2000
#112,365
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 145
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Petroelje
A Dutch surname possibly derived from the word "petroselinum" meaning parsley.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 212 Americans carry the last name Petroelje. That puts it at #103,399 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,616,766 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Petroelje 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
212
1 in 1,616,766
Census rank
#103,399
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
185
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 185 bearers of the surname Petroelje in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 103399th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Petroelje, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.8%. The next largest groups are Black (1.6%) and Two or More Races (1.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Petroelje
The surname PETROELJE originated in the Netherlands during the 16th century. It is derived from the Dutch words "petr" meaning "parsley" and "oelje" meaning "oil," likely referring to someone who produced or sold parsley oil.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the PETROELJE surname can be found in a 1582 document from the city of Amsterdam, which mentions a merchant named Pieter Petroelje. This suggests that the name was already established in the Netherlands by the late 16th century.
In the 17th century, the surname appears in various records from the Dutch provinces of North Holland and South Holland. For example, a 1632 baptismal record from the city of Leiden mentions a child named Gerrit Petroelje, born to parents Jan Petroelje and Maritje Jans.
During this time, the PETROELJE name was sometimes spelled differently, such as "Petrolije" or "Petrolie," reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions.
One notable bearer of the PETROELJE surname was Willem Petroelje (1630-1698), a Dutch painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes. His works can be found in several museums in the Netherlands and Belgium.
Another historical figure with the PETROELJE name was Cornelis Petroelje (1656-1721), a Dutch merchant and ship owner who traded extensively with the Dutch East Indies (modern-day Indonesia).
In the 18th century, the PETROELJE surname spread to other parts of Europe as Dutch migrants and traders settled in different regions. For instance, there are records of a family named PETROELJE living in the German city of Hamburg in the late 1700s.
Other notable individuals with the PETROELJE surname include Jan Petroelje (1785-1867), a Dutch politician who served as the mayor of the town of Wassenaar, and Pieter Petroelje (1892-1961), a Dutch artist known for his impressionistic landscapes and still-life paintings.
While the PETROELJE surname is relatively uncommon, it continues to be found primarily in the Netherlands and among Dutch communities around the world, reflecting its Dutch heritage and origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Petroelje
Among Census respondents with the surname Petroelje, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.8%. The next largest groups are Black (1.6%) and Two or More Races (1.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Petroelje 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 Petroelje surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.8% · 179
- Black or African American1.6% · 3
- Two or more races1.1% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.5% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Petroelje
Petroelje 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
#109,258
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 162
+17 bearers (+11.7%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 3,107 places
2020
#103,399
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 185
+23 bearers (+14.2%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 5,859 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #112,365 | 145 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #109,258 | 162 | 0.05 | +17 bearers (+11.7%) | Up 3,107 places |
| 2020 | #103,399 | 185 | 0.06 | +23 bearers (+14.2%) | Up 5,859 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 Petroelje 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 | #109,258 | #103,399 | 5.4% |
| Count | 162 | 185 | 14.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.06 | 23.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Petroelje bearers went from 162 to 185 (+14.2% change). The surname moved up 5,859 positions in the national ranking, going from #109,258 to #103,399.
FAQ
Petroelje surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Petroelje?
Name Census estimates that about 212 living Americans carry the surname Petroelje. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,616,766 residents.
How common is Petroelje?
Petroelje ranks #103,399 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 185 people with the surname Petroelje. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (212), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Petroelje.
Has Petroelje become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Petroelje went from 162 recorded bearers to 185. That is an increase of 23 (+14.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #109,258 to #103,399.
What does the Census say about the background of Petroelje?
Among Census respondents with the surname Petroelje, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.8%. The next largest groups are Black (1.6%) and Two or More Races (1.1%). 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 Petroelje in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.8% (179 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Petroelje appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.8%), Black (1.6%), Two or More Races (1.1%). 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 Petroelje (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 Petroelje mean?
A Dutch surname possibly derived from the word "petroselinum" meaning parsley. 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 Petroelje (0.06 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 share the surname Petroelje?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.