DUTCH The Netherlands and its people the magazine about at home and abroad
Feature: Tracks and Traces
Searching for New Amsterdam in New York City
Travel: Picturesque Haarlem A feast for the senses
PLUS Mapmaker Mercator Savory Pea Soup The Dutch get flatter The King of Indo-Rock
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January/February 2012
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2 - DUTCH, the magazine
A subscription is also a great gift! January/February 2012
The Netherlands GRONINGEN Groningen
Leeuwarden
Wadden Sea
FRIESLAND
Assen
IJssel Lake
DRENTHE
NORTHHOLLAND
North Sea
Lelystad
FLEVOLAND
Haarlem Amsterdam Kudelstaart
GELDERLAND
Utrecht
SOUTHHOLLAND
OVERIJSSEL
Hilversum
UTRECHT The Hague
Zwolle
Arnhem
Rhine Den Bosch
Breda Veere
Duisburg
Tilburg
Middelburg Vlissingen
BRABANT
ZEELAND Bruges
LIMBURG
Scheldt Antwerp
Ghent
Germany
Belgium
Brussels
Leuven
Maastricht Bonn
Maas Major Waterway
PROVINCIAL BOUNDARY National Capital
70 Kilometers 43.5 Miles
Provincial Capital Larger city or town mentioned in the text Smaller town or village mentioned in the text
January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 3
Dutch nationals overseas should not be robbed of their citizenship
Eelco Keij (Worldconnectors) Olav Haazen (D66, New York) Joan Bischof van Heemskerck (VVD, USA) Gerald van Wilgen (PvdA, New York) More than 19,000 signatures worldwide Sign our on-line petition at:
nederlandersoverzee.petities.nl
Loving Stitch FOR ALL YOUR NEEDLECRAFT FABRIC
Shop on-line and browse our large selection of Zweigart fabrics. Orders ship within 24 hours Check out the latest chart from the Stitching Studio, 'Native Eagle':
Our mailbox address (correspondence only):
Loving Stitch 11198 - 84 Ave PO Box 33031 Delta, BC V4C 8E6
4 - DUTCH, the magazine
www.lovingstitch.net lovingstitch@telus.net
Answers to quizzes on page 46 Rebus: Ice Skating (i’s kay t-in-g). Match the Words: Plat-Flat, Dubbeltje-Dime, Dak-Roof, Egaal-Smooth, Gelijk-Equal, Vlakte-Plain, Pannenkoek-Pancake, Koekenpan-Frying Pan, Flat-Apartment, Waterpas-Level. Who: Cornelis Lely. What: Mercator Projection. Where: Flatbush, NY.
Dutch Minister of Internal Affairs Piet Hein Donner wants to take away the Dutch nationality from Dutch citizens who acquire a foreign passport and make it tougher than ever before to regain it. But identity and loyalty to the Netherlands are not lost as a result of getting a second nationality, which is often applied for for purely practical reasons. Dutch citizens abroad are ambassadors for the Netherlands and for Dutch interests overseas. Don’t portray them as unworthy of Dutch citizenship.
On the cover: Tranquility in the heart of the city, early snow has fallen in the historic Jeker district (see p. 43) of Limburg’s capital, Maastricht. (Photo: Bert Kaufmann)
DUTCH the magazine
Issue 3 - January/February 2012
Published by:
Mokeham Publishing Inc. 457 Ellis Street Penticton, BC V2A 4M1 Canada
Mailing addresses:
Box 20203 Penticton, BC V2A 8M1 Canada PO Box 2090 Oroville, WA 98844 USA
Contact:
info@dutchthemag.com (250) 492-3002 fax: (866) 864-7510 www.dutchthemag.com www.facebook.com/dutchthemag
Editor
Tom Bijvoet editor@dutchthemag.com
Sales and Administration Mohrea Halingten info@dutchthemag.com
Contributors
Merel van Beeren, Brian Bramson, Nicole Holten, Dirk Hoogeveen, Tim O’Callaghan, Ronald van Erkel, Jesse van Muylwijck, Paola Westbeek.
ISSN: 1927-1492 Canada Post Corporation Publications Mail Agreement No. 40017090. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: Box 20203, Penticton, BC V2A 8M1 POSTMASTER US MAIL OFFICES DUTCH (USPS PP-32) is published bimonthly. Pending periodicals postage paid at US Mail, Blaine, WA 98230 Address changes in the USA please forward to: DUTCH, P.O. Box 2090, Oroville, WA 98844 All rights reserved. The views expressed in DUTCH are those of the respective contributors and not necessarily those of the publisher or staff. Although all reasonable attempts are made to ensure accuracy, the publishers do not assume any liability for errors or omissions anywhere in the publication, or on the websites. DUTCH considers unsolicited manuscripts and mail for the Correspondence pages. All editorial material sent to DUTCH will be treated as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and may be subject to editing. We reserve the right to reject submissions. We prefer to receive submissions via e-mail, but cannot guarantee that we will acknowledge receipt. We will not return submissions received in hardcopy format, please send copies only. Printed in Canada.
January/February 2012
Tom Bijvoet - Editor’s Brief
Issues and Concerns
for the Dutch diaspora
N
ovember and December were interesting months for the Dutch diaspora. Yes, there is such a thing. They are usually quiet, subdued, hidden, wellintegrated, but they are definitely out there, the expatriates and recent emigrants. According to the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs there are about 700,000 Dutch people outside of The Netherlands, just under a quarter of a million of them in North America. In addition to those there are of course the six million people in North America, many of our readers among them, who are of Dutch descent, who are very well aware and often proud of their heritage, but who identify more as American or Canadian than as Dutch. The expat community was shaken up a bit, over the past little while. First there was the nationality law kerfuffle and then the Black Peter brouhaha. Let’s take them one at a time, starting with the uproar over a proposal by Dutch Interior Minister Piet Hein Donner to restrict even further the already scant possibilities for Dutch nationals to retain their Dutch nationality in addition to another. Basically the current rules are very simple: if Dutch nationals acquire the citizenship of another country they lose their Dutch citizenship. There are a few exceptions to that rule, which all basically boil down to the premise that if you acquire another nationality, but cannot really help it, then you’re allowed dual citizenship. The two predominant examples are acquiring another nationality by marriage to a foreign national and acquiring another nationality at birth – by being born in a foreign country, for example, or to a parent who holds a non-Dutch passport. It is these exceptions that Mr. Donner wishes to remove. Now in case any of our readers who fall in these categories get paranoid and think Mr. Donner is out to get them, they can rest assured that is not the case. To begin with, the new law will not apply to people who already hold two nationalities, but more importantly, Mr. Donner is not out to get Dutch expatriates, he is out to get immigrants in Holland. Unlike the USA and Canada, where immigration is integral to the countries’ identities and where dual nationality has long been valued as a bridge to full integration, Holland still is a reluctant immigration country. Its politicians seem to believe that you can enforce assimilation by taking away someone’s
foreign passport. Many Dutch immigrants here also believe that you have to make a choice for one or the other. I disagree and think that dual nationality can enshrine the divided loyalty and identity of new immigrants and be an aid in an integration process that in some cases may span one or two generations. I believe that in the global village we have room in our hearts for two countries and room in our desk drawers for two passports. Judging by the huge success of an on-line petition against Mr. Donner’s plans (see nederlandersoverzee. petitie.nl) so do many Dutch expatriates.
T
hen briefly Black Peter: the organizers of the biggest Sinterklaas celebration in Western Canada in New Westminster, a Vancouver suburb - we wrote about it in the previous issue - were confronted with concerns about the racist connotations of the Black Peter character, Sinterklaas’s assistant. What started out as a local discussion between the organizers and a small group of concerned African-Canadians grew, thanks to the Internet, into a debate spanning the globe. The organizers got inundated with increasingly venomous comments from both sides of the argument and had no choice but to cancel the event for the first time in its 26 year history, because there was a real danger that what was intended as a happy children’s party could turn quite nasty. The best resource to find out more about the discussion is New Westminster’s local newspaper at www.newwestnewsleader.com, search for ’Sinterklaas’. To be continued, I expect. With all the gloom around passports and Sinterklaas I almost missed the third momentous event for the Dutch community that took place late last year: we launched an iPhone, iPad, and Android app for DUTCH, the magazine. At least, that was fully the intention when I wrote these words, but we are all unfortunately well aware of how the best laid launch plans can occasionally come undone. From IPOs to iPhone apps. So if you are interested in such an app, or someone you know is, check our website or our Facebook page. The announcement of our successful launch should be there (ever the optimist, me). And while we’re on the subject, we would like you to like us on Facebook, if you like. You can find us at www.facebook.com/dutchthemag.
“First there was the nationality law kerfuffle and then the Black Peter brouhaha.”
January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 5
Contents
Travel
28 Picturesque Haarlem Tranquil courtyards, impressive museums, historic houses and an Art Nouveau railway station define Haarlem. And shopping... lots of it.
Regulars Place
41 The Jeker Quarter
Cooking
The ‘Latin Quarter’ of Limburg’s capital Maastricht is a haven of peace in the bustling city.
Time for hearty soup that a spoon can stand up in and sweet milk and cookies to keep the chill at bay.
Poetry
32 Winter is here...
Language
38 Flatter and Fatter How flat has Dutch society really become? And what does that mean?
Epitaph
40 Andy Tielman After a career spanning more than sixty years the King of Indo-Rock will be missed by many.
42 Dull violet is the west when you go skating in the late afternoon. And like everyone in Holland knows, skating is poetry.
Comic Strip
46 The Dutch Judge The Dutch Judge hears of plans to make clever use of the wind... A ‘koek en zopie’ shack, the best place for Dutch winter food
Columns 26 Digging for Dutch Roots Dirk Hoogeveen
Last name peculiarities: prefixes and lots of them.
43 Book Browsing Paola Westbeek
On Paola’s shelf: Dutch food, skating and tulips.
44 An Englishman Abroad Brian Bramson
Toys, toilets and trains. 6 - DUTCH, the magazine
January/February 2012
Contents
Departments 3 The Map Your visual guide to what is where, ultimately thanks to Mercator. Look up the capital of the province of Flevoland, you may need it.
5 Editor’s Brief Uproar in the Dutch expatriate community and announcing our new app.
Features 12 Tracks and Traces
8 The Courant Losing the strippenkaart, Holland’s universal transit ticket, New measures to stop drivers from speeding, The citizens of Amsterdam seem to know what they want to do with Queen’s Day and WWII ammunition disturbs a birthday party.
11 Correspondence About left-over tablespoons of butter and translating Dutch terms.
46 Fun and games A rebus, who, what and where and testing your Dutch word recognition skills. Plus our first reader-contributed limerick.
The New Amsterdam Theater on Broadway
How Dutch is New York City, or rather, what traces are left of the Dutch heritage in what used to be New Amsterdam?
C/W: New Amsterdam Market - Victor Martinez - Jaap den dulk
18 Mercator
Cartographer Herman Mercator’s projection of a cylinder onto a plane defined our mental image of the world’s surfaces for centuries, although Antarctica and the Arctic Ocean were usually omitted.
24 Surviving the Indies The easy colonial life came to an abrupt halt when the Japanese invaded the Dutch East Indies in 1941. All Europeans were interned in camps. Four brutal years followed and afterwards the Indies would never be the same again. Part 3 of a 4-part series. January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 7
The Courant
Farewell trusty Strippenkaart!
