2000
#128,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Noorlander
A surname referring to someone from the northern lands or regions.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 186 Americans carry the last name Noorlander. That puts it at #114,613 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,842,765 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Noorlander 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
186
1 in 1,842,765
Census rank
#114,613
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
162
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 162 bearers of the surname Noorlander in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 114613th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Noorlander, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Noorlander
The surname Noorlander is of Dutch origin, originating in the Netherlands during the late 16th century. It is a locative surname, derived from the Dutch words "noorder" meaning "northern" and "lander" meaning "dweller" or "resident." This suggests that the name was initially given to someone who lived in the northern region of the Netherlands.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Noorlander can be found in the Dutch municipal records of the city of Groningen, dated 1592. It is believed that the Noorlander family hailed from the northern provinces of the Netherlands, such as Friesland, Groningen, or Drenthe.
In the 17th century, a prominent figure bearing the surname Noorlander was Jan Noorlander (1642-1718), a Dutch painter known for his still-life and vanitas paintings. He was born in Amsterdam and spent most of his artistic career in the city.
Another noteworthy individual with this surname was Cornelis Noorlander (1808-1875), a Dutch politician and jurist who served as the Minister of Justice in the Netherlands from 1858 to 1860.
The Noorlander surname can also be found in historical records from the 18th century, such as the baptismal records of the Dutch Reformed Church in Batavia (present-day Jakarta, Indonesia), which was a Dutch colony at the time. This suggests that some Noorlanders may have migrated to the Dutch East Indies during the colonial era.
In the 19th century, a notable Noorlander was Jacobus Noorlander (1832-1899), a Dutch painter and lithographer who was known for his depictions of landscapes and cityscapes. He was born in Rotterdam and studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium.
The Noorlander surname has also been associated with various place names in the Netherlands, such as Noordlanden, a village in the municipality of Westerkwartier in the province of Groningen, and Noorderland, a hamlet in the municipality of Súdwest-Fryslân in the province of Friesland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Noorlander
Among Census respondents with the surname Noorlander, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Noorlander 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 Noorlander surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.8% · 152
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1
- Two or more races0.6% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Noorlander
Noorlander appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#120,901
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 143
+21 bearers (+17.2%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 7,896 places
2020
#114,613
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 162
+19 bearers (+13.3%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 6,288 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #128,797 | 122 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #120,901 | 143 | 0.05 | +21 bearers (+17.2%) | Up 7,896 places |
| 2020 | #114,613 | 162 | 0.05 | +19 bearers (+13.3%) | Up 6,288 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 Noorlander 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 | #120,901 | #114,613 | 5.2% |
| Count | 143 | 162 | 13.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.05 | 8.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Noorlander bearers went from 143 to 162 (+13.3% change). The surname moved up 6,288 positions in the national ranking, going from #120,901 to #114,613.
FAQ
Noorlander surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Noorlander?
Name Census estimates that about 186 living Americans carry the surname Noorlander. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,842,765 residents.
How common is Noorlander?
Noorlander ranks #114,613 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 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 162 people with the surname Noorlander. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (186), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 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 Noorlander.
Has Noorlander become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Noorlander went from 143 recorded bearers to 162. That is an increase of 19 (+13.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #120,901 to #114,613.
What does the Census say about the background of Noorlander?
Among Census respondents with the surname Noorlander, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.6%). 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 Noorlander in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.8% (152 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Noorlander appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.8%), Hispanic (4.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.6%). 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 Noorlander (2000, 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 Noorlander mean?
A surname referring to someone from the northern lands or regions. 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 Noorlander (0.05 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 people have the surname Noorlander?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.