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Van Family History

Van Surname Meaning

Vietnamese (Vạn): from the Chinese surname 萬 see Wan. Vietnamese (Văn): from the Chinese surnames 文 or 聞 see Wen 2 and 3 and also 5 below.

Vietnamese (Vân): from the Chinese surname 雲 see Yun Chinese: variant of Fan and Wan.

Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 文 see Wen. Czech (Vaň): from a shortened pet form of the personal name Václav (see Vaclav).

English (London and Essex): variant of Vann. — Note: It is likely that in the population figure published by the US Census Bureau the Dutch and Flemish preposition van ‘from of’ which forms the first part of surnames such as Van Acker and Van Dyke is in some instances counted as an independent surname.

Compare Vander.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


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Where is the Van family from?

You can see how Van families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Van family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Van families were found in USA in 1920. In 1911 there were 34 Van families living in Ontario. This was about 36% of all the recorded Van's in Canada. Ontario had the highest population of Van families in 1911.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Van surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Van ancestors do for a living?

In 1921, Farmer and Housekeeper were the top reported jobs for men and women in the Canada named Van. 48% of Van men worked as a Farmer and 100% of Van women worked as a Housekeeper.

View Census Data for Van | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1921

  • Farmer
    48%
  • Laborer
    18%
  • Engineer
    12%
  • Labourer
    12%

Top Female Occupations In 1921

  • Housekeeper
    100%

What Van family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 1 million census records available for the last name Van. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Van census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search Canadian census records for Van

Passenger Lists

There are 680,000 immigration records available for the last name Van. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in Canada, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Van immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 364,000 military records available for the last name Van. For the veterans among your Van ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Van military records

You've only scratched the surface of Van family history

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What is the average Van lifespan?

Between 1951 and 2004, in the United States, Van life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1955, and highest in 1963. The average life expectancy for Van in 1951 was 46, and 76 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Van

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Van ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.

Discover the unique achievements of ancestors in the Van family tree

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