A
fter a successful run of 31 years the universal Dutch transit ticket, the Strippenkaart was retired on November 3rd. Anyone who has traveled on any bus, streetcar or subway train in The Netherlands since 1980 and actually paid for the privilege – an exception at times in certain regions – is familiar with the long narrow band of thin card stock, divided into a number of sections or cells, called strips. Over the years strippenkaarts have been available with as few as two and as many as 45 strips, with the 15-strip card being the most common. The whole country was divided into public transit zones and all you needed to travel from A to B was count the number of zones separating source and destination. Then count the same number of strips on the card as zones (plus one extra representing a base-fare for the trip like taxis have) and have the last one stamped, either by the driver or in a machine placed on the platform or mounted in the bus or streetcar. Sound complicated? It was, for the first few months in the fall of 1980. A satirical radio broadcast about the complications of the new system is still circulating on the Internet. But after people got used to it the advantages of the universal strippenkaart became apparent: no need to buy separate tickets every time you travelled and a strippenkaart could
be used everywhere and multiple times if you travelled less zones than there were strips on the card.
But every system eventually becomes obsolete. The strippenkaart has been
replaced by the OV-chipkaart (the Public Transit chip card). Transit travellers load specific travel products onto the chip and have to wave their card in front of a chip reader when they start and end their journey. Especially the latter is often forgotten, resulting in significant overcharging. The card which was introduced in phases beginning in 2005 was hacked in 2008. A cheap gadget available in computer stores combined with downloadable open source software made it relatively easy to directly access the chip and manipulate the information, including the account balance, on it. An ongoing battle between producers and hackers has been raging since, with increasingly sophisticated encryption applied to the card. But let’s not forget that in the early days of the strippenkaart it was easily forged until that gradually become more difficult with the incorporation of banknote inspired security features. And even for the less-sophisticated, tips about how to circumvent the system abounded. It was rumored, for example, that spreading a dab of Vaseline on a strip before use would make it very easy to wipe off the stamp. Now, after 31 years of service, the strippenkaart is gone forever. With the pace of technological change, it is doubtful that its successor will last anywhere near that long.
Speed testing device has great road safety potential
A
fter introducing Breath Alcohol Ignition Interlock Devices (BAIID) on December 1st, which are used to stop repeat offenders from starting their car’s engine when under
the influence of alcohol and have been a sentencing option in many US-states for some time, the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure is running a test with Intelligent Speed Adaptation (ISA) devices.
Crossing Rotterdam’s Erasmus Bridge, next time with a speed testing device? 8 - DUTCH, the magazine
As with the BAIDD the idea is to require repeat offenders to have a device installed in their car. Using GPS-technology to determine the local speed limit the new device will regulate the car’s speed. However much the driver pushes down on the gas pedal, the car will not exceed the speed limit. A preliminary test in the region of Tilburg has suggested that the number of traffic fatalities could decrease by 20% if the device was installed in all cars. More testing is taking place in the provinces of North and South-Holland. Results of the experiment are expected later this year. January/February 2012
The Courant
No quitting Queen’s Day
A
Queen’s Day crowds spill over onto an Amsterdam canal
msterdam mayor Eberhard van der Laan thought that the people in his city had had enough of the large scale parties that bring hundreds of thousands of visitors from out of town. Successes by national sports teams, the annual gay pride canal parade, New Year’s Eve and particularly the celebration of Holland’s most popular national holiday, Queen’s Day (Koninginnedag), on April 30th attract enough people to shed doubt on the capacity of the small-scale city to absorb them all. Last Queen’s Day 800,000 people visited the city. That is the same number as the entire population of Amsterdam and ten times the population of the central district, where all the festivities take place. The mayor got the notion that the locals had had enough of the big events in discussions with concerned citizens after 100,000 people descended on Museum Square to celebrate a major victory by local soccer team Ajax. A very unhappy householder showed the mayor a home video showing six hundred men urinating in his street. But actually it turns out that Amsterdammers can live with the disturbances. A study commissioned by Van der Laan delivered the surprising result that the citizens are actually quite proud of their city’s reputation as a party town and that they welcomed the crowds who come and spend lots of money on alcohol and food. Van der Laan had said that he wanted to “give the city back to its citizens on April 30” and that “it once again has to become a day on which the locals take their kids into town to celebrate.” It turns out that the people of Amsterdam do not need the mayor’s generous gift, they already go into town on Queen’s Day, the study has found. Mr. Van der Laan must have missed them in the throngs of outsiders.
An unexpectedly explosive birthday surprise
C/W: Jos Dielis - Joost J Bakker - Ronald Groenendijk - Martijn van Exel
I
t happens several times each year: someone is dredging a ditch, or plowing a field and suddenly an unexploded mine, bomb or grenade shows up. In May of 1940 the Dutch Army fought a brief but intense battle with the invading Germans and from September of 1944 until May of 1945 The Netherlands formed a battleground for the Allied Armies pushing the Germans back into ever smaller pockets of occupied territory. Between those two periods of active warfare Holland was fly over country, first for German planes heading to the Industrial centers of England and after the Battle of Britain for Bombers of Allied Command heading to Germany. If a plane got into trouble, it often emptied its load above a field or lake in the Dutch countryside. Immediately after the war a big cleanJanuary/February 2012
up operation took place, but you can’t find everything, especially not if its buried in the mud several feet below the surface of a lake or canal. Iris Waterink from Utrecht found that out on her nineteenth birthday party recently. At the height of the party she was told to evacuate the house and move a safe distance away with the party guests. A one foot wide four foot long unexploded bomb had been found in the narrow canal right behind the Waterink’s house. Train traffic along the adjoining mainline from Utrecht to Hilversum was halted and the onand off-ramps of the A27 highway were closed off. The special explosives disposal unit of the Army removed the bomb and detonated it a safe distance from the residential
neighborhood where it was found. Iris and her family returned home relieved, but most of the birthday guests had already left, also relieved, we presume that the party had not turned more explosive than expected.
A truck from the explosives disposal unit parked in a residential neighborhood DUTCH, the magazine - 9
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10 - DUTCH, the magazine
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January/February 2012
Correspondence Frustrating Butter My sister and I were thumbing through your magazine and decided to make oliebollen from your recipe on page 33 (Nov/ Dec 2011). In the list of ingredients it calls for three tablespoons of butter, softened. In the directions there is no mention of this butter. It was very frustrating to follow a recipe and realize at the end of mixing everything it tells you to, you have three tablespoons of butter left over. :) We wanted to bring this to your attention in order for you to print a correction for your next issue so other readers would not experience the same frustration and the tradition of delicious oliebollen can continue. Thank you, Julie & Jeannette via e-mail Thanks for bringing this to our attention. Our apologies for the inconvenience caused. We trust you found a suitable destination for the butter!
You only need to do that the first time a word is used in an article. I don’t get to speak my mother tongue much these days, but it still gives me a little jolt reading Dutch words. Cas Bohlken Victoria, British Columbia Thanks for the suggestion. We have to find a happy medium. On the one hand too many translations would interrupt the flow of the articles, on the other, providing a Dutch term for a word that is difficult to translate may aid to clarify the text (and build vocabulary). But the purpose of the magazine is not to teach people Dutch, so our first inclination is to stay away from too many Dutch words in the text. This is, however, a subject we would like to receive more input about. What do other readers think? In addition we would like to mention that our sister publication ‘De Krant’ is written entirely in Dutch and would be a good vehicle for anyone wishing to maintain or improve their skills in the Dutch language.
I am enjoying the second edition of DUTCH. The only thing that I find disappointing is that most Dutch words have been translated into English. Could you not continue the way Nicole Holten does in ‘Seasonal Cheer’ (page 30 in issue 2), printing the Dutch word in brackets behind the translated words, e.g. ‘apple fritters (appelbeignets)’.
We welcome your letters to the editor, but we cannot guarantee placement. We reserve the right to edit letters for accuracy, brevity, clarity and good taste. Submissions by e-mail to: editor@dutchthemag.com preferred. You may also mail your letter to: The Editor Dutch, The Magazine USA: PO Box 2090, Oroville, WA 98844 Canada: Box 20203, Penticton, BC V2A 8M1
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DUTCH, the magazine - 11
Feature
Tracks and Traces
searching for New Amsterdam in New York City
F
rom Battery Park to Harlem Meer, and from Coney Island to Dutch Kills in Queens, the Dutch presence continues to inform the landscape of New York City’s five boroughs more than four centuries after the Dutch commissioned Henry Hudson to find an alternative route to the Far East and he stumbled across the American coast instead. The city that was once known as New Amsterdam can feel remarkably welcoming to a Dutch girl raised in old Amsterdam. But it’s not just me. The Dutch in 12 - DUTCH, the magazine
By Merel van Beeren general love New York. The United States is one of the five main choices for permanent migration, with New York a definite favorite among cities and the city steadily keeps its top ten position among preferred holiday destinations having no trouble competing with places that offer a much more favorable climate. What it is exactly that is so appealing about the city is unclear, but perhaps that shared history plays a part. Of course, most New Yorkers probably couldn’t care less about
the Dutch and the personal relationship they feel they have with the city. The Hudson 400 celebration in 2009 included a Dutch royal visit, but hardly drew a crowd, much to the royals’ surprise. ‘How much, if anything, do New Yorkers know about the origins of their city?’ I wondered, about to embark on my quest for the Dutch roots of New York. I started my search by talking to two of the city’s inhabitants who do know, a great deal in fact. Pascal Theunissen, a 40-year-old Dutch journalist livJanuary/February 2012
ing in Brooklyn, is someone who shares my curiosity about what is left of New Amsterdam. He moved to the city in 2006 and after reading about the tremendous influence of Dutch values on the later success of New York in Russell Shorto’s The Island at the Center of the World, he wondered what was left. Surely there had to be physical evidence of the Dutch period? Theunissen realized no book had been written on the subject, and decided to take it upon himself to fill that gap. The result was Van Jan Kees tot Yankees in New York, a Dutch book about New York’s roots, detailing the sights in each borough, while narrating the historical events. Arriving in New York 30 years ago, Bill Greer, then an urban economist at the New York Federal Reserve Bank, was fascinated by the city’s history. He has since written a historical novel about New Amsterdam, The Mevrouw Who Saved Manhattan, and created the website Bill’s Brownstone documenting his knowledge of the city’s roots and sharing a self-guided walking tour. Armed with a copy of Theunissen’s book, a list based on Greer’s website, my camera and Google Maps on my iPhone, I set out to find those Dutch traces. And perhaps some New Yorkers who weren’t blissfully unaware of the city’s past.
V
Merel van Beeren
an Cortlandt Park was practically deserted. It was my first stop, all the way up in the Bronx – a neighborhood named
Built in 1748 Van Cortlandt House is the oldest building in what used to be ‘Bronck’s Land’
after one of the first Dutch farmers, Jonas Bronck and his property: ‘Bronck’s Land’ – on the first day that felt like spring. Apparently no one had really caught up to the warm weather, leaving the green fields to a few joggers and the one Dutch girl looking to prove her people were once really here. Van Cortlandt House was built in 1748, which makes it the oldest house in the Bronx and is set in the middle of the park’s splendid grounds, though the house – now a museum – was built a long time after the Dutch were in charge. The grounds were bought at the end of the 17th century by one Oloff Stevense van Cortlandt. His descendants were the ones that built the mansion, and who finally sold it, along with the land, to the city of New York in 1886. The Bronx is
also home to the neighborhood of Spuyten Duyvil – probably named after a now filled up waterway that was known for its devilish currents, fed by both the Harlem and Hudson rivers. Nothing remains today except for a bar in Brooklyn – unrelated to the waterway – with a mostly Netherlandish beer selection, where patrons break their tongues trying to pronounce its name if drunk enough. Studying historical works, books, and online documents, I was surprised to find how many New York sites and streets were named after the Dutch settlers. If someone with a Dutch background and a fascination for history could be as uninformed as I was, how could I expect the average extremely busy New Yorker to know even the smallest thing about New Amsterdam?
