2010
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Vandecasteele
A Flemish surname referring to someone from the town of Casteele.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Vandecasteele. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vandecasteele 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Vandecasteele in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandecasteele, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vandecasteele
The surname VANDECASTEELE has its origins in the region of Flanders, which today stretches across parts of Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. It is a Dutch or Flemish name that likely emerged in the late Middle Ages, around the 13th or 14th century.
VANDECASTEELE is derived from the Dutch words "van de" meaning "from the" and "casteele" or "casteel," which translates to "castle" or "fortified house." The name suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname may have lived near or worked at a castle or fortified structure.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the VANDECASTEELE name can be found in the archives of the city of Bruges, dating back to the late 15th century. A merchant named Jan VANDECASTEELE is mentioned in a trade document from 1487.
In the 16th century, a VANDECASTEELE family was documented as residing in the town of Kortrijk, located in present-day Belgium. Pieter VANDECASTEELE, born in 1533, was a prominent figure in the local community and served as a magistrate.
During the 17th century, the VANDECASTEELE name gained prominence in the city of Ghent, where several members of the family worked as skilled craftsmen and merchants. Notable individuals from this period include Gillis VANDECASTEELE (1602-1678), a renowned painter, and Joost VANDECASTEELE (1617-1692), a successful textile merchant.
In the 18th century, the VANDECASTEELE surname spread beyond the Low Countries, with some bearers migrating to other parts of Europe and eventually to the Americas. One notable figure was Adriaan VANDECASTEELE (1732-1810), a Dutch-born architect who worked on several prestigious projects in St. Petersburg, Russia.
As the VANDECASTEELE name continued to disperse throughout the 19th century, it was sometimes anglicized to variations like "Vandercasteel" or "Vandercaster." However, the original Dutch spelling remained prevalent, particularly in regions with strong Flemish or Dutch cultural influences.
Throughout its long history, the VANDECASTEELE surname has been borne by several notable individuals, including the 20th-century Belgian sculptor Albert VANDECASTEELE (1901-1982), the Dutch painter Gerrit VANDECASTEELE (1922-2005), and the French-born Canadian author and educator Jacques VANDECASTEELE (1928-2018).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vandecasteele
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandecasteele, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Vandecasteele 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 Vandecasteele surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 104
- Two or more races3.6% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vandecasteele
Vandecasteele 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
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 393 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #148,347 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Up 393 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 Vandecasteele 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 | #148,347 | #147,954 | 0.3% |
| Count | 111 | 112 | 0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vandecasteele bearers went from 111 to 112 (+0.9% change). The surname moved up 393 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #147,954.
FAQ
Vandecasteele surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vandecasteele?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Vandecasteele. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Vandecasteele?
Vandecasteele ranks #147,954 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 112 people with the surname Vandecasteele. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Vandecasteele.
Has Vandecasteele become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vandecasteele went from 111 recorded bearers to 112. That is an increase of 1 (+0.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #148,347 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Vandecasteele?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandecasteele, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Vandecasteele in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (104 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vandecasteele appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Two or More Races (3.6%), Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Vandecasteele (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 Vandecasteele mean?
A Flemish surname referring to someone from the town of Casteele. 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 Vandecasteele (0.04 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 Vandecasteele?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.