Jiang (surname)

Jiang^[1] can be a pinyin transliteration of one of several Chinese surnames:

1. 江, commonly spelled as Jiāng, Chiang, Gong, Kong, Kang
2. 蔣, commonly spelled as Jiǎng, Chiang, Cheung, Jang, Chioh
3. 姜, commonly spelled as Jiāng, Kang, Gang, Geung, Gung, Chiang, Keung, Keong, Kiang
4. 強, commonly spelled as Jiàng, Gang, Geong, Geung, Khiang, Qiang, Chiang

江

Jiang
Jiang surname in regular script
Pronunciation	Jiāng (Pinyin) Kang (Pe̍h-ōe-jī)
Language(s)	Chinese
Origin
Language(s)	Chinese
Word/Name	name of an autonomous Chinese kingdom
Derivation	Jiangguo (江国)
Meaning	great river
Other names
Variant(s)	Jiang, Chiang (Mandarin) Kong, Gong (Cantonese, Hakka) Kang (Hokkien)
Cognate(s)	Yíng (Chinese surname)
Derivative(s)	Kang (Korean name)
See also	Boyi (伯益)

Jiang (Chinese: 江; Jyutping: Gong¹; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Kang, also romanized Chiang, Kong, Kang) is a Chinese surname, accounting for 0.26% of the Han Chinese population. It is the 52nd most common Chinese surname and is the 141st surname listed in the Hundred Family Surnames poem. It is the 74th most common surname in China (2007),^[2] and the 25th most common surname in Taiwan (2010).^[3]

Origins

After Boyi helped Yu the Great bring flood control to the early Chinese, Yu's son and successor Qi of Xia offered Boyi's son, Xuanzhong, the position of Lord of Jiangdi (Chinese: 江地 - modern Jiangling County in Hubei Province).^[4] Boyi's descendants ruled the area as kings of an autonomous "River Kingdom" (Chinese: 江国; pinyin: Jiāng Guó) during the Shang Dynasty and Western Zhou Dynasty, with its capital city near today's Zhengyang County, Henan Province.^[5]

During the Spring and Autumn period, the kingdom was often under attack from the neighboring states of Chu, Song, and Qi, each of which was larger than the "River Kingdom". While defending from neighbors' attacks, the Jiang state also had to deal with the Huai River's frequent flooding, which often inundated the kingdom's central areas. These difficulties prevented Jiang from developing significant economic or military power. It survived until 623 BC when it was destroyed by Chu.

At the time of the kingdom's destruction, many of its surviving inhabitants fled to what is now Henan Province and took the kingdom's name, "Jiang", as their clan name.

Notable people

• Jiang Qing (江青), the fourth wife of Mao Zedong (real name: Li Jin 李近)
• Jiang Zemin (江泽民), former General Secretary of the Communist Party of China
• March Kong Fong Eu (江月桂), first Asian American woman elected to state constitutional office in US
• John Chiang, Californian politician
• Jiang Kanghu, Chinese politician and activist
• Jiang Hongjie, Chinese politician and activist
• Jody Chiang (江蕙), Taiwanese pop singer
• Jiang Yu Chen (江語晨), Taiwanese pop singer
• Jiang Zhujiu, Chinese Go player
• Jiang Heping, CCTV executive
• Jiang Hong, Chinese footballer
• Jiang Wen-Ye, Taiwanese composer
• Mingjiu Jiang, Chinese professional Go player
• Jiang Chaozong, Chinese general and Premier of the Republic of China
• Jiang Yan, Southern Dynasty poet
• Empress Jiang, Liu Song dynasty empress
• Jiang Qian, Chinese intellectual
• Jiang Yuyuan, Chinese gymnast
• Chiang Sheng, Taiwanese martial arts actor
• Jiang Zhujiu, Chinese Go player
• Leslie Kong, Chinese Jamaican record producer

蔣

Jiang and Chiang (蒋) is a Chinese surname. It first appeared:

• In the Jiang (state) and Zheng (state), when feudal lords were given the surname Jiang during the Zhou Dynasty
• The Zhuang people were given the surname Jiang (蔣) during the Zhou Dynasty
• The Miao people, Tujia people, Lahu people, and Yao people use the surname Jiang (蔣)
• The Mongolian people received the surname Jiang during the Yuan Dynasty

Notable people of 蔣

• Chiang Kai-shek, President of the Republic of China, Director General of the Kuomintang
• Chiang Ching-kuo, President of the Republic of China, Chairman of the Kuomintang
• Chiang Wei-kuo, adopted son of Chiang Kai-shek and Republic of China politician
• Chiang Wei-shui, Taiwanese colonial resistance movement advocate
• Jiang Bingzhi, author better known as Ding Ling
• Jiang Menglin, Chinese educator
• Jiang Tingxi, painter
• Jiang Wan, Shu Han official
• Jiang Yanyong, Chinese physician
• Jiang Ying (musician) (born 1919), Chinese singer

姜

Variants of the surname Jiang include Zhang,^[6] Lü,^[7] Qiu,^[8] Shen.,^[9] These originated:

• In the Qi (state), Jiang Ziya's descendants, originally located in Yandi, had the surname Jiang (姜)
• In the Qi (state), those with the surname Huan (桓) changed it to Jiang (姜)
• Chinese minority members of the population such as the Dong people, Tujia people, Yao people took the surname Jiang (姜)
• During the Yuan Dynasty, Mongols were given the surname Jiang (姜)
• During the Qing Dynasty, Russians, or the Eluosizu people, were given the surname Jiang (姜)

Notable people of 姜

• Jiang Ziya (姜子牙), Zhou dynasty
• Jiang Kui (姜夔), composer
• Jiang Wei (姜维), general of Shu-Han
• Jiang Wen (姜文), actor and director (brother of Jiang Wu)
• Jiang Wu (姜武), actor (brother of Jiang Wen)
• Ted Chiang (姜峯楠), American science-fiction author

彊

Jiang, Qiang, Chiang, (彊/强) is a Chinese surname. It originated during the 26th century BC. It derived from the deity Yujiang who was revered as the god of Water in Ancient China. Yujiang's descendants were given the surname Jiang (疆). During the Zhou Dynasty, in the Lu (state), those with the surname Ji (姬) or of the family Gongsun Jiang (公孙强) took the surname Jiang (疆). It was also used as a given name.

• in Former Qin, the name "Jiang Duan" (强端) became the Jiang (疆). Before this, the surname had been Fu (苻), indicating descent from "Fú Jiān" (苻堅).

References

1. The approximate pronunciation in English is /ˈdʒjɑːŋ/.
3. 歷年大學聯招查榜服務
4. Tong Zhi - Shi Zu Lüe - Yi Guo Wei Shi 《通志·氏族略·以国为氏》.
5. Chinese: 《姓谱》：“伯益之裔，封于江陵，子孙以国为氏。
6. People's Daily Online - History of surname Zhang
7. People's Daily Online - Chinese Lü surname history
8. People's Daily Online - Chinese surname history: Qiu
9. People's Daily Online - Chinese surname history: Shen