I have learnt from my friend who lives in the Netherlands that there are some very funny names in the Netherlands that just seem to be like a joke. Some have humorous meanings, some have funny sounds. Here are some examples:
Naaktgeboren born naked
Rotmensen rotten people
Nieman nobody
Poepjes little shit
Fokker breeder
Kok cook
Zondervan without surname
Borst breast
How the Dutch got funny surnames is like this. It goes back to 1811 when the power of Napoleon Boneparte and the French army then occupying the Netherlands came into action.
Before the French occupation, it was more common for the Dutch people to use patronymics than surnames. Then the French decreed for census, to register all birth, death, marriage and transfer of the people. This was for the purpose of taxation and for military service, and forced every Dutch person to have surnames.
The Dutch thought this would be just a temporary measure, and the system would be dropped when they got their country back from the occupation. To show their resistance to the forced system, the Dutch chose humorous surnames and registered them.
Yes, their surnames reflect the Dutch people's uncompromising spirit.
Yet, had it crossed the minds of the people of 1811 that the names they chose as a joke could be passed on generations after generations, and their descendant might mix and work with poeple outside the Netherlands?
A funny story is in an article on a website that introduces news of the Netherlands.
Fokker (breeder) is a perfectly legitimate surname in the Netherlands. ... my heart goes out to the Dutch man who proudly announced 'I fok horses' when asked about his occupation during an interview on British television some years back.
http://www.expatica.com/nl/insider-views/Funny-Dutch-names-and-the-story-behind-them_102043.html
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