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

Vanderbilt, 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 Vanderbilt surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Vanderbilt in America

Vanderbilt is the 15947th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Vanderbilt surname appeared 1,822 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Vanderbilt.

We can also compare 2010 data for Vanderbilt 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 Vanderbilt

The surname Vanderbilt originated in the Netherlands, specifically in the Dutch provinces of North Brabant and South Holland. It is derived from the Dutch words "van der" meaning "from the" and "bilt" meaning "wooded ridge" or "hill." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name lived near a wooded hill or ridge.

The name Vanderbilt can be traced back to the 16th century in Dutch records. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Leiden municipal archives, which mention a Cornelis Jacobsz van der Bilt in 1592.

In the 17th century, the Vanderbilt name appears in various Dutch documents, including the baptismal records of the Dutch Reformed Church in New Amsterdam (present-day New York City). These records mention the baptism of a child named Jacobus Vanderbilt in 1653.

As the Dutch colonized parts of North America, some Vanderbilts emigrated to the New World. One notable early bearer of the name was Jan Aertsen van der Bilt, who arrived in New Netherland (now New York) in 1650. He was one of the earliest recorded Vanderbilts in the American colonies.

During the 19th century, the Vanderbilt family rose to prominence in the United States, particularly through the success of Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794-1877), a shipping and railroad tycoon. He amassed a vast fortune and established the Vanderbilt family as one of the wealthiest in America.

Other notable individuals with the Vanderbilt surname include William Henry Vanderbilt (1821-1885), a railroad magnate and one of Cornelius Vanderbilt's sons; Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt (1877-1915), a wealthy sportsman and victim of the sinking of the RMS Lusitania; and Gloria Vanderbilt (1924-2019), an artist, author, actress, and fashion designer.

Throughout history, the Vanderbilt name has been associated with wealth, business acumen, and philanthropy, particularly in the United States.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Vanderbilt

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

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 Vanderbilt 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 Vanderbilt 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 Vanderbilt was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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