2010
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Meeuwenberg
A Dutch surname denoting one who lived near a mew or sea gull hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Meeuwenberg. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Meeuwenberg surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Meeuwenberg in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Meeuwenberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Meeuwenberg
The surname Meeuwenberg is of Dutch origin, tracing its roots back to the medieval period in the Netherlands. It is a locational surname, derived from a place name that likely referred to a hill or elevated area near a body of water frequented by seagulls.
The name is composed of two elements: "meeuw," the Dutch word for seagull, and "berg," meaning hill or mountain. This combination suggests that the name originated in a coastal region where a prominent hill or elevation was a known gathering spot for seagulls.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Meeuwenberg can be found in the archives of the city of Rotterdam, where a merchant named Dirk Meeuwenberg is mentioned in a trade document dated 1487. Another early reference appears in the records of the town of Schiedam, where a certain Jan Meeuwenberg is listed as a landowner in 1542.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, as the Dutch Golden Age brought prosperity and global trade, the Meeuwenberg name spread across the Netherlands and beyond. Notable individuals from this period include Pieter Meeuwenberg (1578-1635), a renowned painter from Delft, and Cornelis Meeuwenberg (1620-1701), a merchant and shipping magnate based in Amsterdam.
In the 18th century, the Meeuwenberg family established itself in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia), where several members held prominent positions in the colonial administration. One such figure was Willem Meeuwenberg (1734-1812), who served as Governor of the Moluccas Islands from 1785 to 1795.
As the Dutch expanded their global influence, the name Meeuwenberg also found its way to other parts of the world. In South Africa, for instance, a family by the name of Meeuwenberg settled in the Cape Colony in the late 18th century, with descendants still residing in the region today.
Other notable individuals with the Meeuwenberg surname include Jacobus Meeuwenberg (1834-1904), a Dutch theologian and author, and Hendrik Meeuwenberg (1887-1966), a celebrated architect who designed several iconic buildings in Amsterdam and Rotterdam in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Meeuwenberg
Among Census respondents with the surname Meeuwenberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Meeuwenberg bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Meeuwenberg surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.1% · 98
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Meeuwenberg
Meeuwenberg appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
+1 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 4,957 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | +1 bearers (+1.0%) | Up 4,957 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Meeuwenberg surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #159,712 | #154,755 | 3.1% |
| Count | 101 | 102 | 1.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 13.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Meeuwenberg bearers went from 101 to 102 (+1.0% change). The surname moved up 4,957 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #154,755.
FAQ
Meeuwenberg surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Meeuwenberg?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Meeuwenberg. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Meeuwenberg?
Meeuwenberg ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 102 people with the surname Meeuwenberg. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Meeuwenberg.
Has Meeuwenberg become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Meeuwenberg went from 101 recorded bearers to 102. That is an increase of 1 (+1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Meeuwenberg?
Among Census respondents with the surname Meeuwenberg, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Meeuwenberg in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.1% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Meeuwenberg appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.1%), Hispanic (1.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Meeuwenberg (2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Meeuwenberg mean?
A Dutch surname denoting one who lived near a mew or sea gull hill. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Meeuwenberg (0.03 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Meeuwenberg?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.