Dutch diaspora

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Emigrants from the Netherlands since the Second World War went mainly to the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and until the 1970's to South Africa. There are recognisable Dutch immigrant communities in these countries. Smaller numbers of Dutch immigrants can be found in most developed countries. In several former Dutch colonies and trading settlements, there are ethnic groups of partial Dutch ancestry.

In the last decade, short-range cross-border migration has developed along the Netherlands borders with Belgium and Germany. The main motive is the lower price of housing, especially single-family houses, in these countries: the buyers commute to work in the Netherlands, and the children may attend school there. Nevertheless, for official purposes they are counted as emigrants from the Netherlands, and as immigrants in Germany and Belgium.

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[edit] Early emigration

The first big wave of Dutch immigrants to leave the Low Countries came from present day Northern Belgium as they wanted to escape the heavily urbanised cities in Western Flanders. They arrived in Brandenburg in 1157. Due to this, the area is known as "Fläming" (Fleming) in reference to the Duchy that these immigrants came from. Because of a number of devastating floods in the provinces of Zeeland and Holland in the 12th century, large numbers of farmers migrated to The Wash in Britain, the delta of the Gironde in France, around Bremen, Hamburg and western North Rhine-Westphalia.[1] Until the late 16th century, many Dutchmen and women (Invited by the German markgrave) moved to the delta of the Elbe, around Berlin, where they dried swamps, canalized rivers and build numerous dikes. Today, the Berlin dialect still bears some Dutch features.[2] (See also:Dutch influence on the German language)

Overseas emigration of the Dutch started around the 16th century, beginning a Dutch colonial empire. The first Dutch settlers arrived in the New World in 1614 and built a number of settlements around the mouth of the Hudson River, establishing the colony of New Netherland, with its capital at New Amsterdam (the future world metropolis of New York City). Dutch explorers also discovered Australia and New Zealand in 1606, thought they did not settle the new lands; and Dutch immigration to these countries did not begin until after World War II. The Dutch were also one of the few Europeans to successfully settle Africa prior to the late 19th century. Dutch colonists established Cape Town in 1652 and their descendants are known today as the Afrikaners.[3] During the Boer Wars the sense of unity between the Dutch and (future) Afrikaners were very strong. For example, the Boer leader Paul Kruger was rescued by a Dutch warship, De Gelderland, sent by the Dutch Queen Wilhelmina, which had simply ignored the British (at the time a maritime superpower) naval blockade of South Africa.

[edit] United States

Main article: Dutch American

The first Dutchmen to come to the United States of America were explorers lead by English captain Henry Hudson (in the service of the Dutch Republic) who arrived in 1609 and mapped what is now known as the Hudson River on the ship De Halve Maen. Their initial goal was to find an alternative route to Asia, but they found good farmland and plenty of wildlife instead.

The Dutch were one of the earliest Europeans who made their way to the New World. In 1614, the first Dutch settlers arrived and founded a number of villages and a town called New Amsterdam on the East Coast, which would become the future world metropolis of New York.

[edit] Canada

Main article: Canadians of Dutch descent

Dutch emigration to Canada peaked between 1951 and 1953, when an average of 20,000 people per year made the crossing. This exodus followed the harsh years in Europe as a result of the Second World War. One of the reasons many Dutch chose Canada as their new home was because of the excellent relations between the two countries, which specially blossomed because it were mainly Canadian troops who liberated the Netherlands in 1944-1945.[4]

Today almost 400,000 people of Dutch ancestry are registered as permanently living in Canada. About 130,000 Canadians were born in The Netherlands and there are another 600,000 Canadian citizens with at least one Dutch parent.[5]

[edit] Caribbean

Main article: Dutch West Indies

Both the leeward (Alonso de Ojeda, 1499) and windward (Christopher Columbus, 1493) island groups were discovered and initially settled by the Spanish. In the 17th century, the islands were conquered by the Dutch West India Company and were used as bases for the slave trade. Very little Dutch people settled the caribbean, most were traders or (former) sailors. Today most Dutch people living in the Dutch Antilles are wealthy often middle-aged and are mostly attracted by the tropical climate.

[edit] Australia

See also: Dutch Australian

Although the Dutch were the first Europeans to reach Australia,[6] they have never made a great impact as a group of settlers. At the time of Australia's discovery the Dutch were on the winning hand in their war against Spain and as a result there was little religious persecution. They did not find the kind of opportunities for trade they had learned to expect in the Dutch East-Indies. In the Dutch Golden Age regions with high unemployment were also rare. Indeed, the Dutch Republic was an immigration country itself throughout the 17th century. As a result, there never was the kind of mass immigration by the Dutch similar to that of the Irish, Germans, Italians. Only after the Second World War there was significant migration from the Netherlands to Australia. This does certainly not mean that they have not made a contribution to Australia. As individuals many have made an impressive and lasting contribution to their adopted country.[7]

[edit] New Zealand

The 1950s Dutch migrants were the first foreigners many New Zealander's had met. As white Europeans, it was their language and accent rather than their appearance that made them distinctive. The Dutch came to be seen as sensible and hard-working nation builders. Some of the first wave attracted criticism for working too hard, and were told to slow down in the workplace. The "industrious Dutchie" soon became a national archetype, and qualities such as thrift and abruptness were seen as typical of the new arrivals.[8]

[edit] United Kingdom

See also: Dutch community in the United Kingdom

Recent UK census, showed the Dutch population numbering approximately 40,000 people (though this may well be an underestimate), actually making them one of the largest Dutch communities in Europe for a country with a relatively small population. Like most other minority groups in the UK, they are predominantly clustered in London and the South East, which are home to four out of every 10 Netherlands-born people in Britain. Relatively affluent Surrey on London's commuter belt is home to a number of Netherlands clusters, particularly Woking, which saw the greatest single increase between 1991 and 2001. There is also a sizeable expat population in Scotland, in particular, Banchory near Aberdeen - the home of Oil firm Royal Dutch Shell.

[edit] Indonesia

In the Dutch East Indies (now Indonesia), the Dutch heavily interacted with the indigenous population and as European women were almost non-existent many married a native. This created a new group of people, the Dutch-Eurasians (Dutch: Indische Nederlanders) also known as 'Indos' or 'Indo-Europeans'. After the Indonesian National Revolution many chose or were forced to leave the country and today about half a million Eurasians live in the Netherlands.

[edit] Turkey

About 20.000 Dutch live in Turkey, most of them are pensioners. The Dutch populated areas are mainly in the Marmara, Aegean and Mediterranean regions of Turkey.CBS

[edit] Notes/References

  1. ^ Dutch immigration to Germany. (Dutch)
  2. ^ Onbekende Buren, by Dik Linthout, page 102/103.
  3. ^ Spread of the Dutch world wide.
  4. ^ Article on Dutch-Canadians
  5. ^ According to the 1991 census.
  6. ^ Early Dutch Landfall Discoveries of Australia
  7. ^ Flinders Ranges Research, the Dutch in Australia
  8. ^ Te Ara, The Dutch contribution, how others saw them.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links