2000
#9,041
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,324
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.23
Rare Last name
Vanzandt
A Dutch toponymic surname meaning "from Zandt," referring to someone from the town of Zandt in the Netherlands.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,684 Americans carry the last name Vanzandt. That puts it at #9,657 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 93,039 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vanzandt 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
3.7K
1 in 93,039
Census rank
#9,657
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,213 bearers of the surname Vanzandt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9657th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanzandt, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.9%. The next largest groups are Black (7.0%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vanzandt
The surname VANZANDT originated in the Netherlands during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Dutch words "van" meaning "from" and "Zandt" meaning "sand" or "sandy area". This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who lived near or came from a sandy region.
The earliest recorded instances of the VANZANDT name can be found in Dutch records from the 16th and 17th centuries. During this time, variations in spelling were common, with the name appearing as VANZANT, VAN ZANT, VAN SANDT, and other similar forms.
One notable VANZANDT from this early period was Jan Pieterszoon VanZandt, a Dutch merchant and trader who was born in Amsterdam in 1597. He was involved in the Dutch East India Company and made several voyages to Asia during the early 17th century.
As the Dutch settled in North America in the 17th century, the VANZANDT name made its way to the New World. One of the earliest recorded instances was Pieter VanZandt, who arrived in New Netherland (present-day New York) in 1648.
During the American Revolutionary War, Jacob Rutsen VanZandt (1736-1804) was a prominent merchant and patriot from New York City. He served as a member of the New York Provincial Congress and was a vocal supporter of independence.
Another notable VANZANDT was Marie Van Zandt (1858-1923), an American opera singer and vocal teacher. She performed with the Metropolitan Opera in New York and taught many famous students, including soprano Geraldine Farrar.
In the field of literature, Carl Van Zandt (1903-1984) was an American writer and journalist. He is best known for his novel "The Falconer's Knot" and his work as a foreign correspondent during World War II.
The VANZANDT name has also been associated with several places in the United States, including Van Zandt County in Texas, which was named after Isaac Van Zandt (1813-1847), a prominent figure in the Texas Revolution and early statehood.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vanzandt
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanzandt, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.9%. The next largest groups are Black (7.0%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Vanzandt 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 Vanzandt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.9% · 2,633
- Black or African American7.0% · 224
- Two or more races5.3% · 169
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 145
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 16
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vanzandt
Vanzandt 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
#9,378
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,469
+145 bearers (+4.4%)
Per 100,000 1.18
Rank movement Down 337 places
2020
#9,657
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,213
-256 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 279 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,041 | 3,324 | 1.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,378 | 3,469 | 1.18 | +145 bearers (+4.4%) | Down 337 places |
| 2020 | #9,657 | 3,213 | 1.07 | -256 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 279 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 Vanzandt 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 | #9,378 | #9,657 | -3.0% |
| Count | 3,469 | 3,213 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.18 | 1.07 | -8.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vanzandt bearers went from 3,469 to 3,213 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 279 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,378 to #9,657.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Vanzandt
FAQ
Vanzandt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vanzandt?
Name Census estimates that about 3,684 living Americans carry the surname Vanzandt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 93,039 residents.
How common is Vanzandt?
Vanzandt ranks #9,657 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.07 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 3,213 people with the surname Vanzandt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,684), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.07 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 Vanzandt.
Has Vanzandt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vanzandt went from 3,469 recorded bearers to 3,213. That is a decrease of 256 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,378 to #9,657.
What does the Census say about the background of Vanzandt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanzandt, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.9%. The next largest groups are Black (7.0%) and Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Vanzandt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.9% (2,633 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vanzandt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.9%), Black (7.0%), Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Vanzandt (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 Vanzandt mean?
A Dutch toponymic surname meaning "from Zandt," referring to someone from the town of Zandt in the Netherlands. 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 Vanzandt (1.07 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 Vanzandt?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.