Van der Veen
Van der Veen is a common Dutch surname, meaning "from the fen" or more generally "from the peatlands". In the Netherlands 19,847 people carried the name in 2007, making it the 32nd most common surname there. Dutch surnames with the same origin and meaning are Van Veen, Van de Ven/Van der Ven, Van de Venne, Veen, and Veenstra/Feenstra. The name was often taken by peat workers, as harvest of turf for fuel was abundant in the Netherlands. Since the early Middle Ages, the quarry of fens in the north and west created, merged or extended many lakes, most of which have now been reclaimed as polders. The harvest of turf from bogs in the east, like the large Bourtange moor, extended until the 20th century.
Notable people with the surname include:
- , Dutch popsinger
- Balthasar van der Veen, Dutch landscape painter
- Dave van der Veen, Dutch mixed martial artist
- , Dutch volleyball player
- Eelke van der Veen, Dutch politician
- Fiel van der Veen, Dutch illustrator
- Frans van der Veen, Dutch footballer
- Gerrit van der Veen, Dutch sculptor
- , Dutch poet
- Jan van der Veen, Dutch footballer
- Jitse van der Veen, Dutch swimmer
- Marten van der Veen, British air marshal
- Paulus van der Veen, Dutch governor of Suriname
- Robert van der Veen, Dutch field hockey player
- Wim van der Veen, Dutch bowling player
;Van de Veen
;Vander Veen
