Dutch names can be very long. Usually the maximum number of names one person has is five, but that can vary by person. It can get really ridiculous; especially the names that belong to the royal family. Take a look at this royal’s name: Willem Alexander Frederik Constantijn Nicolaas Michiel, Prins der Nederlanden, Prins van Oranje-Nassau. In English, this would be: William Alexander Frederick Constantine Nicholas Michael Prince Alexander of the Netherlands, Prince of Orange-Nassau. Yeah, no joke.
If you look closely at the origins of Dutch names, you’ll see that many of them have Germanic origins. This isn’t surprising considering that the Dutch have a long history with Germanic tribes stemming from the pre Mediaeval period.
In terms of last names, the origins of last names can fall into several types of categories. Some last names give clues about an ancestor’s place of geographic location. For example, some Dutch last names contain “van” which can mean “of” or “from.” So a name like Willem van Oranje will be William of Orange in English.
There are also last names that indicate an ancestor’s occupation. A surname of Smit could mean that this person’s family belonged to a family of blacksmiths. This could also stand true for those with last names pertaining to animals. Someone with a last name “Vogels” could have belonged to a family tending to birds. However, surnames with animals could also belong to the category of surnames refering to physical appearnce. Someone with a last name of Vogels could have had a beak-like nose. It makes you wonder, what would a surname like De Groot mean? De Groot means “the big one”. Is that in reference to height, weight? I was going to make a dirty joke here, but never mind.
Some Dutch surnames can sound awfully pretenious. Names like De Koninck (king) attest to this category. Some are very humorous like Naaktgeboren, which literally means “born naked”. This goes back to the time when Napoleon annexed the Netherlands. When the Dutch went to register their names in the national census, they made up riduculous names in protest.
In addition, many Dutch children have both a doopnaam or a Christian name and a roepnaaam or the name that they are called at home. The Christian name would usually be named after saints. After WWII, foreign names like Maikol or Michael were also popular.
I’m gonna end this post by asking the readers of this blog, what is your Dutch name?
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8 Comments
Nederlands Naam Hielkje Jeltje Klok
My Dutch name - doopnaam - is Sebastiaan, whereas my name at home - roepnaam - is either Basti, or Seb, and elsewhere I get called Beau, shortened from Beaumont, which is my middle name.
“In addition, many Dutch children have both a doopnaam or a Christian name and a roepnaaam or the name that they are called at home. The Christian name would usually be named after saints.”
IMO, you ought to have said that many Dutch people have a ‘voornaam’ (first name), usually a middle name, sometimes several, as well as a ‘roepnaam’ (nickname).
I don’t think there are that many kids getting baptized anymore and any way their ‘doopnaam’ (Christian name) is the same as same as their first name(s) and those are not necessarily Saints’ names. You forget that many Dutch churchgoers are Protestants, and they wouldn’t be caught dead with the name of any Catholic saint. Even if they used such a name that would be because the kid was named for a familymember and not for any religious reason.
Oh, and to answer your question, my first (as well as Christian) names are Aaltje Jantiena. You can’t get it any Dutcher than that, now, can ye?
And my ‘roepnaam’ is Alja, a combination of two letters each from my first and middel names.
Hello!
My name is Anneke de Rooij. When my mum (Australian) married my Dad, she tried to do some family-tree research but apparently the de Rooij clan wasn’t too good at keeping records. I’m not even sure what it means. Anyone?
Probably coming from “de Rooie” or “de Rode” which means the red one, most likely refering to read hair
My last name is Strootman. Any insight into that name? It’s popular in the town of Gronigan in northern Netherlands.
I’ve been searching far and wide for some insight into the origins of the name Moesker. If anyone has any ideas, I would greatly appreciate it.
Ken Moesker, this may be a long shot but maybe your name refers back to the Moesel river which runs through Germany? I have heard of family names which refer to the person as being originally from a certain area.