Wang Family History
- Wang Name Meaning
- Chinese : from a character meaning ‘prince’. There are numerous unrelated Wang clans, descendants of various princes of the Shang (1766–1122 bc) and Zhou (1122–221 bc) dynasties, including in particular descendants of the Shang dynasty prince Bi Gan and descendants of Bi Gonggao, 15th son of the virtuous duke Wen Wang, who was granted the state of Wei (a different state of Wei than that granted the eighth son; compare Sun). Chinese : from the name of a state or area called Wang. From ancient times through the Xia (2205–1766 bc) and Shang (1766–1122 bc) dynasties there existed a state of Wang. Later, during the Spring and Autumn period (722–481 bc), there also existed an area named Wang in the state of Lu. Some descendants of the ruling class of both areas took the place name Wang as their surname. Korean: there is one Chinese character for the surname Wang. Some sources indicate that there are fifteen Wang clans, but only two can be identified: the Kaesong Wang clan and the Chenam Wang clan. The Kaesong Wang clan, which originated in China, ruled the Korean peninsula for almost five hundred years as the ruling dynasty of the Koryo period (918–1392). There are some indications that the Kaesong Wang clan was present in the ancient Choson Kingdom (?194 bc). When the Chonju Yi clan seized power in 1392 and established the Choson kingdom, many of the members of the Kaesong Wang clan changed their names and went into hiding to avoid being persecuted by the new ruling dynasty. The Chenam Wang clan is also of Chinese origin. The Chenam Wang clan is much smaller than the Kaesong Wang clan. German and Dutch: from Middle German wang, Middle Dutch waenge, literally ‘cheek’, but also in southern German having the transferred sense ‘grassy slope’ or ‘field of grass’. It was thus either a topographic name for someone who lived by a meadow or a descriptive nickname for someone with noticeable cheeks (for example, round or rosy). Jewish (Ashkenazic): either a borrowing of the German name (see 4), or else a regional name for a Jew from Hungary (compare Russian Vengria ‘Hungary’). Scandinavian: variant spelling of Vang 1.
Source: Dictionary of American Family Names ©2013, Oxford University Press
- 148,541 Historical Documents with Wang on Ancestry
- 75,464 Birth, Marriage, and Deaths
- 12,327 Census and Voter Lists
- 14,568 Military Records
- 32,002 Immigration Records
- 14,180 Member Trees
Ready to discover your family story?
Simply start with yourself and we'll do the searching for you.
Number of Wang families
 108 - 213  37 - 107 |
 1 - 36  |
from the 1920 US Federal Census Data
Number of Wang families
|
5 - 8 2 - 4 |
1 |
from the 1891 England and Wales Census Data
Number of Wang families
|
2 - 1 2 - 1 |
1 |
from the 1891 Scotland Census Data
Wang census records
You can see how Wang families moved over time by selecting different Census years.
Census records can tell you little-known facts about your ancestors such as birthplace, occupation and value of personal estate.
from the New York Passengers List
Click on a place to view Wang immigration records
The information for this chart came from the U.S. Immigration Collection at Ancestry. You can find out where the majority of the Wang families were living before they immigrated to the U.S and learn where to focus your search for foreign records.
Immigration records can tell you an ancestor's name, ship name, port of departure, port of arrival, and destination.
from the New York Passenger Lists
Click on a circle in the chart to view Wang immigration records
You can find out when most of the Wang families immigrated to the United States. You can focus your search to immigration records dating from that era.
Immigration records can tell you an ancestor's name, ship name, port of departure, port of arrival and destination.
from the Social Security Death Index (SSDI)
Click on a circle in the chart to view Wang birth and death records
An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your 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.
from 1880 Federal Census Data
Wang census records
Census records can offer a lot of little known facts about your Wang ancestors, such as occupation.
Occupation can tell you about your ancestors' social status and economic status.
- All Wang
- 9
- Confederate
- 4
- Union
- 5
from the Civil War Service Records
Click to view veteran service records
You can find out if your ancestors came primarily from the North of the South.
Military records can tell you an ancestor's birthplace, occupation, and even physical description.
×