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.; While the name "Kang" can actually represent any of the 5 different hanja, or Chinese characters, the great majority (more than 1 million) bear the surname 姜. The Chinese surname Jiāng also shares the same 姜 character.

Clans

Clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, meaning ...

s whose surname uses the Hanja character 姜 include the clans of Jinju and Geumcheon seat. The majority belong to the Jinju Kang clan ( ko) (Hangul: 진주 강씨; Hanja: 晉州姜氏) is said to be descended from Goguryeo commander Kang Isik. The Gumcheon Kang clan ( ko) (Hangul: 금천 강씨; Hanja: 衿川姜氏) is descended from an ancestors whose ancestral seat was

Geumcheon Geumcheon District (Geumcheon-gu) is one of the 25 ''gu'' (districts) of Seoul, South Korea. It was created from southern parts of ''Guro-gu'' and tiny sections from Gwangmyeong in 1995. Its district office is located in front of Siheung Station, ...

, now part of Seoul. Clans whose surname uses the Hanja character 康 include Sincheon ( ko) and Youngkang/Yeonggang ( ko). The Sincheon Kang clan is further subdivided into Goksan ( ko) (Hangul: 곡산 강씨; Hanja: 谷山康氏) and Chaeryeong (Hangul: 재령 강씨; Hanja: 載寧康氏).

Notable individuals

Historic

* Kang Yisik, Lord General and Military Official of the Kingdom of Goguryeo. * Kang Gamchan, Lord General and Military Official of Goryeo dynasty. * Kang Jo (died 1010), general who served under Emperor Mokjong and Emperor Hyeonjong of Goryeo * Kang Hongrip, a military official of the Choson Dynasty. * Kang Huian (1417?-1464), a prominent and painter of the early

Choson Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Taejo of Joseon, Yi Seong-gye in ...

period * Kang Sehwang (1713–1791), a mayor of Hansung (now the capital city of Seoul), high government official and the Royal Representative Artist and Calligrapher in the mid-Choson dynasty.

Modern

* Kang Kyung-wha, 38th Minister of Foreign Affairs of South Korea * Gang Gyeong-hyo, South Korean modern pentathlete * Kang Chan-hee, South Korean singer, member of boy band SF9 *

Kang Daesung Kang Dae-sung (Hangul: 강대성; born April 26, 1989), better known mononymously as Daesung and his Japanese stage name D-Lite, is a South Korean singer, actor and television personality who made his musical debut in 2006 as a member of the Sou ...

, South Korean singer, member of boy band

Big Bang The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...

* Dawon Kahng, Korean-American scientist, inventor of

MOSFET The metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET, MOS-FET, or MOS FET) is a type of field-effect transistor (FET), most commonly fabricated by the controlled oxidation of silicon. It has an insulated gate, the voltage of which d ...

* Kang Sung-hoon, South Korean singer, member of boy band Sechs Kies * Kang Dong-suk, South Korean violinist * Kang Dong-suk, South Korean yachtsman *

Gang Dong-won Gang Dong-won (born January 18, 1981) is a South Korean actor. Early life Gang Dong-won was born January 18, 1981, in Busan, and grew up in Changwon of Gyeongsangnam-do. His father, Gang Cheol-woo, was an engineer and later vice president ...

, South Korean actor * Kang Doyoung, South Korean webtoon artist *

Kang Han-na Kang Han-na（ ko, 강한나; born January 30, 1989) is a South Korean actress. Kang played several lead roles in films and television series, including '' Moon Lovers: Scarlet Heart Ryeo'' (2016), '' Rain or Shine'' (2017), ''Familiar Wife'' (2 ...

, South Korean actress * Kang Ha-neul, South Korean actor * Kang Hee-gun, South Korean rapper, former member of hip hop duo Leessang * Kang Ho-dong, South Korean entertainer * Kang Hye-jung, South Korean actress *

Kang Hye-mi Kang Hye-Mi ( ko, 강혜미; born April 27, 1974, in Busan) is a female volleyball player. Playing as a Volleyball#Player specialization, setter she was one of the key players of the South Korea women's national volleyball team, Women's National ...

, South Korean volleyball player * Kang Hye-won, South Korean singer, former member of girl group Iz*One * Kang Ye-won, South Korean actress *

Kang Hyung-gu Kang Hyung-gu ( ko, 강형구; born ), better known as Kino (), is a South Korean singer, songwriter, rapper, composer and dancer. He is best known as a member of the boy group Pentagon, which debuted in 2016 under Cube Entertainment. He release ...

