During an investigation into captured letters, a letter from skipper Tjebbe Rinkes was found. At the end of October 1780 he gave it to a colleague in Lisbon, but on the way to Holland the English intercepted the boat. The letter never reached his wife Fok Sierds in Warns, but ended up in the National Archives in London. As of today, the letter can still be read, also in Warns, thanks to the internet.
Since 2008, Leiden professor Marijke van der Wal has been leading the 'Letters as booty' project. The aim is to investigate the language use of 17 e - and 18 e century private letters confiscated by the English at sea. The approximately 15,000 letters display a whole spectrum of writing skills:from clumsily to elegantly written. That makes the project very exciting.
Frisian letter
When Van der Wal saw a letter with Frisian in it, she immediately tipped off her Leiden colleague Rolf Bremmer, professor by special appointment of Frisian. Bremmer:“There are very few Frisian letters from the 18 e century, so every new one is a win.” It is striking that Tjebbe writes to his wife in good Dutch, but switches to Frisian when he addresses his mother. And that's not the first time:This is, leeu [believe] I, wool it toolfde or the 13 letter already, of [that] I have sent [you] here from denne, he writes proudly. And I tenke [think] that I and go nemme [name] with the women [women] in Wans sol krije, because I [write] so trou schriu.
On his return
We now know that there were then 'ordinary' people who not only spoke Frisian at home, but also used it in letters. It is striking, however, that Tjebbe, who loves writing, writes to his wife in Dutch, but his mim in Frisian. This may indicate that Frisian was already on the retreat in the southwest corner of Friesland at the end of the 18 e century. The letter, with translation and explanation by Bremmer, can be read and viewed at lettersalsbuit.nl.
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