2000
#22,854
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,046
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.39
Rare Last name
Stander
A German surname meaning someone who stands firm or upholds a principle.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,173 Americans carry the last name Stander. That puts it at #25,327 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 292,203 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Stander 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Stander with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.2K
1 in 292,203
Census rank
#25,327
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,023 bearers of the surname Stander in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 25327th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Stander, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Stander
The surname Stander is of Dutch origin, with its earliest known roots dating back to the 15th century in the Netherlands. The name is believed to be derived from the Dutch word "stander," which means "one who stands" or "one who perseveres."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Stander can be found in the Dutch census records of 1492, where a family by the name of Stander is listed as residing in the town of Delft. This suggests that the name may have originated in this region or nearby areas.
In the 17th century, the Stander surname began to appear in various historical documents across the Netherlands and parts of Germany. One notable mention is in the diary of Dutch merchant Jan Stander, born in 1623, who documented his travels and business ventures across Europe.
As the Dutch colonized parts of South Africa in the 17th and 18th centuries, the Stander name was introduced to the region. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in South Africa is that of Pieter Stander, a Dutch settler who arrived in Cape Town in 1688.
In later centuries, the Stander surname spread to other parts of the world, including the United Kingdom and North America, as Dutch and German immigrants settled in these regions. One notable figure with this surname is Piet Stander, a South African professional boxer who held the world bantamweight title from 1918 to 1919.
Other notable individuals with the surname Stander include:
1. Jacobus Stander (1707-1783), a Dutch military officer and governor of the Dutch East Indies.
2. Laurens Stander (1859-1927), a South African politician and member of the Cape Parliament.
3. Katharina Stander (1862-1942), a German-born American educator and advocate for women's rights.
4. Dirk Stander (1903-1978), a South African cricketer who played for the national team in the 1920s and 1930s.
5. Gerrit Stander (1938-2021), a South African writer and academic known for his contributions to Afrikaans literature.
The Stander name has also been associated with various place names, particularly in the Netherlands and South Africa, where towns and villages may have been named after early settlers or landowners bearing this surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Stander
Among Census respondents with the surname Stander, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Stander 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 Stander surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 926
- Two or more races3.4% · 35
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 30
- Black or African American1.7% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 11
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Stander
Stander 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
#28,883
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 823
-223 bearers (-21.3%)
Per 100,000 0.28
Rank movement Down 6,029 places
2020
#25,327
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,023
+200 bearers (+24.3%)
Per 100,000 0.34
Rank movement Up 3,556 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #22,854 | 1,046 | 0.39 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #28,883 | 823 | 0.28 | -223 bearers (-21.3%) | Down 6,029 places |
| 2020 | #25,327 | 1,023 | 0.34 | +200 bearers (+24.3%) | Up 3,556 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 Stander 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 | #28,883 | #25,327 | 12.3% |
| Count | 823 | 1,023 | 24.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.28 | 0.34 | 22.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Stander bearers went from 823 to 1,023 (+24.3% change). The surname moved up 3,556 positions in the national ranking, going from #28,883 to #25,327.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Stander
FAQ
Stander surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Stander?
Name Census estimates that about 1,173 living Americans carry the surname Stander. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 292,203 residents.
How common is Stander?
Stander ranks #25,327 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.34 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 1,023 people with the surname Stander. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,173), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.34 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 Stander.
Has Stander become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Stander went from 823 recorded bearers to 1,023. That is an increase of 200 (+24.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #28,883 to #25,327.
What does the Census say about the background of Stander?
Among Census respondents with the surname Stander, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Stander in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (926 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Stander appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Stander (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 Stander mean?
A German surname meaning someone who stands firm or upholds a principle. 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 Stander (0.34 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 common is the surname Stander?
You can see how many Americans have the surname Stander on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.