Netherlandic language research

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Chapter Eleven
Onomastics

In the series Nomina Geographica Neerlandica (N.G.N.) we find the results of the study of geographical names, which began, in the Northern Netherlands, in the last quarter of the 19th century. The volumes of this series have been appearing since 1884 at irregular intervals, with an alarmingly long pause between numbers V and VI. The first five volumes contain chiefly collections of historical material, from VI onward we also find, in addition to these lists of names, more in the way of detailed studies. An index to vols I-X was compiled by Miss Ida Habermehl (Leyden, 1938); XII contains an index to vols XI and XII, compiled by Miss Leyt H. van Vessem (Leyden, 1948). In 1954 the XIVth and last volume appeared. The VIth, VIIIth and following volumes each contained reviews, by M. Schönfeld, of recent publications, in the XIIIth this was done by A. Weijnen for the Northern and by A. van Loey for the Southern geographical names.

In Flemish Belgium, place name research started later than in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, but it has been carried out more systematically and intensively. The monumental Woordenboek der toponymie van Westelijk Vlaanderen (18 volumes, Ghent-Bruges, 1914-1938) by K. de Flou has no counterpart in the North. An onomastic scholar of great merit, whose activities cover a long period, is Jan Lindemans. Eigen Schoon, the periodical he founded in 1911, later merged with De Brabander to Eigen Schoon en de Brabander, contains many articles from his hand. A survey of his achievements was given in the Album Dr Jan Lindemans (Brussels, 1951), which has essays, not confined to onomastics, by several scholars.

It was H.J. van de Wijer who first established a toponymical centre in Louvain, and who in 1925 was also responsible for the founding of the ‘Vlaamse Toponymische Vereniging’. Later on, as onomastic research broadened its scope, this Vereniging changed its name to ‘Vereniging voor Naamkunde te Leuven’. Its Mededelingen van de Vereniging voor Naamkunde te Leuven appear regularly, and since the 26th volume (1950) have been published in association with the ‘Commissie voor Naamkunde’ in Amsterdam. In the Northern

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Netherlands, onomastic studies had acquired a modest form of central organization with the establishment of a ‘Commissie voor Naamkunde’ in the Royal Academy of Sciences in Amsterdam, of which committee M. Schönfeld was the first chairman. In Belgium, the Government had recognized and promoted toponymic research by the institution of the ‘Koninklijke Commissie voor Toponymie en Dialectologie’ mentioned in the preceding chapter.

One of the first results of the work done by the Northern committee for onomastics was M. Schönfeld's Veldnamen in Nederland (Amsterdam, 1949; 2nd revised and enlarged edition 1950). It was followed by Nederlandse waternamen (mainly about names relating to water in the Netherlands; Amsterdam, 1955), in which the great variety of names in this country, so rich in water, is treated thoroughly and critically, with very readable results. The ‘Commissie voor Naamkunde’, like the ‘Dialectencommissie’, regularly organizes ‘symposia’, where two speakers review the same subject or related subjects; these lectures, with the resulting discussions, are published in the Bijdragen en Mededelingen of the committee.

Other publications in book form (to which we have restricted ourselves here) are W. de Vries' Drentse plaatsnamen (Assen, 1945) and Groninger plaatsnamen (Groningen, 1946), of which the latter is the better work. G. Karsten is the author of Noordhollandse Plaatsnamen (Amsterdam, 1951). Farm names are the subject of a rather popular but scholarly work by Vinc. van Wijk, Boerderijnamen (2nd edition, Leyden, 1948).

A first attempt at composing a general review of toponyms in the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Wat zeggen onze aardrijkskundige namen? (Assen, 1954) by G.J. Uitman, was not very satisfactory. H.J. Moerman's Nederlandse plaatsnamen: een overzicht (Leyden, 1956) is better, but it, too, has serious shortcomings.

The list of onomastic books in Belgium is much longer. We might begin with J. Mansion's critical and useful work De voornaamste bestanddelen der Vlaamsche plaatsnamen (The Hague, 1935), and J. Lindeman's short handbook Plaatsnamen, een inleidende studie (2nd edition, Brussels, 1925). Mansion's Oud-Gentsche Naamkunde, of great value for the study of Old Netherlandic, was referred to in Chapter III. A. Carnoy studied the Origines des noms de lieux des environs de Bruxelles (Brussels, 1927), and later edited a general work on Belgian placenames, Walloon as well as Flemish, the Diction-

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naire étymologique des noms des communes de Belgique (2 vols, Louvain, 1939-40). This book provoked a good deal of criticism, especially the part dealing with Walloon names. Virtually a revised and recast edition of the Dictionnaire is Carnoy's following comprehensive work, Origines des noms de communes de Belgique, y compris les noms des rivières et principaux hameaux (2 vols, Louvain, 1948-49), introduced by some noteworthy ‘considérations générales’. Carnoy is steadily going on with his toponymic research, and does not restrict himself to Netherlandic or Germanic. He has written articles on tree-names for several periodicals.

