Jordaan

Afrikaans

Etymology 1

Proper noun

die Jordaan

1. Jordan (a river in Western Asia, in the Middle East, that empties into the Dead Sea, flowing through Israel, the Golan Heights, the West Bank and Jordan)

   Synonym: Jordaanrivier

Related terms

• doodsjordaan

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Proper noun

Jordaan

1. a surname

Dutch

Etymology

Attested as Jordane in 1691. The use of this name for the neighborhood dates to the 17th century, when the Prinsengracht canal was first constructed, which was at that time apparently jokingly referred to by the name of the Jordan river. The neighborhood that was built beyond the canal around that time then came to be known by the same name (possibly first being referred to as over de Jordaan, "beyond the Jordan river [i.e., Prinsengracht]", before simply being referred to as Jordaan).

Other etymologies for the name of the neighborhood have been proposed (such as a derivation from French jardin), but are generally considered less plausible.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: Jor‧daan

Proper noun

Jordaan m

1. Jordan (a river in Western Asia, in the Middle East, that empties into the Dead Sea, flowing through Israel, the Golan Heights, the West Bank and Jordan)
2. A neighbourhood of Amsterdam, North Holland, Netherlands

Derived terms

• Jordanees
• Jordaans

References

• van Berkel, Gerard, Samplonius, Kees (2018) “jordaan”, in Nederlandse plaatsnamen verklaard‎^[1] (in Dutch), Mijnbestseller.nl, →ISBN