These databases of the Meertens Institute offer a unique perspective on Dutch language and culture and serve as starting point for research.
The Dutch language has borrowed all kinds of words from other languages, but other languages have borrowed Dutch words as well. These are made available in the Database of Dutch words borrowed by other languages, which contains more than 18.000 entries.
The Lexical Database of Dutch Dialects gives access to a growing number of old and modern Dutch dialect dictionaries. A standard Dutch entrance links all separate dictionaries into one huge network.
In this database, the migration of people in the Netherlands in the 20th century is visualised in maps. For each municipality the following questions have been answered: where have the ancestors of the present inhabitants been born, what is the birth place of the offspring of the inhabitants from a century ago en where do they live now.
The Database of Culture and Language Maps contains an index of 30.000 titels of published and unpublished culture and language maps, for the most part linked to an image of the map.
In 1874 J.H. Winkler registered a large number of translations of the Parable of the Prodigal Son in Dutch and Frisian dialects. In 1996 this exercise was repeated by dr. Harrie Scholtmeijer, who at that time worked at the Meertens Institute, and resulted in 82 new dialect translations.
Various researchers are developing and enriching their own corpus for diachronic research. The Meertens Institute makes these corpora available for scientific research with permission of the owners.
The Database Old Dutch Sizes and Weights entails historic metrological data from the end of the 18th century and beginning of the 19th century.
The Database Patron Saints entails data about the worship of a number of patron saints in The Netherlands and Flanders.
In the Etymology Database all relevant etymological publications of Dutch are presented in chronologic order.
The database Reconstructed farms in the Netherlands contains information about more than 7.000 reconstructed farms in the Netherlands.
Hundreds of hours of sound fragments have been made accessible in the Dutch Dialect Database. On this speaking map authentic conversations between dialect speakers from all over the Netherlands can be heard.
In the Ethnological Keyword Database (VTB) all ethnological books en articles from the library of the Meertens Institute can be found with the help of keywords.
Names and Onomastics in the Netherlands and elsewhere (NNN) is an onomastic documentation system in which you can find information on names and onomastic subjects.
An estate inventory or probate inventory is an official document in which the possessions of a person or household are described. For more information, see the Estate Inventory Database.
In the database of the Morphological Atlas of the Dutch Dialects (MAND), you can search on transcriptions, word categories, word stems and places in the Netherlands.
In the Netherlands, an uncountable number of feasts are celebrated. The Feast Database is a series of articles containing concise information on a number of annual feasts.
The Dynamic Syntactic Atlas of the Dutch Dialects (DynaSAND) is an online tool for dialect syntax research. DynaSAND consists of a database, a search engine, a cartographic component and a bibliography.
The database called Plant Names in Dutch Dialects (PLAND) of the Meertens Institute contains the popular names of plants in the Dutch language area.
The Dutch Folktale Database enables you to search for historical and contemporary fairy tales, legends, saints' lives, jokes, riddles and urban legends.
In this database, the pilgrimage culture in the Netherlands from the sixth century A.D. till the present has been mapped out. The database contains data on 660 places of pilgrimage.
The Dutch First Name Database enables you to search a file containing some 20.000 first names including explanations of the names and all sorts of other information on names.
The Datebase of Surnames is a source of information for anyone interested in the origin, meaning and distribution of family names. The Database of Surnames has been developed by the Centre of Onomastics of the Meertens Instituut in Amsterdam. On the 1th of January 2012 the database was handed over to the Central Bureau of Genealogy in The Hague where development, documentation and services will be continued.
