Dijkstra History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Netherlands

Early Origins of the Dijkstra family

The surname Dijkstra was first found in early documents. It is derived from the word "dyk" which means "dyke." The word "van" which often appears in Dutch names (including most of the variations of this name) is roughly equivalent to "by" or "at," indicating that the name refers to some feature of the terrain near the first bearer's home. Therefore, the first person to bear this name lived near a dyke.

Early History of the Dijkstra family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Dijkstra research. The years 1575, 1599, 1621, 1627, 1641 and 1651 are included under the topic Early Dijkstra History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dijkstra Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Van Dyk, Van Dijk, Van Dijck, Van Dyck, Van Dijken, Van Dyken, Dijkman, Dykman, Op en Dyke, Updike and many more.

Early Notables of the Dijkstra family

From this era of Dutch history, those of this who distinguished themselves included Floris van Dyck (c.1575-c.1651), a Dutch Golden Age still life painter; and Sir Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641), Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England. He was the seventh child of Frans van Dyck, a wealthy Antwerp silk merchant and learned painted from an early age. Van Dyck worked in London for some months in 1621...
Another 72 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Dijkstra Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Dijkstra Ranking

In Netherlands, the name Dijkstra is the 22^nd most popular surname with an estimated 26,854 people with that name. 1

Dijkstra migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Dijkstra Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

A P Dijkstra, aged 43, who arrived in New York, NY in 1846 2
A S Dijkstra, aged 2, who landed in New York, NY in 1847 2
L A Dijkstra, aged 31, who arrived in New York, NY, in 1847 2
Lieuwe Ages Dijkstra, aged 31, who landed in New York, NY in 1847 2
Sitske Dijkstra, aged 51, who arrived in New York, NY in 1847 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Dijkstra (post 1700) +

Bram Dijkstra (b. 1938), American professor of English literature and cultural historian
Wieke Dijkstra (b. 1984), Dutch field hockey player
Sjoukje Dijkstra (b. 1942), Dutch figure skater, three-time World champion (1962–1964), five-time European champion (1960–1964), and the six-time Dutch national champion (1959–1964)
Sieb Dijkstra (b. 1966), Dutch former football goalkeeper
Rineke Dijkstra (b. 1959), Dutch photographer
Remco Dijkstra (b. 1972), Dutch politician, member of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy
Pia Dijkstra (b. 1954), Dutch politician and television presenter
Meindert Dijkstra (b. 1967), Dutch footballer
Lou Dijkstra (1909-1964), Dutch speed skater, father of Sjoukje Dijkstra
Edsger W. Dijkstra (1930-2002), Dutch computer scientist and theoretical physicist

Citations +

"Most Common Last Names in Netherlands." Forebears, https://forebears.io/netherlands/surnames
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)