Tracing our ancestry up through
eight (8) generations, reveals one Roelf Hartelief SPOELMA, whom records indicate
was christened on 1st November 1753 in Noorderkerk, Holland. He had
eight children, of which one son was named Wibbe Roelfs SPOELMA. Both these
ancestors, had occupations stated as "Linen Weavers".
In 1812, Napoleon Boneparte
changed the way of naming people in Europe. He decreed that all persons should
have a surname which was used by every following generation.
It appears that Roelf Hartelief
SPOELMA, had the suffix of "SPOELMA", attached to his name just
prior to his passing on 26th March 1813 at Leens, Holland. Records indicate
all his eight children used "Roelfs Spoelma" as their surname. The
"Roelfs" part, was later dropped by the following generations.
A possible reason for adopting
the name SPOELMA, could relate to the fact that both Roelf and his eldest
son Wibbe, were both in the linen weaving trade. Due to Napoleons decree in
1812, I suspect the popular belief at the time, was to adopt a surname that
would reflect your occupation. This can also be seen in many other countries
in Europe at the time. Having said all this, the dutch word "SPOEL"
- meaning (bobbin, spool, coil, spindle), does seem to relate directly to
their occupation. The "MA" suffix I imagine, would be a diminuitive
of "maken" or "aanaken", which means (fabricate, prepare,
manufacture). It could have also been a popular surname ending, prevalent
at that time, within the Groningen region.
All good theories anyway
!
I would be extremely interested
in hearing from anyone with genuine constructive input into this area. Please
email
me any research, ideas or theories you may have on this subject. We will endeavour
to include these onto this website in the future.
