What is "chown"

The '''chown''' command (abbreviation for change owner) is used on Unix-like systems to change the owner of a file system object ( files and directories). Unprivileged (regular) users who wish to change the group of a file that they own may use [[chgrp]].

From the BSD man page for chown:

For obvious security reasons, the ownership of a file may only be altered by a super-user. Similarly, only a member of a group can change a file's group ID to that group.

Chown is a surname. It may refer to:

• Bruce Chown (1893-1986) - Canadian scientist
• Chris and Gunna Chown - co-owners of the Plas Bodegroes restaurant in Wales
• Gordon Chown - member of Parliament for Winnipeg South, Manitoba, Canada, 1957-1963
• Jeffrey Chown - American professor of communication studies at Northern Illinois University, biographer of director Francis Ford Coppola
• Kevin Chown - bassist for drummer Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats band and other artists and bands
• Marcus Chown - British science writer and broadcaster
• Nick Chown - bassist for the 1980s English music group The Bolshoi
• Greg Chown - Art Director and Storyboard Artist
• Chown Hardware in Portland, Oregon, owned by Fred Chown and David Chown and founded in 1879

• chown - a UNIX operating system command
• Chown Creek - a tributary of the Smoky River in Western Alberta, Canada
• Mackenzie Chown Complex at Brock University in Ontario, Canada
• Chowning