The Brooklyn Skyline seen from the Staten Island Ferry January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 13
For the keen observer traces of New York’s heritage can be found everywhere: inscription on a flagpole in Battery Park
P
assing through Harlem (named after Haarlem, the city my mother grew up in, see our feature about Haarlem on page 28), I take the subway down to where it all started: the southern tip of the island of Manhattan. Directly in front of me the Staten Island ferry can bring you to what was once Staaten Eilandt and you can see Governor’s Island in the distance - the island where the Dutch first settled and where New York’s history really began. “No idea why that island doesn’t market itself as the birthplace of New York,” Theunissen says, commenting on the fact that both New Yorkers and the Dutch seem to completely overlook the island’s role. “It’s a missed opportunity.” Wandering around Battery Park and the tiny streets directly adjacent, you can hardly move an inch without bumping into some sort of Dutch historical place but they’re only noticeable if you’re actively looking. The big flagpole on the edge of the park, given to New York by the Dutch at the start of the 20th century, is an ode to the Dutch settlers. Its base details the story of how 14 - DUTCH, the magazine
the land was bought, and it takes me a few seconds to realize one side of the base has text in Dutch. Have I been here that long already? Approaching Broad Street, I find two men in their early twenties sitting on the stoop (a word that comes from the Dutch ‘stoep’, now that we’re on the subject) of an old building. Did they by chance know who founded the city they were in? An embarrassed grin spreads over their faces – they don’t have a clue. A few blocks further east, a security guard watches over the entrance of
a garage. His name is Jean, he tells me, and he moved here from Haiti only three years ago. He knows a significant amount about New York’s history, and how the city expanded to include the five boroughs. The city’s Dutch roots don’t ring a bell though. “My sister might know,” he says, perking up, “she has been here far longer than I have and just loves history.” Jean’s place of work overlooks the Old Slip, a former waterway where Dutch ships once docked, but which has long since been filled. It’s now
After the Dutch, who contributed the ‘stoop’ dozens of other cultures helped shape New York January/February 2012
C/W: JvL - Ed Yourdon - Merel van Beeren
a small park, adorned with a sign outlining the place’s history - courtesy of the City of New York Parks & Recreation. Approaching the East River, I head north. Coming up next: South Street Seaport. The port is filled with tourists, yet they’re almost outnumbered by street vendors and young men in brightly colored jackets loudly selling tickets to all the city’s tourist attractions. Hector, born in Brooklyn, is selling helicopter tours. He is extremely well-versed in the history of New York, especially after the Hudson 400 events. “I remember the Dutch crown prince and princess coming here for a visit,” he says with a big smile. I’m pleasantly surprised. Moving away from the water, I come upon Schermerhorn Row, where the South Street Seaport’s museum store is located. Sitting behind the counter of the shop, Robert comes up short when I ask him about the Dutch history. “I love history,” he says, “but it’s the Greeks I know about.” Walking up Bowery, stretching from lower Manhattan up to NoHo, I enter Stuyvesant territory. The name Bowery refers to Stuyvesant’s farm, ‘bouwerij’ being the old Dutch word for farm. Peter Stuyvesant is probably the most famous Dutchman in American history. The stern governor with the wooden leg is buried at St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery, and is said to haunt the grounds that were formerly his. The name on dozens of street signs and buildings makes sure people can’t ignore the historical figure, “though I’ve come across plenty of people who knew the name Stuyvesant, but didn’t know who or where it came from,” Greer said. A little further up the street I bump into a couple who have lived in the city all their lives. Kristen and Mike know a little, they say. Peter Minuit (the third Director General of New Netherland Colony) and the famous sale of Manhattan for 60 guilders come up, but after that they draw a blank. January/February 2012
Peter Stuyvesant, Director General of Nieu Nederland , sternly overlooks his former holdings from his pedestal in the graveyard of St. Mark’s Church in the Bowery
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aking the 6 from Union Square to 59th street, I walk into Central Park, looking to enjoy some of the day’s last rays of the sun before I go home to Brooklyn. On a rock overlooking the southern edge of the park a woman is reading her paper while basking in the sun. The Dutch roots of the city are familiar to Linda, who has lived in the city for a long time, but it wasn’t something she learned at school. “It’s something you pick up yourself,” she said. In a city that’s mostly inhabited by those born somewhere else, it’s not really surprising that their elemen-
tary education did not include anything about the Dutch settlers. “They didn’t grow up with the city’s history. But I get the impression that native New Yorkers don’t spend much time on the period in school, either,” said Theunissen. So those who do grow up in the city are usually equally uninformed. When it comes to the Dutch history, “there is no required curriculum in New York City,” Matt Mittenthal, a spokesperson for the New York City Department of Education, said. The curriculum’s requirements are created at state level and are therefore less focused on New York City’s DUTCH, the magazine - 15
Hilariously funny, in his first book
BRIAN BRAMSON
warns his nephew about the strange habits of the people of the Lowlands.
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16 - DUTCH, the magazine
January/February 2012
origins. However, State suggestions for the curriculum do include projects about the “Dutch, English, and French influences in New York State.” ‘And why would there be attention for the Dutch history today anyway? you might ask. Aren’t the Dutch settlers just one small part of the origins of New York? Dozens of other cultures have helped build this city, and continue to do so now, why put that tiny part of history in the spotlight? Because the United States of America was built upon Dutch values. Embedded in the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, even in documents created far into the English period and the era of American independence, those documents that make most Americans proud of being Americans, are Dutch values. “There are tremendous finds of Dutch influence in those things,” said Greer. “I don’t think that many people really understand what an important role the Dutch played in what America became as a result.”
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aving taken the train home to Brooklyn, I walk out of the station and onto Flushing Avenue. Flushing is the angli-
Brooklyn bar ‘Spuyten Duyvil’ stocks a large selection of Netherlandish beers
cized form of Vlissingen, a town in the Dutch province of Zeeland, I know now. To my right, Wallabout street, once Walen Bocht, or Walloon Curve. Even Nostrand Avenue, where I live, turns out to be named after a Dutchman: Gerret Noordstrandt was one of the first members of the Flatbush Dutch Reformed Church. Though the New Yorkers I have met during my quest aren’t as well informed as I had hoped, they are neither as ignorant as I had feared. Mostly, I myself was surprised by the sheer pervasiveness of the Dutch
history, feeling a little prouder of what my tiny country managed to establish halfway across the world. Sometime later, on the last day of April, I find myself surrounded by about a thousand people dressed in various but mostly glaring shades of orange. The crowd has gathered at Mars 2112, a space-themed venue in Manhattan to celebrate a Dutch national holiday. It’s Queen’s Day in New York, where no one really cares about what the Dutch once did in their city, least of all the drinking and dancing Dutchmen.
Christopher Paulin - NLBorrels New York
Orange clad revelers celebrate Queen’s Day in New York courtesy of Dutch expatriate network NLBorrels
January/February 2012
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Profile The Mercator exhibition at the Rotterdam Maritime Museum (see box on page 23) features one of three remaining original 1569 world maps and the only one that was colored and bound into a book (probably by Mercator himself)
Gerardus Mercator
the man who named North-America The Flemish inventor of modern cartography first penciled ‘America’ into a map of the northern part of the hemisphere.
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By Ronald van Erkel
magine yourself to be living in the 16th century Low Countries. If you didn’t succumb to an untimely death during an epidemic, famine, or war, you might even live to an age of forty or forty-five. Unless, of course, you contravened the teachings of the Catholic Church in which case you were burned at the stake. Sounds like an unattractive place? Then consider that at the time the cities of the muddy floodplains of the Low Countries (what is now The Netherlands and Belgium) were probably one of the most exciting places to live. It was a time when the light of reason was finally beginning to dispel the darkness of the Middle Ages, propelling society into what we now call the Renaissance – that cultural movement which encompassed a flowering of literature, science, art, religion, cartography, and politics. It heralded a resurgence of learning based on classical sources, the development of linear perspective in painting, a gradual but widespread educational reform 18 - DUTCH, the magazine
and a renewed interest in the outside world, spurring adventurers on trips across uncharted oceans to discover new lands. Originating in the 14th century in Italy, the Renaissance had spread to the rest of Europe in the following centuries and found particularly fertile soils in the prosperous, densely populated Low Countries, more specifically in burgeoning cities such as Antwerp, Ghent, Den Bosch, Breda, Brussels and Bruges. Ranking among the world’s most important centers of trade and commerce and politically powerful, these cities were the breeding grounds of an affluent and aspiring class of traders and manufacturers, patrons of the arts and sciences. It is in this climate that one of Europe’s oldest universities, Leuven, flourished. Of the scores of universities that Europe counted, only Paris could compete in terms of numbers and prestige. One of Leuven’s most notable graduates was Gerard Kremer, better known by his Latinized name Gerardus January/February 2012
Mercator. Mercator was ‘the prince of modern geographers’. This man with his universal vision revolutionized the way we perceive the world. He has been named the first modern, scientific cartographer. Where his contemporaries had developed a fragmented, unstructured approach to map making, Mercator pursued wrapping the world in overlapping, uniform maps. In the process, he helped mapping and naming America (he was the first to designate the name ‘America’ also to the northern part of the double continent). His greatest and most celebrated contribution to science, however, was the discovery of how to project the sphere of a three dimensional globe onto a two-dimensional map. The ‘Mercator projection’, as we still know it today, revolutionized seafaring as all lines of constant bearing (the so-called rhumb lines), are represented by straight segments. This allowed ships, for the first time in history, to sail in a straight line to their destination using their compass. Who was this genius and what inspired him to make the groundbreaking discoveries that we still profit from today?
pire ruled from Brussels in which ‘the sun never set’ and with each new discovery, new territories were added to it. And as that expansion took place, accounts from distant lands and maps, spread with the help of the new printing press, fed the rise of humanism and worldly curiosity, ushering in further scientific and intellectual inquiry. It is in this exciting environment that young Gerard grew up. There was hardship too. Harvests failed. Wars ravaged cities. Floods took their toll in human lives. Many died of diseases that are easily curable today. One of these victims was Hubert Kremer, Gerard’s father, only about 45 years old. Luckily, Gisbert continued sponsoring Gerard and the young master was sent to Den Bosch to join the Latin school of the Brethren of Common Life. Three years later, when Gerard was 18 and his mother had also died, Gerard’s uncle, now his sole guardian, transferred him to the ‘famous university of Leuven’. Gerard enrolled at the Academy of Arts where his instruction comprised grammar, rhetoric, dialectics, arithmetic, geometry, music, and asercator was born in tronomy. The curriculum was the Southern Nethsteeped in tradition and there Mercator at age 62, portrait by Frans Hogenberg erlands in 1512 to was no room for intellectual German parents who had mimaneuvers, causing Gerard grated from the famine-stricken Rhineland to the Low to endure ‘empty and senseless babbling’ for most of Countries in search of a better life. The Kremers settled his first year at the university. Things picked up during in Rupelmonde, a village near Antwerp, where Mercathe second year when he attended lectures at the new tor’s uncle, Gisbert, was a priest in the hospice of St JoCollegium Trilingue. Here, through comparison and hann. In Gisbert, the family had proof that there was an experimentation, students criticized and tested the old alternative to rural poverty and it was this ‘third parent’ authorized texts. Sources were questioned rather than who provided the young Gerard with spiritual guidance. accepted and for Gerard, exploring territories unknown Gisbert secured Gerard a place in the local school. His to the Church Fathers, this was learning at its most adeducation began with learning the common European venturous. It was dangerous too. Ideas of what the world language: Latin, the lingua franca of the church, of law, and the universe looked like were confined to what the philosophy and medicine, of commerce and diplomacy Bible and the classical Greek philosophers (especially and of education. By the age of seven, young Gerard was Aristotle) taught. Straying from these canonical views speaking and reading Latin. was heresy, but that was exactly what the freshly graduHe was still in elementary school when Flanders was ated Gerard (who now had taken on the name Mercaincorporated into an empire of unprecedented scale. In tor) was doing. “I took particular pleasure,” he wrote, 1519, Charles V, the Spanish king and heir to a patch“in studying the formation of the whole world.” It was work of European territories, was elected Holy Roman the suspended orb of the earth, “which contains the Emperor. The young emperor’s realm included much of finest order, the most harmonious proportion and the Western Europe, the Spanish colonies in Asia as well as singular admirable excellence of all things created”. The the vast new territories only recently discovered on the map maker in him was born. But his treatise on the creother side of the Atlantic: the New World. It was an emation of the world had drawn the attention of the ortho-
C/W: LVR Centre for the Media - Courtesy of Rotterdam Maritime Museum
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dox clergy in Leuven and his presence in the city became untenable. He went to live in Antwerp, the cosmopolitan metropolis where he met Franciscus Monachus, the first map maker in the Low Countries who broke with the synthetic mix of biblical cosmogony (the science of the origin of the universe) and Aristotelianism that had characterized geography for almost a thousand years. Monachus’s map making drew on investigation, experience and observation. The man who became Mercator’s mentor, however, was a brilliant mathematician from Friesland, Gemma Frisius. Gemma is remembered for providing a solution to the longitude problem that seafarers encountered, especially during expeditions of discovery.
