let's talk about Bridgerton tea, my ask is open
Origami Around
One Nice Bug Per Day
if i look back, i am lost
sheepfilms
🩵 avery cochrane 🩵
oozey mess
Interview Vampire Daily
EXPECTATIONS
izzy's playlists!
d e v o n
pixel skylines
tumblr dot com
KIROKAZE
NASA
blake kathryn
Game of Thrones Daily
PUT YOUR BEARD IN MY MOUTH
todays bird
No title available
seen from Brazil
seen from Italy
seen from United States
seen from Canada
seen from Kenya
seen from United States
seen from Canada
seen from Colombia
seen from United States
seen from Ecuador
seen from Lebanon
seen from Indonesia
seen from Venezuela
seen from United States
seen from United States
seen from Pakistan
seen from United States
seen from Vietnam
seen from New Zealand
seen from Indonesia
@eind-goed-al-goed
Langblr introduction
Heyhey, my name is Jess! I'm already been part of the langblr-community with my Swedish langblr (@balloons-and-shadows), but I decided I also want to post about my native language.
What to expect:
Peculiarities about Dutch language/culture
Similarities with other languages
Weird grammar concepts
Here's my masterlist.
I'm not really planning on posting vocab lists, but you can expect a whole bunch of other stuff from me. Also, my asks are always open :)
~ Jess💕
Dutch peculiarities: Jip & Janneke
As the Rijksmuseum is currently having an exhibition on the pair, I figured it was time to introduce you guys to another interesting piece of Dutch culture.
Jip & Janneke are the two main characters in a series of children’s books written by Annie M.G. Schmidt and illustrated by Fiep Westendorp.
Janneke, the female character, is introduced when she moves in next to Jip, the male character, and becomes his neighbour. Their adventures often take place in or around their houses and they are often accompanied by dog Takkie or cat Siepie.
Fun fact: there is now even a Dutch saying about Jip & Janneke. The children’s books were written in very easy language, which has been named ‘Jip-en-Janneketaal’ (i.e. Jip-and-Jannekelanguage). Therefore, if you want someone to explain something to you in easy language, you will ask them to explain it in ‘Jip-en-Janneketaal’.
Other:
Hema sells a lot of products featuring Jip & Janneke, but also Takkie and Siepie.
You can find some audiobooks here.
Author Annie M.G. Schmidt is also known for the stories Pluk van de Petteflet, Abeltje en Dikkertje Dap.
It's been a while since I really engaged in langblr spaces but please reblog if you're a langblr learning Dutch, or if you're a langblr and Dutch is your native language. Bonus points if you're from or focusing on Dutch from Flanders!
I have to admit I'm not very active on here anymore, but I'm a native Dutch speaker. Feel free to pm me with any questions!
Language immersion tip #1: Social media
Newsarticles are a nice source for language immersion, but might be inaccessible due to a paywall or because of location. Luckily, everything is free on social media. So here are my recommendations for news outlets on social media:
NOS - has a total of 7 social media accounts, most videos have subtitles
NOS = main account
nosjeugdjournaal = easier news for children
nosop3
nosstories
nostweedewereldoorlog = videos about WWII
oogopmorgen = videos from the podcast
nieuwsuur = more in depth videos
nossport = sportsnews
Volkskrant:
de_volkskrant
volkskrantmagazine
devolkskrant.podcasts
AD - has many, many social media accounts
ad_nl = main account
adshownieuws = news about celebrities
adsportwereld = sportsnews
also has a lot of social media accounts for different cities
Other:
hetparool
Telegraaf.nl
trouw.deverdieping
nrcnl and nrcinbeeld
nu.nl
eenvandaag
rtlnieuws
Hope this helps! Also, please let me know if I missed an account!
An introduction to Dutch music: Eurovision
Note: I only included songs sang in Dutch.
'Europapa' by Joost Klein [2024]
Joost is an artist from the Friesland-province, known for its dialect. However, Joost's participation in Eurovision was tainted by allegations of misconduct. He qualified in second place in the second semi-final.
'De diepte' by S10 [2022]
This song was the first Dutch Eurovision entry since 2010. S10 ended up in the 11th place in the Eurovision finale. I'd definitely recommend listening to her album 'Ik besta voor altijd zolang jij aan mij denkt'.
'Ik ben verliefd (Sha-la-lie)' by Sieneke [2010]
The song only made it to the 14th place during the semi-finals of Eurovision. However, the song is definitely memorable: I don't think I have heard this song since 2010 and yet the refrain seems to be stuck in my head everytime I hear 'Sha-la-lie'.
