Dutch term – Innocent

Innocent literally means “innocent.” It is a term used in older Dutch records to refer to somebody who had a mental disability or who had severe dementia. You may encounter the term in a will, for instance, if the parent wanted to provide for a child with disabilities or in a hospital record describing an elderly patient’s mental condition.

Read researching relatives with disabilities for more information.

Dinant Hoitink, a boy with severe learning disabilities

Dinant Hoitink, a boy with severe learning disabilities

About Yvette Hoitink

Yvette Hoitink, CG®, QG™ is a professional genealogist in the Netherlands. She holds the Certified Genealogist credential from the Board for Certification of Genealogists and has a post-graduate diploma in Family and Local History from the University of Dundee. She has been doing genealogy for over 30 years and helps people from across the world find their ancestors in the Netherlands. Read about Yvette's professional genealogy services.

Comments

  1. Cathy Van Eck says

    Wow! I would have thought it simply meant pre-puberty! Ha

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