, South Korean singer, member of boy group

Pentagon In geometry, a pentagon (from the Greek πέντε ''pente'' meaning ''five'' and γωνία ''gonia'' meaning ''angle'') is any five-sided polygon or 5-gon. The sum of the internal angles in a simple pentagon is 540°. A pentagon may be simpl ...

* Kang Ji-hwan, South Korean actor * Kang Ji-hyun, South Korean singer, member of girl group Sistar * Kang Ji-young, South Korean singer, former member of girl group Kara * Kang Young-hyun, South Korean singer, member of rock band Day6 * Jung-ho Kang, baseball player *

Katherine Anna Kang Katherine Anna Kang (born December 15, 1970) is an American video game designer. Career In 2000, as founder and CEO of Fountainhead Entertainment, she championed machinima and became known as one of machinima's biggest supporters. Through Foun ...

, American video game designer and producer, machinima and documentary film maker * Kang Kyung-ho, South Korean mixed martial artist * Kang Min, South Korean ''

StarCraft ''StarCraft'' is a military science fiction media franchise created by Chris Metzen and James Phinney and owned by Blizzard Entertainment. The series, set in the beginning of the 26th century, centers on a galactic struggle for dominance am ...

'' player * Kang Mi-na, South Korean singer, former member of girl groups I.O.I and Gugudan * Kang Min-hyuk, South Korean drummer and actor, member of rock band CNBLUE * Kang Min-kyung, South Korean singer from Korean duo

Davichi Davichi () is a South Korean pop duo formed in 2008. The duo consists of vocalists Lee Hae-ri and Kang Min-kyung. Their name, "Davichi", is derived from the Korean phrase "shining over everything" ( 다 비치). The duo has released three studi ...

* Kang Ryang-uk, North Korean politician and a North Korean Protestant Minister and Chairman of the Christian Federation of Korea, deputy prime minister of North Korea and secretary of the Supreme People's Assembly *

Kang Yong-sop Kang Yong Sop (, ; October 15, 1931 – January 21, 2012) was a North Korean politician, second son of deputy prime minister Kang Ryang-uk and Song Sok-jong. He served as chair of the Korean Christian Federation (KCF) and vice-president of the ...

, chairman of the Korean Christian Federation and vice-president of the Korean Council of Religionists * Kang Young-joong, chairman of Daekyo Group * Kang Seul-gi, South Korean singer, member of girl group Red Velvet * Kang Seung-yoon, South Korean singer, member of boy band Winner * Kang So-ra, South Korean actress * Sung Kang, Korean-American actor * Kang Chang-hee, Speaker of the National Assembly of South Korea *

Kang Chang-gi Kang Chang-Gi (; 28 August 1927 – 5 January 2007) was a South Korean football midfielder who played for the South Korea in the 1954 FIFA World Cup The 1954 FIFA World Cup was the fifth edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial internat ...

, South Korean football midfielder *

Kang Nung-su Kang Nung-su (; February 21, 1930 – July 21, 2015) was a North Korean literary critic and politician. He was a Cabinet of North Korea, vice premier and member of the politburo of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea. He was a de ...

, North Korean literary critic and politician * Kang Daniel, South Korean singer, former member of boy group Wanna One * Kang Dong-ho, South Korean actor * Kang Dong-ho, South Korean singer, member of boy band NU'EST *

Emil Kang Emil J. Kang (born 1968 in New York City) serves as Program Director for Arts and Cultural Heritage at The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation where he leads the Foundation’s grant making program. Kang assumed the role in 2019. From 2005 to 2019, Kan ...

, Korean-American arts leader and Presidential appointee to the

National Council on the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

* Kang Min-hyuk (badminton) (born 1999), South Korean badminton player * Kang Ye-seo, South Korean singer and actress, member of girl group Kep1er * Kang Dae-ho ( Gaho), South Korean singer, songwriter and producer *

Kang Yu-chan Kang Yu-chan ( ko, 강유찬; born December 31, 1997), also known as Chan ( ko, 찬) is a South Korean singer and actor. He debuted as a member of A.C.E in 2017. In the same year, he joined the survival program The Unit, in which he finished in ...

, South Korean singer and actor, member of boy band A.C.E

References

External links