Vos History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Netherlands
Germany

The Vos family name emerged in Pomerania, a territory of Germany and a maritime province of Prussia. Pomerania was bounded on the south by Brandenburg, on the west by Mecklenburg, and on the east by Poland. During the 5th century, Pomerania was settled by Pommern, who were a Slavic tribe. Pommern, meaning on the sea, became the name of this region during the reign of the Charlemagne.

Early Origins of the Vos family

The surname Vos was first found in Mecklenburg and Pomerania, where this old family name was associated with the feudal society which would become prominent throughout European history. The name would later emerge as a noble family with great influence, having many distinguished branches, and become noted for its involvement in social, economic and political affairs. Chronicles first mention the knight Johann Vossing of Stravenhaven in Mecklenburg around 1260, and the knight Johann Voss was an advisor to Prince Nicolaus von Werle. Hamburg chronicles first mention Heyno Vosseke in 1300.

Early History of the Vos family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Vos research. Another 255 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1140, 1603, 1606, 1659, 1660, 1661, 1676, 1729, 1734, 1741, 1786, 1800, 1814 and 1840 are included under the topic Early Vos History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Vos Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Voss, Vos, Voess, Voessgen (North-Rhine), Vossen (North-Rhine), Vossius (Latin), Vossing, Voessing, Voeske (Hamburg), Vossek and many more.

Early Notables of the Vos family

Prominent bearers of the name Vos at this time were

Simon de Vos (1603-1676), a Flemish Baroque painter of genre and cabinet pictures
Judocus de Vos (1661-1734), a Flemish weaver who produced a large number of tapestries

Vos Ranking

In the United States, the name Vos is the 12,493^rd most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1 However, in Netherlands, the name Vos is ranked the 14^th most popular surname with an estimated 34,090 people with that name. 2

Vos migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Vos Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Hans Vos, who settled in New York City in 1642
Hans Vos, who arrived in New Netherland(s) in 1642 3
Cornelis Dircksen Vos, who arrived in New York, NY in 1661 3
Cornelius Vos, who landed in Maryland in 1661 3

Vos Settlers in United States in the 18th Century

Johan Vos, who arrived in New York in 1709 3
Anna Maria Salbach Vos, who settled in New York in 1710
Anna Christina Vos, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1787 3
Joh Rudolf Vos, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1787 3
Anna Vos, who settled in Pennsylvania in 1797

Vos Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Antonius Vos, aged 28, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1847 3
J Vos, aged 30, who arrived in New Orleans, La in 1847 3
Jan De Vos, who landed in Baltimore, Maryland in 1847 3
Deborah Vos, aged 24, who arrived in New York, NY in 1848 3
Adrianus Vos, who landed in Iowa in 1849 3
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Vos (post 1700) +

Robin J. Vos, American politician, 100th Speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly
Geerhardus Johannes Vos (1862-1949), American Calvinist theologian
Rich Ira Vos (b. 1957), American comedian
Peter Jon de Vos (1938-2008), American politician, U.S. Ambassador to Cape Verde, 1980-83; Guinea-Bissau, 1980-83; Mozambique, 1983-87; Liberia, 1990-92; Tanzania, 1992-94; Costa Rica, 1994-97 4
Lloyd De Vos, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from New Jersey, 2000 4
Hendricus "Henk" Johannes Petrus Vos (b. 1968), Dutch former football striker
André Neal Vos (b. 1975), former South African rugby union player
Jan Vos (1888-1939), Dutch bronze medalist footballer at the 1912 Summer Olympics
Ida Vos (1931-2006), award-winning Dutch author
Willem Vos (b. 1964), Dutch Professor of Physics at the University of Twente, Netherlands
... (Another 1 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
"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)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 17) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html