'Hemel en aarde' by Edsilia Rombley
The song made it to the fourth place in the finale, which was the best result since 1975 when Teach-In won. After Eurovision, the song became a big hit within the Netherlands.
'Ding-a-Dong' by Teach-In
Teach-In was a popgroup from Enschede (East-Netherlands). The group won Eurovision with the English version of the song, but they performed the Dutch version in the Netherlands often. The group won the Eurovision contest that year.
Some other facts worth mentioning:
In 1985 en 1991, the Netherlands did not participate in the event, because the finale was held on May 4 - the National Remembrance day and therefore, participation was not considered to be appropriate.
In 2017, the girl group O'G3NE represented the Netherlands. They sang in English, but in 2007 the girl group represented the Netherlands at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest with their song 'Adem in, adem uit'. They ended up in the 11th place both times.
In 2009, the Netherlands was represented by 'De toppers', a supergroup that has had the longest running concert series in the Benelux. All four members are succesful artists who sing (mostly) in Dutch.
One of the members of the Toppers, Gerard Joling, also represented the Netherlands at the Eurovision in 1988 with the song 'Shangri-la'.
Masterlist
Poems
'November' van JC Bloem | 'Als de liefde niet bestond' van Toon Hermans | 'De taal van de eilanders' van Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer
Dutch Peculiarities
Gender reveals | Miffy/Nijntje | De Fabeltjeskrant | Proverbs and sayings | Alfred Jodocus Kwak
An introduction to Dutch music
Children's music
An introduction to Dutch music: children's music
Based on @variksenvarjo's request. I'm planning on making this a multi-part series, because I have way too many recommendations. Note: these recommendations are made based on my taste in Dutch music, which can make these recommendations a bit outdated or inconclusive. There's a lot more Dutch music out there than I can recommend. I hope you like this post!
K3
A Dutch-Flemish girlgroup that might be the most popular group ever within Dutch speaking countries (don't quote me on that). There have been about 4 variations of the group by now, with a total of 47 albums, 42 singles, 4 musicals and 8 original movies.
Recommendation: Teleromeo
Kinderen voor kinderen
A children's choir that has existed since 1980. I have no idea but its popularity now, but it was very popular when I was a kid (not that long ago). They produce one album a year, with a special TV-broadcast presenting the songs.
Recommendation: Hallo Wereld
Djumbo
This girlgroup originated as a marketing stunt from a well-know supermarket chain in the Netherlands, but soon turned into more than that. The group sings half in Dutch, half in (very basic) English. It was disbanded in 2015.
Recommendation: Chase
Studio 100
Studio 100 is an production company that is mainly focused on children. It has created many tv series Dutch and Flemish children have grown up with, and has produced many songs for these series (kinda like Disney I guess?). K3 is also a part of Studio 100.
Recommendation: Kabouter Plop | Piet Piraat | Mega Mindy | Huis Anubis
Junior Songfestival
The Eurovision-version for children. The first edition was in 2003, where children auditioned with self-written songs. Unfortunately, this part was removed and children nowadays audition only with covers of songs.
Recommendation: JSF Party
Lisa, Amy & Shelley
A girl group made up of three sisters. They became popular in the Netherlands after participating in JSF in 2007, and nowadays are still making music under the name 'Ogene'.
Recommendation: Adem in adem uit
Other honorable mentions
Aliyah - L.O.V.E.
Kus - Kus gaat los
Amika - Amika
Fabiënne Bergmans ft. Brahim Fouradi - Hou me vast
Kim-Lian - Dit pakt niemand ons meer af
Dutch peculiarities: Alfred Jodocus Kwak
Another fun Dutch tv show for children (that I totally forgot about until @helshollowhalls mentioned it) is Alfred Jodocus Kwak.
The cartoon series was created by Herman van Veen, who is a talented and well-known artist in the Netherlands for his music, theatre plays and movies. Herman van Veen originally created the character of Alfred for a theatre play, with part of the proceeds being donated to Unicef. It also came out in the form of an lp, and later a CD.
Between 1989 until 1991, a 52-part cartoon series based on the character was broadcast in the Netherlands, Germany and Japan. Afterwards, the series became more and more popular, eventually being broadcasted in 48 different countries. In the meantime, 3 comic series based on the cartoon series were also released.
