Contents [hide]

Tong History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Ireland United States Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Historic Events Related Stories Citations

Tong History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England
Ireland

The name Tong came to England with the ancestors of the Tong family in the Norman Conquest of 1066. The Tong family lived in Yorkshire, at Tongue (Tonge). However, as a habitational name, in can also be found in Lancashire, Shropshire, and West Yorkshire as many believe the name to be a topographic name for someone who lived on a tongue of land.

Early Origins of the Tong family

The surname Tong was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat as Lords of the Manor of Manningham in that shire. There does not appear to be a record of the village of Maningham at the taking of the Domesday Book in 1086 A.D. so it must be assumed that it emerged as a manor about the 12th century. About 1400 the Tongs were well established at Manningham.

Today Tonge Hall is a Grade II listed Elizabethan manor house in Tonge, Middleton, Greater Manchester, England. It is thought to have been built by the family c. 1584. Tonge is also a township, in the parish of Prestwichcum-Oldham, union of Oldham, hundred of Salford in the historical county of Lancashire. "It is probable that the family of Tonge gave name to this place, which in the 43rd of Elizabeth was possessed by a member of it named Christopher Tonge." 1

Tonge with Haulgh was home to another branch of the family from ancient times. "In the reign of John, lands were held here by Gilbert de Tonge." 1

Early History of the Tong family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tong research. Another 156 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1400, 1600, 1621, 1662, 1680 and 1727 are included under the topic Early Tong History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tong Spelling Variations

Multitudes of spelling variations are a hallmark of Anglo Norman names. Most of these names evolved in the 11th and 12th century, in the time after the Normans introduced their own Norman French language into a country where Old and Middle English had no spelling rules and the languages of the court were French and Latin. To make matters worse, medieval scribes spelled words according to sound, so names frequently appeared differently in the various documents in which they were recorded. The name was spelled Tongues, Tongue, Tong, Tonge and others.

Early Notables of the Tong family

Outstanding amongst the family at this time was

Henry Tongue, minister of Holtby, Yorkshire; and his son, Israel Tonge (1621-1680), aka Ezerel or Ezreel Tongue, an English divine and an informer in the "Popish" plot. Born at Tickhill, near Doncaste...
William Tong (1662-1727), was an English Presbyterian divine, born on 24 June 1662, probably at Eccles, near Manchester. 2

Tong Ranking

In the United States, the name Tong is the 4,213^rd most popular surname with an estimated 7,461 people with that name. 3 However, in New Zealand, the name Tong is ranked the 842^nd most popular surname with an estimated 866 people with that name. 4

Migration of the Tong family to Ireland

Some of the Tong family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt. More information about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Tong migration to the United States +

Because of this political and religious unrest within English society, many people decided to immigrate to the colonies. Families left for Ireland, North America, and Australia in enormous numbers, traveling at high cost in extremely inhospitable conditions. The New World in particular was a desirable destination, but the long voyage caused many to arrive sick and starving. Those who made it, though, were welcomed by opportunities far greater than they had known at home in England. Many of these families went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations of Canada and the United States. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Tong or a variant listed above:

Tong Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Collo Tong, who settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1767
Miss Tong, who settled in Carolina in 1774

Tong Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Tong, aged 40, who landed in Rhode Island in 1813 5

Tong migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Tong Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. John Tong, English convict who was convicted in Kirkdale, Liverpool, Merseyside, England for 7 years transported aboard the "Forfarshire" on 24th June 1843, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 6
Mr. George Tong, English convict who was convicted in Maidstone, Kent, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Fairlie" on 9th Mary 1852, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Island) 7

Tong migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Tong Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Charles Tong, aged 43, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "City of Auckland" in 1872
Selina Tong, aged 40, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "City of Auckland" in 1872
Edith Tong, aged 11, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "City of Auckland" in 1872
Eliza Tong, aged 10, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "City of Auckland" in 1872
Julia Tong, aged 8, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "City of Auckland" in 1872
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Tong (post 1700) +

Kaity Tong (b. 1949), Chinese-born American broadcast journalist
Simon Tong (b. 1972), English guitarist and keyboardist
Jacqueline Tong (b. 1951), English actress
Stephen Tong (b. 1940), Chinese Indonesian Reformed evangelist
Lim Goh Tong (1918-2007), prominent wealthy Malaysian Chinese businessman
Prof. Tong Sun O.B.E., British Professor of Sensor Engineering for City University of London, was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire on 8th June 2018, for services to Engineering 8

Historic Events for the Tong family +

North Sea Flood

Joan Tong, British citizen, living in Fellixstowe, England,killed in the North Sea Flood, a major storm surge in 1953
Angela Tong, British citizen, living in Fellixstowe, England,killed in the North Sea Flood, a major storm surge in 1953

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"Most Common Last Names in New Zealand." Forebears, https://forebears.io/new-zealand/surnames
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 20th October 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/forfarshire
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 26th September 2022). https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/fairlie
"Birthday and New Year Honours Lists (1940 to 2019)." Issue 62507, 28 December 2018 | London Gazette, The Gazette, Dec. 2018, www.thegazette.co.uk/honours-lists