Family names 1811
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Family names became compulsory in 1811. All heads of the household had to have their chosen name registered at the town hall. This was a huge change, especially in the north and in the east of the Netherlands where many people had never used a family name.

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As many people were unable to read or write and national spelling rules did not exist, many names were incorrectly recorded in the deeds. This caused different spelling variations within the same family, e.g. Smit, Smid, De Smid, etc.

Almost all Registers of family names have been retained, except those from the islands, Het Bildt, Menaldumadeel and Leeuwarden.

Click in the searchresult at "Afbeelding" to see the scan of the original certificate.