As specimens of toponymic research in confined areas we ought to mention A. (C.H.) van Loey's Studie over de Nederlandsche plaatsnamen in de gemeenten Elsene en Ukkel (Louvain, 1931). When a professor at Brussels University, van Loey founded a ‘Seminarie voor germaanse toponymie’, which, though of more modest scope than the Louvain institute, may be looked upon as an important centre of toponymic studies. Of the immensely large number of J. Lindemans' publications we might mention his Toponymie van Opwijk (Louvain-Brussels, 1930) and Toponymie van Asse (Tongres, 1952). Another recent work in this style, exhaustively treating local toponymy, is the Toponymie van Oudenburg by M. Gysseling (The Hague, 1950), who goes his own way as regards methods and criticism. Some years before, there appeared, in the same series (Nomina Geographica Flandrica, Monographieën), the monograph by J. Helsen, Toponymie van Noorderwijk (Brussels, 1944), in which was included a sketch of the vowel system of the village. Such a sketch also appeared in Richard Billiet's Toponymie van Herne (Ghent, 1955).

It is impossible to give more than a very general survey of onomastic publications in Flemish Belgium, even if we were to restrict ourselves to full-scale books and monographs. To select from the very large number of shorter articles would be quite impracticable. It is fundamental to toponymical research that it is concerned with details and, in order to be fair, we should mention either all the results or none at all. To draw attention to particular articles would be to imply that those not mentioned were inferior. This book no more aims at providing a complete bibliography of onomastics than it does for other linguistic branches.

An excellent survey of toponymic activities in Flemish Belgium from the beginning of the 20th century up to 1927 was given by

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H.J. van de Wijer in his Bibliographie van de Vlaamsche plaatsnaamkunde (Brussels, 1928). Since 1930 van de Wijer regularly reviewed publications of the preceding year in the Handelingen van de Koninklijke Commissie voor Toponymie en Dialectologie, of recent years he has had the collaboration of H. Draye and K. Roelandts. These reviews are also published separately as Bijlagen to the Mededelingen. Draye himself, in his essay Twintig jaar toponymisch onderzoek in Vlaanderen, a contribution to the Feestbundel H.J. van de Wijer (Louvain, 1944) I, 61 ff, continued the line of van de Wijer's bibliography up to 1943. The bibliographical notices in N.G.N. have already been mentioned. The Mededelingen van de Vereniging voor Naamkunde te Leuven also review recent onomastic publications, including those outside Belgium and the Netherlands.

In contrast with the great activity shown in the field of geographical names, the systematic research of family and christian names for quite a long time was carried out on a very modest scale, in spite of the steadily growing interest, not only among the higher social classes, in genealogical investigations. It is true, anthroponyms were treated occasionally, for example in several articles by J. Lindemans, and the number of special studies on this subject has been increasing in the last two decades; but we have to go back as far as the eighties of the 19th century for a comprehensive book on family names. J. Winkler's De Nederlandsche geslachtsnamen in oorsprong, geschiedenis en beteekenis (Haarlem, 1885), though to some extent out of date, is still the standard work on Netherlandic family names. More recent books, such as G.J. Uitman, Hoe komen wij aan onze namen? (Amsterdam, 1941), which also discusses christian names, A.E.H. Swaen, Nederlandsche Geslachtsnamen (Zutfen, 1942), and P.J. Meertens, De betekenis van de Nederlandse familienamen (2nd edition, Naarden, 1944), the most original of the three, are based on Winkler's principles, and take most of their examples from him. Honoris causa, we must mention another book by Winkler, Studiën in Nederlandsche namenkunde (Haarlem, 1900), a collection of miscellaneous studies. Meertens also wrote a little book on Zeeuwse familienamen (Naarden, 1947).

J.J. Graaf's Nederlandsche doopnamen naar oorsprong en gebruik (Bussum, 1915) was chiefly written as a guide for Roman Catholics in naming their children. Similar in aim was Onze voornamen by J.A. Meyers and J.C. Luitingh (3rd ed., Amsterdam, 1959), a list of

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christian names current in Holland and accepted there by the registrars. It has an introduction containing some particulars about names and name-giving in general. The two books by A. Huizinga, Encyclopedie van Namen, about family names, and Encyclopedie van Voornamen (both Amsterdam, n.d.) have little or no scholarly value. A first attempt at a really historical treatment of anthroponyms in Holland is that by J. van der Schaar, Uit de wordingsgeschiedenis der Hollandse doop- en familienamen (Assen, 1953), of which two parts appeared in one volume. Part three is to contain an index of names with commentary.

In Flemish Belgium a growing interest in anthroponyms is manifesting itself in the recent publications of the Louvain onomastic centre. Since 1941, K. Roelandts has written bibliographical reviews of research on personal names in the Bijlagen to the above-mentioned Mededelingen (also published in Handelingen van de Koninklijke Commissie voor Toponymie en Dialectologie). In 1947 the same centre started a separate series, Anthroponymica, made up of special studies in anthroponymics.

After the second World War, the well equipped and excellently organized Louvain institute developed into an International Centre for Onomastics. Since 1950, the International Centre has been publishing a bibliographical information bulletin called Onoma.