A LITTLE over 10,000 families with the name Van Zand, Vanzandt, VanZant or Vansand live in the US. All descend from three early Dutch immigrant families. They hailed from Arnhem, Amsterdam, and Bakel near Helmond. All were originally named Van Santen, because they used to live in what is now Xanten, just across the German border, near Nijmegen and Arnhem. The Dutch called it Santen. It was a part of Gelderland for a long time.
Last year, Gary Rossington died, the last original band member of Lynyrd Skynyrd. But the main face of the band died much earlier. He was Ronnie Van Zant, the boy who was told by his gym teacher to get a haircut. The teacher’s name was Leonard Skinner, Ronnie ran away from school, started a band in a barn with some classmates, and they named themselves after the gym teacher. Lynyrd Skynyrd became a raucous but phenomenal success. Until in 1977, while traveling from one concert to another, their plane crashed. It took the lives of three band members. Ronnie Van Zant was one of the dead.
TWO BROTHERS breathed new life into what was left of the band a few years later. They are Johnny and Donnie Van Zant, which refers to a curious family tradition. Related to the rockers are the Kardashians. Mama Kardashian hails from the Amsterdam branch of the Van Zant family, in a straight line that goes all the way back to grandpa Gerrit and grandma Liesbeth, who crossed the pond at almost the same time as did Arnhem grandpa Adam and grandma Janneke. The Arnhem branch includes Ronnie, Johnny and Donnie, the Amsterdam branch has Kim, Kourtney, Khloé, Kendall and Kylie. Mother herself is named Kris, and she did not make up this tradition of alliteration herself. Grandpa Gerrit had come to America with five sons, Jesinah, Josias, Johannes, James and Joris.
There’s a world of difference between getting famous with Sweet Home Alabama on the one hand, and simply being famous on the other. The Kardashians are nothing special, they don’t do anything remarkable, but they’re on TV, they’re allowing millions of people to voyeur them, and being famous is their business. There’s also a third way to become famous when your last name is Van Zandt, and that’s by becoming a guitarist in Bruce Springsteen’s E-Street Band and starring in the TV series The Sopranos for six seasons. But Steven Van Zandt is not really related, he took his stepfather’s name after his single Italian mom married a Dutch American.
THE BRABANT BRANCH gave America Isaac Van Zandt. Like rocker Ronnie, he didn’t live to comb gray hair either, but he did become famous. He ran a general store, but became an ambassador in Washington DC on behalf of the Republic of Texas, and negotiated the annexation with the United States. He was popular and respected, and everybody was shocked when, at age 34, he died of yellow fever. VanZandt County in Texas is named after him.
Isaac had a great-grandson, Townes Van Zandt. This guy followed in the footsteps of Ronnie, Johnny and Donnie. He also became a songwriter and guitarist, writing country songs for Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan. Died when he was 52, of booze, drugs, and general unhappiness. They’re a somewhat tragic family, when you stop and think about it, those Van Santens. This already started when grandpa Adam from Arnhem sailed across the ocean together with grandma Jenneke and their toddlers Katrien and Jantje on the Bruinvis ship, and took ill. In New York, Adam had to be carried ashore, aged 29. He died on the pier.
