2000
#7,036
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,391
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.63
Rare Last name
Vanhouten
Derived from the Dutch term meaning "from the forest," likely referring to someone who lived near a wooded area.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,944 Americans carry the last name Vanhouten. That puts it at #7,456 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.44 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 69,327 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vanhouten 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
4.9K
1 in 69,327
Census rank
#7,456
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,311 bearers of the surname Vanhouten in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.44 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7456th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhouten, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vanhouten
The surname VANHOUTEN has its origins in the Netherlands, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Dutch phrase "van houten," which translates to "of wood" or "from the woods." This suggests that the name may have originated from someone who lived near or worked in a forested area.
One of the earliest known mentions of the VANHOUTEN surname can be found in the Leiden archives from 1582, where a record exists of a man named Pieter VANHOUTEN. It is likely that the name had been in use for some time before this, as surnames were becoming more commonplace in the Netherlands during the late Middle Ages.
Another notable early reference to the VANHOUTEN name comes from the baptismal records of the Dutch Reformed Church in New Amsterdam (now New York City) in 1639. Here, a child named Hendrick VANHOUTEN was baptized, indicating that members of the VANHOUTEN family had already settled in the Dutch colonial territory of New Netherland by that time.
In the 17th century, a prominent figure named Pieter VANHOUTEN (1625-1691) lived in Leiden, Netherlands. He was a successful merchant and served as a member of the city council. His descendants would go on to establish themselves in various parts of Europe and North America.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the VANHOUTEN surname in America can be found in the records of the Dutch Reformed Church of New Amsterdam in 1655. Here, a marriage is recorded between Adriaen VANHOUTEN and Marritje Hendricks.
Other notable individuals throughout history who bore the VANHOUTEN surname include:
1. Hendrick VANHOUTEN (1638-1711), one of the earliest settlers of what is now Bergen County, New Jersey.
2. Garret VANHOUTEN (1720-1792), a member of the New Jersey Provincial Congress during the American Revolutionary War.
3. John VANHOUTEN (1768-1841), a prominent landowner and farmer in New Jersey who served as a judge and member of the state legislature.
4. Cornelius VANHOUTEN (1801-1879), a successful businessman and real estate developer in New York City.
5. Henry VANHOUTEN (1833-1917), a Union Army officer during the American Civil War who later became a respected lawyer and judge in Ohio.
While the VANHOUTEN surname is relatively uncommon today, its rich history spans centuries and continents, with its roots firmly planted in the Netherlands and the early Dutch settlements of North America.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vanhouten
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhouten, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Vanhouten 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 Vanhouten surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 4,006
- Two or more races3.2% · 140
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 117
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 37
- Black or African American0.2% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vanhouten
Vanhouten 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
#7,582
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,383
-8 bearers (-0.2%)
Per 100,000 1.49
Rank movement Down 546 places
2020
#7,456
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,311
-72 bearers (-1.6%)
Per 100,000 1.44
Rank movement Up 126 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,036 | 4,391 | 1.63 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,582 | 4,383 | 1.49 | -8 bearers (-0.2%) | Down 546 places |
| 2020 | #7,456 | 4,311 | 1.44 | -72 bearers (-1.6%) | Up 126 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 Vanhouten 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 | #7,582 | #7,456 | 1.7% |
| Count | 4,383 | 4,311 | -1.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.49 | 1.44 | -3.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vanhouten bearers went from 4,383 to 4,311 (-1.6% change). The surname moved up 126 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,582 to #7,456.
FAQ
Vanhouten surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vanhouten?
Name Census estimates that about 4,944 living Americans carry the surname Vanhouten. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 69,327 residents.
How common is Vanhouten?
Vanhouten ranks #7,456 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.44 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 4,311 people with the surname Vanhouten. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,944), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.44 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.44 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 Vanhouten.
Has Vanhouten become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vanhouten went from 4,383 recorded bearers to 4,311. That is a decrease of 72 (-1.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,582 to #7,456.
What does the Census say about the background of Vanhouten?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhouten, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Vanhouten in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (4,006 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vanhouten appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Two or More Races (3.2%), Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Vanhouten (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 Vanhouten mean?
Derived from the Dutch term meaning "from the forest," likely referring to someone who lived near a wooded area. 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 Vanhouten (1.44 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 share the surname Vanhouten?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.