2000
#104,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 158
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Vanhelden
A Dutch surname indicating someone who came from the town of Helden.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 189 Americans carry the last name Vanhelden. That puts it at #113,026 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,813,515 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vanhelden 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
189
1 in 1,813,515
Census rank
#113,026
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
165
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 165 bearers of the surname Vanhelden in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 113026th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhelden, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Black (0.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vanhelden
The surname VANHELDEN has its origins in the Netherlands, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Dutch words "van," meaning "from," and "helden," which can refer to either a hero or a piece of uncultivated land. This suggests that the name may have been originally used to denote someone from a particular location or region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Dutch province of Gelderland, where a family by the name of VANHELDEN was documented in the town of Arnhem in the late 1500s. It is possible that the name originated in this area and was later adopted by families in other parts of the Netherlands.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name VANHELDEN appears to have spread throughout the Netherlands, with several notable individuals bearing the surname. One such figure was Jan VANHELDEN, a Dutch painter and engraver born in 1625 in Gorinchem. His works are featured in several museums across Europe, including the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.
Another prominent VANHELDEN was Pieter VANHELDEN, a Dutch naval officer who served in the Dutch East Indies in the late 18th century. He is credited with mapping several islands in the Indonesian archipelago and contributing to the exploration of the region.
In the 19th century, the name VANHELDEN continued to be found in various parts of the Netherlands, as well as in areas with significant Dutch migration, such as South Africa. One notable bearer of the name during this period was Johannes VANHELDEN, a Dutch-born South African author and journalist who lived from 1835 to 1912.
Moving into the 20th century, the VANHELDEN name gained recognition through individuals like Willem VANHELDEN, a Dutch Olympic cyclist who competed in the 1924 and 1928 Summer Olympics. He won a silver medal in the tandem event at the 1928 Amsterdam Games.
Another notable figure with the VANHELDEN surname was Dirk VANHELDEN, a Dutch resistance fighter during World War II. He was involved in the Dutch resistance movement against the Nazi occupation and played a crucial role in helping Allied forces in the Netherlands.
While the surname VANHELDEN has its roots in the Netherlands, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora communities. However, its historical significance and connections to the Dutch culture and heritage remain firmly established.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vanhelden
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhelden, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Black (0.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Vanhelden 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 Vanhelden surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.9% · 155
- Two or more races4.8% · 8
- Black or African American0.6% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vanhelden
Vanhelden 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
#121,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 142
-16 bearers (-10.1%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 16,771 places
2020
#113,026
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 165
+23 bearers (+16.2%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 8,564 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #104,819 | 158 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #121,590 | 142 | 0.05 | -16 bearers (-10.1%) | Down 16,771 places |
| 2020 | #113,026 | 165 | 0.06 | +23 bearers (+16.2%) | Up 8,564 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 Vanhelden 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 | #121,590 | #113,026 | 7.0% |
| Count | 142 | 165 | 16.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.06 | 10.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vanhelden bearers went from 142 to 165 (+16.2% change). The surname moved up 8,564 positions in the national ranking, going from #121,590 to #113,026.
FAQ
Vanhelden surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vanhelden?
Name Census estimates that about 189 living Americans carry the surname Vanhelden. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,813,515 residents.
How common is Vanhelden?
Vanhelden ranks #113,026 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 165 people with the surname Vanhelden. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (189), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Vanhelden.
Has Vanhelden become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vanhelden went from 142 recorded bearers to 165. That is an increase of 23 (+16.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #121,590 to #113,026.
What does the Census say about the background of Vanhelden?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhelden, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Black (0.6%). 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 Vanhelden in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.9% (155 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vanhelden appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.9%), Two or More Races (4.8%), Black (0.6%). 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 Vanhelden (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 Vanhelden mean?
A Dutch surname indicating someone who came from the town of Helden. 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 Vanhelden (0.06 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 are called Vanhelden?
You can see how many people are called Vanhelden on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.