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aps in the Renaissance were usually derived from Ptolemy’s authoritative work ‘Geography’ dating back to the second century A.D., which included a map of the world as it was known then (limited to Europe and bits of adjoining Asia and Africa). In addition to his own surveying, Ptolemy’s sources were earlier observations and the accounts of travelers, seafarers and explorers. Ptolemy put all this information into a grand scheme. He assigned coordinates to all the places and geographic features he knew, in a grid that spanned the globe. Latitude was measured from the equator, as it is today. For the first time in hisThe Map of Europe as presented in Mercator’s Atlas of the World tory every known place on earth, was given coordinates, expressed in degrees of latitude and longitude. In 1513 a cartographer from the Lorraine (in present day for study using descriptions, maps and diagrams of the France), Waldseemüller, produced a daring new edition whole universe. His diagrams illustrated the earth’s cliof Geography, accompanied by new maps that showed, matic zones, methods for calculating longitude and latifor the first time, not only the New World (whose southtude and the application of trigonometry for distance ern portion Waldseemüller named ‘America’) but also measuring. The book also touched on astronomy, geogcovered the full 360 degrees of the earth’s sphere. raphy and theoretical cartography. Different map proThe name ‘America’ may well have been introduced jections were included and an elaborately printed world to the Low Countries around 1520 on a world map of map. To the up-and-coming Mercator, the work of ApiApian, who elaborated on the work of Waldseemüller an was an invaluable source of inspiration. and who published his ‘Cosmographicus Liber’ (Book Meanwhile, uncle Gisbert had died and Mercator, left of Cosmography) in 1524. It would become a major into his own devices and with a family to feed, decided to fluence of Mercator’s life. To Apian, cosmography was pursue a career as a scientist and cartographer. To furnot so much a separate discipline, but an umbrella term ther his studies, he returned to Leuven University to at20 - DUTCH, the magazine
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names of places on his maps, setting the standard for map makers in the centuries to come. So fast was the world view changing that the globe made in 1535 was already outdated four years later. Mercator undertook it to create a new one, on a scale and with a precision that was unprecedented, although it also contained errors. Its publication, in 1541 was followed by turbulent years of war, revolt, invasions and violent purges to rid the Low Countries of ‘Lutheran heresy’. Mercator was not spared. He was arrested in 1544, allegedly for writing heretical letters, and locked up in dank Rupelmonde Castle for nine months. He escaped the stake, but after his release he realized it was time to move away from the Low Countries and find himself a peaceful, quiet place where he could devote himself to science. He made the reverse of the journey his parents had undertaken and left the Low Countries to settle in Duisburg in the Rhineland with his family. By this time Mercator was widely recognized as one of the foremost scientists of his time and although he never traveled he was in touch with all the great minds of his age.
Library of Congress, Rosenwald Collection
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tend the lectures of his old mentor, Gemma. In 1535, Gemma and a collaborator, Van der Heijden, were commissioned by Charles V to construct a globe that would be a true representation of the world as it was known at the time. Gemma involved Mercator in the project and it would be the young geographer’s first professional success. It was soon followed by a map of Palestine that was received to much acclaim in 1537 and established Mercator as one of the foremost map makers of the era. With the Holy Land in print, Mercator felt confident enough to produce a map of the world. It appeared in 1538. An innovation Mercator introduced was the use of the superior italic script to engrave the January/February 2012
n Duisburg, Mercator opened a workshop where he completed a six-panel map of Europe in 1554. It was a remarkable achievement. When the three rows of five prints were pasted together, the map was as wide as a man is tall. It was exquisitely executed, but its true marvel lay within, for here was a new Europe. For the first time, Mercator had succeeded in representing the countries of Europe as they actually were. Outside the relative tranquility of Duisburg, the world was in turmoil. France and Spain were frequently at war. Europe was torn by religious conflict and after the abdication of Charles V in 1555, the now protestant north of the Low Countries rose against catholic Spain. It was the beginning of a bloody 80 year revolt. In the midst of this depression, Mercator conceived the monument which he wished to bequeath on humanity. The plan was unbelievably ambitious. “I should undertake a study of the whole universal scheme uniting the heavens of the earth and of position, motion and order of its parts”, he wrote. In his fifties, Mercator DUTCH, the magazine - 21
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was proposing nothing less than the book of the Universe, a cosmography. Some volumes of his magnum opus would never see the light of day, others would be published in different installments through the remainder of his years and even posthumously. As part of the cosmography, Mercator published a completely revised and updated map of the world in 1569. Consisting of eighteen separate sheets, this was the largest map Mercator had ever produced. The detailing, precise lettering, the numerous legends and the compositional symmetry of the huge map created a cartographic spectacle even though it contained many geographical errors, especially at the unexplored margins of the known world. The map was conceived for the purpose of providing seafarers with a map that would enable them to reach a destination by following a straight line set out with the aid of the compass. What would be known as the Mercator projection, was born. The man who himself had never sailed the sea, transformed navigating the world’s oceans from a gamble to a science, even if it took decades for his discovery to sink in and be actually deployed. Now, reaching old age, the flame of Mercator’s intellect was sparkling as never before. For the next twenty years he labored on his cosmography, studying the classics and collecting information from other scientists, explorers and seafarers. The result was a series of maps unlike any seen before. They were editorially consistent, universal in scale and more accurate than anything that was published before. The new maps were part of Mercator’s final project: a collection of maps of all countries of the world, bound in one volume. He called it ‘Atlas’
Mercator’s mentor, Gemma Frisius
and thereby coined the term for all prosperity. Mercator never lived to see the publication of his Atlas. He died, at the exceptionally old age of 82, in 1594. His son Rumold completed the project and the Atlas was finally published in 1596, one year after his father’s death.
C/W: PD - Courtesy of Rotterdam Maritime Museum
Steady as she goes! Sailing by Mercator’s Map To commemorate the 500th anniversary of Mercator’s birth, the Rotterdam Maritime Museum is featuring an exhibition of the Mercator projection called ‘Steady as she goes! Sailing by Mercator’s Map’. The interactive exhibition enables visitors to discover everything about navigation at sea – both with and without Mercator’s map. Historical maps, distorting mirrors and film clips will help the visitor, but they will also be working with globes, binoculars, compasses, the stars and modern navigation equipment such as satellites and GPS. The only remaining copy of Mercator’s world map in atlas format and his recently restored globe can also be admired at the exhibition. Until 8 September 2013.
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Series
Japanese soldier in a coconut palm
Surviving the Indies Part 3 in a series of 4 about life in the Dutch East Indies (1927 -1950)
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ith its citywide labyrinth of canals, drawbridges, cobblestone streets, trams, harbors, and European cultural awareness Batavia was once known throughout the world as the Amsterdam of the East. By the 1930s Batavia was adding to this romantic exotic moniker and focused on becoming a world class city, one that could attract people with opportunity, success, and lifestyle. The ever increasing population required infrastructure. Civil servants from The Netherlands were offered 24 - DUTCH, the magazine
By Tim O’Callaghan incentives to pack-up and move to the Indies. The promise of a life in the tropics was hard to resist. With unrest in Europe becoming more and more likely a chance to escape and start again was appealing. People flooded into the Indies throughout the 1930s. By the turn of the decade the world was bracing for war. In Europe Germany had mobilized and by the end of 1940 Austria, Poland, Czechoslovakia, France and also The Netherlands had fallen. In Asia Japan had invaded China and was
systematically working its forces south through Burma, Indo-China, Malaysia and Singapore. The goal was oil... and that could be found in the Dutch East Indies. On December 8, 1941 Japan attacked multiple targets in the Indies that flanked its eventual objective. Life in the Indies under Dutch colonial rule, was about to be turned upside down. The writing was on the wall as the outer islands began to fall to Japanese rule in January and February. Oil was the prize but the campaign was cloaked in a veil January/February 2012
of liberation from oppression. This veil was quickly lifted however, as South East Asia learned that they had simply swapped one form of oppression for another far more sinister version. But the colonial rule of the French, English, and Dutch was at an end.
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n March of 1942 the Japanese invading forces landed at Tanjung Priuk, Batavia. Within weeks the systematic internment of Dutch civilians was underway. Blavotsky Park, on the south western corner of Koningsplein, acted as a staging area from where people would be shuttled to camps. Some were trucked to the army barracks on Matraman Road while completion of one of the largest camps continued. In 1943 my family and thousands of others entered through the gates of Tjideng. The innocence and the adventure of living in the tropics now turned to bare survival and it would never turn back. Overcrowding, blazing heat, dis-
ease, hunger, cruelty, and tenko (forcible acculturation) would make up the day to day routine of the men, women, and children divided among camps throughout the Indies. Clutching small portions of dignity and hope were straws worth grasping. For four years surviving was paramount followed closely by the longing for reunification with loved ones and a return to normalcy. Many innocent lives were lost during these years. A death rate in excess of 30% was recorded for those interned. Malaria and beriberi acting as silent assassins while the brutality of the commanders and guards caused many more deaths. After years of captivity it would be the irony of war, and this one in particular, that would be the most confounding. Following the surrender in August of 1945 the Japanese switched roles. In a cruel act of fate the internees could not leave the camps even though the gates were open. The Indies was now in a revo-
lutionary war and the safest place to be was behind the relative protection of the walls that had just moments earlier held people captive. The prison became the fortress. For nearly five more years the Nationalists fought for a free and independent state. In the years that followed 1945 the Indies was in a state of turmoil and chaos. The Dutch attempted to reclaim the territory while the Indonesian Nationalists declared independence and laid the foundations for the nation’s future. For nine years the country was at war. When it emerged, it was the Republic of Indonesia. The Dutch Indies became a lost era but for those that lived through Tempo Doeloe, the depression, and the war, the Indies became a defining passage of time. Living in the Indies ultimately meant survival. Surviving the Indies was like losing a love‌ a gut wrenching void that for some could never be filled.
