1983) was a Dutch-American astronomer, teacher, and lecturer. He is best known for his work on the structure and evolution of the Milky Way galaxy, and for the discovery of Bok globules, ...

(1906–1983), Dutch-born American astronomer *

Benjamin Bok Benjamin Bok (born 25 January 1995) is a Dutch chess grandmaster. He was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 2014. Bok was born in Lelystad. He is currently attending Saint Louis University in Saint Louis, Missouri, where he stud ...

(born 1995), Dutch chess grandmaster *

Chip Bok Arthur Bernard "Chip" Bok III (born July 25, 1952) is an American editorial cartoonist for the '' Akron (Ohio) Beacon Journal'' and the ''Tampa Bay Times''. He has illustrated some of Dave Barry's books, and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize ...

(born 1952), American cartoonist *

Christian Bök Christian Bök, FRSC (; born August 10, 1966 in Toronto, Canada) is a Canadian poet known for unusual and experimental works. He is the author of ''Eunoia'', which won the Canadian Griffin Poetry Prize. Life and work He was born "Christian Boo ...

(born 1966), Canadian experimental poet *

Curtis Bok William Curtis Bok (September 7, 1897 – May 22, 1962) was a Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice, philanthropist and writer. Heir to an enormous publishing fortune, he was also a devout Quaker and an avid sailor. Early life Curtis Bok was bor ...

(1897–1962), Pennsylvania Supreme Court justice *

Derek Bok Derek Curtis Bok (born March 22, 1930) is an American lawyer and educator, and the former president of Harvard University. Life and career Bok was born in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. Following his parents' divorce, he, his mother, brother and siste ...

(born 1930), American lawyer and president of Harvard University *

Edward Bok Edward William Bok (born Eduard Willem Gerard Cesar Hidde Bok) (October 9, 1863 – January 9, 1930) was a Dutch-born American editor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. He was editor of the ''Ladies' Home Journal'' for 30 years (1889–1919). He ...

(1863–1930), Dutch-born American publisher, author, and editor of ''Ladies' Home Journal'' *

Erika Bók Erika Bók is a Hungarian actress who has appeared exclusively in the films of Béla Tarr Béla Tarr (born 21 July 1955) is a Hungarian filmmaker. Debuting with the film ''Family Nest'' (1977), Tarr began his directorial career with a brie ...

(), Hungarian actress *

Francis Bok Francis Piol Bol Bok (born February 1979), a Dinka tribesman and native of South Sudan, was a slave for ten years but became an abolitionist and author living in the United States. On May 15, 1986, he was captured and enslaved at the age of seven ...

(born 1979), Dinka tribesman and abolitionist *

Bok Geo-il Bok Geo-il (born March 20, 1946) is a South Korean novelist, poet, literary critic and social commentator. Early life and education Bok was born in Asan, Chungcheongnam-do, Southern Korea. Bok Geo-il graduated from the Business School of the S ...

(born 1946), South Korean novelist *

Gideon Bok Gideon Bok (born 1966) is an American painter who lives and works in Maine. He earned his B.A. from Hampshire College and his M.F.A. from Yale University. He has gone on to teach painting and drawing at Hampshire, but is on leave from his position. ...

(born 1966), American painter *

Gordon Bok Gordon Bok (born October 31, 1939) is an American folklorist and singer-songwriter, who grew up in Camden, Maine and is associated with music from New England. Career Bok's first album, self-titled, was produced by Noel Paul Stookey (Paul of P ...

(born 1939), American folklorist and singer-songwriter *

Hannes Bok Hannes Bok, pseudonym for Wayne Francis Woodard (, ; July 2, 1914 – April 11, 1964), was an American artist and illustrator, as well as an amateur astrologer and writer of fantasy fiction and poetry. He painted nearly 150 covers for various sc ...

(1914–1964), pen name of American illustrator Wayne Woodard *

Henri Bok Henri Bok (born 9 March 1950, Rotterdam) is a Dutch bass clarinetist known for his unique compositions. Career One of the 'Big Three' in bass clarinet history, Henri Bok is a very active worldwide ambassador of his beloved instrument, one to whic ...

(born 1950), Dutch bass clarinetist *

Hilary Bok Hilary Bok (born 1959) is the Henry R. Luce Professor of Bioethics and Moral & Political Theory at the Johns Hopkins University. Bok received a B.A. in philosophy from Princeton University in 1981 and her Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1991. ...

(born 1959), American author and professor of philosophy * Kenzie Bok (born 1989), American local politician in Boston *

Marike Bok Marike Bok (17 January 1943 – 12 June 2017) was a Dutch portrait painter. Life and work Bok studied at the Royal Art Academy in The Hague. Bok painted the Dutch Queen Beatrix twice. In 1995 she painted the Gentleman's Club (De heren club). ...

(1943–2017), Dutch portrait painter *

Martijn Bok Martijn Bok (born 8 March 1973) is a retired Netherlands, Dutch tennis player. Bok has a career high Association of Tennis Professionals, ATP singles ranking of 212 achieved on 22 May 1995. He also has a career high doubles ranking of 204 achieve ...

(born 1973), Dutch tennis player *

Miloš Bok Miloš Bok (born 16 January 1968) is a Czech composer, conductor, pianist, organist, choirmaster and music educator. Life and career Miloš Bok was born on 16 January 1968 in Prague. He graduated in piano playing in 1988 at the Prague Conserva ...

(born 1968), Czech composer *

Priscilla Fairfield Bok Priscilla Fairfield Bok (April 14, 1896 – November 1975) was an American astronomer and the wife of Dutch-born astronomer Bart Bok, Director of Mount Stromlo Observatory in Australia and later of Steward Observatory in Arizona, US. Their harmon ...

(1896–1975), American astronomer * Richard Bok (born 1969), Singaporean soccer coach *

Sissela Bok Sissela Bok (born Myrdal; 2 December 1934) is a Swedish-born American philosopher and ethicist, the daughter of two Nobel Prize winners: Gunnar Myrdal who won the Economics prize with Friedrich Hayek in 1974, and Alva Myrdal who won the Nobel Pea ...

(born 1934), Swedish-born American philosopher and ethicist *

Willem Eduard Bok Willem Eduard Bok, also known as W. Eduard Bok (Den Burg, Texel, Netherlands, 28 June 1846 – Johannesburg, Transvaal Colony, 1 November 1904) was a Dutch-born South African Boer politician, civil servant and statesman, who served as first ...

(1846–1904), Dutch-born South African Boer politician * Willem Eduard Bok Jr. (1880–1956), South African lawyer, son of the above

References

{{Authority control Dutch-language surnames Hokkien-language surnames Korean-language surnames Swedish-language surnames

Origins

Statistics

Notable people with the surname

See also

References