Here is an overview of the new sources, websites, and other news from the Netherlands last month. Sources The notarial records of Hilvarenbeek, Geertruidenberg, Baarle-Nassau, Oisterwijk, and Raamsdonk from the 1700s have been automatically transcribed. The results can be searched on the Transkribus website. Various Utrecht tax records can now be searched at the Rijnstreek en Lopikerwaard archives. Court records of Berghem, Kessel, Lith, Oss, and Ravestein in North Brabant can now … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Doopboek
5 February 2024 by Leave a Comment
A doopboek is a baptismal register. Baptismal records are especially useful in the period before the introduction of the civil registration in 1811 (in most parts of the Netherlands). Baptismal records are often the earliest record created about our ancestors. You may come across the term in finding aids and genealogical indexes, or on the covers of the imaged baptismal records. See the article about baptismal records for more information on how to use and find these records. … [Read more...]
Source – Royal Decree
2 February 2024 by 2 Comments
A Royal Decree (Koninklijk Besluit) is a formal decision by the King or Queen. In the Netherlands, royal decrees started in 1813. Contents Royal decrees covered a range of topics. Some were of (inter)national importance, such as treaties, laws, and abdications. But many dealt with individual citizens, employees, or service personnel. These can be a great source for information about your ancestors. Examples of information about your ancestors you may find in royal decrees: Marriage … [Read more...]
Quick tip – (Not) Naming Children After Parents
31 January 2024 by Leave a Comment
Traditionally, many Dutch children were named after family members: grandparents, deceased siblings, deceased spouses of their parents, or aunts and uncles. Though some children were named after their parents, this is rather rare. One instance where it is common for a child to be named after their parent is when the parent had died. For example, if a father died when the mother was pregnant, a son would often be given the father's name, and a girl might receive a variation of the father's … [Read more...]
Quick tip – Were the parents really deceased?
24 January 2024 by Leave a Comment
In marriage records, you may often find a note that the parents had died. Depending on the time and place, this was not necessarily the truth. Saying the parents were dead was an easy way to avoid having to prove parental permission. If it is a civil registration marriage record (after 1811 in most places), you may find proof of death in the marriage supplements. The law stipulated that a person under the age of 30 had to provide parental permission or proof of death of the parents, or even … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Rol
22 January 2024 by Leave a Comment
You may encounter the Dutch word rol (role) in two ways in genealogy: In archival descriptions of records, a rol is a list, for examples of all the cases the court heard that year. In genealogical search forms, rol indicates the role of the person you are searching for in the record. For example, searching for a person with the role bruidegom (groom) will only find results where the search terms apply to someone indexed as a groom. … [Read more...]
The New Dutch Law on Last Names
19 January 2024 by Leave a Comment
As of 2024, there is a new law governing the last names of children born in the Netherlands. Parents already had the option to chose either the mother's or the father's name. Now they can also choose to give the children both names, either hyphenated or non-hyphenated. Example Let's say Peter Kamphuis and Lotte Ferwerda have a child together, a girl named Emma. They have the following options: Emma Kamphuis Emma Ferwerda Emma Kamphuis Ferwerda Emma Kamphuis-Ferwerda Emma … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Arrest
15 January 2024 by Leave a Comment
The Dutch word arrest can have different meanings: a verdict of a higher court the arrest of a person a lien against goods. You will typically come across the term in court records or police records. … [Read more...]
Dutch Genealogy News for January 2024
12 January 2024 by Leave a Comment
Here is an overview of the new sources and other news that was announced in the past month. Sources Gelderland birth records 1913-1922 have been digitized and indexed and are now availble via the Gelders Archief. Registers of mortgages from the districts of Arnhem and Zutphen 1818-1838 have been digitized. The records can be consulted via the finding aids for Arnhem and Zutphen. The records for the Tiel office were already online. With these new additions, all Gelderland mortgage … [Read more...]
Dutch term – Jaar
8 January 2024 by Leave a Comment
Jaar means year. The plural is jaren (years). The singular form jaar is often used in Dutch where English would use the plural. Jaar is more commonly used for a specific number of years and jaren for an unspecified numbers of years, but there are no fixed rules and people do not always follow grammar rules anyway. The easiest to remember is that jaren is always plural and jaar can be either singular or plural. Some common uses: 5 jaar oud - 5 years old In het jaar - in the year … [Read more...]
