Dutch American Surnames

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This page is still in creation. It was created by Katie.Garner at July 31 2025, was edited 2 times, and was last edited at October 22 2025.

Dutch ethnicity indicates genetic origins in the Netherlands.

Dutch American historyDutch American history

The Dutch East India Company was established in the Netherlands in 1602 and sent explorers under the command of Henry Hudson to the Americas in 1609. The Hudson River was named after him. New Amsterdam was settled in 1613. The Dutch began trade with the Native Americans and set up trading posts. They also established farms, settlements, and lumber camps. Armed conflicts began as settlements expanded into Native's villages and hunting grounds.

Not many Dutch settled in the New Netherlands colony. New Amsterdam came under English control in 1667 and was renamed New York City. The colony of New Netherland was split into New York and New Jersey. Dutch immigration to America slowed after the English took over New Netherlands.

Dutch Quakers came to the Philadelphia area in response to William Penn's invitation.

In the 1800s, Dutch farmers faced high taxes and low wages, prompting many to come to America and settle in the Midwest. Catholic Dutch immigrated in large groups, sometimes including entire neighborhoods.

After WWII, Indonesia gained independence from the Netherlands. The Dutch who lived there either went back to the Netherlands or went to the United States.

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Dutch American cultureDutch American culture

Foods that the Dutch introduced to America included beets, spinach, parsley, cookies & Dutch apple pie.

While wealthy Dutch families emulated British elites, there was considerable anti-English sentiment. Most of the Dutch supported the American Revolution.

Several place names, especially around New York, are derived from Dutch.

Dutch American languagesDutch American languages

Dutch and English share a linguistic history, so the languages are fairly similar. Some English words have a Dutch origin.

Early Dutch Immigrants spoke Dutch. In modern times, Dutch Americans speak English, and only first-generation Dutch immigrants speak Dutch.

As with any other non-English group immigrating to America, many names were anglicized.

In some cases, the spelling would be changed based on how the name sounded to English-speaking scribes. This included V becoming F of Ph, -ink becoming -ing, KK becoming CK, E becoming A, -els becoming -les. For example: Veenhuis would become Feenhouse.

Surnames that began with van, de, or ten might be fused together. For example: tes Pas to Tenpas.

Names from occupations were often translated.

• Bakker to Baker
• Kuiper to Cooper
• Konings to King

Partonic surnames were anglicized as follows:

• Janszoon or Janssens to Johnson
• Pieters to Peters or Peterson

In areas with a strong Dutch presence, there was less anglicization of surnames.

Explore more about ethnicity estimatesExplore more about ethnicity estimates

• MyHeritage DNA at MyHeritage
• Ethnicities around the world at MyHeritage
• What Is My Ethnicity? How MyHeritage Estimates Ethnicities at MyHeritage Knowledge Base
• Where's My Ethnicity?!: Why An Ethnicity Might Not Show Up In Your DNA (and How To Find Evidence Of It Anyway) at MyHeritage Knowledge Base

References

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