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''Van'' () is a very common prefix in Dutch language surnames, where it is known as a ''
tussenvoegsel A ''tussenvoegsel'' (, ) in a Dutch name is a family name affix positioned between a person's given name and the main part of their family name. There are similar concepts in many languages, such as Celtic family name prefixes, French particl ...
''. In those cases it nearly always refers to a certain, often quite distant, ancestor's
place of origin In Switzerland, the place of origin (german: Heimatort or Bürgerort, literally "home place" or "citizen place"; french: Lieu d'origine; it, Luogo d'origine) denotes where a Swiss citizen has their municipal citizenship, usually inherited from prev ...
or residence; for example, Ludwig ''van Beethoven'' "from Bettenhoven" and Rembrandt ''van Rijn'' "from the Rhine". ''Van'' is also a preposition in the Dutch and
Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans grad ...
languages, meaning "of" or "from" depending on the context (similar to '' da'', '' de'' and '' di'' in the Romance languages). In surnames, it can appear by itself or in combination with an
article Article often refers to: * Article (grammar), a grammatical element used to indicate definiteness or indefiniteness * Article (publishing), a piece of nonfictional prose that is an independent part of a publication Article may also refer to: ...
(compare
French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
''de la'', ''de l). The most common cases of this are ''van de'', ''van der'' and ''van den'', where the articles are all current or archaic forms of the article ''de'' "the". Less common are ''van het'' and ''van 't'', which use the similar but grammatically neuter article ''het''. The
contraction Contraction may refer to: Linguistics * Contraction (grammar), a shortened word * Poetic contraction, omission of letters for poetic reasons * Elision, omission of sounds ** Syncope (phonology), omission of sounds in a word * Synalepha, merged ...
''ver-'', based on ''van der'', is also common and can be written as a single word with the rest of the surname; an example being
Johannes Vermeer Johannes Vermeer ( , , see below; also known as Jan Vermeer; October 1632 – 15 December 1675) was a Dutch Baroque Period painter who specialized in domestic interior scenes of middle-class life. During his lifetime, he was a moderately suc ...
(''van der meer'' "of the lake"). Names in other languages may contain a component "Van" that is unrelated to the Dutch preposition. The very common Vietnamese middle name " Văn", often spelled in English text without diacritics, as in " Pham Van Tra", is a male given name, implying education.


Related prepositions

The preposition "''van''" is the most widely used preposition in Dutch surnames, but many others are also used, although not always recognised as such if the whole surname is written as a single word. Just as "''van''" all these prepositions used to indicate geographical locations: * ''te'' — meaning "at" (or/of towards), (or ''ter'' and ''ten'', being the old dative forms), ''e.g.'', '' ter Beek'' (of the stream) * ''thoe/thor'' — being the old forms of ''te'' as in ''
Thorbecke Johan Rudolph Thorbecke (14 January 1798 – 4 June 1872) was a Dutch liberal statesman, one of the most important Dutch politicians of the 19th century. Thorbecke is best known for heading the commission that drafted the revision of the Consti ...
'' (meaning "at the brook") * ''aan'' — meaning "at" or "aside" (also in combination ''aan de, aan den, aan het, aan 't''), ''e.g.'', ''aan de Stegge'' (meaning aside the road) * ''op'' — meaning "on" (also in combination ''op de, op der, op den, op ten, op 't, op het''), ''e.g.'', as in Op den Akker (on the field) * ''in'' — meaning "in" (also in combination ''in de, in den, in der, in het, in 't''), ''
in 't Veld In 't Veld is a Dutch toponymic surname meaning "in the field".
'' (in the field) * ''bij''  — meaning "at" (exclusively in combination ''bij de, bij 't): ''Bij 't Vuur'' (at the fire) * ''uit'' — or archaic uyt (uijt), meaning "out" or "from" (also in combination ''uit de, uit den, uit het, uyt de, uyt den, uijt de, uijt den, uijt ten''), ''e.g.'' Uytdehaage (from The Hague or from the hedge). * ''over'' — meaning "over" or "from the other side" (also in combination ''over de''), as in Overeem (from the other side of the river Eem (river)) * ''onder'' — meaning "under" or "below" or "at the bottom" (also in combination ''onder de''), Onderdijk, Onderwater * ''achter'' — meaning "behind" (also in combination ''achter de'')
Achterberg Achterberg is a village in the Dutch province of Utrecht. It is part of the municipality of Rhenen and it lies about 5 km west of Wageningen. The village was first mentioned in 1417 as Achterbergh, and means "(settlement) behind the hill". ...
(behind the mountain) * ''bezuiden'' — meaning "south of": Bezuidenhout (south of the woods) * ''boven'' — meaning "above" or "up": Bovelander (up in the land) * ''buiten'' — meaning "outside" or "in the country": Buitenhuis (outside the house) * ''voor''  — meaning "in front of", (also in combination ''voor de, voor den, voor 't, voor in 't'') * ''zonder'' — meaning "without": Zonderland (without land) or Zondervan (without ''van'', e.g. without a surname beginning with ''van'') Apart from these prepositions the prefix "de" (not a preposition but an article, meaning "the") is also very common. They indicate a property, quality or origin, as in "de Lange" (the tall one), "de Korte" (the short one), "de Kleine" (the little one), "de Groot" (the big one), "de Zwart", "de Wit", "de Rode" (the one with black, white, red hair or skin), "de Rijke" (the rich one). The most widespread Dutch family name is "
de Vries De Vries is one of the most common Dutch surnames. It indicates a geographical origin: "Vriesland" is an old spelling of the Dutch province of Friesland (Frisia). Hence, "de Vries" means "the Frisian". The name has been modified to "DeVries", "deV ...
" (the Frisian). For Dutch people of French (usually
Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Bez ...
) origin whose ancestors never modified their surnames to fit Dutch norms, the prefix "''de''" is a French preposition similar in meaning to "''van''".