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Dirk Hoogeveen - Digging for Dutch Roots
Recognizing Dutch names vanden, ij and other oddities
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or most of us our name is a precious possession we hung up. Then right after the man had left the land that we carry with us all our lives. It often exposes office my colleague rang again to tell me that the man our origin and sometimes our status in society. As could not be reasoned with because he was so very anI illustrated in the previous article in an era when not gry and to be prepared. I had just finished the call when everybody was as literate as today, the spelling of a name the apparently agitated man was shown into my office. might vary at the whim of officials. Now people know I introduced myself as did he and I asked him to sit exactly how to spell their down. He gave me his last name and usually insist on name as Vancise. On the that spelling. file, which he had brought The following story illusalong, I noticed the spelling trates how important peoof his name and my openple consider their name and ing question was: “Is your background. It happened in name of Dutch origin sir?” the late 1950s when the SasHe then told me a story katchewan Power Corporaabout his ancestors comtion was building the elecing to ‘New Amsterdam’ in trical high voltage grid and the 1600s and of some famextending electrical service ily intrigue and the loss of to thousands of farms. My a large inheritance in The department was, amongst Netherlands a few hundred other things, responsible years ago, etcetera. His anfor building thousands of ger visibly dissipated as kilometers of High Volthe told his family history. age power lines to make the After about 15 minutes rural electrification a realI broached his problem, ity. The land department which was then amicably would try to get the clearresolved. The letter combination ‘IJ’ in action: ance for the location of the Brewpub ‘t IJ, on the banks of ost Dutch names lines from the landowners Amsterdam’s ‘other’ river, the IJ in North America before they were built. The are easily recogcompany was then expanding so rapidly that we occupied five buildings. One day nized, especially if they start with a prefix like van, van I received a call from a person in the land department, de, van der or van den. located in another building about half a block away, who Looking for ancestors, in the for genealogists invaluable asked me if I could see somebody who had a problem Genlias system (www.genlias.nl), which contains birth, with the location of a line. After I agreed to see him, death and marriage records dating back to the introduction of the civil registry in 1812, it is essential to know how names in Infix or prefix? The Netherlands are split into prefixes and roots and how such names For sticklers the true translation of the Dutch word for the naming elements are sorted alphabetically. discussed in this article, ‘tussenvoegsel’, is ‘infix’. ‘Prefix’ would be translated as Not all Dutch names have prefix‘voorvoegsel’. An infix is placed between two elements, in this case the first es, but many do. So many indeed and last name. Infix is an uncommon word. Genealogical database programs that the prefix van, which literally usually refer to the element in questions as a prefix and the Dutch government means of, is used in Dutch as a synuses ‘voorvoegsel’ ever more frequently, so for the purposes of these articles onym for achternaam (last name). we will stick to ‘prefix’ as the preferred terminology. In The Netherlands the prefixes are usually separated from the main
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root of the last name, giving for example Van den Berg. When last names are placed in alphabetical order, such as in the telephone book or a database the name is listed under the root, so here under B, as Berg, van den. Including a first name Dirk van den Berg would be listed in a phone book like Berg, Dirk van den. The same treatment is given to names that begin with de, den, and less common prefixes such as ‘t, in ‘t, op den and several others (see box for a list of Dutch prefixes). Watch for these less common prefixes as they may not be immediately apparent: here In ‘t Hout could have become simply Inthout, probably pronounced quite differently from the original Dutch. An exception is ver, a very common prefix that is almost always combined with the root of the name to form one word as in Vermeer. In North America prefixes are usually attached to the root. Capitalization of names with prefixes varies. One can find Vandenberg, VandenBerg, Vanden Berg and sometimes the name is written as VanDenBerg. In The Netherlands the prefix (only the first word in prefixes consisting of more than one word) is capitalized if it is the first element of the name in an utterance, if it is preceded by a first name or an initial it is not, hence: Mr. Van den Berg, The Van den Berg family, but John van den Berg and J. van den Berg. Should you hit upon a Belgian collection of records in your search for ancestors with a name with a Dutch appearance, there the names are sorted alphabetically by prefix and, especially in Francophone regions, are often written as one word.
speaking territory. Immigrants to North-America have commonly done this and it is also common to see the change in the spelling of Flemish surnames in family branches that have become Francophone or moved to French speaking areas in Belgium. In Frisian, by the way, the letter y is in common use, and the records of Friesland reflect this. In Afrikaans the y has completely replaced the ij in words and names of Dutch origin. So in North America a name like Van Duijvendijk may change to VanDuyvendyk and Van der Meijden becomes VanderMeyden.
Dutch prefixes The following prefixes may be encountered when researching Dutch last names: • aan, aan ‘t, aan de, aan den, aan der, aan het, aan t • bij, bij ‘t, bij de, bij den, bij het, bij t, boven d, boven d’ • d, d’, de, de die, de die le, de van der, den, der, die le • het • in, in ‘t, in de, in den, in der, in het, in t • onder, onder ‘t, onder de, onder den, onder het, onder t, op, op ‘t, op de, op den, op der, op gen, op het, op t, op ten, over, over ‘t, over de, over den, over het, over t • ‘s, s, s’ • ‘t, t, te, ten, ter, tho, thoe, to, toe, tot • uijt, uijt ‘t, uijt de, uijt den, uijt te de, uijt ten, uit, uit ‘t, uit de, uit den, uit het, uit t, uit te de, uit ten • van, van ‘t, van de, van de l, van de l’, van den, van der, van gen, van het, van la, van t, van ter, van van de, ver, voor, voor ‘t, voor de, voor den, voor in ‘t, voor in t
Non-Dutch prefixes
CALFLIER001
A
nother useful piece of knowledge when doing ancestry research relates to the spelling of the diphthong that loosely approximates the sound of i as in ice in standard Dutch (in many dialects it actually is pronounced exactly like the i in ice,). There are two different spellings for this diphthong, the first one is the letter-combination ei, and the second is spelled ij. Sometimes the two are combined to form eij. The ei combination poses no particular problems, but the ij does. Sometimes the ij is ranked as a separate letter and it is also occasionally found as a separate key on keyboards. When alphabetized it often appears where one would expect y, a letter which originally did not exist in Dutch orthography, except in loanwords from other languages. In the past the two were often used interchangeably and many Dutch people substitute a y for an ij in their last names when moving into non-Dutch January/February 2012
The following prefixes, which are not of Dutch origin, have entered the stock of Dutch last names over the years and may be encountered when doing research in Dutch archives. Although they are not of Dutch origin, they are treated the same way as Dutch prefixes in terms of name-formation, capitalization and sorting: • a, af, al, am, am de, auf, auf dem, auf den, auf der, auf ter, aus, aus ‘m, aus dem, aus den, aus der, aus m • ben, bin • da, dal, dal’, dalla, das, de l, de l’, de la, de las, de le, deca, degli, dei, del, della, di, des, do, don, dos, du • el • i, im • l, l’, la, las, le, les, lo, los • of • thor • unter • vom, von, von ‘t, von dem, von den, von der, von t, vor, vor der • zu, zum, zur DUTCH, the magazine - 27
Travel
Serene tranquility within the bustling city: the ‘Hofje van Bakenes’, Haarlem’s oldest courtyard, dating back to 1395
Picturesque Haarlem
a feast for the senses
W
Text by Paola Westbeek - Photographs by Hans Westbeek
hether you head there on a cultural excursion to one of the many museums or monuments, an indulgent shopping spree or an evening out at a fine restaurant, Haarlem is a picturesque Dutch city with a little something for everyone. Located just about fifteen minutes west of Amsterdam, it offers visitors plenty of old-world charm set in a lively historical environment. Before I take you on a virtual trip to the city’s bustling center, let’s travel back in time and take a quick look at the history of Haarlem. That way we can better understand how time has shaped it into the fascinating 28 - DUTCH, the magazine
place it is today. We first find mention of Haarloheim in property records from the St. Maartens Church in Utrecht dating back to the years 918 to 938. By the 12th century, Haarlem had become the seat of the counts of Holland and in 1245 it was granted town privileges by Count Willem II. Unfortunately, disaster struck in 1328, 1347 and 1351 when devastating fires roared through the city nearly burning it to the ground. But this wasn’t the only hard blow that came with the 14th century. In 1381, the Black Death was responsible for wiping out more than half of its population. Amazingly enough,
there was prosperous economic growth despite these catastrophes. Haarlem’s strategic location on the Spaarne river facilitated the success of the linen industry, beer breweries and shipyards. A period of downfall followed in the 15th century when Haarlem was besieged during the Hook and Cod Wars by the army of Jacqueline, the Countess of Hainaut, and in the 16th century with the invasion of the Spaniards during the Dutch Revolt. After several attempts by Prince William of Orange to free the city, it was finally forced to surrender in 1573. Not only had hunger and war ravaged January/February 2012
Haarlem, but in 1576 yet another fire had reduced it to ashes. Relief would come a year later when the Spanish left and the Agreement of Veere was signed temporarily giving Protestants and Catholics equal rights. Ultimately, Protestants got the upper hand and although Catholicism was officially forbidden, there were plenty of schuilkerken (hidden churches) where Catholics could practice their religion. Officials turned a blind eye to the practice of other faiths and it was in this (apparently) tolerant climate that Haarlem blossomed once again. A wave of immigration from Flemish and French citizens in search of religious freedom provided the city with a favorable injection of knowledge and expertise. In the 17th century, the textile industry received a much needed boost, beer breweries sprouted up all over the city, tulips were booming business and the population doubled. It was a Golden Age for Haarlem and the rest of the Dutch Republic. From a cultural standpoint, these were also successful times for well-known renaissance artists such as Frans Hals, Jacob van Ruisdael and Jan Steen, all of whom lived and worked in Haarlem. Great architectural accomplishments such as the Vleeshal (Meat Hall), the Waag (Weighing House) and many building facades were the work of Lieven de Key, the city’s appointed and much-respected architect.
I
n the 19th century, the textile trade suffered dramatically due to factors such as international competition and lack of innovative production methods, yet the arrival of the railway system in 1839 meant a positive influence on Haarlem’s economy. When one visits the city, it is as though this history vibrantly comes to life. Our journey begins with a wander through Haarlem Station, one of the oldest railway stations in The Netherlands. Not because we’ve come by train, but because the station itself is one of the many January/February 2012
Passengers wait for the next train amid the Art Nouveau splendor of Haarlem’s main railway station
monuments in the city which are well-worth exploring. The impressive building designed in Art Nouveau style by D.A.N. Margadant, was completed in 1908 and boasts plenty of elegant details in the form of colorful tile tableaus and monumental waiting rooms which are now being used to host special events. Heading south in the direction of the city center, we come across several art galleries and interesting antique shops. As an avid collector, I can’t help but marvel at the variety of interesting objects artfully dis-
played in the windows. I am especially fascinated by the amount of religious images and statues. Something which cannot be seen in the city’s biggest church, the Grote or Sint Bavokerk, which dominates the city’s center and imposingly towers over its main square. Work to construct the Gothic-style church started in the late 14th century and continued approximately over the next 150 years. The fact that the church goes by two names points to the changes that took place during the Reformation. Originally dedicated to Mary and later named after the DUTCH, the magazine - 29
The statue of Laurens Janszoon Coster, the supposed inventor of the printing press, is dwarfed by the 14th century Great, or St.Bavo Church
city’s patron saint, the church was transferred to Protestantism by the end of the 16th century. Surrounding this magnificent church on the Grote Markt, there are other sights certainly worth mentioning. The statue of Laurens Janszoon Coster, for example, which stands in the middle of
Step-gabled houses in the Museum Quarter 30 - DUTCH, the magazine
the square as a tribute to the man whom the Dutch believe to be the inventor of the printing press. It not only exudes allure and prestige, but it is also an example of Haarlem’s pride in one of its many famous citizens. Opposite the church you will find Lieven de Key’s Meat Hall, a beauty to behold with its ornament-
Teylers Museum, Holland’s oldest
ed crow-stepped gable. De Key’s distinctive style, officially known as Hollandse Maniërisme, (Dutch Mannerism) was very influential in Haarlem and is evident in many of the city’s buildings including the Weighing House and the north wing of the Stadhuis (City Hall). Leaving the main square and stroll-
The Weighing House, or ‘Waag’ January/February 2012
ing through some of the friendly side streets, we find all kinds of shops. From typical Dutch shops such as the Hema department store (their smoked sausage is phenomenal!) to sophisticated boutiques catering to the fashion-conscious. Gourmets and foodies can enjoy fine dining at one of the many wonderful restaurants, buy authentic Dutch cheese at Kaashuis Tromp located on Barteljoris Street or opt for the ultimate snack, one that hints back to the influence of the southern neighbors of the Dutch and one that Haarlem does very well, Vlaamse Friet (Flemish Fries, thickcut, fried potatoes with a dollop of mayonnaise)!
