11. After the abolition: starting a new life with a new name[1]
In Paramaribo, on the first day of July 1863, 21 gunshots were fired to celebrate the end of slavery in Suriname. Beforehand, committees had done some serious thinking about the consequences. First and foremost, there was the issue of compensating slave holders. (In those days, nobody was thinking of compensating slaves.) Planters argued that they had bought their servants and workers with real money. From their selfish, narrow and purely economic perspective demanding compensation seemed a valid question. Apparently they overlooked that bonded labourers had been working for them without pay during many years. Also they ignored that they had never bought the children born out of enslaved mothers. Anyhow, the planters were quite powerful, so, after long deliberations it was decided to compensate all owners. They received 300 Dutch guilders per officially registered slave.[2] As soon as the compensation was made official, all owners hurried to register all their slaves. An unforeseen and unintended consequence of the compensation agreement was that all owners that were being duped by the escape of one or more of their enslaved servants, hired slave hunters to find and catch them. For every caught runaway slave they could receive 300 guilders. This greedy attitude led to the killing of many hunters and Maroons, adding another bloody page to the history of slavery.
For the sake of registration all emancipated slaves had to have or to be given a family name.[3] Before abolition, slaves only had a first name. In most cases these names were Dutch, French or English. A minority had been able to their African name, such as Adjuba, Amimba, Kwame, Kwassi or Quassie.[4] Some had been given posh new names that referred to Greek myths and historic figures, such as Adonis, Ajax, Daphne, Horatio, A few spiteful masters given them extremely insulting names such as Monkie or Matras.[5] And what to think of the master who had christened his own white daughters Iris and Rose, but registered one of the new born slaves as Onkruid (meaning: weed)? Two percent did get such an insulting name.[6] At registration, the freed slaves were allowed to choose their first name. Many grabbed this opportunity to change their name. Only a small minority had kept their African name, but at registration many of them preferred a European name, thinking that this would give them more prestige. So Amimba became Petronella and Candesa changed into Magdalena.
Though, officially, the enslaved had become free, they were not allowed to change their last name, which had been invented by their former masters. In 1811, when France governed The Low Countries, Napoleon had decreed that everyone had to be registered with a first name and a surname. All Dutchmen were allowed to pick a name of their own choosing, but this freedom was not granted to the enslaved and free blacks of Suriname. To avoid all kinds of legal issues, especially over legacies and land rights, shrewd administrators, planters and other slave owners had thought it better not to use their own family name, and definitely not in case of their mulatto offspring. When they were given the name of their master and biological father, it always got slightly changed. Part of the master’s surname got skipped, the name was spelled in reverse, or a few letters had changed place. Sometimes they only skipped the first letter or changed this letter a bit. Master Gomperts christened his former slave Chomperts. Inger was a child of master Pfenninger, Intosh was derived from MacIntosch, and so on. Kamer got turned around and to become Remak, like Molen transformed into Nelom. We now know that Anton de Kom descended from an enslaved African owned by master Mok. Some owners had enough pride to give their bastard children their own first name, just adding son. D’Aron Jessurun gave his mulatto daughter simply the second half of his family name: Jessurun. Apparently, for a “half white” child half the paternal name did suffice. As mentioned before, with these modified names the planters hoped to avoid future heritage claims from their own flesh and blood. In other cases names were invented that referred to plantations. Again slight changes were made such as the reversal of syllables. Fortuin turned around into Tuinfort, et cetera. Often the name of a Dutch village was used, probably the master’s place of origin. And once again, the reversal trick might be used. So someone from plantation Amsterdam officially got registered as Madretsma.
A descendant of a former slave renamed Strijdlustig (translation: fighting spirit) is very proud of her name. She often gets positive reactions and feels motivated to fight against all forms of injustice.[7]
Scanning the long list of documented names learns that most new names are very similar to popular Dutch, German, English or French names.[8] Also there are a few family names that reflect positivism or the celebration of emancipation.[9] Other new names referred to the skin colour or hair type, such as Moor or Kroes (Frizzy or Curly). Some masters thought it funny to register emancipated Black slaves as De Wit, Whyte, Blanck or Blanchard – all variants of White. A very few freed Blacks or Mulattos were given really insulting or hateful names referring to stupidity, laziness, ugliness and other negative characteristics. Fortunately, in the Netherlands, it is possible to change your official family name, though it will cost you about 900 euros. Quite a few African descendants have taken this opportunity and changed their family name into a more respectable name or the real name of their biological male ancestor.[10]
[1] This is a new chapter for my book project From Ancient Slavery to Abolition. I have separated this part from the original chapter on Suriname, to draw more attention to this process of inventing names for African descendants that had been robbed from their original names by their owners. (12-4-2026:1189 words)
[2] De Kom presents another valid question: why was there no attention for the issue of compensating slaves for all their enforced labour and their stolen freedom? Very valid indeed, but neither government nor planters did address it.
[3] In 1863, about 10,000 new family names have been registered.
[4] Kwassie is a typical Surinamese tree, named after the Negro Kwassie. In 1791 he discovered that its sap could drive out fever. Van Dale: Etymologisch Woordenboek. Websters New Dictionary and Thesaurus comes with a similar kind of etymological explanation for a fever lowering potion that is known in England as Quast or Kwast in England.
[5] (Monkey, Mattress) See Marcel van Engelen and Corrie Verkerk. Parool: March 6, 2007.
[6] I come to this estimate after checking half of the list that is available on Gahetna
[7] Parool: Marcel van Engelen en Corrie Verkerk. 6 maart 2007
[8] See the index of emancipated slaves in 1863 on Gahetna.nl. One only needs to take a random sample of about 10 per cent of the whole list to see that large majority are normal, virtuous and not inciting offence.
[9] Vrij, Vrijdom, Vrede en Vredig. (Translation: Free, Freedom, Peace, and Peaceful)
[10] gahetNA Collectie Suriname: Vrijgelaten slaven en hun eigenaren.