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Why Vondel Looked Like A Fisherman in Harem Trousers
19 June 2020
Harem pants have been a staple of summer fashion these past few years. In the Low Countries, they are sold under the name ‘harembroek’, but they used to be commonly known as ‘Turkse’ or ‘pofbroek’ or, curiously, ‘haringbroek’, herring trousers. The famous Dutch poet Vondel apparently
The ‘Black Pete’ of W.B. Yeats
5 December 2019
‘Black Pete’ (Zwarte Piet) has played a central part in the Low Countries’ annual Saint Nicholas celebrations for several, possibly even many centuries. But disagreement about the theatrical figure of Saint Nicholas’s servant is leading to ever fiercer confrontations in the Netherlands. The
From ‘Gezellig’ to Clean. Why the Dutch No Longer Love Carpets and Chamber Pots
13 November 2019
‘Dirty carpet’: the judgement is left on holiday website Booking.com by reviewers writing in Dutch remarkably often. Whether or not accommodation is ‘gezellig’ - snug, warm, sociable - is another important touchstone in such reviews. As is convenience. Clean, gezellig and convenient: this is
Why Dutch-Speakers Have Such a Hard Time with Gender-Neutral Language
3 October 2019
Efforts to make language less male-centred and more inclusive of all genders have received a renewed interest these past few years, not just in the anglophone world but in the Low Countries, too. No gender-neutral alternatives for the words ‘he’ and ‘she’ have been taken up by speakers of Du
Romantic Anguish in China: a New Slauerhoff Translation
20 August 2019
Dutch literature is notorious for its lack of a romantic movement. Writer and maritime doctor J. Slauerhoff (1898-1936), however, published a supremely romantic novel in 1934: Adrift in the Middle Kingdom (Het leven op aarde), set in Interwar China. This is now available to English-language readers,
Our Pride in Our Language Is Easily Hurt
25 June 2019
A leaflet falls on my UK doormat: ‘Show your English pride!’, ‘English values, English History & English culture in our schools!’. In the paper, the British vox pop expresses its fear that ‘we will soon all be speaking German’. In the US, too, cars brandish bumper stickers with ‘We
Fast Living: A Modern Malady?
16 May 2019
Many Dutch people live a stressful life. The Netherlands Institute for Social Research has reported it time and time again. Many have difficulty combining work, care, education and leisure, and always feel behind schedule. When under such pressures, it is not uncommon to envy one’s ancestors’ sl