DutchClick

No, I am not talking the rock band… Freddie is dead :-( , so there is no Queen anymore.

Yesterday I have been shopping for presents for the little daughter of my best friend. While checking some little things, I saw some things that didn’t ring a bell and I went on.

While moving a meter away I saw a hair stye that I did recognize, even from behind. But I could not directly place it. The head did turn around and a friendly smile met my eyes. I couldn’t believe it, but the eyes belonged to the Queen of The Netherlands: Beatrix.

I am not a fanatic royalist, but I am happy to live in a country where it is possible that the queen can go to a shop and buy things for her grandchildren and that she does that too!

Good for You, Bea!! ;-D

Just thinking about when I will be able to go to Suriname, where my roots are. It is a matter of time, money and available company, but really want to go there as soon as possible.

Surinam is told to be still one of the most beautiful countries in South America. I want to see the spots where my grandfather could have walked.

I really want to go there….

Looking for your Surinam roots too? Go here: Stichting voor Surinaamse Genealogie - Dutch only

[If you are here for Liza, go here! ;-) ]

I have nothing against tattoos, piercings or whatever body modifications. Some can even beautiful or interesting.

The last time I stumble across more and more people (mostly young girls) that have a name a sort of caligraphed in elegant letters in the lower part of the neck, say between neck and throat.

I can’t help thinking that these girls may not be putting these tattoos voluntary.

To me they look like a modern brand.

As a descendant of Surinam slaves, this makes me a bit sad. Yes, it really does!

As a (straight line) white coloured decendant of black slaves in Suriname, I have been very interrested in ‘black’ news the last years.
But after reading this article about Anibo, an artificial language for African Americans (Afams) I didn’t know what to think. Is this good? Is this bad?
I still don’t know…
A work of art? Creating a new language to honour abducted slaves? Second Print dictionary? Lot’s of questions arise…
To be continued?

Oh yes, we’re talking the same dictionary where it all started with. About most dictionaries you don’t hear a word, but this one… ;)

While standing up this morning I heard about a group of people (seems to be the ‘Stichting Eer en Herstel Betalingen van Slachtoffers van de Slavernij in Suriname’?) that is complaining about a word or words in this ‘new’ Srananongo-Dutch dictionary. They were talking about the word ‘nikker’ (nigger) in it (it would be racist), different from ‘neger. They had a lawsuit before (about this ‘neger’), against the most authorative dictionary in The Netherlands, ‘De Grote Van Dale’.
To my opinion it is! But shouldn’t a dictionary give contemporary and historic meanings of words? Ofcourse it depends on the intention of the editors, I think. In this case it seems to be a bad/black, but historic page. They want it out….
To be honest I didn’t see the dictionary yet, but I ordered it. I still have to see what is writen there at the entry itself.

There will be a new dictionary for Sranantongo, the informal language that is spoken in Suriname in the Caribean (Dutch is official). It is said by the publisher Prisma Woordenboeken that it will be the first one ever: Sranan(tongo)-Dutch and vv, Sranan(tongo)-Nederlands en weer terug.
Why am I interested? I am a white guy, but my forefathers (read: mothers!) were slaves. They were freed in 1863. I am working on some genealogy now and found quite some information. The Nationaal Archief has some great sources to start with, grouped in themes. English is here. This beside.
I was suprised by the arrogance of the publisher in his anwer to my e-mail about this claim of being the first dictionary and his way of explaining me what Srangtongo is. (I know what it is!) What Coutinho dictionary do I have in my bookcase then? Okay, this may not be complete, but who cares. To me it is a great dictionary. And I like dictionaries in general. :)
To be coutinho-d?