2010
#148,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Vandersys
Of Dutch origin, meaning "from the dyke" or "from the bank".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Vandersys. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vandersys 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Vandersys in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandersys, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.8%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vandersys
The surname Vandersys has its origins in the Netherlands, dating back to the late 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Dutch words "van der" meaning "from the" and "sys" which could refer to a place name or a geographical feature such as a river or stream.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Vandersys appears in a Dutch census record from the city of Amsterdam in 1594. This document lists a family with the surname Vandersys residing in the city's Jordaan district. It is possible that the name was originally associated with a specific location or settlement within the Netherlands, though the exact origin has been lost over time.
During the 17th century, the Vandersys name began to spread beyond the Netherlands as Dutch settlers and traders ventured to other parts of Europe and the Americas. In 1632, a man named Jan Vandersys was recorded as one of the first Dutch colonists to settle in what is now New York City, then known as New Amsterdam.
Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, several notable individuals carried the Vandersys surname. One such figure was Pieter Vandersys (1735-1804), a Dutch merchant and trader who established a successful trading company in Amsterdam. Another was Maria Vandersys (1782-1856), a renowned painter whose works are still exhibited in several museums across Europe.
In the late 19th century, the Vandersys name also appeared in historical records from South Africa. Hendrik Vandersys (1848-1912) was a prominent Afrikaner farmer and landowner in the Cape Colony, while his cousin, Johannes Vandersys (1856-1928), served as a member of the Cape Parliament during the early 20th century.
One of the most famous individuals with the Vandersys surname was the Dutch-American writer and journalist, Willem Vandersys (1892-1968). Born in Amsterdam, he immigrated to the United States in the 1920s and became a celebrated author, known for his novels and short stories depicting the lives of Dutch immigrants in America.
While the Vandersys name has its roots in the Netherlands, it has since spread across the globe, with families bearing this surname found in various countries, including the United States, Canada, South Africa, and Australia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vandersys
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandersys, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.8%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Vandersys 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 Vandersys surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.0% · 98
- Two or more races8.8% · 10
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vandersys
Vandersys 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
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+3 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 1,852 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 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.7%) | Up 1,852 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 Vandersys 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 | #146,495 | 1.2% |
| Count | 111 | 114 | 2.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vandersys bearers went from 111 to 114 (+2.7% change). The surname moved up 1,852 positions in the national ranking, going from #148,347 to #146,495.
FAQ
Vandersys surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vandersys?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Vandersys. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Vandersys?
Vandersys ranks #146,495 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 114 people with the surname Vandersys. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), 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 Vandersys.
Has Vandersys become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vandersys went from 111 recorded bearers to 114. That is an increase of 3 (+2.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #148,347 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Vandersys?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandersys, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.8%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Vandersys in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.0% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vandersys appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.0%), Two or More Races (8.8%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Vandersys (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 Vandersys mean?
Of Dutch origin, meaning "from the dyke" or "from the bank". 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 Vandersys (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 people have the last name Vandersys?
You can see how many people are called Vandersys on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.