Spelling conventions


Collation and capitalisation

Collation Collation is the assembly of written information into a standard order. Many systems of collation are based on numerical order or alphabetical order, or extensions and combinations thereof. Collation is a fundamental element of most office fil ...
and
capitalisation Capitalization (American English) or capitalisation (British English) is writing a word with its first letter as a capital letter (uppercase letter) and the remaining letters in lower case, in writing systems with a case distinction. The term a ...
of names differs between countries. In the Netherlands and Suriname, names starting with "''van''" are filed under the initial letter of the following name proper, so
Johannes van der Waals Johannes Diderik van der Waals (; 23 November 1837 – 8 March 1923) was a Dutch theoretical physicist and thermodynamicist famous for his pioneering work on the equation of state for gases and liquids. Van der Waals started his career as a sc ...
is filed under "W", as: "Waals, Johannes van der" or "van der Waals, Johannes". The "v" is written in lower case, except when the surname is used as standalone (when the first name or initials are omitted), in which case it is capitalised, as in "''de schilder Vincent van Gogh''" and "''de schilder Van Gogh'' ("the painter Van Gogh"). In compound terms like "''de Van Goghtentoonstelling'' ("the Van Gogh exhibition") the "v" is capitalised, unless the connection between the person and the concept is or has become very weak. In Belgium, any surnames beginning with "''Van''" or "''van''" are filed under "V". So for example
Eric Van Rompuy Eric Karel Paul Van Rompuy (born 23 November 1949 in Uccle) is a Flemish politician. Biography He is the son of the later Prof. em. dr. Vic Van Rompuy and brother of Herman Van Rompuy and Christine Van Rompuy. The lowercase spelling in a name from the Netherlands is respected but not necessarily differentiated in alphabetical ordering and its Dutch style capitalisation for certain usages is generally unknown and thus not followed. The painter's full name, however, having become commonplace, is usually spelled Vincent Van Gogh in Belgium. In Flemish surnames the "V" is always capitalised though a following interjected "''de''", "''den''" ('the') or "''der''" ('of the', 'from the') usually stays lowercase. In South Africa the
Afrikaans Afrikaans (, ) is a West Germanic language that evolved in the Dutch Cape Colony from the Dutch vernacular of Holland proper (i.e., the Hollandic dialect) used by Dutch, French, and German settlers and their enslaved people. Afrikaans grad ...
surname
Van der Merwe Van der Merwe is a common Afrikaans surname, derived from the Dutch language, Dutch ''Van (Dutch), van der Merwen'' ("from the Merwede"). It was brought to South Africa in 1661 by Dutch people employed by the Dutch East India Company. The progenito ...
would be listed under the "v" section as is done in Belgium and not under "m" as in "Merwe, J. van der"; however, South Africa follows the same capitalisation convention as the Netherlands (thus, one would refer in English or in Afrikaans to a "Jan van der Merwe" when the first name is included, but simply to "Van der Merwe" when the first name is omitted). In anglicised versions of Dutch names (as in Dick Van Dyke,
George Vancouver Captain George Vancouver (22 June 1757 – 10 May 1798) was a British Royal Navy officer best known for his 1791–1795 expedition, which explored and charted North America's northwestern Pacific Coast regions, including the coasts of what a ...
, Martin Van Buren), the "''van'' is almost always capitalised in the United States, but in the British Isles some families of Dutch origin continue to use the Dutch form (e.g. Caroline van den Brul). Where the "Van" is not of Dutch origin, such as in the Vietnamese middle name Wen or Van (as in
Dương Văn Minh Dương Văn Minh (; 16 February 19166 August 2001), popularly known as Big Minh, was a South Vietnamese politician and a senior general in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) and a politician during the presidency of Ngô Đình Diệm ...
, Nguyễn Văn Thiệu), there is no reason to use a lower case "v".


