2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Vanfleteren
A surname denoting a geographic origin, likely from the municipality of Fleteren in West Flanders, Belgium.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Vanfleteren. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vanfleteren 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Vanfleteren in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanfleteren, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vanfleteren
The surname VANFLETEREN is of Dutch and Flemish origin, tracing its roots back to the Low Countries region of northwestern Europe. It is believed to have emerged during the medieval period, possibly as early as the 12th or 13th century.
VANFLETEREN is a locative surname, derived from a specific place name. It is likely that the earliest bearers of this name hailed from a town or village called Fleteren or a similar spelling variation. The prefix "van" in Dutch and Flemish simply means "from," indicating that the family originated from this particular location.
One of the earliest known references to the VANFLETEREN name can be found in the records of the Bruges area in modern-day Belgium. These documents, dating back to the late 15th century, mention individuals with the surname VANFLETEREN residing in and around the city of Bruges.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the VANFLETEREN name continued to be documented in various records across the Low Countries region, particularly in the provinces of West Flanders and East Flanders. Notable individuals from this era include Jan VANFLETEREN (1543-1610), a renowned artist and painter from Bruges, and Pieter VANFLETEREN (1587-1642), a respected scholar and theologian from Ghent.
As the Dutch and Flemish people migrated and settled in other parts of Europe and beyond, the VANFLETEREN surname traveled with them. In the 18th century, Jacob VANFLETEREN (1725-1792) was a merchant and trader who established a successful business in Amsterdam, while Hendrik VANFLETEREN (1760-1833) was a respected military officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars.
The 19th century saw the VANFLETEREN name spread further across the globe, with notable individuals such as Marie VANFLETEREN (1820-1892), a pioneering educator and philanthropist who founded several schools in Belgium, and Willem VANFLETEREN (1875-1942), a renowned architect who designed numerous landmark buildings in Brussels and Antwerp.
As the centuries passed, the VANFLETEREN surname continued to be carried by individuals across various fields and professions, leaving an indelible mark on the history and culture of the Low Countries and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vanfleteren
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanfleteren, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Vanfleteren 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 Vanfleteren surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.0% · 110
- Two or more races3.4% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vanfleteren
Vanfleteren 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
#146,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+3 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,444 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+4 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 1,931 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #146,201 | 113 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 6,444 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.5%) | Up 1,931 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 Vanfleteren 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 | #146,201 | #144,270 | 1.3% |
| Count | 113 | 117 | 3.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vanfleteren bearers went from 113 to 117 (+3.5% change). The surname moved up 1,931 positions in the national ranking, going from #146,201 to #144,270.
FAQ
Vanfleteren surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vanfleteren?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Vanfleteren. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Vanfleteren?
Vanfleteren ranks #144,270 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 117 people with the surname Vanfleteren. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), 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 Vanfleteren.
Has Vanfleteren become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vanfleteren went from 113 recorded bearers to 117. That is an increase of 4 (+3.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #146,201 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Vanfleteren?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanfleteren, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Vanfleteren in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.0% (110 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vanfleteren appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.0%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (1.7%). 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 Vanfleteren (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 Vanfleteren mean?
A surname denoting a geographic origin, likely from the municipality of Fleteren in West Flanders, Belgium. 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 Vanfleteren (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 surname Vanfleteren?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.