Re: Dutch surnames (scatological warning!)

2009/4/7 René Uittenbogaard <ruittenb@...>

> 2009/4/6 Christophe Grandsire-Koevoets <tsela.cg@...>:
> >
> > Note that my second last name (my husband's family name) is also
> relatively
> > strange/funny. "Koevoets" simply means "cow foot" :) .
>
> does it? I don't know about the etymology of the name, but I'd expect
> "cow foot" to be "koeienvoet".
> Perhaps it's related to "koevoet" = crowbar?
>
>
I doubt it. It's what the Koevoets themselves say their name means (they
even have a family weapon with a cow's foot on it. It's not an original one
of course, it was made something like a century ago). That said, it might be
folk etymology. In any case, whether the name means "cow foot" or "crowbar",
you have to agree that it's a weird family name (as far as I know, the
Koevoets family name originates from Breda. Would that explain the
etymology?).

My husband always says that when completely translated into French, his full
name sounds quite noble (as long as you don't know French :) ). Of course,
in French he makes it Jean Henry Marie Pied de la Vache-Grandsire (mine
would be Christophe Alain Grandsire-Pied de la Vache). I personally prefer
to keep to the original version :) .
-- 
Christophe Grandsire-Koevoets.

http://christophoronomicon.blogspot.com/
http://www.christophoronomicon.nl/

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