Some of the characters of the series;
Alfred Jodocus Kwak = main character, a duck (kwak is the sound a duck makes)
Henk de Mol = his father (mol = mole)
Dolf de Kraai = enemy of Alfred (kraai = crow)
Winnie Wana = Alfred's love interest
Some "fun" facts I found while researching;
Herman van Veen found the idea for this character after he hit a duck with his car, and saw 7 baby ducks with their mother the day after in his garden.
The character of Dolf is based off of Hitler. (Note: Herman van Veen grew during WWII)
The character of Winnie is named after the wife of Nelson Mandela (at that time)
Alfred's adoptive dad is Henk de Mol, because Alfred's parents and siblings died after being hit by a car.
Some videos;
Intro | Afleveringen | Ik ben vandaag zo vrolijk (song) | Spetter pieter pater (song)
Source | Other source
Some more "fun" facts about the series I found while researching;
Winnie's dad is the leader of the black (duck) rebels against racial segregation by the white farm geese in Thuisland ("Homeland")
The English Wikipedia states that "Dolf gradually develops from a mere naughty schoolboy to a merciless dictator, an arms dealer, a reckless politician and overall criminal"
There is a stork who changes gender from a girl during childhood to male when he is an adult
There is a character named Franz Ferdinand
Also, my friend found some of the earlier sketches of Dolf the Kraai and lets just say that the similarities with Adolf Hitler were anything but subtle
Herman van Veen named Alfred Jodocus Kwak, after his friend Alfred who walked like a duck, and he borrowed the name Jodocus from a clown.
Dutch peculiarities: Alfred Jodocus Kwak
Another fun Dutch tv show for children (that I totally forgot about until @helshollowhalls mentioned it) is Alfred Jodocus Kwak.
The cartoon series was created by Herman van Veen, who is a talented and well-known artist in the Netherlands for his music, theatre plays and movies. Herman van Veen originally created the character of Alfred for a theatre play, with part of the proceeds being donated to Unicef. It also came out in the form of an lp, and later a CD.
Between 1989 until 1991, a 52-part cartoon series based on the character was broadcast in the Netherlands, Germany and Japan. Afterwards, the series became more and more popular, eventually being broadcasted in 48 different countries. In the meantime, 3 comic series based on the cartoon series were also released.
Some of the characters of the series;
Alfred Jodocus Kwak = main character, a duck (kwak is the sound a duck makes)
Henk de Mol = his father (mol = mole)
Dolf de Kraai = enemy of Alfred (kraai = crow)
Winnie Wana = Alfred's love interest
Some "fun" facts I found while researching;
Herman van Veen found the idea for this character after he hit a duck with his car, and saw 7 baby ducks with their mother the day after in his garden.
The character of Dolf is based off of Hitler. (Note: Herman van Veen grew during WWII)
The character of Winnie is named after the wife of Nelson Mandela (at that time)
Alfred's adoptive dad is Henk de Mol, because Alfred's parents and siblings died after being hit by a car.
Some videos;
Intro | Afleveringen | Ik ben vandaag zo vrolijk (song) | Spetter pieter pater (song)
Source | Other source
Dutch poems, part III
'De taal van de eilanders' van Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer
er wordt vee geslacht
in de taal van de eilanders
elk woord vloekt
als een horzel een halve nap zure melk
uit een balkend scharminkel geknepen
tussen lippen gespleten van distels
wordt een verleden verzwegen
op een tong als een zinderend grintpad
verwijt men de dag met een rochel
gemolken uit brandende rotsen
er wordt met geen woord
over morgen gesproken
niemand spreekt
de taal van de eilanders
maar wie verstaat niet
wat hun doorgesneden kelen
dichtschroeit ik althans
begreep maar al te goed
wat ze mij knarsend toebeten en tandenloos
voor de voeten spogen ik wist
op de eerste boot hals over kop terug
te ontkomen het gelijk bleef zinderen
op hun kade en kiezelstranden.
Note: Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer is known for his rather difficult poems, so don't worry if you don't understand it!
Dutch peculiarities: proverbs and sayings
Though the Dutch language is not very expressive when it comes to intonation, it can be very expressive in the way it uses words. Here come proverbs and sayings ('spreekwoorden en gezegden') into the picture. There are many different proverbs and sayings in the Dutch language, some of them so common many people don't realise they are proverbs and sayings.
