12032. Jan DeVeer,692 son of Gijsbert DeVeer, was born 11 August 1521 in Veere, Netherlands.
There are many web sites that provide the specific birth date that is used here. No doubt they are replicating data but the date agrees with other data I have collected. I have seen sources stating a death year of 1615 but I think this is the son's year of death. A spouse is also given on some sites but that requires confirmation (Katharina Pasch; there is a woman of this name who marries a grandson). Finally, a middle name, Gijsbert, is mentioned and based on typical conventions of the time wherein a middle name is a direct reference to the father's name I have recorded his father accordingly. I haven't authenticated the information.
James Fehr has done extensive research on the de Veer and Fehr ancestry. I borrow from his genealogical article here, although I have made a number of corrections. The de Veer name extends back to a time preceding the Reformation. The spelling evolved over the years, at times due to the influence of different languages as the Mennonite group migrated from the Netherlands, through the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, to Ukraine. The Dutch Mennonites retained their use of the Dutch language for two centuries after settling in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in the sixteen century. This contributed to the treatment they received from the indigenous populace, who regarded them as social as well as religious outsiders. Eventually the Dutch language was replaced by the Low German dialect commonly used among the neighbouring population, although Dutch was maintained for Church services until the end of the 1770s. Low German was widely used among the merchant class for many years as the language of business stemming from the days of the Hanseatic League. High German became more widely used due to economic influence over time and particularly after the partition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, when most Dutch Mennonites found themselves citizens of Prussia. During this period the name changed from de Veer to de Fehr, as it became germanicized. The pronunciation of the name Fehr is similar to Veer, since the"v" is pronounced the same as an "f". High German was adopted for life outside the home but certainly Low German was retained within the Mennonite community, and it was brought to Canada and is used to this day. By the 1920s, immigrants to Canada from the Mennonite Settlements in Ukraine spoke Low German, High German, Ukrainian and Russian. Some spoke all of these languages.
According to Fehr, the port of Veere was caught up in political disputes over the control of the Netherlands in the early 1500's. Residents fled the town to settle in Schiedam (in modern times a suburb of Rotterdam). They took on the same "de Veere" at this point. While this is possibly the origin of the name, I have no way to substantiate it.
The first Mennonite to carry the de Veer name was Gysbert Jansz. de Veer, born in Schiedam on 14 May 1556. Based on his name, it was clear that his father's name was Jan. In fact, there is a record of a Janss Gysbrecht, born 11 August 1521, in the Veere archives.
According to Fred Wall in an email (I have not seen) to James Fehr on 29 March 2000, Schiedam was a trading port under the control of one of the mercantile trading companies established by the Dutch state and all citizenship records prior to approximately 1700 were taken to the state archives in Amsterdam where they remain. A Dutch archivist in Veere suggested to Fred that the name de Veer could have originated in Schiedam where many Veere residents fled after Veere came under the control of the Duke of Burgundy in the early 16th century as an endowment of his new wife. This perspective is congruent with Fehr's analysis. The archivist said these refugees would usually adopt the name de Veer. There is a citizen registry book in Veere started in the 15th century with an entry for a Janss Gysbrecht born 11 August 1521. Given the assertion that Gysbert Jansz de Veer (1556 - 1615) was from Schiedam there could well be a relationship, speculating that the father had moved from Veere to Schiedam and passed on the name. This leads to the further speculation that Janss Gysbrecht's father was Jans from Veere.
