2000
#137,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Veneklase
A Dutch locational surname derived from the place name Veen-en-Klaasen.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Veneklase. 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 Veneklase 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 Veneklase 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 Veneklase, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Veneklase
The surname Veneklase has its roots in the Netherlands, originating in the 16th century. It is believed to derive from the Dutch words "veen," meaning "peat," and "klasse," meaning "class" or "quality." This suggests that the name may have referred to someone who worked with high-quality peat, which was an important fuel source at the time.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Veneklase can be found in the Dutch archives of the city of Leiden, where a certain Pieter Veneklase is mentioned in a document dated 1587. This document details a land transaction, indicating that Pieter was likely a landowner or a prominent member of the community.
In the 17th century, the name appears in various records from the Dutch East Indies, which was a colonial territory of the Dutch East India Company. Notable bearers of the name from this period include Jacob Veneklase (1625-1689), a merchant and trader based in Batavia (present-day Jakarta), and Willem Veneklase (1647-1712), a colonial administrator in the Moluccas Islands.
As the Dutch colonial empire expanded, the name Veneklase spread to other parts of the world. In the late 18th century, a branch of the family settled in South Africa, where they became prominent members of the Cape Colony's Dutch-speaking community. One of the most notable figures from this lineage was Pieter Veneklase (1789-1857), a successful farmer and landowner in the Western Cape region.
The 19th century saw the name Veneklase appear in various parts of Europe and North America, likely due to emigration from the Netherlands. In the United States, records show a Johann Veneklase (1821-1898) from Bavaria, who settled in Pennsylvania and worked as a blacksmith.
Another notable bearer of the name was Henri Veneklase (1865-1937), a Belgian artist and painter who is known for his landscapes and portraiture. His works can be found in various museums across Europe, including the Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts in Brussels.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Veneklase
Among Census respondents with the surname Veneklase, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Veneklase 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 Veneklase surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.3% · 108
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- Two or more races2.6% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Veneklase
Veneklase 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
#140,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
+7 bearers (+6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,341 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-2 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,113 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #137,816 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #140,157 | 119 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.3%) | Down 2,341 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | -2 bearers (-1.7%) | Down 4,113 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 Veneklase 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 | #140,157 | #144,270 | -2.9% |
| Count | 119 | 117 | -1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Veneklase bearers went from 119 to 117 (-1.7% change). The surname moved down 4,113 positions in the national ranking, going from #140,157 to #144,270.
FAQ
Veneklase surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Veneklase?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Veneklase. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Veneklase?
Veneklase 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 Veneklase. 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 Veneklase.
Has Veneklase become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Veneklase went from 119 recorded bearers to 117. That is a decrease of 2 (-1.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #140,157 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Veneklase?
Among Census respondents with the surname Veneklase, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Veneklase in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.3% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Veneklase appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.3%), Hispanic (2.6%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Veneklase (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 Veneklase mean?
A Dutch locational surname derived from the place name Veen-en-Klaasen. 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 Veneklase (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 Americans have the surname Veneklase?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.