S
hopping and good food are not the only things we find in the center of Haarlem. Scattered all over the city, we come across Dutch hofjes (courtyards), hidden treasures consisting of beautifully kept courtyards surrounded by former almshouses. The oldest one is the Hofje van Bakenes which dates back to 1395 and is tucked away behind the canal houses on
Reflection of historic houses in the shop window of a Haarlem antiques store
Bakenesser Canal. Closing the front gate behind us and walking through the narrow entryway leading to the hofje, we escape the busy city in exchange for a quiet oasis. I can imagine it must be a pleasure to live here! Within less than a 10 minute walk from the center, our passion for art is indulged at museums such as the Frans Hals Museum which houses an impressive collection of Dutch Renaissance paintings or the Teylers
Museum, the oldest in The Netherlands, and home to a magnificent combination of art and science. It’s easy to see why a visit to Haarlem is both a feast for the senses and a gratifying cultural experience. There’s plenty to do, enjoy and discover. And should you crave getting back to nature after your city trip, there are dunes, forests and beaches less than 15 minutes away from Haarlem’s vibrant center!
Cheese, cheese and more cheese, Kaashuis Tromp on Barteljoris Street January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 31
Cooking
Winter is here...
time to warm the soul with savory soup and soothe the senses with sweet flavored milk Text and Photographs by Nicole Holten
W
inter is definitely here! All we have to do is take a look outside, and be grateful that we can be in a warm, cozy house with good food to eat and a fire to keep us warm. And what better way to celebrate our heritage than with some typical Dutch wintery foods? When it's cold in Holland and people go ice skating on the lakes and the canals, it is traditional that a small food shack called ‘koek en zopie’ sits next to or on the ice, selling hot split pea soup (erwtensoep), coffee, mulled wine and cookies. It's a great way to warm up for those who are tired and cold after a wonderful day on the ice, and even better for those who do not dare venture on the ice but still want to be part of the family outing. Split pea soup is an easy soup to make, and a very tradi32 - DUTCH, the magazine
tional Dutch one. The green, thick soup is full of goodness: carrots, celery, onion, kielbasa, bacon… Everybody has their preference, so it’s a perfect soup to make your own. A cup of hot, steamy split-pea soup is synonymous with cold weather, gezelligheid and an overall sense of Dutchness. The most famous brand of split pea soup, Unox, is also the sponsor of the annual New Year’s dip in the North Sea on January 1st: a Dutch tradition where people from all over the country gather on North Sea beaches to take a dive into the ice-cold waters to celebrate the start of the New Year. Many are dressed in little less than their summer swim-gear and the Unox bright orange woolen hat. A cup of hot soup is probably very welcome after such bravery! January/February 2012
Brabant Sausage Rolls (Worstenbroodjes) Ingredients for the rolls 2 cups of all-purpose flour ½ cup of warm milk, plus two tablespoons ¼ teaspoon of salt 1 teaspoon of active dry yeast 2 teaspoons of sugar 2 tablespoons of butter 1 egg
Ingredients for the filling 1 lb ground beef (preferably half beef, half pork) ½ cup of panko or breadcrumbs 1 egg ¼ teaspoon of pepper ½ teaspoon of kosher salt ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg 1 tablespoon of chopped parsley (optional)
Ingredients for the egg-wash 1 egg 2 tablespoons of water Activate the yeast by stirring it into the warm milk. In the meantime, mix the flour with the salt and the sugar. When the yeast has proofed which takes about five minutes (it's now all bubbly and smells great), add it to the flour and mix it in. Drizzle the melted butter on top, continue to mix and finally add in the egg. Mix briefly until it all comes together, then take it out of the bowl, and knead for about five to ten minutes by hand. Grease the bowl, add the dough, turn it over so it's coated, and cover. Let rise for approximately thirty minutes or until two-thirds larger in size. In the meantime, mix the ground meat with the spices, the breadcrumbs, the eggs and the milk. Cut off 2oz portions and roll into a small ball. Set aside while you do the rest. When they're all divided into 2 oz portions, carefully roll each ball out into a sausage shape, about five inches long. Cover. Carefully punch down the dough. Divide into 2 oz pieces and roll each piece into a ball. While you work on the rest, keep each one covered underneath a tea towel or plastic wrap, you don't want them to dry out. Now, with a rolling pin roll the dough into an elongated oval, slightly larger than five inches long. Place one sausage on top, fold over the short edges, pull over the long edge and carefully roll the sausage into the dough, pinching the seam. Place each sausage roll on some parchment paper on a baking sheet. Cover and let them rise at room temperature, for forty minutes to an hour. Preheat the oven to 375F. Brush the sausage rolls with the egg wash and bake for approximately twenty to thirty minutes.
Split Pea Soup (Erwtensoep) Ingredients 2 cups of split peas 5 cups of water 1 medium carrot, peeled 2 ribs of celery ½ an onion, peeled 1 bay leaf black pepper pinch of salt About 12 little smokies or half a kielbasa Rinse the split peas and remove anything that doesn't belong (stones, sticks, dried up discolored peas...). Put the peas and the water in a Dutch oven. Mince the vegetables and add to the peas. Bring to a boil, add the bay leaf and simmer for about 40 minutes. When the peas are soft, remove the bay leaf and either puree or just stir the soup several times, the peas will dissolve and give it a creamy consistence. Stir in the smokies or the kielbasa (slice before adding), heat until warm and taste. Add pepper and salt if needed. January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 33
Filled Almond Cookie (Gevulde koek) Ingredients for the dough 2¼ cup all-purpose flour ½ cup of sugar 1 scant teaspoon of baking powder pinch of salt 1 tablespoon of cold water 1¾ sticks of butter Ingredients for the filling 1 cup of almond paste* 2 tablespoons of sugar 1 egg white 2 tablespoons of water 1 teaspoon of almond essence Ingredients for brushing 1 egg yolk 1 tablespoon of milk 8 sliced or whole almonds Mix the dry ingredients and cut the butter into the dough, until it has the consistency of wet sand. Add a tablespoon of ice cold water and knead the dough into a cohesive whole, making sure all the butter is well mixed in. Pat into an oval, cover with plastic film and refrigerate while you make the paste.. Now crumble up the almond paste and beat it until foamy and thick with the rest of the ingredients. If you think it's too runny, add a tablespoon of flour, but not more. Set your oven to 350F and turn it on. Take the dough out of the fridge, cut it in half and roll one half out, to about one-eighth of an inch and cut out eight rounds. I use the canning ring for a wide mouth jar, it's approximately eight inches across. Roll the other half out and cut another eight rounds (or more of course!). Place one huge heaping teaspoon of almond paste mix in the middle of one cookie, place a second round on top and carefully seal the edges. You can do this with a fork or gently tapping it with your finger. When all are done, place them on a parchment lined baking sheet or on a silicone mat. Beat the egg yolk with the milk and brush the top of the cookies, then place an almond on top. Bake for about thirty minutes or until golden. Let them cool a little bit and enjoy this typical Dutch treat! *If you don't have access to canned almond paste, you can easily make your own by processing two cups of slivered raw almonds, adding a ½ cup of sugar and three tablespoons of water to make it into a thick paste. 34 - DUTCH, the magazine
T
his soup is usually best the day after it’s made, so it can sit overnight in the fridge and meld its flavors. Make sure your soup passes the ‘wooden spoon test’: your soup should be so thick that a spoon is able to stand upright in it. This also means that reheating the soup should be a slow and careful endeavor: it will burn easily because of its thick consistency, so be careful. Split peas do not have to be soaked in order to cook quickly so you can have this soup on the table in less than an hour. If you have more time, use the same ingredients but simmer the soup with a smoked ham hock, the soup will be so much richer and smokier for it, but little smokies and kielbasa will do in a pinch. Erwtensoep is traditionally served with dark rye bread and slices of bacon or pancetta. It’s a meal in itself but if you’re lacking rye bread, you can also serve it with worstenbroodjes, Dutch sausage rolls. Worstenbroodjes are a typical food from Brabant, one of the southern provinces. Brabant and Limburg are the more gastronomically exciting provinces of The Netherlands. Brabant is proud of its koffietafel (coffee table), a lunch or brunch served with a large variety of rolls, breads, toppings, meats, cheeses and jams and copious amounts of coffee and the Limburgers can boast about their many pies or vlaaien. Brabant is traditionally also the province that excelled in producing large amounts of pork, hence anything made with pork often received the adjective Brabants, meaning ‘from Brabant’, regardless of whether the product was made in Brabant or not. In this case, Brabant Sausage Rolls (worstenbroodjes) are indeed traditional to the area. Worstenbroodjes, unless mass-produced and for sale in supermarkets, are still made by local bakeries and considered a proof of craftsmanship. To sustain and uphold that tradition, the January/February 2012
Aniseed Milk (Anijsmelk) Ingredients
1 cup of milk 1 full teaspoon of aniseed 2 teaspoons of sugar or honey Warm the milk with the seeds. Bring to a slow boil, then turn down and simmer for five minutes. Pour the milk through a strainer, add sugar or honey to taste. Drink warm.
January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 35
The Dutch in Wartime Survivors Remember Book Series
‘The Dutch in Wartime: Survivors Remember’ is a series of books containing the wartime memories of Dutch immigrants to Canada and the USA, who survived Nazi occupation of the Netherlands from 1940 to 1945. Designed and written to be easily accessible to readers of all ages and backgrounds, these books contain important stories about the devastating effects of war and occupation on a civilian population. The stories have been collected into separate volumes, each covering a specific theme or subject. The first of these volumes (’Invasion’) was published in June of 2011, with a new volume appearing every quarter, thereafter. Readers can order single copies as they appear, or may subscribe to the series at a discount, thus securing the receipt of the latest book in the series every three months.
Suddenly the bombs started falling really close by, I can still see the wall of the restroom swaying back and forth. - Josine Eikelenboom in ‘Invasion’
The Dutch in Wartime: Survivors Remember Book Series
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January/February 2012
Omroep Brabant (Brabant Broadcasting Station) holds an annual provincial competition to see which bakery can claim to have the best worstenbroodje. But worstenbroodjes are not the only thing that bakers make. Another cold-weather favorite that is often sold in the ‘koek en zopie’ shacks are gevulde koeken, almond-paste filled cookies. Gevulde koeken are the Dutch equivalent of the American chocolate chip cookie: if there's only one cookie to be sold, this will be the one. A favorite of many, it is often associated with ice skating, afternoons drinking tea with friends and, in my particular case, with traveling by train. Practically each train station in The Netherlands has a small kiosk where you can buy cookies, magazines, coffee, and hot snacks. If the station is really small, most often you can still get a cup of coffee and a cookie. And if wherever you are getting on the train is so small you can't even find that, there will be a chance to buy a refreshment on the train. And I bet you that even that refreshment cart has gevulde koeken… The Dutch usually don't travel by train for just a hop, skip and a jump. Within the cities, you tend to travel by tram, bus, subway or bike. To reach other places, for example, if you want to go from Amsterdam to Maastricht, you would travel by train unless you had a car. This activity is usually paired with, sometimes undeserved, grumbling towards the Nederlandse Spoorwegen (Dutch Railroads). Not all trains run on time, all the time. Especially in winter train travelers are often confronted with delayed trains, missing connections or no trains at all.
