In a previous post, we concluded that the West Flemish van Eessen surname, together with its related variants Vaneessen en Vanheessen, is a locative surname referring to the toponym of Esen (previously Eessen), an old village now administratively part of Dixmude. The name Esen may originate from the old 'hees' or 'hese' meaning 'young beech forest' or 'bushes', but it most likely refers to a pre-medieval hydronym (M. Gysseling).
The -a ending of the earliest record Esna (10th century) is likely a remnant of an ancient Celtic language that was spoken in this region during the pre-Roman era and that increasingly came under pressure as a result of the expansion of the Roman empire, eventually leading to its extinction by the year 50 AD and replacement by Latin and later by Germanic (approx. 5th and 6th centuries AD). This remnant -a ending is believed to refer to an ancient Celtic word for water. Other early records of such pre-medieval hydronyms near Esen with the -a ending are Werckina (currently Werken) and Sarra (currently Zarren), and maybe also Lecca (currently Leke). Long before settlements were founded in these locations, the only possible travel routes in these densely forested area were often rivers, brooks, creeks and other water courses, which as a result of their importance had already received a name from the Celtic inhabitants. The meaning of these names often remains unclear. When a settlement was founded on the banks of a smaller water course (such as the early Esen), the name of the water course was often passed on to the settlement (in the beginning usually by means of a suffix), after which the original hydronym disappeared and the river itself received another, younger and more banal name.
The Flemish surnames that certainly have a link to the toponym of Esen are listed in the table below, together with their geographical distribution in Belgium. These surnames have a proven genealogical paper trail that traces back to the same ancestor in Slijpe in the 17th century: every single living person with one of these three surnames descends from that ancestor. There are not that many of them: the big majority lives in Belgium (in 2008 only 91 people).
| Surname | Geographic distribution (2007-2008) | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Van Eessen | Middelkerke (7), Oudenburg (5), Koekelare (3), Kortemark (2), Torhout (2), Bredene (1), Ostend (1), Gistel (1), Jabbeke (1), Ichtegem (1), Koksijde (1), Veurne (1), Schilde (1) - 27 people in total |
| 2 | Vaneessen | Middelkerke (15), Aalst (10), Ostend (8), Bredene (1), Gistel (1), Jabbeke (1), Diksmuide (1), Wevelgem (1), Erpe-Mere (1), Zemst (1), Malle (1) - 41 people in total |
| 3 | Vanheessen | Ostend (5), Gistel (3), Aalter (3), Torhout (2), Merbes-le-Château (2), Middelkerke (1), Brugge (1), Moorslede (1), Gent (1), Merksem (1), Leuven (1), Binche (1), Erquelinnes (1) - 23 people in total |
| Total: | 91 people in Belgium | |
The geographical distribution of surnames can easily be checked using familienaam.be (incl. the old site) for surnames in Belgium, the Dutch family name database for surnames in the Netherlands and geopatronyme.com for surnames in France.
The original ancestor of the people above in the time of surname adoption could have been a man that immigrated from Esen to a nearby location. If that was the case, he must have been very unique: the surnames above with a clear geographical signature in the relative vicinity of Esen (in the 17th century) are not only rare today. Also four to five centuries ago the surname was rather uncommon. What are the odds that only one man at the time of surname adoption emigrated from Esen and settled in a not so far away place (or some men, of whom only one lineage survived a couple of centuries later) where he was named after his place of origin? Could there be another explanation? There was a noble family van Eessen in the 11th century (see earlier post) and, possibly related to this ancient family, also a more recent noble family van Eessen counting among its members many magistrates (schepenen) of the Franc of Bruges in the 13th to 15th centuries. Could it be, given the rarity of the surname, that the present-day families Van Eessen, Vaneessen en Vanheessen descend from these early noble families?
Another question is whether these three related surname variants are the only ones remaining today that originate from the toponym Esen near Dixmude. There currently still are many other surnames that do show a degree of similarity with the three variants above. Of course the old toponymic word stem 'hees' or 'hese' appears plenty of times as a toponym or place-name in Belgium, the Netherlands and even Germany. Some examples of surnames that are derived from this old word stem are: Van Heesen, Van Hees, Van Heesch, Van Hese, Van Ees, Verhees(en), Verhesen, Verhe(e)zen, Verrees, Verresen or Verrezen.
While in most cases these and other similar names will have originated independently from other similar toponyms, rather than from the toponym Esen, it cannot be excluded that the surname van Eessen was brought to other regions further away from the surname cradle of Esen by male descendants who decided to emigrate in a time when the fixed surname was already more or less established. In the place where they started their new lives the link between the surname and the toponym of origin (Esen) was less obvious and as a result the surname could have undergone a spelling metamorphosis, potentially changing it into a variety of options. One emigration example already mentioned in a previous post is the case of Joannes van Eessene, born in 1600 in Reninge between Furnes and Ypres, who emigrated to Leiden in the Netherlands around 1620 to work there in the booming textile industry. He married (two times) and had plenty of offspring. The surname was passed on to the next generations, but could have assumed another, more localised, spelling over time. Genealogical research in Leiden and environment should point out whether there still are living patrilineal descendants and, if that is the case, reveal how their surname is spelled.
