Find out how popular the last name Stuyvesant is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Stuyvesant.

Stuyvesant, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Stuyvesant surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Stuyvesant in America

Stuyvesant is the 92719th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Stuyvesant surname appeared 198 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Stuyvesant.

We can also compare 2010 data for Stuyvesant to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Stuyvesant

The surname Stuyvesant originated in the Netherlands during the 17th century. It is derived from the Dutch words "stuiven," meaning "to scatter" or "to dust," and "vant," a contraction of the Dutch word "vanden," meaning "from the." Together, these words suggest the name may have referred to someone who came from a dusty or sandy area.

The earliest known record of the Stuyvesant name dates back to 1642 when Petrus Stuyvesant, a Dutch colonial officer, served as the last Dutch Director-General of the colony of New Netherland from 1647 until it was ceded to the English in 1664. Petrus Stuyvesant was born in 1592 in Friesland, Netherlands, and died in 1672 on his estate in New York.

Another notable figure with the Stuyvesant surname was Gerardus Stuyvesant, born in 1690 in New York City. He was a prominent merchant and politician who served as the mayor of New York City from 1726 to 1728.

In the late 18th century, Peter Stuyvesant, born in 1778 in New York City, was a successful banker and philanthropist. He was instrumental in establishing the New York Historical Society and the New York Bible Society.

During the American Civil War, Samuel Stuyvesant, born in 1815 in New York City, served as a Union Army officer and rose to the rank of Brevet Major General. He fought in several notable battles, including the Battle of Gettysburg.

In the early 20th century, Rutherford Stuyvesant, born in 1879 in New York City, was a prominent lawyer and real estate developer. He was involved in the construction of several iconic buildings in New York City, including the original Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.

While the Stuyvesant name has Dutch origins, it has become closely associated with New York City and the state of New York due to the significant influence of Petrus Stuyvesant and his descendants in the region's history and development.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Stuyvesant

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Stuyvesant.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Stuyvesant was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Stuyvesant has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Stuyvesant was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Stuyvesant, please contact us.

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