kOk

Kok is a term that may refer to several unrelated uses. In onomastics, Kok is a surname and, less commonly, a given name. It occurs in Dutch communities and among Southeast Asian populations of Chinese descent. Often it is a romanization of the Chinese surname 郭 (Guo) in Hokkien or Teochew dialects, while the Dutch surname Kok is typically of occupational origin, from the word for “cook.” The name is found among people in the Netherlands, Indonesia, Malaysia, and other regions.

As a toponym, Kok appears in place names in various countries. A well-known geographic use is the Mae Kok River (also called Kok River) in northern Thailand, which has given its name to surrounding locales and features.

In language usage, Kok is a syllable that occurs in several languages with different meanings and is used in transliterations of Asian surnames into Western alphabets. Its meanings and associations thus vary by context: a family name, a geographic name, or a common noun in specific languages.

This entry provides a concise overview of possible referents for Kok. For any particular use, further disambiguation can identify the intended person, place, or linguistic sense.