Naming process
I have an ancestor who had 16 children. Four of the boys are named Jannis. Why did the family continue to use the same name for their children after the death of a child?
Thank You
Answers
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This is an interesting question. THe answer has several parts. See the comments that were made to your last post for a general explanation.
Did the boys have another (middle) name as well as Jannis? Johann, or some form of it, was often used as a first name and the boy would have been known by his middle name.
But why did people use the same name over and over? There really isn't a specific answer to that; they just did it--it was a custom.
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I just reviewed all four of the birth records. There was no other name. They were all given just the name Jannis. Somebody told me once that they were continue using the same name if it was a family name that they wanted to perpetuate.
Thank you for your response to my questions.
Vicki
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It is possible each child died and the next one was named the same to carry on the names of the grandparents. You could look for death records of the children to verify.
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This was a common practise in the 18th-19th century in the "low lands" (Netherlands and Belgium.
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Pearl Vander Waal Hunt-in my original question I should have clarified the fact that each boy had passed away prior to the next son receiving the name. I have yet to find a grandfather or uncle, etc., who had this name that they might have been named after. Thank you for your response.
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