B
ut back to the cookie. Gevulde koek, or filled cookie, is a crumbly, buttery, tender dough with an almond filling. The almond decorating the cookie is a real giveaway. First you taste the cookie, then a sweet, slightly moist almond filling hits you and it's just heavenly. Together with a hot cup of coffee (try Douwe Egberts sometime, a Dutch coffee brand and a national favorite), it is a combination that soothes travel irritations and ice cold feet, whether you're going anywhere or not. And speaking of ice cold feet… a nice warm beverage made with milk and aniseed is an old-fashioned Dutch ‘night-cap’. The warmth of the milk and the soothing qualities of aniseed on both the stomach and the spirit will make you want to curl up and snooze. Perfect for those early, cold winter nights when you can’t sleep! January/February 2012
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DUTCH, the magazine - 37
Language
Flatter and Fatter by Tom Bijvoet
F
latter and Fatter - the literal English translation sounds even better than the Dutch original Platter en Dikker - is the title of a recently published book by H.J.A. Hofland, a venerated Dutch columnist and commentator. In this book the eminence grise of Dutch journalism laments the decline of the west into hedonistic consumerism, the aggressive assertion of self and a global cultural accommodation to the basest of human instincts. The text is supported by beautifully voyeuristic photographs taken by Roel Visser: bling, belly fat, bare skin, piercings and tattoos abound in the photographs. Nothing extraordinary really, a similar book could have been produced in the United Kingdom, the USA or anywhere else in the western world. Set in a specifically Dutch context we are predominantly confirmed in our realization of how widespread the same imagery and the same behavioral patterns have become. The obese tattoo-covered biker on his Harley Davidson, the tank top clad slob in a Burger King, the heavily made up young woman getting a Botox injection, the blood-stained victim of a barroom brawl in the emergency ward, the emaciated aspiring fashion model and booze, lots and lots of it. Many Dutch people leafing through the book 38 - DUTCH, the magazine
would describe the depicted behavior and subcultures as plat or ordinair. It is often said that the Dutch word gezelligheid, a kind of down-home coziness exemplified by dimmed lighting, lots of trinkets and Persian rugs on tables cannot be translated into English. As with all words that are infused with cultural qualities in the source language translation has to become description. Plat and ordinair fall into that category of words. Ordinair, by the way, should not be translated as false friend ordinary, although Mr. Hofland essentially argues in his book that ordinair is becoming increasingly ordinary. So what are plat and ordinair? Well, in terms of cultural qualities, a good start is vulgar, although it does quite cover it. A quick dip into the thesaurus gives terms like unrefined, boorish, crude, tasteless and brash, all of which convey certain aspects of plat, but none of which definitively nail it. So let’s say that plat is best defined by imagining the photographs taken by Mr. Visser for Mr. Hofland’s book. It is an interesting reflection on Dutch culture that an untranslatable word like plat should exist. Despite inevitable assertions to the contrary, ‘we are an egalitarian, inclusive society’, The Netherlands is still very much a class conscious
country. It may have become politically incorrect to publicly say that certain behavior is plat (Mr. Hofland is sticking his neck out here, but he is no stranger to doing that), but no-one can stop you from thinking it. And yes, of course the term oozes cultural snobbery. As an adjective plat can be extended to other realms: humor in particular can be plat. Laughing about bodily functions, genitalia, flatulence and having fun at the misfortune of others, especially when the others hurt themselves is often called platte lol which translated literally means flat fun. Another term for the same phenomenon is the very suggestive word onderbroekenlol. Yes, indeed, that means underpants-fun.
T
he domain in which plat really comes into its own is language. If at the dinner table I used a local word or pronunciation that I had picked up during the afternoon playing outside with schoolmates in the town I was not native to, but did grow up in, my mother would say: “Do not talk ‘plat’”. Utterances like “Auntie Mary speaks a little ‘plat’, but what do you expect, with the company she keeps and never having left Tilburg!” were not uncommon. Plat – which should not be confused January/February 2012
with the German word Platt which applies to a continuum of regional dialects spoken in Northern Germany, that are closer to Dutch than to German - when applied to language is a very denigrating term. It expresses a ‘better than thou’ attitude that enshrines social differences and that makes it very hard to move up the social ladder. The way one spoke, plat or not, and then of course, what kind and what intensity of plat would pretty much determine the height of the glass ceiling. Plat was not an objective term. My plat could well be someone else’s normal and my normal could well be someone else’s plat. In a country like The Netherlands, and this is not different in most other European countries, someone’s pattern of speech immediately pigeonholes them socially and geographically. A particular linguistic norm, like RP, or Received Pronunciation in England, would set the ideal but often unattainable standard. The extent of deviation from that standard - which in The Netherlands is now neutrally referred to as Standaard Nederlands or Standard Dutch but which used to be called, not even that long ago, Algemeen Beschaafd Nederlands or General Civilized Dutch - defined one’s station in life. Breaking out of that predefined role required concerted effort. Anton Geesink, Judo gold medallist at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and later successful Dutch representative on the International Olympic Committee with some concerted effort altered his speech from the working class dialect of inner-city Utrecht, a variant that would be considered excruciatingly plat by the elite in the 1960s to something resembling standard Dutch. But he never sounded natural again, having been forced by societal norms to drop his native language variant. Somehow his speech remained stilted. City dialects like those of Utrecht, The Hague, Amsterdam and Rotterdam, but also those of regional centers such as Leeuwarden and Tilburg would be considered the ultimate of plat. Country dialects would be more likely to deserve the label boers (or farmerish) not much better, given that boers when applied to behavior takes us right back into the realm of ‘crude, boorish’ again. One January/February 2012
could just get away with a slight smattering of a rural regional dialect as long as overall speech patterns conformed to the national norm, but even the tiniest trace of a city dialect would condemn you to be viewed as forever not OSM, another one of those class-ridden terms used in Holland, acronym for Ons Soort Mensen, or Our Type of People. It has often been noted that among the larger immigrant groups that arrived in Canada, the USA and Australia in the last sixty years, the Dutch seem to have been the first and fastest to lose their native language. It has been suggested that an important reason for that was to get away from the social stereotyping inherent in the evaluation of each other’s speech. In English everyone had a Dutch accent and noone spoke plat, opening up new vistas of social opportunity for people who had been restricted by language in the old country, although a careful listener can occasionally still pick up a Brabant, Amsterdam or Friesland substrate in the accented English of a Dutch immigrant.
O
f course every image has its counterpart and the common term for the inverse of plat is kak (yes, it means what it sounds like, poop), a derogatory term for affected or stuck up. Kak can be intensified by adding one of two alliterating adjectives, giving kouwe kak (cold poop) or kale kak (bare poop). So if I consider you plat, you probably consider me kak. But that is all a thing of the past now, isn’t it? Regional and class accents can be heard regularly on Dutch television and radio. But actually something more interesting and more inclusive has been happening over the past twenty or thirty years. A brand new variant, an amalgam of city accents from the west of The Netherlands has developed. It contains some sounds that grate on the ear of the native speaker of Standard Dutch – funny how innocent little sounds can take on so much sociolinguistic baggage, especially considering that a sound which may be the pinnacle of plat in Dutch could well be the ultimate in sophistication in say Danish, or Tagalog. This new variant is called Poldernederlands, or Dutch of the polder, the lands
reclaimed from the sea, where new settlers have thrown their regional peculiarities into a melting pot and where a happy melding of dialects could take place. But let’s make no bones about it, the polder is the flattest land in all of flat Holland. And Polder Dutch is definitely plat, as plat as the land that has given it its name. Linguists started noticing the variant a few decades ago, predominantly among college-educated professional women, often from a lower middle class background, commonly involved in the social or artistic sectors. I remember almost to the day when I first heard Polder Dutch, although it had not been named at the time and had yet not been recognized as a new variant. It was in the summer of 1979, when I was out camping with my parents and we had been joined by our relatives, including my twenty-year old cousin, who at the time went to a college, training to become a social worker and would not have been out-of-place in Hofland’s book in her skimpy, bulging bikini. We did not see that branch of the family often and after my cousin had uttered a few words I immediately noted that she spoke what my mother would call plat. Certain linguists believe that Polder Dutch is evolving into the new norm. And in that it probably mirrors and also confirms Hofland’s contention that the cultural behavior of the groups he has been observing are becoming the new standard. He explains it as a gradual erosion of societal norms, initiated by the rift in the flow of history formed by the Second World War. I wonder… is the development of a new language variant and a set of new norms of behavior more something that has been spawned by the trend towards democratization and equality. A society where your choice of dress, hairstyle and accessories, the way you pronounce your words and even how you choose to behave in public can no longer be described in terms of plat and kak, but are predominantly just simply human, with all the associated connotations, both positive and negative… Maybe, but Hofland’s book by the very nature of its publication proves one more thing: we are not quite there yet, not in Holland. DUTCH, the magazine - 39
Epitaph
Andy Tielman
Rock ‘n’ Roll pioneer Andy Tielman, the King of Indo-Rock, died on November 10, aged 75.
