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Help[Facts] Re: Martyntje
in reply to a message by Adenydd
In The Netherlands, Martyn is a rare, variant spelling of Martijn (which is the Dutch form of Martin) - but pronounced the same. Also compare medieval spellings Marteyn and Marteijn, which are also pronounced the same as Martijn. In some cases in modern times, a man named Martijn may spell his name as Martyn when abroad, to make it easier for foreigners to pronounce his first name. A known example of this is Martyn LeNoble (who is actually Martijn LeNoble), the Dutch boyfriend of American actress Christina Applegate.
For a male bearer, Martijntje (or Martyntje, in the case of the variant spelling) is a diminutive form, as the -tje at the end is a Dutch diminutive suffix. A diminutive form such as this would mostly used be in a male bearer's childhood - in adulthood, it would be used seldomly (mostly in a joking or a derogatory manner). Never is a diminutive form like Martijntje or Martyntje ever used as an official first name for a male bearer in The Netherlands (contrary to e.g. English-speaking countries, where a man can be born with Charlie as an official first name - instead of Charles - and be Charlie for the rest of his life).
Now, for a female bearer it's different. In the case of a female bearer, the diminutive suffix -tje does not make the name seem like a diminutive like it does with the males, but it makes it a feminine form of Martijn (and as such is a legitimate feminine name and is used as an official first name for females). Think of how adding an -a to known male names will make them appear as a female name (Alberta, Roberta, etc.), which is a fashion derived from the Latin language. In Dutch, a -tje will do the same for a female (in other words, it's a more authentic Dutch way than the Latinate -a thing). As such, your grandmother's name is a typically Dutch feminine form of Martijn - albeit in a variant spelling (Martyntje). In other words, yes, it is indeed a Dutch feminine form of Martina (although Martina is used in The Netherlands as well, and *much* more commonly at that).
You can view popularity statistics for these names on the website of a Dutch research institute named the Meertens Institute. I will give you the links to them shortly. Some of the names will have charts displaying how popular they have been through the decades - the names that don't have charts, are the ones that are the least used (i.e. there wasn't enough data for them to create a chart for).
If you hover the cursor of your mouse over one the red 'pillars' in a chart, a little message will pop up and tell you how many births there were in that year (or within a certain timespan, e.g. 5 years).
Martijn (m): http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nvb/naam/is/Martijn
Martyn (m): http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nvb/naam/is/Martyn
Martijntje (f): http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nvb/naam/is/Martijntje
Martyntje (f): http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nvb/naam/is/Martyntje
("Als eerste naam" means "as a(n official) first name", and "als volgnaam" pretty much means "as a nickname".)
Clearly, the charts demonstrate that Martijntje has been declining in use over the decades, making it a somewhat old-fashioned name for a girl nowadays. As for its variant spelling Martyntje, that one always has been rare, so your grandmother was one of the very few who spelled her name that way.
"How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How do you go on... when in your heart you begin to understand... there is no going back? There are some things that time cannot mend... some hurts that go too deep... that have taken hold." ~ Frodo Baggins
For a male bearer, Martijntje (or Martyntje, in the case of the variant spelling) is a diminutive form, as the -tje at the end is a Dutch diminutive suffix. A diminutive form such as this would mostly used be in a male bearer's childhood - in adulthood, it would be used seldomly (mostly in a joking or a derogatory manner). Never is a diminutive form like Martijntje or Martyntje ever used as an official first name for a male bearer in The Netherlands (contrary to e.g. English-speaking countries, where a man can be born with Charlie as an official first name - instead of Charles - and be Charlie for the rest of his life).
Now, for a female bearer it's different. In the case of a female bearer, the diminutive suffix -tje does not make the name seem like a diminutive like it does with the males, but it makes it a feminine form of Martijn (and as such is a legitimate feminine name and is used as an official first name for females). Think of how adding an -a to known male names will make them appear as a female name (Alberta, Roberta, etc.), which is a fashion derived from the Latin language. In Dutch, a -tje will do the same for a female (in other words, it's a more authentic Dutch way than the Latinate -a thing). As such, your grandmother's name is a typically Dutch feminine form of Martijn - albeit in a variant spelling (Martyntje). In other words, yes, it is indeed a Dutch feminine form of Martina (although Martina is used in The Netherlands as well, and *much* more commonly at that).
You can view popularity statistics for these names on the website of a Dutch research institute named the Meertens Institute. I will give you the links to them shortly. Some of the names will have charts displaying how popular they have been through the decades - the names that don't have charts, are the ones that are the least used (i.e. there wasn't enough data for them to create a chart for).
If you hover the cursor of your mouse over one the red 'pillars' in a chart, a little message will pop up and tell you how many births there were in that year (or within a certain timespan, e.g. 5 years).
Martijn (m): http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nvb/naam/is/Martijn
Martyn (m): http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nvb/naam/is/Martyn
Martijntje (f): http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nvb/naam/is/Martijntje
Martyntje (f): http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nvb/naam/is/Martyntje
("Als eerste naam" means "as a(n official) first name", and "als volgnaam" pretty much means "as a nickname".)
Clearly, the charts demonstrate that Martijntje has been declining in use over the decades, making it a somewhat old-fashioned name for a girl nowadays. As for its variant spelling Martyntje, that one always has been rare, so your grandmother was one of the very few who spelled her name that way.
"How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How do you go on... when in your heart you begin to understand... there is no going back? There are some things that time cannot mend... some hurts that go too deep... that have taken hold." ~ Frodo Baggins
This message was edited 2/15/2012, 3:27 PM
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