Concatenation

In some names, usually those of the Flemish/Belgian ones, and also some of the names of people from outside the Low Countries (with Dutch-speaking immigrant ancestors), the prefixes are
concatenate In formal language theory and computer programming, string concatenation is the operation of joining character strings end-to-end. For example, the concatenation of "snow" and "ball" is "snowball". In certain formalisations of concatenat ...
d to each other or to the name proper and form a single-worded or two-worded surnames, as in Vandervelde or Vande Velde. Prominent examples include "Vandenberg" and "Vanderbilt".


Nobility

The
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
"''
von The term ''von'' () is used in German language surnames either as a nobiliary particle indicating a noble patrilineality, or as a simple preposition used by commoners that means ''of'' or ''from''. Nobility directories like the '' Almanach de ...
''" is a linguistic cognate of the Dutch "''van''", however, unlike the German "''von''", the Dutch "''van''" is not indicative of the person's nobility or
royalty Royalty may refer to: * Any individual monarch, such as a king, queen, emperor, empress, etc. * Royal family, the immediate family of a king or queen regnant, and sometimes his or her extended family * Royalty payment for use of such things as in ...
. ''Van'' has a history of being used by commoners and nobility alike to simply signify ancestral relation to a particular place, (e.g. ''Willem van Oranje'' "William of heOrange_[family.html" ;"title="amily.html" ;"title="heOrange [family">heOrange [family">amily.html" ;"title="heOrange [family">heOrange [family; ''Jan van Ghent'' "John [who hails] from Ghent").