T
he Dutch music establishment shook on its foundations when the Tielman Brothers first performed a set on Holland’s single national television channel on January 23rd 1960. Scathing reviews followed the broadcast and one of the country’s most influential television presenters and music critics called it “music for wild monkeys from Borneo” – an unbelievably crude comment, even for that era. The Tielman brothers’ crime: exhilarating rock ‘n’ roll music accompanied by a hugely energetic stage show. The four Tielman brothers, Reggy, Ponthon, Andy, Loulou and their sister Jane, started their musical career in post-war Indonesia in 1945 as the Timor Rhythm Brothers. They had inherited their musical talent from their father, Herman, who had been a captain in the Andy performing with his band in 2009 Royal Dutch Indies Army, had survived incarceration in a Japanese POW-camp and who often joined his talented where they played night clubs, mainly in towns with Americhildren on stage. The Tielmans created a personal style that can Army bases. They drew large crowds. Legend has it that was based partially in kronchong - a hybrid musical form George Harrison and Paul McCartney saw them perform in that originally developed from the interaction between folk Hamburg and borrowed some of their stage act for their own songs brought by early Portuguese traders and the traditional Beatles performances. gamelan music of Indonesia - and jazz, country and early rock So in 1960 they exploded onto the conservative Dutch scene, ‘n’ roll heard on Australian radio stations. to the dismay of the music establishment, with their own The band first performed at private parties and for Dutch brand of music, which was much later dubbed ‘Indo-Rock’, a soldiers, who were stationed in the archipelago during the guitar based, usually instrumental style comparable to the Indonesian War of Independence from 1946 to 1949. After inmusic made by The Ventures and The Shadows in the same dependence in 1949 their success continued, leading to the era. ultimate accolade: a private gig for president Sukarno in one In 1963, when Andy broke his arm in eight places in a serious of his palaces. car accident, a tougher time started for the band. Ponthon left, For Eurasians (‘Indos’ in Dutch Indies parlance) like the TielRock ‘n’ Roll was replaced by the new beat-music from Engmans - their father was of Indonesian, their mother of German land and the line-up of Andy ‘s band seemed to change on a descent - life in Indonesia became increasingly uncertain and monthly basis. In 1967 Andy and his band reached a surprise dangerous, especially when The Netherlands and Indonesia number 7 in the Dutch charts, with a schmaltzy song titled came into conflict over the future of New-Guinea in 1957. The ‘Little Bird’ to the tune of a traditional Dutch children’s song. Tielmans were among 300,000 Indos who moved to The NethIn the 1970s and 1980s Andy all but disappeared off the erlands and they settled in Breda with a scanty set of belongscene. He spent two years meditating in the Indonesian Junings. The boys played the Everly Brothers’ classic Bye Bye Love gle, lived in Australia for five years and played solo concerts in a local music store and the owner, duly impressed, agreed to along the Pacific Rim. Back in The Netherlands in the 1990s sell them a full set of high-end instruments on credit. Andy Tielman finally got the recognition he deserved as Rock Their big break came when they played at Expo ’58 in Brus‘n’ Roll pioneer and the absolute King of Indo-Rock. Andy ensels, where they were an immediate hit with their wild rock ‘n’ joyed a very successful come-back with sold-out concerts and roll show, which included playing guitars with their toes and successful new records. In 2005 he was awarded a Knighthood teeth, running around the drum set, throwing instruments in in the Order of Orange-Nassau. the air and lying under the double bass, which still featured in In 2009 Andy got kidney-cancer, a disease to which he would the line-up, a throwback to early jazz influences. succumb two years later. After a career spanning 66 years, he By now Andy on guitar and vocals had become the clear gave his final concert in May 2011 to a sell-out crowd in the leader of the band. A period of successful touring and recordBintang Theatre in The Hague during the annual Tong Tong ing started. In 1958 the band, now known as The Four Tielman Fair, or Pasar Malam Besar. Brothers released the very first Dutch Rock ‘n’ Roll record, Rock Andy Tielman died on November 10, 2011, he was 75 years little baby of mine. They were wildly successful in Germany old. 40 - DUTCH, the magazine
January/February 2012
Place
Maastricht’s Jeker Quarter a tranquil village within the city
I
Flavio Ensiki
n the deep deep south of The Netherlands lies Maastricht, the capital of the province of Limburg. With its uneven terrain, its Gallic joie de vivre and its German sounding dialect it is the least Dutch of Dutch cities. Maastricht’s History and Geography explain why this ancient city, which claims uninterrupted inhabitation since Roman times (the name derives from the Latin Mosae Trajectum, ford on the Maas River) is such a popular destination for Dutch people who want to feel like they’re abroad without leaving the country. Having been occupied or besieged by Germans, French, Spanish and Belgians it was not until 1839 that the Treaty of London permanently assigned the city to The Netherlands. It is closer to two and until the end of the Cold War three foreign capitals (Brussels, Luxemburg and former West-German capital Bonn are all less than 100 miles away) than it is to Amsterdam. At the edge of the historic center of Maastricht lies a district with narrow cobblestoned streets laid out in a typically haphazard medieval street plan, the Jeker Quarter (Jekerkwartier in Dutch and Jekerkerteer in the local dialect). The houses in the district can mostly be dated to the 17th and 18th centuries, but were commonly erected on preexisting medieval foundations, which explains the street plan and the feeling that one gets of having stepped into a different era when taking a quiet walk through the area.
sign ry street a s s e c e n gly un ring A seemin hicles from ente arter e v Qu s prohibit reet in the Jeker t s a narrow January/February 2012
Strolling underneath retro street lights and by the art galleries, antiques shops and restaurants serving up regional dishes, the district is a great escape from hectic city life a few short blocks over. The Jeker quarter is almost like a village within the city. It is often referred to as the Latin Quarter of Maastricht, because of the large number of buildings that are in use by the local university and several colleges. The old city fortifications, including a wall dating to the middle ages, traverse the area, as does the Jeker river, which gives the district its name. The banks of the Jeker boast a number of old water-powered mills, one of which is shown on the front cover, which used the hydro energy produced by the fast flowing tributary of the Maas for paper and leather production. The mills were decommissioned in the 1950s and now serve as stately monuments to a bygone era when the Jeker abounded with fish and formed the economic life blood of towns and villages in its valley. The fish have disappeared, just about, but serious plans are underway to restore the river to its old glory and repopulate it. Maybe renewable micro-power generation could be in its future too, allowing the Jeker Quarter not only to be a quaint haunt for students, tourists and gastronomes, but to contribute its own little bit to the sustainable economic well-being of The Netherlands’ least Dutch city.
Hell’s ga te (Helle p a remna nt of Ma oort), astricht’ medieva s l fortific ations DUTCH, the magazine - 41
Poetry
Dull violet is the west Dull violet is the west and purplish gray. Still I walk through the frosted white-rimed grass, And beside me hear the sound of ice skates pass Scratching the rumbling, solid waterway. It feels like I myself on the frozen glass, My torso flexing , floating above the fray, Artfully swerving, circling, gently sway: My back feels like I skate on the icy mass. Thus, I hope that along whose soul my poems slide, Rocking, alone, in pairs, or long lines glide, To rhyme and rhythm of Dutch iron’s tongue, That he himself hears the wind, which bore me, blow, Feels the meandering, finely weaving flow Of his own mood and temper in my song. - J.A. dèr Mouw (1863 - 1919) 42 - DUTCH, the magazine
January/February 2012
Off the shelf
Book Browsing
Paola Westbeek
Dutch Delight: Typical Dutch Food Sylvia Pessireron with photography by Jurjen Drenth and friends
Delectably written and filled with mouth watering traditional Dutch recipes, Dutch Delight is a culinary must-have for those who want to familiarize themselves with the kitchen of The Netherlands and the food habits of its people. More than a cookbook, it offers readers a nostalgic trip back to the land of kaas and pannenkoeken. You’ll find recipes and explanations for classics such as red cabbage with apples, stamppot with kale, vlaflip and pea soup. With beautiful photography and fun illustrations, this brilliant cookbook is the perfect gift or souvenir for anyone interested in Dutch food culture. It’s delicious proof that there is such a thing as a Dutch cuisine!
N&L Publishing, 2005
A Day on Skates: The Story of a Dutch Picnic Hilda van Stockum
It’s not only the perfect book to read to your children (or yourself ) on a cold winter’s evening, it’s also a lively narrative of icy canals, friendship and the pleasures of childhood in The Netherlands. Engagingly written by Hilda van Stockum and first published in 1935, A Day on Skates tells the tale of brother and sister Evert and Afke who spend the day skating with their teacher and classmates on the frozen canals of Friesland. The book is divided into six short chapters and includes valuable life lessons in between its captivating words and charming illustrations depicting nostalgic Dutch winters. A Day on Skates is an endearing way for parents to share a little bit of Dutch culture with their children and a story guaranteed to warm your heart like a plate of poffertjes after some time out on the ice.
Bethlehem Books, 1935 (Commemorative Edition, 2007)
Tulipomania: The Story of the World’s Most Coveted Flower and the Extraordinary Passions it Aroused Mike Dash
Tulips are one of the best-known symbols of The Netherlands. Visit in the springtime and you’ll see them in all their vivid glory, brightly adding color to the Dutch landscape, or sitting in a pretty vase adorning Dutch homes. A common flower today, but in the 1630s, an item of unprecedented luxury sold at astonishing prices. It was during this time that tulipomania raged through the country causing an outburst of madness among people of all classes, from the wealthiest of merchants to farmers even. By February 1637, the market suddenly collapsed, bursting the financial bubble and leaving behind widespread economic devastation. In Tulipomania, historian Mike Dash brilliantly brings this story to life, from the flower’s origins in Central Asia to its crash and aftermath in the Dutch Republic. Dash’s fascinating account reads like a novel, showing us how an obsession can easily wreak havoc on society. Ultimately, it’s more than an entertaining historical account. It’s also a tale of extremes with perhaps a message of caution, especially applicable in our own uncertain economic times.
Broadway, 2001 January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 43
n Brian Bramso______________________ __
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Well, here I am
44 - DUTCH, the magazine
January/February 2012
Brian Bramson - An Englishman abroad
And while I’m on the subject of the Dutch business ‘e level-headed lot, nvironment’, I’m these cloggies se surprised that for em so easily mot think they are) by such a iv ated (or maybe it’s cheap giveaway just that their boss s. They’re all co prizes ‘in recogn es nstantly awarding ition’ of this or ‘w each other pointle ith appreciation fo of them without a r ss th e effort’ of that. Th row of executive ere’s not a man-ja toys and ornamen never seen such ck ts proudly displa a collection of sh yed on his desk. ields, banners, fra perweights and lit Yo u’ ve med certificates, tle flags on little digital clocks, na flagpoles. I presum less than giving ff pae this costs the co anybody a bonus. mpany considerab ly Anyway, all I real ly meant to say was would you pl accommodation ease book me an for next week. Lo other week’s trave oks like this assi Cheers, l and gnment could go on for a while. Brian p.s. That little red
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Brian Bramson Senior Consultant Acme Business Systems
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Disclaimer This message (in cluding any attac hments) is confide recipient, you sh ntial and may be ould not disclose legally privileged , copy or use any . If you are not the the e-mail and an part of it. If you ha intended y attachments im ve received this me e-mail in error, ple diately and notify co.uk. the Acme Busines ase delete s Systems Ltd he lpdesk at support @abs. Whilst all reasona ble care has been taken to avoid the to ensure that the transmission of vir opening or other uses, it is your res use of this mess ponsibility as rec Acme Business age and any attac ipient Systems accepts hments will not ad no responsibility for ve rse ly affect your syste out such virus an damage caused ms. d other checks as by viruses and yo you consider appro u should, therefore priate. , carry
January/February 2012
DUTCH, the magazine - 45
iikg
Fun and Games
t
Rebus
Hints: A pastime with a Dutch accent, poetry in motion, no cooler needed. An inventive young lady from Kudelstaart Could change bodily functions into an art. Through her diet of scallions, Beans, peas and green onions She could produce a sonata by Mozart.
Submitted by Herman Schut of Burlington, Ontario (There’s always one... we do commend Mr. Schut for not going for the ‘obvious’ rhyme ed.)
Match the words Match the Dutch word on the left with its English translation on the right.
Plat Level Dubbeltje Roof Dak Frying Pan Egaal Plain Gelijk Dime Vlakte Flat Pannenkoek Apartment Koekenpan Smooth Flat Equal Waterpas Pancake
Send us a limerick with a Dutch place name at the end of the first line. We will publish the most original ones.
Answers to all quizzes on page 4
Who?
What?
Where?
• I was the architect of the large scale land reclamation project known as the Zuiderzee works. • I was governor of Surinam. • In Amsterdam a railway station bears my name. • The capital of Holland’s newest province is named in honor of me.
• I transform curved objects to become flat. • I distort objects at the edges, but am pretty accurate in the middle. • I helped seafarers navigate with much more ease. • I was first presented to the public in 1569.
• In the past I was called Midwout on occasion. • I am located within the New York Borough of Brooklyn. • The Erasmus Hall High School is within my boundaries. • Our reformed church is one of the oldest in North America.
Who am I? What am I? Where am I? Theme for this issue: Flat.
The Dutch Judge
46 - DUTCH, the magazine
Jesse van Muylwijck
January/February 2012
Come
Dance
in Beautiful Penticton, British Columbia fternoon
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DUTCH, the magazine - 47 - pentictonschoolofdance@gmail.com - www.pentictondance.com
48 - DUTCH, the magazine
January/February 2012