Hints to help trace Dutch ancestors
Naming customs
Our Dutch ancestors used a patronymic naming system, where a name such as "Cornelissen" simply means "son of Cornelis". Sometimes suffixes were used: a son’s second name often ended in -sz, -szen, or -sen (meaning "son of"), while a daughter's second name ended in -s, -sz, -dr or -dochter (meaning “daughter of”). Therefore, the children of a couple named Herman and Ethel may be known as Ruth Hermans and Louis Hermans in early New Netherland history.
Family surnames, as we know them today, started appearing in the mid-1600’s, but when the British took control of New Netherland (now known as New York) in 1664, they made family surnames mandatory. The surnames of early Dutch immigrants often referenced the town where they came from or some geographical description of where they came from. In the prior example, the children of Herman and Ethel might be Ruth Hermans von Fairlawn and Louis Hermans von Fairlawn. Or alternatively, Ruth Hermans von Pittsburgh and Louis Hermans von Pittsburgh. Often, the "von" was dropped somewhere down the line.
Naming patterns for children were followed more often than not.
First son: Named after the paternal grandfather.
First daughter: Named after the maternal grandmother.
Second son: Named after the maternal grandfather.
Second daughter: Named after the paternal grandmother.
Subsequent children: Often named after aunts and uncles
Death of a young child: A new sibling was often named after its deceased sibling of the same gender
Women typically retained their (family) maiden surnames throughout their lives and are recorded as such on probate records, church records, etc. CAVEAT: Before the 1664 in New Amsterdam, family names were not always used for women or men. A woman might just be known as “Elisabeth Jansz”, meaning “Elisabeth daughter of Jan” and now you need to figure out which Jan fathered her.
RECORDKEEPING
The colonial Dutch did not normally record birth dates, but the baptismal records are plentiful including the sponsors, who were typically close family members. Since they baptized shortly after birth, one can assume the birth year is usually the same as the baptism year if the actual birthday is unavailable.
Sometimes marriage dates are available but often only the marriage ban was recorded. These were public announcements of an impending marriage, read from the pulpit or posted on the local church door for a few consecutive weeks. This Dutch colonial custom allowed the community to identify legal impediments,D such as bigamy, underage consent, or incestuous relationships. Since marriage followed shortly after the announcement, when the marriage date is not recorded, we’ll assume the bann year is the same as the wedding year in most cases.
Dutch women had a lot more rights before the English took over in 1664. Wills, legal documents, business contracts, and probate documents may reference a female ancestor. Estate property was typically divided among all children equally, regardless of gender or birth order. If one child decided to move a great distance away, it is possible, but not necessarily likely, that he or she received an early inheritance, which would explain why that child was not mentioned in estate documents.
PROBLEMS WITH MISSING DOCUMENTS
In 1911, the New York State Capitol fire in Albany destroyed documents from the early Dutch in New Netherland. Many original records, especially the Register of Provincial Secretary (1638-1642) volumes 2 and 3, and records related to the Dutch West India Company's administration, are permanently missing.
There is some information still available (albeit not all is online, indexed or translated to English) – see the New York State Archives website for more information.
Prior to the English taking over in 1664, local churches maintained their own records, primarily baptism, marriage and records. Fortunately, many original church registers were copied, transcribed, and published by historical organizations in the late 19th and early 20th centuries (most notably by the Holland Society of New York). That said, there are intermittent losses spanning the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries due to fires, water damage, ink fading over time, or relocations and turnovers of a congregation.