Prominent people with "van" in their surname

*Abraham Van Helsing, fictional character (Dutch doctor &
vampire hunter Vampire hunter or vampire slayer is a fictional occupation in history and fiction which specializes in finding vampires, and sometimes other supernatural creatures. A vampire hunter is usually described as having extensive knowledge of vampires a ...
) from
Bram Stoker Abraham Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912) was an Irish author who is celebrated for his 1897 Gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. During his lifetime, he was better known as the personal assistant of actor Sir Henry Irving and busines ...
's 1897
Gothic horror Gothic fiction, sometimes called Gothic horror in the 20th century, is a loose literary aesthetic of fear and haunting. The name is a reference to Gothic architecture of the European Middle Ages, which was characteristic of the settings of ea ...
novel '' Dracula'' *
Achille Van Acker Achille Van Acker (8 April 1898 – 10 July 1975) was a Belgian politician who served three terms as the prime minister of Belgium between 1946 and 1958. A moderate from Flanders, Van Acker was a member of the Belgian Socialist Party (PSB–BSP) ...
(1898–1975), fourfold Prime Minister of Belgium * Harry van Kuyk (1929-2008), Graphic artist and designer *
Adriaen van der Donck Adriaen Cornelissen van der Donck (16181655) was a lawyer and landowner in New Netherland after whose honorific ''Jonkheer'' the city of Yonkers, New York, is named. Although he was not, as sometimes claimed, the first lawyer in the Dutch colo ...
(c. 1618 – 1655), lawyer and landowner in New Netherland *
Adriaen van der Werff Adriaen van der Werff (21 January 1659 – 12 November 1722) was a Dutch painter of portraits and erotic, devotional and mythological scenes. His brother, Pieter van der Werff (1661–1722), was his principal pupil and assistant. Life At the a ...
(1659–1722), painter *
Albertus van Raalte Albertus Christiaan van Raalte (17 October 1811 – 27 July 1876) was a 19th-century Dutch Reformed clergyman. Early life and education Van Raalte did not set out to follow in his father's footsteps and become a clergyman. He was initially ...
(1811–1876), Calvinist preacher and leader of Dutch immigrants to Michigan *
Alex Van Halen Alexander Arthur Van Halen (; born May 8, 1953) is an American musician, best known as the drummer and co-founder of the rock band Van Halen. The band was formed in 1972 by Alex Van Halen, his younger brother Eddie, David Lee Roth, and Mark S ...
(born 1953), drummer of Van Halen * Andries van Wesel (1514–1564), anatomist & physician *
Anna Maria van Schurman Anna Maria van Schurman (November 5, 1607 – May 4, 1678) was a Dutch painter, engraver, poet, and scholar, who is best known for her exceptional learning and her defence of female education. She was a highly educated woman, who excelled in ...
(1607–1678), polymath *
Anneliese van der Pol Anneliese Louise van der Pol (born September 23, 1984) is a Dutch-born American actress and singer. She is known for her theatre work, and for starring as Chelsea Daniels on the Disney Channel series ''That's So Raven'' (2003–2007) and its sp ...
(born 1984), actress and singer *
Anthony van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Duchy of Brabant, Brabantian Flemish Baroque painting, Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Sou ...
(1599–1641), painter *
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek Antonie Philips van Leeuwenhoek ( ; ; 24 October 1632 – 26 August 1723) was a Dutch microbiologist and microscopist in the Golden Age of Dutch science and technology. A largely self-taught man in science, he is commonly known as " the ...
(1632–1723), scientist *
Ariën Van Weesenbeek God Dethroned is a Dutch extreme metal band from Beilen, originally formed in 1990. Biography God Dethroned was formed in 1990 by singer and guitar player Henri Sattler, with Hans Leegstra (guitar) and Ard de Weerd. Sattler and Leegstra had pr ...
(born 1980), drummer *
Armin van Buuren Armin Jozef Jacobus Daniël van Buuren ( , ; born 25 December 1976) is a Dutch DJ and record producer from Leiden, South Holland. Since 2001, he has hosted ''A State of Trance'' (ASOT), a weekly radio show, which is broadcast to nearly 40&nbs ...
(born 1976), popular Trance DJ *
Ben van Beurden Bernardus Cornelis Adriana Margriet "Ben" van Beurden (born 23 April 1958) is a Dutch businessman who is the CEO of Shell plc. Van Beurden joined Shell in 1983, after graduating with a master's degree in Chemical Engineering from Delft Universit ...
(born 1958), Current CEO of Royal Dutch Shell plc. *
Cameron van der Burgh Cameron van der Burgh OIS (born 25 May 1988) is a retired South African competitive swimmer and hedge fund analyst. He is Africa's first home-trained world record holder and individual male Olympic Champion. He is married to long time partner ...
(born 1988), swimmer *
Carice van Houten Carice Anouk van Houten () is a Dutch actress and singer (born 5 September 1976 in Leiderdorp). Her first leading role in the television film '' Suzy Q'' (1999) won her the Golden Calf for Best Acting in a Television Drama; two years later, s ...
(born 1976), actress *Caroline van der Leeuw –
Caro Emerald Caroline Esmeralda van der Leeuw (born 26 April 1981), known for the project Caro Emerald, is a Dutch pop and jazz singer who mainly performs in English. Active since 2007, she rose to prominence in 2009 with the debut single, " Back It Up". Th ...
(born 1981), popular singer * Claire van der Boom (born1983), actress *
Cornelis Van Niel Cornelis Bernardus van Niel (also known as Kees van Niel) (November 4, 1897 – March 10, 1985) was a Dutch-American microbiologist. He introduced the study of general microbiology to the United States and made key discoveries explaining the ...
(1897–1985), microbiologist *
