14 April 2021

"doing my own research and making great discoveries"

[Note: This was written in April. About 80% of the books has been sold and shipped by now, early September.]

Since almost 150 people have now pre-ordered my new English Oera Linda translation (approaching 250 copies), and many of them have trusted me enough to make a deposit, I think it is fair to — for a change — talk a bit about myself, insofar as this is relevant to the work I have been doing on this blog. The following was mostly taken from an interview I recently gave.

 

Born and raised Westfrisian, I am the father of four children below the age of seven. My wife is Prussian. We live in a village in the rural north-eastern Netherlands, less than a mile from the Frisian border, with woods on walking distance.

When fifteen years old, I was given an old family tree. After a few weeks of going to the archives myself, I was able to add an older (early 18th century) generation to it. By visiting distant relatives I also collected stories and very old photos. This was in the mid-eighties, long before the internet. These experiences of doing my own research and making great discoveries possibly taught me more than high school.

Twenty years later, I got interested in religion, mythology and our ancient ancestors, as well as the origin of our language. Searching for sources about the goddess Freya, I stumbled upon the Oera Linda-book. Its original language resonated strongly, provided many ‘aha’-moments, and I decided to try and understand every word of it. The most regular sources about the book felt suspicious, based on fallacies and bad reasoning. I recognized its significance, as the texts provided me so much inspiration and clarity of mind. To specialize in it and make it more easily available to a larger audience felt like a calling. I knew this could become a life's work, but since I became a father several years later, that obviously became a competing priority.

One of the many interesting and relevant conclusions we can draw from these texts, I think, is that our pre-Christian ancestors did not inevitably all believe in several gods and their tales, or worship various idols, but that at least a significant group may have had a much more advanced philosophy and culture. A general philosophy that actually still makes sense to us and that may indeed provide much needed guidance and inspiration to regain our strength and direction.

note: not the final design
For now and the coming months, my main priority (after being a father) is to get the new translation out. This will be the first English translation from the original language. The existing one from 1876 by Sandbach was based on the first Dutch translation and begged for improvement. It is already possible to order “Codex Oera Linda” and I will also open a fundraiser to support the Oera Linda Foundation which I have set up to publish and distribute the book, as well as possible future projects. When I have more time, I intend to record a reading of all texts in the original language, that is, my approximation of how it may have sounded, with subtitles and showing the original script. A German and Dutch edition of the Codex are contemplated.

11 comments:

  1. Anonymous16/4/21 02:02

    Thank you.
    This work, might prove to become a massive milestone in the remembrance underway.


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  2. You are making history Jan, things may seem slow now but interest in the OLB has spiked dramatically in the past year or two. People are talking about it. Thank you.

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  3. Anonymous19/4/21 15:59

    I'm curious to hear opinions on naming one's child. As far as I can trace back, my family has christian names (I'm dutch). I want to break away with this custom and what better way to look for names than in the OLB. I am curious to opinions on the name Frya for a girl? For the name of a boy I am still very lost.. Any ideas, opinions or places to look for a suitable name that will honour our forebears would be very much appreciated.

    I can't wait to receive a copy from this latest translation. It is hard for me to describe how important I feel this work is that you have been doing for so many years now! I have been following your work for a very long time and it is of the utmost importance to us and the generations to come.

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    1. The art of naming is actually one of my favorite topics. I could talk for an hour about it. We chose the names of our four children with care. Some names that seem christian or biblical may actually be much older and of our own roots. Sometimes it is possible to create a variety that still hints to the name of a grandparent or further ancestor. Sound, meaning, initials all have their value. I would avoid names like Tristan or Pien (associate with 'triest' and 'pijn' respectively). Subconscious associations may count for example Jan and Thea have a positive "ja" in them, while Renée and Bruno have a negative "nee"/"no". The catholic sounding "Ignatius Bernardus" could become the Frisian "Ibe". From OL names can be used (and yes, why not: Frya or Frija), but also verbs, nouns and adjectives. Example: thjanja (to serve, dienen) became Diana, or Dina. "Milde Frya" => Milda. 'Apol' may have meant water-pool; 'Apollania' to share a water-pool? A variety of the latter could be Apolene. 'Tex' is more common in the US but could refer to Fryas Tex or to Texland. This can be a good tool to check for the historical existence of names in the NL: https://www.openarch.nl/. To advise on a boys' name, we might have a private chat if you like. Perhaps I will have some suggestions knowing family name and the ancestors or values you might want to refer to. ~ Thank you for your kind words of praise, much appreciated. Best regards JO

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  4. Alexander3/6/21 13:42

    I'm going to buy your great work Jan, but I am moving in mid July so I don't want to put in an address yet. Will you still have books by then or make more if you sell them out? I don't want to miss out.

    If you want I can just put in an order and we'll sort the shipment out later.

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    1. Yes you can fill out "to be determined" for the shipment address. You will then be certain of a copy and I will send it to the shipping address which you can send me later. Thank you.

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  5. Thank you from Aotearoa ( land of the long white cloud in Maori / otherwise Nieuw Zeeland ). I am most interested in this portion of my lineage. I would be interested in purchasing a copy. I also have Dutch and likely some distant French ancestry as well from my mother's side. My name has been accurately anglisized for use in this country. This is a wonderful resource. Thank you / Dankjewel.

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    1. Hello Rick, thank you for writing. Information about ordering the book can be found here: https://oeralinda.nl/order/

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  6. Anonymous8/9/21 04:41

    Hello, stupid question but is the book now available?
    "Since almost 150 people have now pre-ordered my new English Oera Linda translation[..]"

    E.

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    1. This was written in April. About 80% has already been sold and shipped.

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