2000
#2,421
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,716
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.08
Uncommon Last name
Vanhorn
An occupational surname for a person who played or made hunting horns or lived near a horn-shaped geographical feature.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 15,546 Americans carry the last name Vanhorn. That puts it at #2,601 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.54 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 22,048 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Vanhorn 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
16K
1 in 22,048
Census rank
#2,601
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
14K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 13,557 bearers of the surname Vanhorn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.54 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2601st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhorn, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Vanhorn
The surname VANHORN has its origins in the Netherlands and can be traced back to the 16th century. The name is derived from the Dutch words "van" meaning "from" and "hoorn" meaning "horn" or "bugle", suggesting that the original bearer may have been a town crier or herald. It was common for Dutch surnames to incorporate descriptions of occupations or geographic locations.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the VANHORN surname can be found in the Dutch Reformed Church records of Leiden, Netherlands, where a Jannetje Jans VanHorn was listed in 1592. The name also appears in the Dutch settlements of New Netherland (present-day New York and New Jersey) in the 17th century, with Cornelis VanHorn being recorded as a landowner in New Amsterdam (now Manhattan) in 1649.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the VANHORN name was prominent in the Dutch communities of New York and New Jersey, with several members holding positions of importance. In 1673, Cornelis VanHorn was appointed as the first sheriff of New Castle County in Delaware. Another notable figure was Abraham VanHorn (1718-1778), a merchant and landowner in New Jersey who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress during the American Revolution.
The VANHORN surname has also been associated with several historical figures, including Philip VanHorn (1766-1837), an American Revolutionary War soldier and later a member of the New York State Assembly. In the 19th century, Robert Townsend VanHorn (1824-1916) was a prominent lawyer and judge in Pennsylvania, while James VanHorn (1863-1942) was a respected architect who designed several notable buildings in New York City.
Other notable individuals with the VANHORN surname include William VanHorn (1867-1946), a Canadian politician and businessman who served as the mayor of Toronto from 1928 to 1930, and Carl VanHorn (1882-1960), an American artist and illustrator known for his work in the Golden Age of Illustration.
Throughout its history, the VANHORN surname has undergone various spellings and variations, including Van Horn, VanHorn, Van Horne, and VanHorne, reflecting the linguistic and cultural influences of different regions and time periods.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Vanhorn
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhorn, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Vanhorn 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 Vanhorn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.4% · 11,979
- Two or more races3.6% · 494
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 475
- Black or African American3.3% · 446
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 94
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 69
Timeline
Historical Census data for Vanhorn
Vanhorn 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
#2,554
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,151
+435 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 4.80
Rank movement Down 133 places
2020
#2,601
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,557
-594 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 4.54
Rank movement Down 47 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,421 | 13,716 | 5.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,554 | 14,151 | 4.80 | +435 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 133 places |
| 2020 | #2,601 | 13,557 | 4.54 | -594 bearers (-4.2%) | Down 47 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 Vanhorn 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 | #2,554 | #2,601 | -1.8% |
| Count | 14,151 | 13,557 | -4.2% |
| Per 100K | 4.80 | 4.54 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Vanhorn bearers went from 14,151 to 13,557 (-4.2% change). The surname moved down 47 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,554 to #2,601.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Vanhorn
FAQ
Vanhorn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Vanhorn?
Name Census estimates that about 15,546 living Americans carry the surname Vanhorn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 22,048 residents.
How common is Vanhorn?
Vanhorn ranks #2,601 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.54 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 13,557 people with the surname Vanhorn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (15,546), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.54 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.54 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Vanhorn.
Has Vanhorn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Vanhorn went from 14,151 recorded bearers to 13,557. That is a decrease of 594 (-4.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,554 to #2,601.
What does the Census say about the background of Vanhorn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Vanhorn, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Vanhorn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.4% (11,979 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Vanhorn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.4%), Two or More Races (3.6%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Vanhorn (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 Vanhorn mean?
An occupational surname for a person who played or made hunting horns or lived near a horn-shaped geographical feature. 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 Vanhorn (4.54 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 Vanhorn?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.