Cornelius Vanderbilt Cornelius Vanderbilt (May 27, 1794 – January 4, 1877), nicknamed "the Commodore", was an American business magnate who built his wealth in railroads and shipping. After working with his father's business, Vanderbilt worked his way into lead ...
(1794–1877), business magnate and philanthropist *
Danielle van de Donk Danielle is a modern French female variant of the male name Daniel, meaning "God is my judge" in the Hebrew language. Variants *Dana – Czech, German, Romanian Polish *Danette – English *Daniela – Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, English, G ...
(born 1991), women's football player * Dick Van Dyke (born 1925), actor and comedian * Dutch van der Linde, fictional character (19th century outlaw leader of America's
Wild West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...
) from
Rockstar Games Rockstar Games, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in New York City. The company was established in December 1998 as a subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive, using the assets Take-Two had previously acquired from BMG Interactive. Foun ...
'
Red Dead ''Red Dead'' is a series of Western-themed action-adventure games published by Rockstar Games. The first entry in the series, '' Red Dead Revolver'', was released on the PlayStation 2 and Xbox in May 2004. Originally developed by Capcom, ''Red D ...
game series. *
Earl Van Dorn Earl Van Dorn (September 17, 1820May 7, 1863) started his military career as a United States Army officer but joined Confederate forces in 1861 after the Civil War broke out. He was a major general when he was killed in a private conflict. A g ...
(1820–1863), Confederate general during the American Civil War. * Eddie Van Halen (1955–2020), guitarist of
Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead guit ...
* Edwin van der Sar (born 1970), football player *
Giedo van der Garde Giedo Gijsbertus Gerrit van der Garde (born 25 April 1985 in Rhenen, Netherlands) is a Dutch racing driver, currently competing in the 2022 IMSA SportsCar Championship for TDS Racing. From 2018 to 2021 he competed in the FIA World Endurance ...
(born 1985), racing driver *
Giovanni van Bronckhorst Giovanni Christiaan van Bronckhorst (born 5 February 1975) is a Dutch football manager and former player, who was most recently the manager of Scottish Premiership club Rangers. Formerly a midfielder, he moved to left-back later in his career ...
(born 1975), football player * Greta Van Susteren (born 1954), Fox News journalist *
Guido van Rossum Guido van Rossum (; born 31 January 1956) is a Dutch programmer best known as the creator of the Python programming language, for which he was the "benevolent dictator for life" (BDFL) until he stepped down from the position on 12 July 2018 ...
(born 1956), inventor of the Python programming language *
Gus Van Sant Gus Green Van Sant Jr. (born July 24, 1952) is an American film director, producer, photographer, and musician. He has earned acclaim as both an independent and mainstream filmmaker. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultur ...
(born 1952), film director, screenwriter, painter, photographer, musician and author *
Han van Meegeren Henricus Antonius "Han" van Meegeren (; 10 October 1889 – 30 December 1947) was a Dutch painter and portraitist, considered one of the most ingenious art forgers of the 20th century. Van Meegeren became a national hero after World War II when ...
(1889–1947), painter and ingenious art forger *
Hendrik Willem van Loon Hendrik Willem van Loon (January 14, 1882 – March 11, 1944) was a Dutch-American historian, journalist, and children's book author. Life He was born in Rotterdam, Netherlands, the son of Hendrik Willem van Loon and Elisabeth Johanna Hanken. ...
(1882–1944), author, historian and journalist *
Henry van de Velde Henry Clemens van de Velde (; 3 April 1863 – 15 October 1957) was a Belgian painter, architect, interior designer, and art theorist. Together with Victor Horta and Paul Hankar, he is considered one of the founders of Art Nouveau in Belgium.' ...
(1863–1957), painter, architect and interior designer *
Herman Van Springel Herman Vanspringel (14 August 1943 – 25 August 2022), also spelled Herman Van Springel, was a Belgian road racing cyclist, from Grobbendonk, in the Flemish Campine or Kempen region. He achieved podium finishes in all three of the grand tours ...
(1943–2022), racing cyclist * Hoyt Vandenberg (1899–1954), second Chief of Staff of the Air Force of the United States for whom Vandenberg Air Force Base in California is named *
Hubert van Es Hubert van Es (6 July 1941 – 15 May 2009) was a Dutch photographer and photojournalist who took the well-known photo on 29 April 1975, which shows South Vietnamese civilians scrambling to board a CIA Air America helicopter during the U.S. e ...
(1941–2009), photographer *
Hubert van Eyck Hubert van Eyck () or Huybrecht van Eyck ( – 18 September 1426) was an Early Netherlandish painter and older brother of Jan van Eyck, as well as Lambert and Margareta, also painters. The absence of any single work that he can clearly be said to ...
(c. 1385/90–1426), painter * Ivo Van Damme (1954–1976), middle-distance runner * Jacobus Henricus van 't Hoff (1852–1911), physical & organic chemist, first winner of the
Nobel Prize in chemistry ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then "M ...
* Jacob van Campen (1596–1657), architect *
Jacob van Ruisdael Jacob Isaackszoon van Ruisdael (;  1629 – 10 March 1682) was a Dutch painter, draughtsman, and etcher. He is generally considered the pre-eminent landscape painter of the Dutch Golden Age, a period of great wealth and cultural ac ...
(c. 1629 – 1682), landscape painter *
