Cha Family History

Cha Surname Meaning

Korean (Ch’a): written 자 in Chinese characters 車 meaning ‘cart’ or ‘wagon’. This is the only Chinese character for the surname Ch’a and the Yŏnan Ch’a clan is the only clan. Their founding ancestor was Ch’a Hyojŏn (車; 孝全) the son of a Koryŏ high minister named Yu Ch’a-tal (10th century AD). He served the incoming Koryŏ rulers with exceptional valour and loyalty so the Koryŏ monarch bestowed upon his first son the surname Ch’a (車) and enfeoffed him with Yŏnan County in Hwanghae South Province.

Ch’a is a fairly common surname throughout the Korean peninsula but most of the clan's members live in Kyŏngsang province, Hwanghae province, or P’yŏngan province. Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 茶 meaning ‘tea’ in Chinese: (i) possibly borne by the descendants of Lu Yu (733–804 AD), a famous figure during the Tang dynasty (618–907 AD) known as the Sage of Tea who wrote the book Classic of Tea.

(ii) from the first element of the placename Chalin (茶陵 located in present-day Hunan province) said to be the place where the legendary Yan Emperor was buried. (iii) adopted in place of the surname Meng (蒙) by some members living in Yunnan in order to avoid persecution or feud. (iv) adopted as a Han Chinese surname by some minority ethnic groups in southwestern China.

Chinese: Cantonese form and alternative Mandarin form of the surname 查 see Zha. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 謝 see Xie. Southeast Asian (Hmong): from the name of the Cha or Chang clan of the Hmong people in Laos, China, and Vietnam; in Chinese characters it is written 張 (see Zhang).

Compare Chang 1.

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

Similar surnames: Chae, Chi, Chu, Cho, Ha, Che, Chao, Chia, Chai, Zha

30,000 record(s) for Cha

16K	Birth, Marriage, and Deaths
911	Military Records
4K	Immigration Records
4K	Census and Voter Lists
3K	Member Trees

Where is the Cha family from?

You can see how Cha families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Cha family name was found in the USA, the UK, and Canada between 1880 and 1920. The most Cha families were found in USA in 1920. In 1880 there were 14 Cha families living in California. This was about 78% of all the recorded Cha's in USA. California had the highest population of Cha families in 1880.

Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Cha surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Cha ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Laborer was the top reported job for people in the USA named Cha.

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 1940

Laborer

39%

Cook

28%

Farmer

12%

Miner

12%

What Cha family records will you find?

Census Record

There are 4K census records available for the last name Cha. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Cha census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Passenger List

There are 4K immigration records available for the last name Cha. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

Military Records

There are 911 military records available for the last name Cha. For the veterans among your Cha ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

What is the average Cha lifespan?

Between 1963 and 2004, in the United States, Cha life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1975, and highest in 1972. The average life expectancy for Cha in 1963 was 65, and 61 in 2004.

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Cha ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.