2000
#10,400
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,840
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.05
Rare Last name
Vandeventer
A toponymic surname derived from a place name near Ghent, Belgium, likely meaning "from the peat fields."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,719 Americans carry the last name Vandeventer. That puts it at #12,483 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 126,059 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vandeventer 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
2.7K
1 in 126,059
Census rank
#12,483
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,371 bearers of the surname Vandeventer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12483rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandeventer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vandeventer
The surname VANDEVENTER is of Dutch origin, originating from the Netherlands in the 16th century. It is derived from the Dutch words "van de" meaning "from the" and "venter" meaning "marsh" or "swamp". This suggests the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near or worked in a marshy area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Dutch province of Gelderland in the late 1500s. The name appears in various spellings such as "van de Venter", "van der Venter", and "Vandeventer" in historical records from this region.
In the 17th century, the VANDEVENTER name began to appear in records from the Dutch colonies in North America, particularly in New Netherland (present-day New York and New Jersey). Some of the first recorded individuals with this surname in the New World include Pieter Jansz VANDEVENTER, who arrived in New Amsterdam (now New York City) in 1653, and Jacob Jansz VANDEVENTER, who settled in Flatbush, Long Island in 1659.
One notable historical figure with the VANDEVENTER surname was Jacobus VANDEVENTER (1667-1738), a Dutch-American farmer and landowner in Kings County, New York (now part of Brooklyn). He was one of the original patentees of the town of Flatbush and played a significant role in the early development of the area.
Another prominent individual was Thomas VANDEVENTER (1757-1838), an American soldier who fought in the Revolutionary War and later served as a Brigadier General in the War of 1812. He was born in Monmouth County, New Jersey and had a distinguished military career.
In the 19th century, the VANDEVENTER name can be found in various parts of the United States, particularly in the Midwest and West Coast regions. One notable figure was Isaac VANDEVENTER (1812-1890), a pioneer and early settler in Oregon. He was born in Ohio and migrated to the Oregon Territory in the 1840s, establishing one of the first farms in the Willamette Valley.
Another individual of note was John VANDEVENTER (1839-1919), a Union Army veteran of the American Civil War who later became a successful businessman and politician in Indiana. He served as a state senator and was involved in various commercial ventures.
The VANDEVENTER surname has also been found in other countries, such as South Africa and Australia, likely due to Dutch and European migration patterns. While the name has evolved in spelling and pronunciation over time, its Dutch origins and connections to marshy landscapes remain a part of its historical significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vandeventer
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandeventer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Vandeventer 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 Vandeventer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 2,127
- Two or more races4.4% · 105
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 71
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 25
- Black or African American0.9% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vandeventer
Vandeventer 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
#10,015
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,219
+379 bearers (+13.3%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Up 385 places
2020
#12,483
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,371
-848 bearers (-26.3%)
Per 100,000 0.79
Rank movement Down 2,468 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,400 | 2,840 | 1.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,015 | 3,219 | 1.09 | +379 bearers (+13.3%) | Up 385 places |
| 2020 | #12,483 | 2,371 | 0.79 | -848 bearers (-26.3%) | Down 2,468 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 Vandeventer 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 | #10,015 | #12,483 | -24.6% |
| Count | 3,219 | 2,371 | -26.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.09 | 0.79 | -27.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vandeventer bearers went from 3,219 to 2,371 (-26.3% change). The surname moved down 2,468 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,015 to #12,483.
FAQ
Vandeventer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vandeventer?
Name Census estimates that about 2,719 living Americans carry the surname Vandeventer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 126,059 residents.
How common is Vandeventer?
Vandeventer ranks #12,483 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.79 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,371 people with the surname Vandeventer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,719), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.79 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.79 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Vandeventer.
Has Vandeventer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vandeventer went from 3,219 recorded bearers to 2,371. That is a decrease of 848 (-26.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,015 to #12,483.
What does the Census say about the background of Vandeventer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vandeventer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Vandeventer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (2,127 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vandeventer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Hispanic (3.0%). 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 Vandeventer (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 Vandeventer mean?
A toponymic surname derived from a place name near Ghent, Belgium, likely meaning "from the peat fields." 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 Vandeventer (0.79 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 Vandeventer?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.