Jacob Veldhuyzen van Zanten Jacob Louis Veldhuyzen van Zanten (5 February 1927 – 27 March 1977) was a Dutch aircraft captain and flight instructor. He was captain of the KLM Flight 4805 and died in the Tenerife airport disaster, the deadliest accident in aviation histor ...
(1927–1977), pilot * Jaap van Zweden (born 1960), violinist and conductor *
James Van Allen James Alfred Van Allen (September 7, 1914August 9, 2006) was an American space scientist at the University of Iowa. He was instrumental in establishing the field of magnetospheric research in space. The Van Allen radiation belts were named aft ...
(1914–2006), space scientist *
James Van Fleet General James Alward Van Fleet (March 19, 1892 – September 23, 1992) was a United States Army officer who saw service during World War I, World War II and the Korean War. Van Fleet was a native of New Jersey, who was raised in Florida and gradu ...
(1892–1992), U.S. four star general *
James Van Der Beek James William Van Der Beek (; born March 8, 1977) is an American actor best known for his portrayal of Dawson Leery in the WB series ''Dawson's Creek'' and Johnny "Mox" Moxon in '' Varsity Blues'' (1999). He played a fictionalized version of h ...
(born 1977), television, film, and stage actor * Jan Baptist van Helmont (1579–1644), chemist & physician *
Jan van Eyck Jan van Eyck ( , ; – July 9, 1441) was a painter active in Bruges who was one of the early innovators of what became known as Early Netherlandish painting, and one of the most significant representatives of Early Northern Renaissance art. Ac ...
(c. 1395 – 1441), painter *
Jan van Riebeeck Johan Anthoniszoon "Jan" van Riebeeck (21 April 1619 – 18 January 1677) was a Dutch navigator and colonial administrator of the Dutch East India Company. Life Early life Jan van Riebeeck was born in Culemborg, as the son of a surgeon. H ...
(1619–1677), colonial administrator and founder of Cape Town * Jean-Claude Van Damme (born 1960), martial artist, actor and director * Joan Van Ark (born 1943), actress, director * Johannes Diderik van der Waals (1837–1923), physicist *
Johan van Oldenbarnevelt Johan van Oldenbarnevelt (), Heer van Berkel en Rodenrijs (1600), Gunterstein (1611) and Bakkum (1613) (14 September 1547 – 13 May 1619) was a Dutch statesman and revolutionary who played an important role in the Dutch struggle for indepen ...
(1547–1619), statesman * Johnny Vander Meer (1914–1997), baseball player * John Hasbrouck Van Vleck (1899–1980), American physicist & mathematician, co-awarded the 1977
Nobel Prize in Physics ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then " ...
*
Jon van Rood Johannes Joseph "Jon" van Rood (7 April 1926, Scheveningen – 21 July 2017) was a Dutch immunologist. He founded Eurotransplant in 1967,
(1926–2017), immunologist * Joost van den Vondel (1587–1679), writer & playwright *
Joost van der Westhuizen Joost Heystek van der Westhuizen (20 February 1971 – 6 February 2017) was a South African professional rugby union player who made 89 appearances in test matches for the national team, scoring 38 tries. He mostly played as a scrum-half and ...
(1971–2017), rugby player * Joran van der Sloot (born 1987), convicted murderer *
José Van Dam Joseph, Baron Van Damme (born 27 August 1940 in Brussels), known as José van Dam, is a Belgian bass-baritone. At the age of 17, he entered the Brussels Royal Conservatory and studied with Frederic Anspach. A year later, he graduated with dipl ...
(born 1940), singer *
José van Dijck Johanna Francisca Theodora Maria "José" van Dijck (born 15 November 1960, in Boxtel) is a new media author and a distinguished university professor in media and digital society at Utrecht University since 2017. From 2001 to 2016 she was a professo ...
(born 1960), new media scholar, first female president of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences * Kiliaen van Rensselaer (1586–1643), merchant * Lee Van Cleef (1925–1989), actor * Leontien van Moorsel (born 1970), cyclist *
Louis van Gaal Aloysius Paulus Maria "Louis" van Gaal (; born 8 August 1951) is a Dutch former football player and manager. At club level, he served as manager of Ajax, Barcelona, AZ Alkmaar, Bayern Munich and Manchester United, as well as having three spell ...
(born 1951), football player and manager *
Ludwig Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Mies van der Rohe ( ; ; born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies; March 27, 1886August 17, 1969) was a German-American architect. He was commonly referred to as Mies, his surname. Along with Alvar Aalto, Le Corbusier, Walter Gropius and Frank Lloyd ...
(1886–1969), German-American architect * Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827), composer and pianist *
Mamie Van Doren Mamie Van Doren (born Joan Lucille Olander; February 6, 1931) is an American actress, singer, and sex symbol. She is perhaps best known for the rock 'n' roll, juvenile delinquency exploitation film '' Untamed Youth'' (1957). Early life Van ...
(born 1931), actress, model, singer and sex symbol *
Marco van Basten Marcel "Marco" van Basten (; born 31 October 1964) is a Dutch football manager and retired professional player, who played for Ajax and AC Milan, as well as the Netherlands national team, as a striker. Widely regarded as one of the greatest pl ...
(born 1964), football player, manager *
Mariana van Zeller Mariana van Zeller (born May 7, 1976) is a Peabody Award-winning Portuguese journalist and correspondent for National Geographic Channel. She is also chief correspondent for Fusion and is a former correspondent for the ''Vanguard'' documentary s ...
(born 1976), correspondent journalist *
Marinus van der Lubbe Marinus van der Lubbe (13 January 1909 – 10 January 1934) was a Dutch communist who was tried, convicted, and executed by the Nazis for setting fire to the German Reichstag building on 27 February 1933. During his trial, the prosecution arg ...