Mennonitedna.com has published an outline of the genetic evidence to substantiate the ancestral linkages stemming from Jan de Veer. Note that the reference numbers that appear here refer to the Grandma Database. Quoting from the Mennonitedna.com site "There are at least partial results back for many different descendants of Benjamin de Fehr (ca 1733-1822) #196504 as well as a grandson of Eduard de Veer (b. 23 Feb 1893) #1074024, who is a descendant of Jan de Veer (b. 11 August 1521) #196491 through his grandson Abraham de Veer (b. ca 1585) #12799. The haplotypes are consistent with each other, suggesting that these families all descend from Jan de Veer (b. 11 August 1521) #196491. Benjamin de Fehr (ca 1733-1822) #196504 is a descendent of Gysbert de Veer (b. 7 Nov 1600) #12803, the brother of Abraham de Veer (b. ca 1585) #12799. These results are of interest since the haplotypes confirm that the descendants of Abraham de Veer (b. ca 1585) #12799 who stayed in the Netherlands are related to the descendants of Gysbert de Veer (b. 7 Nov 1600) #12803, who moved to Poland. This is the earliest connection to a common ancestor that has been confirmed by DNA testing in the Mennonite DNA project and the first Mennonite lineage that has been confirmed through DNA testing as having originated in the Netherlands."
The relevance to this genealogical research is that the ancestral linkages to Benjamin de Fehr (1733) are well documented and most of the other links through to 1556 are also quite well researched. While there are some looser relationships due to gaps in the reference materials, the DNA information supports the broader genealogical structure.
Jan married an unknown person.
Children:
6016 i. Gijsbert DeVeer 674 (born 14 May 1556 in Schiedam, Netherlands - died 17 May 1615 in Danzig). Gijsbert married Debora Harnasveger,675 daughter of Claes Harnasveger 693 and Weijn Peters,694 in 1580 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Debora was born about 1560 in Amsterdam, Netherlands and died 14 August 1627 in Danzig.
12034. Claes Harnasveger,693 son of Jakob Harnasveger 706 and Dieuwertje Janz,696 was born before 1534 in Netherlands and died in 1600 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
The marriage information is taken from the Grandma Database, which references "Stammtafel De Veer in Mennonit. Forschungsstelle Weiherhof/Pf". His middle name, Jakobsz, is a reference to his father, Jakob.
A source note in Odette Franssens's work says he buried a son at the Oude Kerk on 26 May 1554: "26-05-1554 (begraven een kind van) Hernisveger, Claes Jacopsz. begraafplaats: Oude Kerk. Begraafregisters voor 1811; NL-SAA-9103592; Is op den xx6 ontfangen van Claes jacopsz Hernisveger sijn kint onder den arm ... hijr begraven 1- 9-".
I located his son, Jan, by his second wife, at research.frick.org. This web site contains the Montias Database of 17th Century Dutch Art Inventories and documents a household inventory of art works belonging to Jan Harnasveger. The inventory is dated 22 September 1611. It was made at the request of creditors. The commentary says this person was likely an insolvent armourer. Since the date corresponds to his death I wonder if this is more likely an estate settlement than a bankruptcy. The house was on Breestraet in Amsterdam (this is probably Van Breestraat). The inventory lists 44 items including maps, drawings, paintings, alabaster carvings and a deer head.
A source note in the Odette Franssen ancestry work says: "22 April 1600 :
His son Frans is listed in the Montias Collection at frick.org as a signatory of the Remonstrant Petition of 1628. The Remonstrants were a group who disagreed with the Calvinist principle of predestination. Odette Franssen provided some information about Frans and his wife Geertgen Pieters Dommer. I believe the middle name Pieters is a reference to her father and I have recorded him accordingly. Frans had a second wife named Aeltje Hendricks Wijntjes. I believe the middle name Hendricks refers to her father's first name and have recorded her father accordingly.
Claes' second wife was Claertijen Franssen. The source of this information is the ancestry work done by Odette Franssen.
Claes married Weijn Peters 694 before 1554 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Weijn was born about 1531 in Amsterdam, Netherlands and died before 1571 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Children:
i. NN Harnasveger was born before 1554 in Amsterdam, Netherlands and died 26 May 1554 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
6017 ii. Debora Harnasveger 675 (born about 1560 in Amsterdam, Netherlands - died 14 August 1627 in Danzig). Debora married Gijsbert DeVeer,674 son of Jan DeVeer, in 1580 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Gijsbert was born 14 May 1556 in Schiedam, Netherlands, was baptized in Amsterdam, Netherlands, and died 17 May 1615 in Danzig.
