NAMING CONVENTIONS

In the patronymic convention surnames simply were not used; after all, everyone knew everyone in the small villages. In the typical patronymic convention for Ostfriesiens, the second name of a child was the first name of the father with an "s" or "es" or "sen" added.  In the Kleen chart, children of Harm Jacobs are Johann Harms, Assel Harms, Taalke Harms, and so on.

In most families the tradition also was that a first name was never lost.  Some later descendent must carry it on. That led to a further general naming pattern. The oldest son typically received the first name of the grandfather on the paternal side.  That, together with the above "second name convention", often led to the same name showing up in alternate generations.   The father of Tonnies Janssen, if both oldest sons, is likely to be Jan Tonnies, whose own father would be Tonnies Janssen.

The second son was normally named after the maternal grandfather.  Similarly, the oldest daughter was named after the paternal grandmother and the second daughter was given the name of the maternal grandmother.   Succeeding children took on the names of their immediate parents or uncles and aunts or other close relatives.   When a child died, a later child would be given the same name. Sometimes the child of a second wife might carry the name of the first wife who died in childbirth --- especially if the second wife was a sister or cousin of the first wife. There were exceptions.  The pattern might honor the maternal family first if they were economically or socially of higher standing or a name might not be used if there was a family dispute.  Many examples of these conventions can be seen in the Kleen chart.

These naming patterns --- without reference to surnames --- helped sort out some relationship questions in the Kleen family.   An example is the name True(e). When that unusual name appeared in two different lines, it led to closer examination that resulted in a family reassignment in the chart that was then further verified by other information.

WHY 'KLEEN'?

The greater puzzle in this Kleen family search is why the surname 'Kleen' is being added, without any obvious basis, to the foregoing "patronymic" patterns.  Why were the children of Tiade Juerts given the surname Kleen instead of some other?  The same question applies to Tonnies Janssen.

Further research on the naming conventions revealed that there were other reasons for taking up a certain surname.  Sometimes the family took on the surname of the wife’s family --- if of higher standing or wealth --- or reached back to a grandparent.  Sometimes a common surname had nothing to do with family relationships.  It might reflect the village name (Strueck), neighbours, the property (farm) on which the people worked, or profession (Schumacher).  Sometimes a child's surname, added to the "patronymic" conventions using names of parents and grandparents, was that of a rich godfather, the surname of the minister or of a national gentlemen or powerful figure.

Following this last convention, the surname for some Kleens may have come from the family of Georg Kleene. Church records identify him as holding the position of Vogt --- political legal administrator --- for the Berum area about the time of the surname mandates.  But there are already Kleens with earlier births (e.g., Johann Kleen, born 1670).  The name of the village Kleinheide, home to many Kleens, might have been a  source, if 'Klein' somehow evolved into 'Kleen'.

But no simple and general rule seems to apply for the origin of the surname 'Kleen'.