One of the Four Great Ancestral Clans along with Se, Mu and Tong (Sekhyung Dra, Mutsa Ga and Athang Dru, respectively) or the Five Great Ancestral Clans if Zhingbo Go is included. According to the Treasure of the Ancestral Clans of Tibet, Dong is further divided into Karpo Dong, Nakpo Dong, Trapo Dong and Mukpo Dong. There are eighteen sub-clans of the Dong, which include the Toktsa, Moktsa and Gotsa. A large number of Dong people are Bonpo. Donggom Zhikpo, the 13th century lineage holder of the Nyengyu Rigpa Chertong tradition of Bon Dzogchen belonged to the sub-family of Wang-yak belonging to the Dong clan.
According to the 15th century bshad mdzod chen mo, the eighteen sub-clans of Dong are: cog, cog tse, cog ro or chog ro, ‘brong or possibly ‘brom, khyung po, zla ba, ‘bring, lha lung, lha rtse, brang, ‘gos or mgos, khu na, nya or nyang, tshe pong, lu nag, snying or snyi, pho gong or pho yong, and thag bzang.