Here are some of my favourites;
Oost West, Thuis Best = East West, Home Best (meaning; you feel most comfortable at home)
Ieder huisje heeft zijn kruisje = every home has their own cross (meaning; in every family or household there is (also) misery)
Uit je doppen kijken = to look out of your caps (meaning; to watch out)
Appeltje-eitje = little apple, little egg (meaning; something simple)
De kluts kwijtraken = to lose the 'kluts' (meaning; to lose track, to be confused
Oude koeien uit de sloot halen = digging up old cows from the ditch (meaning; to start over again about something (annoying) that happened in the past)
De hond in de pot vinden = to find the dog in the pot (meaning; arriving just when the food is finished)
Sidenote; use of the proverbs and sayings in practice might go a bit different than how they are written down. There's factors such as the dividision between North or South-Netherlands, and whether the person you're talking to is from a city or more rural areas.
source | other source | more extensive explanations
Oooh oooh! I'd like to add to the list! (Source: me, a Dutch person who loves their language) (mind you I'm Belgium dutch, so before you scream at me that I got some things wrong, it might be an area thing!)
I'd like to start with saying 'kluts' or 'klutsen' is the action of mixing something vicariously. The most used example I can think of is 'eieren klutsen' (eggs). When you mix a raw egg so the whites and yellow mix.
- (terug) op je pootjes belanden = landing on your paws (again) to end up alright again, you/it'll be okay.
- ik krijg mijn klop(peke) I have gotten 'my' (small) punch. the tiredness of a long day of work and being active has caught up on me
- als de kat een koe was kon je ze melken = if the cat was a cow, we could milk her No point complaining about what you dont have
-je moet van de kat geen koe maken = you shouldn't make the cat into a cow. Don't push your luck on this thing/stop hoping for something else
- stop met mierenneuken = stop fucking ants. Stop focussing on all the small details
- er ligt een haar in de boter = there is a hair in the butter. (I can see that) Something is wrong (with a person)
- de ochtendstond heeft goud in de mond = the morning hour has gold in the mouth. The early morning hours are beautiful/useful. Often said when being woken up or being grumpy about being awake.
- een gekregen paard in de mond kijken = looking a gifted horse in the mouth. (I have the feeling this one exsists in english too?) Don’t be bitchy/picky about things you for free.
- het is in kannen en in kruiken = it is in jars and jugs (technically a 'kan' and a 'kruik' are both jugs, but this sounds better in English) It's in order/ It's done
- als de kat van huis is, dansen de muizen = if the cat isn't home, the mice dance. (Often you just say 'als de kat van huis is...) when the people in charge aren't home, then people do what they want. (E.g, a kid being home alone throwing a party, people at the workplace fooling around when the boss isn't in..)
- als een kip zonder kop = like a chimken without a head. Being stressed out, forgetting a lot of stuff, being frantic. Running around like a chicken without a head
Ohh, thank you for your addition! I can't believe I forgot about mierenneukerij, I use it almost daily and its my absolute favourite. Most of the ones you mentioned I have heard of before, though I have to say I have never heard number #2 before.
On the website with the more extensive explanations, it sometimes mentions the Flemish variant. Sometimes they are the same, but other times they added that it can't be used in the Netherlands too.
Dutch peculiarities: proverbs and sayings
Though the Dutch language is not very expressive when it comes to intonation, it can be very expressive in the way it uses words. Here come proverbs and sayings ('spreekwoorden en gezegden') into the picture. There are many different proverbs and sayings in the Dutch language, some of them so common many people don't realise they are proverbs and sayings.
Here are some of my favourites;
Oost West, Thuis Best = East West, Home Best (meaning; you feel most comfortable at home)
Ieder huisje heeft zijn kruisje = every home has their own cross (meaning; in every family or household there is (also) misery)
Uit je doppen kijken = to look out of your caps (meaning; to watch out)
Appeltje-eitje = little apple, little egg (meaning; something simple)
De kluts kwijtraken = to lose the 'kluts' (meaning; to lose track, to be confused
Oude koeien uit de sloot halen = digging up old cows from the ditch (meaning; to start over again about something (annoying) that happened in the past)
De hond in de pot vinden = to find the dog in the pot (meaning; arriving just when the food is finished)
Sidenote; use of the proverbs and sayings in practice might go a bit different than how they are written down. There's factors such as the dividision between North or South-Netherlands, and whether the person you're talking to is from a city or more rural areas.
