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He Family History

He Name Meaning

Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 何 which meant ‘ask’ or ‘what?’ in ancient Chinese: (i) from the surname Han (韓) the name of a state during the Warring States period. In 230 BC the state of Han was annihilated by the state of Qin. Some of the descendants of Han Wang An (韓王安 'An King of Han') the last king of Han fled to the area around the Yangtze and Huai (淮) rivers where the surname Han (韓) had a similar pronunciation to that of the Chinese character He (何) in the local dialects so they adopted the surname He (何) as a surname.(ii) from one of the 'Nine Sogdian Surnames’ in Chinese also known as ‘nine surnames of Zhaowu’ because their ancestors came from Zhaowu an ancient city in present-day Gansu province in northwestern China. During the Sui and Tang dynasties (581–987 AD) there were nine Sogdian states in Central Asia one of which was called He (何) in Chinese. Between 649 and 655 AD these states submitted to Emperor Gaozong of Tang (628–683 AD). The people from this state and their descendants acquired the surname He.(iii) from the name of He Miao (何苗) who changed his original surname Zhu (朱) to He (何) during the Western Han dynasty (206 BC–25 AD). (iv) For some families this surname is traced back to Suo Ming (鎖銘) the son of an ambassador (Suo Nan 鎖南) from Tibet in the 12th century AD. Suo Ming was appointed to a post in Hezhou (in present-day Gansu province) and endowed with the surname He by Hongwu Emperor (Zhu Yuanzhang founder of the Ming dynasty) in 1371 AD.(v) a surname of the Tuyuhun (吐谷渾) ethnic group originating in the Wudai Period (907–960 AD). Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 賀 meaning ‘celebrate congratulate’ in Chinese: (i) a semantic variant of Qing (慶) (see Qing ). In the Eastern Han dynasty (25– 220 AD) a descendant of the Qing family Qing Chun (慶純) a well-known official changed his surname to He (賀) which has the same meaning as Qing (meaning ‘celebrate’) because his surname Qing happened to be the personal name of Liu Qing (刘慶) the father of Emperor An of Han (94–125 AD) which was a taboo that Qing Chun wanted to avoid. (ii) shortened form of disyllabic surnames such as He Lan (賀蘭) He Lai (賀賴) He Dun (賀敦) which were surnames from the Xianbei ethnic group shortened to He through cultural fusion with the Han people during South and North Dynasties (420–589 AD). This surname is common in Henan province. Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 和 meaning ‘peace’ in Chinese: (i) for some families this surname is traced back to Xi He (羲和) an official in charge of astronomy during the reign of the legendary Emperor Yao (c. 24th century BC). His descendants He Zhong (和仲) and He Shu (和叔) took his personal name He (和) as their surname. (ii) for other families it is traced back to Bian He (卞和) a person from the state of Chu (楚) during the Spring and Autumn period (770 BC–476 BC) who discovered a gem known as He-shi Bi (和氏璧). (iii) from Su He (素和) a disyllabic surname from the Xianbei ethnic group. Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 赫: (i) said to be traced back to a legendary king He Xu Shi (赫胥氏). (ii) adopted as a Han Chinese surname by minority ethnic groups in China. Chinese: alternative Mandarin form of the surname 黑 see Hei Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 許 possibly based on its Hakka or Hokkien pronunciation see Xu 7: Chinese: Teochew form of the surname 夏 see Xia .8: Vietnamese (Hề): from the Chinese surname 奚 see Xi

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


Similar surnames: Hu, Ge, Lu, Che, Du, Ye, Ha, Qi, Cho, Ho

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Where is the He family from?

You can see how He families moved over time by selecting different census years. The He family name was found in the USA, the UK, and Canada between 1840 and 1920. The most He families were found in USA in 1920. In 1840 there was 1 He family living in Delaware. This was 100% of all the recorded He's in USA. Delaware had the highest population of He families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the He surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your He ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Grade Teacher were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named He. 40% of He men worked as a Farmer and 50% of He women worked as a Grade Teacher. Some less common occupations for Americans named He were Electrician and Clerk. .

View Census Data for He | 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 1940

  • Farmer
    40%
  • Laborer
    40%
  • Electrician
    20%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Grade Teacher
    50%
  • Clerk
    50%
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What He family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 15,000 census records available for the last name He. Like a window into their day-to-day life, He 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 3,000 immigration records available for the last name He. 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.

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Draft Cards

There are 3,000 military records available for the last name He. For the veterans among your He ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average He lifespan?

Between 1977 and 2004, in the United States, He life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1994, and highest in 1988. The average life expectancy for He in 1977 was 79, and 57 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for He

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