2000
#18,069
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,423
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.53
Rare Last name
Vanvleet
A surname indicating someone from the Netherlands or a Dutch-speaking area.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,121 Americans carry the last name Vanvleet. That puts it at #15,281 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 161,600 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vanvleet 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
2.1K
1 in 161,600
Census rank
#15,281
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,850 bearers of the surname Vanvleet in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15281st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanvleet, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vanvleet
The surname VANVLEET is of Dutch origin, originating in the Netherlands during the early 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Dutch words "van" meaning "from" and "vliet" meaning "stream" or "brook," suggesting that the earliest bearers of this name likely resided near a small watercourse.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the VANVLEET name appears in a 1543 census record from the town of Leiden, where a family by the name of "Van Vliete" is listed among the local residents. This spelling variation highlights the fluidity of surname spellings during that era, as standardization was not yet widely practiced.
The VANVLEET surname is also found in various historical manuscripts and documents from the Dutch provinces of Holland and Zeeland, where many families bearing this name resided. For instance, a 1612 land deed from the town of Middelburg mentions a "Pieter van Vliete" as a property owner.
In the late 17th century, several VANVLEET families immigrated to the New World, settling in various regions of what would become the United States and Canada. One notable early bearer of the name was Jan Jacobse Van Vliet, a Dutch settler who arrived in New Amsterdam (present-day New York City) in 1659.
Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, the VANVLEET surname appeared in various historical records across North America. Notable individuals include:
1. Cornelius Van Vleet (1737-1810), a Dutch-American soldier who fought in the American Revolutionary War.
2. Abram Cornelius Van Vleet (1793-1867), a farmer and politician who served as a member of the New York State Assembly.
3. Jeremiah Van Vleet (1803-1883), an American architect and builder known for his work in upstate New York.
4. Esther Van Vleet (1857-1944), an American educator and suffragist active in the women's rights movement.
5. Cornelius Van Vleet (1866-1945), a Dutch-American artist and illustrator known for his landscape paintings and etchings.
While the VANVLEET surname has its origins in the Netherlands, its bearers have made significant contributions across various fields throughout history, particularly in North America where many descendants of the original Dutch settlers have resided for generations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vanvleet
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanvleet, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Vanvleet 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 Vanvleet surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.8% · 1,661
- Two or more races4.3% · 79
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 77
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 14
- Black or African American0.6% · 11
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vanvleet
Vanvleet 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
#16,939
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,679
+256 bearers (+18.0%)
Per 100,000 0.57
Rank movement Up 1,130 places
2020
#15,281
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,850
+171 bearers (+10.2%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Up 1,658 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,069 | 1,423 | 0.53 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #16,939 | 1,679 | 0.57 | +256 bearers (+18.0%) | Up 1,130 places |
| 2020 | #15,281 | 1,850 | 0.62 | +171 bearers (+10.2%) | Up 1,658 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 Vanvleet 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 | #16,939 | #15,281 | 9.8% |
| Count | 1,679 | 1,850 | 10.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.57 | 0.62 | 8.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vanvleet bearers went from 1,679 to 1,850 (+10.2% change). The surname moved up 1,658 positions in the national ranking, going from #16,939 to #15,281.
FAQ
Vanvleet surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vanvleet?
Name Census estimates that about 2,121 living Americans carry the surname Vanvleet. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 161,600 residents.
How common is Vanvleet?
Vanvleet ranks #15,281 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.62 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 1,850 people with the surname Vanvleet. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,121), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.62 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 Vanvleet.
Has Vanvleet become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vanvleet went from 1,679 recorded bearers to 1,850. That is an increase of 171 (+10.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #16,939 to #15,281.
What does the Census say about the background of Vanvleet?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanvleet, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Vanvleet in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.8% (1,661 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vanvleet appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.8%), Two or More Races (4.3%), Hispanic (4.2%). 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 Vanvleet (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 Vanvleet mean?
A surname indicating someone from the Netherlands or a Dutch-speaking 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 Vanvleet (0.62 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 common is the surname Vanvleet?
Find out how many people are called Vanvleet on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.