Below is an attempt at listing up as many as possible existing surnames that show a certain degree of similarity with the van Eessen surname. I have grouped them according to the areas where they are geographically most common. Some surnames will appear in more than one group. This is a very rough exercise, but it gives an indication of the surname variety out there.
The following table contains surnames that look in one way or another similar to the van Eessen surname and that occur in that part of the former County of Flanders that comprises present-day West Flanders in Belgium and French Flanders in the north of France. Most likely these surnames are not related to the van Eessen surname, but given the vicinity to the surname's place of origin, there may be instances of these surnames that are modern spelling variants and that may therefore be related.
| Former County of Flanders (West & French Flanders) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Surname | Geographic distribution (2007-2008) | |
| 1 | Van Ees | Occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 2 | Van Es | Occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 3 | Van Essche | Common in the western part of West Flanders and the region of Tournai (BE), occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 4 | Van Esschen | Occurrence in the departments Nord, Pas de Calais (FR) |
| 5 | Van Heessch | Occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 6 | Van Hessche | Most common in West Flanders (around Bruges and the coast, and around Kortrijk), East Flanders (south of Ghent toward Kortrijk) (BE), occurrence in the departments Nord, Pas de Calais (FR) |
| 7 | Vaneesche | Occurrence in the departments Nord, Pas de Calais (FR) |
| 8 | Vanesch | Occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 9 | Vanesche | Occurrence in the area of Kortrijk (BE) and the department Nord (FR) |
| 10 | Vanese | Occurrence in Hainaut (BE) and the department Nord (FR) |
| 11 | Vanessche | Most common in the area of Kortrijk (BE), occurrence in the departments Nord, Pas de Calais (FR) |
| 12 | Vanesse | Most common in Hainaut (around Tournai) (BE), occurrence in the departments Nord, Pas-de-Calais, Aisne (FR) |
| 13 | Vanheesche | Occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 14 | Vanheessche | Occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 15 | Vanhessche | Most common in West Flanders (in the area of Kortrijk toward Tournai and the south of East Flanders; near the coast around Oudenburg and Jabbeke) (BE), occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 16 | Vanhesschen | Occurrence in the area of Kortrijk in West Flanders (BE) and the department Nord (FR) |
| 17 | Vanhesse | Occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 18 | Vanhessen | Occurrence in the area of Oostende, Koekelare in West Flanders (BE) |
| 19 | Vannes | Occurrence in the departments Nord, Aisne (FR) |
| 20 | Vannesche | Occurrence in the area of Kortrijk in West Flanders, along the border with France (BE) |
| 21 | Vannessche | Occurrence in the department Aisne (FR) |
| 22 | Vannesse | Occurrence in the area of Kortrijk in West Flanders (BE) |
| 23 | Van Neste | Most common in West Flanders (mainly Bruges, Roulers, Kortrijk) (BE), occurrence in the departments Nord, Pas de Calais, Aisne (FR) |
| 24 | Vannest | Occurrence in Hainaut (BE) |
| 25 | Vanneste | Most common in West Flanders (mainly area of Kortrijk, then in area of Bruges) (BE), occurrence in the departments Nord, Pas de Calais, Aisne (FR) |
The surname variants in the table below show a high concentration in the Waasland area in the Belgian province of East Flanders close to the Dutch border (once also part of the County of Flanders), with some presence as well in the nearby Dutch province of Zeeland.
| Former County of Flanders (Waasland in East Flanders) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Surname | Geographic distribution (2007-2008) | |
| 1 | Van Heese | Most common in Zeeland (Hulst, Terneuzen, Sluis) (NL) |
| 2 | Van Heesch | Most common in Antwerp (BE); in Zeeland (Hulst), North Brabant (NL); some occurrence in Nord (FR) |
| 3 | Van Hese | Very common in East Flanders (area around Waasmunster and Sint-Niklaas), in Antwerp (BE), Zeeland (NL), some occurrence in the department Nord (FR) |
| 4 | Vanhees | Common in Zeeland (NL), some occurrence in the departments Nord, Pas de Calais (FR) |
| 5 | Vanhese | Most common in East Flanders (around Waasmunster and Sint-Niklaas) (BE) |
In the text above I mentioned the Joannes van Eessen who emigrated to Leiden in the present-day Dutch province of South Holland. The following table includes surname variants occurring more or less in the vicinity of Leiden, i.e. South Holland and North Holland. Some of these might therefore potentially be modern spelling variants of the original van Eessene surname that came from Flanders and could be related. Genealogical research in Leiden and surroundings can give a decisive answer.
