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Long Family History

Long Surname Meaning

English and French: nickname for a tall person from Old English lang, long and Old French long ‘long, tall’ (equivalent to Latin longus). Compare Dulong and Lelong. Irish (Ulster and Munster): shortened Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Longáin (see Langan). German: variant of Lang ‘long’ and in North America also an altered form (translation into English) of this. Native American (Navajo): translation into English and shortening of a personal name based on (or just composed of) the word nééz ‘tall, long’ (see Nez). Compare Tallman.

Chinese: Mandarin or Cantonese form of the surname 龍 meaning ‘dragon’ in Chinese: (i) from Long (龍), the name of an official during the reign of the legendary Emperor Shun (c. 23rd century BC) in charge of communications between the ordinary people and the emperor. (ii) from the surname Huan Long (豢龍 meaning ‘feeding dragons’). Dong Fu is said to have been endowed with this surname by the legendary Emperor Shun (c. 23rd century BC).

Liu Lei, who is said to have learned to feed dragons from one of Dong's descendants, was endowed with the surname Yu Long (御龍 meaning ‘driving dragons’) by one of the kings of the Xia dynasty (2070–1600 BC). (iii) The surname is borne by some families from the Zang Ge ethnic group in ancient China who lived in present-day Yunan and Guizhou provinces. (iv) The surname is also borne by members of the royal families of the ancient states of Qiemi and Yanqi (Karasahr) located in present-day Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

Chinese: Mandarin or Cantonese form of the surname 隆 meaning ‘prosperous, thriving’ or ‘grand, magnificent’ in Chinese: (i) from the placename Long (隆), the name of a fief (located in present-day Shandong province) in the state of Lu during the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BC). (ii) The surname is borne by some families from the Huns during the early Western Han dynasty (202 BC - 25 AD).

Chinese: Cantonese form of the surname 郎 see Lang. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 農 see Nong. Cambodian: written ឡុង of Chinese origin meaning ‘dragon’ (see 5 above). Vietnamese: from the Chinese surname 龍 see 5 above.

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


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Where is the Long family from?

You can see how Long families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Long family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Long families were found in USA in 1880. In 1911 there were 1,729 Long families living in Ontario. This was about 46% of all the recorded Long's in Canada. Ontario had the highest population of Long families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Long surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Long ancestors do for a living?

In 1921, Farmer and Stenographer were the top reported jobs for men and women in the Canada named Long. 28% of Long men worked as a Farmer and 13% of Long women worked as a Stenographer. Some less common occupations for Americans named Long were Cook and Housekeeper.

View Census Data for Long | 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 1921

  • Farmer
    28%
  • Labourer
    11%
  • Laborer
    6%
  • Cook
    5%

Top Female Occupations In 1921

  • Stenographer
    13%
  • Income
    10%
  • Teacher
    9%
  • Housekeeper
    7%

What Long family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 1 million census records available for the last name Long. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Long census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search Canadian census records for Long

Passenger Lists

There are 121,000 immigration records available for the last name Long. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in Canada, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Long immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 391,000 military records available for the last name Long. For the veterans among your Long ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Long military records

You've only scratched the surface of Long family history

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What is the average Long lifespan?

Between 1940 and 2004, in the United States, Long life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1945, and highest in 1998. The average life expectancy for Long in 1940 was 45, and 74 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Long

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Long 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.

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