SiTU MEMO 33: last names

First and last names have the tendecy to shrink or transform over time. “Hendrik” leads to Hendry and later Henry. In the Netherlands having a last name became compulsory during the French occupation untill 1815. This was an excellent possibility to create a new family-concept. Some made their names longer bij putting “van der” before their occupation, for instance being a miller, their family name was noted as “van der Molen”, some called themselves “King” or even “Fart”. Some of those “funny names” still survive and flourish. The job was done by civil servants, who visited every house in the Republic. As a local story goes many Frisians have “Dutch” (Hollands) as their second language. This led sometimes to complete misunderstanding. A farmerswife misunderstood the question completely and answered “Wurkjindewei”. Meaning “my husband is working on the land”.

This is exactly what the civil servant noted. That's how this  family got a last name.

A second cause of change are mass-migrations. In the United States you see the names, change when they pas through customs. “van der Molen” becomes “Vandermolen” and "Van de Bilt" changes into Vanderbilt.

The history of some names is bizar. The president of the United States last name OBAMA, has Dutch-Frisian roots. Obbema is the name of a Dutch peppermint trader, who produced several ofspring in Kenya, with local wifes. Obbema Obama, simple as that. Names travel all around the world. In our developing multi-media world, your names show your uniqueness. What's in a name? A rock to build on. A foundation stone.