| South Holland and North Holland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Surname | Geographic distribution (2007-2008) | |
| 1 | van Ees | Common along the axis Amsterdam, Leiden, The Hague |
| 2 | van Es | Most common along the axis Amsterdam, Haarlemmermeer, Haarlem, Leiden, The Hague, Rotterdam |
| 3 | van Hees | Most common in Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and somewhat less in between |
| 4 | van Heese | Common in the area of Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam |
| 5 | van Heesen | Occurrences in the area of Amsterdam, The Hague, Rotterdam |
| 6 | van Heijzen/van Heyzen | Some occurrence in the area of Rotterdam |
| 7 | van Hesse | Rare, but some occurrence in the area of Rotterdam |
| 8 | van Hessen | Rare, but some occurrence in the area of Rotterdam and Amsterdam |
| 9 | van Nes | Most common in Amsterdam, Leiden, The Hague, Rotterdam |
The surnames in the table below are also variants but are most common in the area covered by the former Duchy of Brabant and the Prince-Bishopric of Liège. It is very unlikely that some of these surnames would be related to the van Eessen surname.
| Former Duchy of Brabant and Prince-Bishopric of Liège | ||
|---|---|---|
| Surname | Geographic distribution (2007-2008) | |
| 1 | Van Es | More common in Flemish Brabant, Antwerp, Limburg (BE); widespread in the Netherlands |
| 2 | Van Esch | More common in Flemish Brabant, Antwerp (BE) and in North Brabant (NL) |
| 3 | Van Essche | More common in Antwerp, Flemish Brabant (BE) |
| 4 | Van Esse | More common in Flemish Brabant, Hainaut (BE) and Utrecht (NL) |
| 5 | Van Essen | More common in Antwerp, the north of Limburg (BE) and in Utrecht and Gelderland (NL) |
| 6 | Vanes | More common in Flemish Brabant and Antwerp (BE) |
| 7 | Vanesch | More common in Limburg, and somewhat less in Antwerp and Namur (BE) |
| 8 | Vanesche | More common in Antwerp and Flemish Brabant (BE) |
| 9 | Vanessche | More common in Flemish Brabant (BE) |
| 10 | Vanesse | More common in Brussels, Walloon Brabant, Namur, Liege (BE) |
| 11 | Van Hees | More common in the north of Antwerp, the north of Limburg (BE); widespread in the Netherlands, but more common in North Brabant |
| 12 | Vanhees | More common in Limburg, the north of Antwerp (BE) and North Brabant (NL) |
| 13 | Vanhessen | Some occurrence in Flemish Brabant (BE) |
| 14 | Van Nes | More common in Flemish Brabant, Antwerp (BE) |
| 15 | Vannes | More common in Limburg, Flemish Brabant, Antwerp (BE) |
In order to conclude, I had a look at Maurits Gysseling's 1960 toponymic dictionary Toponymisch Woordenboek van België, Nederland, Luxemburg, Noord-Frankrijk en West-Duitsland (vóór 1226) from which I took all toponyms that show a certain degree of similarity with the toponym Esen. I have listed them in the below table together with their earliest reference and the most likely etymological meaning. The table is not exhaustive, as it is not difficult to find 'hees' or 'hese' or similar looking/sounding toponyms in Belgium and the Netherlands via Google Maps etc. that are not included here. But it clearly shows the wide variety of these toponyms, which could all have been the origin of one or multiple geographical surnames listed above.
| Toponym | Location | Earliest reference | Etymology |
|---|---|---|---|
| Esen | near Dixmude (West Flanders, BE) | Esna (961) | pre-medieval hydronym |
| Esnes | near Cambrai (Nord, FR) | Aesna (1133) | pre-medieval hydronym |
| Sint-Lievens-Esse | near Aalst (East Flanders, BE) | Esca (1041) | proto-germanic Askja-, settlement name derived from the hydronym Asko- |
| Essen | near Antwerp (Antwerp, BE) | Esschen (1159) | proto-germanic Askja-, settlement name derived from the hydronym Asko- |
| Essen | near Düsseldorf (Nordrhein-Westfalen, DE) | Astnide (874) | Germanic astanipja-, apparently forest name |
| Essen | near Diepenveen (Overijssel, NL) | Esnen (1206) | - |
| Essene | near Brussels (Brabant, BE) | Eschen (1148) | proto-germanic Askinja- or Celtic Askinio-, settlement name derived from the hydronym Asko resp. Aska |
| Hées | near Achicourt (Arras, Pas-de-Calais, FR) | Hadas (869) | - |
| Hees | near Tongeren (Limburg, BE) | Hese (1062) | Germanic haisjo-, "young beech forest", later "bushes" |
| Hees | near Düsseldorf (Nordrhein-Westfalen, DE) | Hesim (828) | Germanic haisjo-, "beech forest", later "bushes" |
| Hees | near Ruinen (Drente, NL) | Hes (1181) | - |
| Hees | near Soest (Utrecht, NL) | Hesi (838) | - |
| Heessen | near Münster (Nordrhein-Westfalen, DE) | Hesnen (1200) | - |
| Hese | Forest near Xanten (Düsseldorf, DE) | Hese (1119) | Germanic haisjo-, "beech forest", later "bushes" |
| Heze | Northern Brabant (NL) | Hezia (784-85) | Germanic haisjo-, "beech forest", later "bushes" |
No comments:
Post a Comment