It is not difficult to guess that Harlem in New York was named after Haarlem in the Netherlands; but fewer people know that Brooklyn was named after Breukelen, a town between Amsterdam and Utrecht. Although the Dutch only had a presence in New York for 40 years, present-day street and place names indicate just how persistent their influence on the city still is.
The Dutch in New York
The Dutch first arrived in New York, on the tip of what is now Manhattan in 1624, after the West Indies Trading Company sent 110 settlers to establish a trading post there. The land was purchased in 1626 from the Canarsie tribe for goods worth the bargain price of about 60 guilders. The Dutch named their new colony New Amsterdam and built streets, canals, windmills and farmhouses, which made the area closely resemble home.
The British laid claim to New Amsterdam just 40 years later in 1664, giving the Dutch Surinam in return. They renamed it New York after the British King’s brother James, the Duke of York.
Central Park: New York's Green Lung
As the fledgling colony began to attract more settlers and expanded northwards up the island, overcrowding became a major problem. More attention was paid to urban planning, giving rise to the grid-like street layout that New York is famous for today, and the immense recreational area that is Central Park.
However, from 14th Street downwards, in the areas that are now The Financial District, Chelsea and Greenwich Village, the narrow and haphazard streets and the low houses fronted by ‘stoops’ which the Dutch established, although flanked these days by towering skyscrapers, are still clearly visible.
Dutch Influence on New York Street and Place Names
The Dutch presence can also be seen in many street and place names. Take Amsterdam Avenue, for example, which runs the length of the Upper West Side, or Stuyvesant Park between East 15th and East 17th Streets in Manhattan, named after Peter Stuyvesant, the last director-general of the Dutch colony of New Netherland.
Some names, like Harlem of course, Newkirk or Brooklyn, have had their spellings altered, but the Dutch root is still apparent. Other names, such as Gansevoort Street and Hoyt-Schermerhorn Street, have kept their spellings intact, although these days they are not pronounced with the Dutch guttural back-of-the-throat sound; then there is the delightful Spuyton-Duyvil, a train stop in The Bronx, which could only have a Dutch origin.
Like many cities, names in New York reflect its history. Despite the Dutch having ceded control of New York over 340 years ago, reminders of their short time there are scattered all over the city up to this day.
Cecily Layzell - Cecily Layzell is a food and travel writer and founder of restaurant review site www.eat-amsterdam.com.
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