(1909–1934), person executed for setting fire to the German Reichstag building *
Mario Van Peebles Mario Van Peebles (born January 15, 1957) is an American film director and actor best known for directing and starring in ''New Jack City'' in 1991 and '' USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage'' in 2016. He is the son of actor and filmmaker Melvin V ...
(born 1957), actor, director * Martin Van Buren (1782–1862), eighth president of the United States *
Menno van Coehoorn Menno, Baron van Coehoorn (; March 1641 – 17 March 1704) was a Dutch soldier and engineer, regarded as one of the most significant figures in Dutch military history. In an era when siege warfare dominated military campaigns, he and his French ...
(1641–1704), military engineer *
Michael van Gerwen Michael van Gerwen (; born 25 April 1989) is a Dutch professional darts player. He is currently ranked number 3 in the world, having been number 1 from 2014 to 2021. He is also a three-time PDC World Champion, having won the title in 2014, 20 ...
(born 1989), darts player *
Michael Van Valkenburgh Michael Robert Van Valkenburgh (born September 5, 1951) is an American landscape architect and educator. He has worked on a wide variety of projects in the United States, Canada, Korea, and France, including public parks, college campuses, sculpt ...
(born 1951) landscape architect and educator *
Monique van de Ven Monica Maria Theresia "Monique" van de Ven (; born 28 July 1952) is a Dutch actress and director. Life and career From 1973 until 1988 she was married to Dutch cinematographer and director Jan de Bont, with whom she lived in Los Angeles for a n ...
(born 1952), actress *
Nick Van Exel Nickey Maxwell Van Exel (born November 27, 1971) is an American professional basketball coach and former player who is an assistant coach for the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Van Exel played for six NBA teams from 1 ...
(born 1971), basketball player *
Olivier van Noort Olivier van Noort (1558 – 22 February 1627) was a Dutch merchant captain and pirate and the first Dutchman to circumnavigate the world.Quanchi, ''Historical Dictionary of the Discovery and Exploration of the Pacific Islands'', page 246 Olivie ...
(1558–1627), explorer, first Dutchman to circumnavigate the world * Paul van Dyk (born 1971), DJ/music artist *
Peter van Dievoet Peter van Dievoet (; French language, French: Pierre, Dutch language, Dutch: Peeter, Latin: Petrus; 16611729) was a sculptor, statuary, wood carver, and designer of ornamental architectural features from Brussels. He achieved fame for his work ...
(1661–1729), sculptor and architect. *
Pierre van der Linden Pierre van der Linden (born 19 February 1946) is a Dutch drummer, songwriter and member of the band, Focus. Biography Van der Linden was influenced by his childhood hero Buddy Rich. He finds inspiration in French philosophers and classical comp ...
(born 1946), drummer and composer *
Pieter van den Hoogenband Pieter Cornelis Martijn van den Hoogenband (; born 14 March 1978) is a Dutch retired swimmer. He is a triple Olympic champion and former world record holder. Early life Born in Maastricht, Limburg, he is the son of Cees-Rein van den Hoogenba ...
(born 1978), swimmer *
Rafael van der Vaart Rafael Ferdinand van der Vaart (born 11 February 1983) is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder, and is currently the assistant manager of Danish 2nd Division club Esbjerg fB. Van der Vaart began his ca ...
(born 1983), footballer * Raymond van Barneveld (born 1967), darts player *
Raymond van het Groenewoud Raymond van het Groenewoud (born 14 February 1950) is a Belgian musician. He was born in Schaerbeek, of Dutch descent, and he sings primarily in Dutch. His biggest hits include "Vlaanderen Boven", "Meisjes", "Je Veux de l'Amour", "Zjoske Schone M ...
(1950), musician *
Rembrandt van Rijn Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally cons ...
(1606–1669), painter * Rianne van Rompaey (born 1996), fashion model *
Rik Van Looy Henri "Rik" Van Looy (born 20 December 1933 in Grobbendonk) is a Belgian former professional cyclist of the post-war period, nicknamed the ''King of the Classics'' or ''Emperor of Herentals'' (after the small Belgian city where he lived). He wa ...
(born 1933), cyclist *
Rip Van Winkle "Rip Van Winkle" is a short story by the American author Washington Irving, first published in 1819. It follows a Dutch-American villager in colonial America named Rip Van Winkle who meets mysterious Dutchmen, imbibes their liquor and falls asle ...
fictional character from a short story by American author
Washington Irving Washington Irving (April 3, 1783 – November 28, 1859) was an American short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19th century. He is best known for his short stories " Rip Van Winkle" (1819) and "The Legen ...
. *
Rob Van Dam Robert Alexander Szatkowski (born December 18, 1970) is an American professional wrestler and actor better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam (frequently abbreviated to RVD). He is best known for his tenures in Extreme Championship Wrestling ...
fictional wwe character (born 1970), pro wrestler * Robert J. Van de Graaff (1901–1967), physicist, developed the Van de Graaff generator *
Robin van Persie Robin van Persie (; born 6 August 1983) is a Dutch football coach and former professional footballer who played as a striker. Regarded as one of the best strikers of his generation, Van Persie was known for his excellent technique and ball c ...
(born 1983), football player * Rogier van der Weyden (1400–1464), painter *
Ronnie Van Zant Ronald Wayne Van Zant (January 15, 1948 – October 20, 1977) was an American singer, best known as the original lead vocalist, primary lyricist and a founding member of the southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd. He is the older brother of current ...
