Dutch Boy Names

Dutch settlers in the colony of New Netherland left a lasting mark on American place names and surnames, and some of those surnames have since become first names for boys. Harlem, now a New York neighborhood, was named after the Dutch city of Haarlem. Skyler grew out of an old Dutch surname associated with a scholar, and Van, the Dutch word for from or of, works as a short name on its own.

Other picks come from Dutch first names and trades. Derek, Derrick, Derick and Dereck all descend from a Dutch and German form of an old Germanic name meaning ruler of the people. Hendrix began as a patronymic, a way of marking a son by his father's name, and Decker comes from a Dutch word for a roofer or thatcher. Koen and Coen are short forms used in the Netherlands today, as are Jan and Arie.

Pronunciation deserves attention with the traditional Dutch names. In the Netherlands, Jan is said with a sound close to yahn, and Koen rhymes more closely with the English word soon. Many American families simply adopt the English reading, which is perfectly fine, but it helps to decide early which version you want so relatives and teachers say it the same way.