Claes next married Claertijen Franssen 696 in 1571 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Claertijen was born before 1551 in Amsterdam, Netherlands and died in 1584 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Children:
i. Frans Claessen Harnasveger 707 was born in 1571 and died in 1649. Frans married Geertgen Dommer, daughter of Pieter Dommer, in 1597. Geertgen died in 1603. Frans next married Aeltje Hendricks Wijntjes, daughter of Hendricks Wijntjes, in 1608. Aeltje was born in 1579 and died in 1649.
ii. Jan Harnasveger 708 was born in 1576 in Amsterdam, Netherlands and died in 1611 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Jan married Metjen Van Zevenbergen,696 daughter of Heijndrick Van Zevenbergen, in 1600 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
12035. Weijn Peters 694 was born about 1531 in Amsterdam, Netherlands and died before 1571 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
According to the Grandma Database she was born between 1530 and 1540. One source (http://www.genealogieonline.nl/fr/genealogie-spaan/I508579.php) says she was born in 1531 in Amsterdam and died in 1560 at the age of 29. This is around the time that Debora was born so the death may be related to the birth. The same source says she was married in 1554. Claes remarried in 1571, meaning she died prior to 1571.
In some ancestry.ca genealogy records there is a claim that her parents were Pieter Meeusz Hartogh (1500-1558), possibly born in Antwerp and dying in Amsterdam, and Elisabeth Jansdr Pauw (1512-1566), possibly born and dying in Antwerp. I think this information is from the Netherlands Genealogy Index (1000-2015) and I suspect it relies on the coincident knowledge that Weijn's father was a Pieter and that the dates hang together. I have not been able to find sources to prove this information is correct.
Weijn married Claes Harnasveger,693 son of Jakob Harnasveger 706 and Dieuwertje Janz,696 before 1554 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Claes was born before 1534 in Netherlands and died in 1600 in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
12042. Georg Maraun,703 son of Matthaus Maraun 709 and Katharina Marquard,710 was born about 1510 in Konigsberg, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Joachim von Roy says that Gertrud Maraun was the daughter of Georg Maraun who was "...probably from the important Danzig or Konigsberg patrician family Marun". Internet entries I have seen indicate he was born in Konigsberg.
The name has its origin in East Prussia. In Königsberg there was a district called Maraunenhof, named for people who settled there in the sixteenth century. Whether this was the originating family in that area is unknown.
The Piwkowski familiy tree (https://stammbaum.piwkowski.org/familychart.php?personID=I827&tree=Piwkowski) contains a few other Maraun family members. The source is the Danzig State Archives. The patriarch here was Matthäus Maarun, born in Konigsberg-Kniephof in the late fifteenth century. He was a councilor and businessman. He had a wife named Katharina. They had two children, Kurt and Georg. Kurt was born in Konigsberg in 1490; this is known from his death record. He lived in Danzig where he was a Councilor and Magistrate for Life. He died of the plague on 26 August 1547. Georg was born in Konigsberg and in 1518 he was a student (the abbreviation Lyz. is used here to indicate the institution or city).
There is a report of a claim being made in Konigsberg on 24 October 1512 on behalf of Matthaus Maraun to pay out salvage money for a shipment of goods stranded near Balga on the Vistula Lagoon. The shipment appears to have been on its way to Konigsberg. Maraun was guarantor for the shipment being made by Paul Goltbeck of Alt Stettin. The intent was to pay out the salvage monies so as to release Maraun from the pledge for the goods.
Georg married an unknown person.
Children:
6021 i. Gertrud Maraun 648 (born about 1565 in Danzig). Gertrud married Anthonius Von Roy 683 3 May 1587 in Danzig. Anthonius was born about 1560.
Copyright 2025 by Barry Teichroeb. All rights reserved.
Home | Table of Contents | Surnames | Name List
This website was created 22 May 2025 with Legacy 10.0, a division of MyHeritage.com; content copyrighted and maintained by website owner