(1948–1977), lead singer of the American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd *
Ruel Vincent van Dijk Ruel Vincent van Dijk (born 29 October 2002), known mononymously as Ruel, is a British-Australian singer and songwriter from Sydney, best known for his singles " Don't Tell Me", " Younger", " As Long as You Care" and "Painkiller". At the ARIA ...
(born 2002), singer *
Ruud van Nistelrooy Rutgerus Johannes Martinus van Nistelrooij (anglicised to Van Nistelrooy; born 1 July 1976) is a Dutch professional football coach and former player. He is currently the coach of PSV Eindhoven. A former footballer, Van Nistelrooy is often consi ...
(born 1976), football player *
Simon van der Meer Simon van der Meer (24 November 19254 March 2011) was a Dutch particle accelerator physicist who shared the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1984 with Carlo Rubbia for contributions to the CERN project which led to the discovery of the W and Z parti ...
(1925–2011), particle accelerator physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics in 1984 * Shane van Gisbergen (born 1989), race car driver *
Sharon Van Etten Sharon Katharine Van Etten (born February 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter. She has released six studio albums, the latest of which is '' We've Been Going About This All Wrong'' (2022). Early life Van Etten was born in Belleville, N ...
(born 1981), American indie folk singer-songwriter and actor *
Steven Van Zandt Steven Van Zandt (né Lento; born November 22, 1950), also known as Little Steven or Miami Steve, is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor. He is a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandol ...
(born 1950), musician, songwriter, arranger, record producer, actor, and radio disc jockey *
Thurop Van Orman Mark "Thurop" Ashton Van Orman (born April 26, 1976) is an American cartoonist, animator, voice actor, television writer, producer and director best known for being the creator of Cartoon Network's ''The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack'', in ...
(born 1976), cartoonist, animator, voice actor, screenwriter, produce, storyboard artist and director of
The Angry Birds Movie 2 ''The Angry Birds Movie 2'' is a 2019 computer-animated action comedy film based on Rovio Entertainment's ''Angry Birds'' video game series, produced by Columbia Pictures, Sony Pictures Animation, and Rovio Animation, and distributed by Sony Pi ...
(2019) *
Todd Van Poppel Todd Matthew Van Poppel (born December 9, 1971) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher who played for the Oakland Athletics (, –), Detroit Tigers (1996), Texas Rangers (, –), Pittsburgh Pirates (1998), Chicago Cubs (–), and Cincinnati ...
(born 1971), American baseball player *
Todd Van Steensel Todd Bertram Van Steensel (born 14 January 1991) is an Australian former professional baseball pitcher. Career Van Steensel was born on 14 January in 1991 in Sydney, Australia. Van Steensel has represented his native Australia on several occa ...
(born 1991), Australian baseball player *
Townes Van Zandt John Townes Van Zandt (March 7, 1944 – January 1, 1997) was an American singer-songwriter.
(1944–1997), musician, and songwriter *
Vincent van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, inclu ...
(1853–1890), painter *
Virgil van Dijk Virgil van Dijk (born 8 July 1991) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Liverpool and the Netherlands national team. Considered one of the best defenders in the world, Van Dijk is known for his strength, lea ...
(born 1991), footballer *
Wendelin Van Draanen Wendelin Van Draanen Dutch name, see (born January 6, 1965) is an American writer of children's and young-adult fiction. Biography Van Draanen was born in Chicago, Illinois. One of her very early influences was '' Dandelion Wine'' by Ray Bradb ...
(born 1965), author * Willebrord Snel van Royen (1580–1626), Dutch astronomer & mathematician * Willem van Oranje (1533–1584), nobleman, founder of the Dutch nation * Willem van Zeist (1924–2016), Dutch archaeobotanist and palynologist. * Willem Hendrik van Oranje (1650–1702),
Stadtholder In the Low Countries, ''stadtholder'' ( nl, stadhouder ) was an office of steward, designated a medieval official and then a national leader. The ''stadtholder'' was the replacement of the duke or count of a province during the Burgundian and H ...
of the United Provinces of the Netherlands (1672–1702) and King of England, Scotland, and Ireland (1689–1702) *
Wolfgang Van Halen Wolfgang William Van Halen (, born March 16, 1991) is an American musician. The son of guitarist Eddie Van Halen, he performed alongside his father as the bassist for the rock band Van Halen from 2006 to 2020. He also performed with the heavy m ...
(born 1991), bassist of Van Halen *
Wout Van Aert Wout van Aert (born 15 September 1994) is a Belgian professional road and cyclo-cross racer who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He won the men's elite race at the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in 2016, 2017 and 2018. He joined in M ...
(born 1994), racing cyclist * Maerten Harpertsz Tromp, a famous Dutch admiral from the 17th century, was also known as Maerten Harpertsz van Tromp and even Maerten Harpertsz van der Tromp.


See also

* *
Van Rensselaer (surname) The surname Van Rensselaer is of Dutch origin, more specifically Flemish. ''Van'' is a Dutch preposition meaning ''from'' and is a common prefix in Dutch language surnames. In Dutch, "van" is written with a lower case "v"; in the United States ...
* Roosevelt (name), originally spelled "Van Rosevelt" or "Van Rosenvelt" * Vanderbilt family *
Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead guit ...


Notes


References

{{reflist Dutch words and phrases Dutch-language surnames