Vrijdag is Dutch for Friday. Traditionally, vrijdag was fish day in the Netherlands, based on the Catholic tradition to abstain from eating meat on Fridays. … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Middenstand
7 May 2025 by Leave a Comment
The middenstand is the middle class. Middenstanders are typically self-employed. Historically, most Dutch people who were considered middle class were either business owners or had a trade. Aunt Piet Trouw (in white apron) before her shop in Princenhage (public domain) … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Paus
22 April 2025 by Leave a Comment
A paus is a pope. Up until recent decades, about half of the Dutch population, especially in the southern half of the Netherlands, was Catholic. The Netherlands has only ever supplied one pope: pope Adrian VI (1459-1523), who served as pope for 20 months until his death. … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Echtelijke Staat
16 April 2025 by Leave a Comment
Echtelijke Staat means marital status. You may come across the term in some pre-printed forms, like prison registers or military service records. Possible answers are: Gehuwd (married) Ongehuwd (unmarried/single) Weduwe (widow) Weduwnaar (widower) Gescheiden (divorced). … [Read more...]
Source – Resolutions of the States-General
4 April 2025 by Leave a Comment
The States-General was the governing body of the Dutch Republic between 1576 and 1796. The body was composed of representatives of the seven participating provinces. The States-General formed both the legislative and executive branch of the government. Their political decisions are called resolutions. The resolutions of the States-General dealt with a range of issues: from international treaties to individual appointments. Digitization and Transcription Between 2019 and 2024, the resolutions … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Voorschreven
26 March 2025 by Leave a Comment
Voorschreven (literally: before written) means "aforesaid." You may come across the term in notarial or court records. If someone is mentioned as "Jan Jansen, voorschreven" it means it is not just any Jan Jansen, but the Jan Jansen whose identity was established earlier in the document. … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Vaandrig
5 March 2025 by Leave a Comment
A vaandrig is an ensign, the lowest officer rank in the army. From the 1800s, the term is more specifically used for officers-in-training. The rank was also used in civil militias. You may come across the term in a range of records, including military records, church records, and town records. … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Herder
19 February 2025 by Leave a Comment
A herder usually is a shepherd. The term is also sometimes used for a cowherd, though that is more often called a koeherder. In areas with large moors, you may find this as an occupation for adults. Some farmers who had some some land that was not arable kept a few sheep and hired a young boy, a herdersjongen [shepherd boy] to herd them. … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Universiteit
27 January 2025 by Leave a Comment
An universiteit is a university. In the medieval period, the area which is now known as the Netherlands did not have its own universities. People who wanted to pursue academic studies had to go to Paris, Cologne, Oxford, Bologna, or further afield. In 1425, the University of Louvain was founded in modern-day Belgium. Leiden has the oldest university of the Netherlands, founded in 1575. Other places that had universities were Franeker, Groningen, Utrecht, Harderwijk, and Nijmegen. Leiden, … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Koninklijk Besluit
22 January 2025 by Leave a Comment
A Koninklijk Besluit is a royal decree. Read the article about Royal Decrees to learn how to use them as a source to find out more about your ancestors' lives. … [Read more...]