source | other source | more extensive explanations
Dutch poems, part II
'Als de liefde niet bestond' van Toon Hermans
Als de liefde niet bestond Zullen ze stilstaan, de rivieren En de vogels en de dieren Als de liefde niet bestond
Als de liefde niet bestond Zou het strand de zee verlaten Ze hebben niets meer te bepraten Als de liefde niet bestond
Als de liefde niet bestond Zou de maan niet langer lichten Geen dichter zou meer dichten Als de liefde niet bestond
Nergens zouden bloemen staan En de aarde zou verkleuren Overal gesloten deuren En de klok zou niet meer slaan
Als de liefde niet bestond Dan was de hele vrijerij bedorven De wereld was gauw uitgestorven Als de liefde niet bestond
Als de liefde niet bestond Zou de zon niet langer stralen De wind zou niet meer ademhalen Als de liefde niet bestond
Geen appel zou meer rijpen Zoals eens in het paradijs Als wij elkaar niet meer begrijpen Dan is de wereld koud als ijs
Ik zou sterven van de kou En m'n adem zou bevriezen Als ik je liefde zou verliezen Er is geen liefde zonder jou
Dutch peculiarities: De Fabeltjeskrant
Another fun Dutch tv show for children is 'De Fabeltjeskrant' (English; "The Daily Fable"). The show originally ran from 1968 to 1992, with episodes only lasting about 5 minutes.
The show centers around Meneer de Uil ("Mister Owl"), who reads the news about all the events happening in het Grote Dierenbos ("The big animal forest"). According to Wikipedia, the first fables were based on the fables of Jean de La Fontaine. Most of the characters of the series, on the other hand, where based on persons from the creator's neighbourhood.
There were a total of 60 characters part of the series, so here is a short list of some of those characters;
Meneer de Raaf = Sir Raven
Willem Bever = Willem Beaver
Juffrouw Ooievaar = Miss Stork
Momfer de Mol = Mole Momfer
Bor de Wolf = Wolf Bor
Zoef de Haas = Zoom the Hare
You can still find some episodes on Youtube;
Hallo, meneer de Uil - Intro Song
Playlist of 37 episodes
Source | De fabeltjeskrant-website
Dutch poems, part. I
[A new series in which I share my favourite poems in Dutch]
November bij JC Bloem
Het regent en het is november Weer keert het najaar en belaagt Het hart, dat droef, maar steeds gewender, Zijn heimelijke pijnen draagt. En in de kamer, waar gelaten Het daaglijks leven wordt verricht, schijnt uit de troosteloze straten Een ongekleurd namiddaglicht. De jaren gaan zoals zij gingen, Er is allengs geen onderscheid Meer tussen dove erinneringen En wat geleefd wordt en verbeid. Verloren zijn de prille wegen Om te ontkomen aan de tijd; Altijd november, altijd regen, Altijd dit lege hart, altijd.
uit: Het verlangen (1921)
Dutch peculiarities: Miffy/Nijntje
Since I know Tumblr absolutely loves Miffy (we call her 'Nijntje' in Dutch), I figured it would be fun to talk a bit more about the character. Like many other Dutch people of my age, I grew up watching her cartoons.
First her name 'Nijntje' is a shortening of the Dutch word for little bunny/rabbit ('konijntje'). Her age is somewhere between a baby and 4 years old.
The first Miffy book was already produced in 1955, and 4 television series and even a movie have followed. Though most Dutch people might know the character mostly through the easy read books read in kindergarten. The last book was published in 2009.
Like Miffy, most names of the other characters are literal in Dutch. Here is a short list of the other characters and their Dutch names;
Snuffie (dog, literally 'sniff')
Vader en moeder pluis (parents, literally 'fluff')
Opa en oma pluis (grandparents)
Boris en Barbara Beer (bear, friend)
Betje Big (pig, friend)
There are also children's songs made. Some of my favourites;
Titlesong - Nijntje, lief klein konijntje
Ken jij Boris Beer?
Ken jij de seizoenen?
Dans mee met Nijntje
languages will make rules and then be like. actually nah
This literally true for Dutch.
I'm not quite sure when exactly, but sometime in the 1800s, Dutch linguists decided that the Dutch language needed more formal rules.
And so, they developed a linguistic system with formal rules, based on Latin believe.
However, maybe max. half a century later, many people were no longer following those rules and so they were abolished.
That is why, currently, Dutch grammar has a lot of grammar rules with exception. The grammar rules might be the remains of the Latin rules - with all the exceptions being the "informal" rules of the Dutch language.
(I can't find the right source rn, so please correct me where I'm wrong)
