Eeltsje Hiddes Halbertsma
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Eeltsje Hiddes Halbertsma (; ; 8 October 1797 – 22 March 1858)Breuker 1993, p. 592. was a Frisian writer, poet and physician,Breuker 1993, pp. 592–594. member of the
Halbertsma Halbertsma is a Frisian patrician family that originates from Dokkum's surrounding area. Family members traditionally occupy positions in the legal field, academia, medicine, business, and public administration. The family is mostly know ...
family, and the youngest of the Halbertsma Brothers.Breuker 1993, p. 587. He became well known when he and his elder brother
Justus Justus (died on 10 November between 627 and 631) was the fourth archbishop of Canterbury. Pope Gregory the Great sent Justus from Italy to England on a mission to Christianise the Anglo-Saxons from their native paganism; he probably a ...
published the
poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...
and
short story collection A short story collection is a book of short stories and/or novellas by a single author. A short story collection is distinguished from an anthology of fiction, which would contain work by several authors (e.g., '' Les Soirées de Médan''). Th ...
''De Lapekoer fan Gabe Skroar'' in 1822.Dykstra and Oldenhof, p. 37. Afterwards, this work was continually expanded, and also came to include contributions by a third brother, Tsjalling,Wiersma, p. 9. until all the Halbertsma Brothers'
prose Prose is language that follows the natural flow or rhythm of speech, ordinary grammatical structures, or, in writing, typical conventions and formatting. Thus, prose ranges from informal speaking to formal academic writing. Prose differs most n ...
and poetry was posthumously collected in 1871 to become the famous work ''
Rimen en Teltsjes ' ('Rhymes and Tales', ) is the national book of Western Frisian literature, written by the three Brothers Halbertsma. It is an extensive collection of short stories and poems, the first of which was published in 1822 under the title of '. deve ...
''.Breuker 1993, pp. 603–606. This book played a role of crucial importance in the development of a new literary tradition after Western Frisian had been used almost exclusively as a
spoken language A spoken language is a form of communication produced through articulate sounds or, in some cases, through manual gestures, as opposed to written language. Oral or vocal languages are those produced using the vocal tract, whereas sign languages ar ...
for three centuries.Jensma, p. 197. Of the three Brothers Halbertsma, Eeltsje was probably the most talented, en his poetry especially is still very much admired.Wiersma, pp. 9–10. His oeuvre included the poem ''
De Alde Friezen "De Âlde Friezen" () is the anthem of the Friesland province of the Netherlands. The text is by the Frisian writer Eeltsje Halbertsma. The version commonly sung today is an abridgement, dating from 1876, by Jacobus van Loon. The words were no ...
'', which later became the
national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...
of the Western Frisian people.


Life


Youth and background

Eeltsje Hiddes Halbertsma was born on 8 October 1797,Wiersma, p. 7. in his parents' house on Kowemerk ("Cow Market") street in the village of
Grou Grou () is a town in the province Friesland of the Netherlands and had around 5655 citizens in January 2017. Since 2014 Grou is part of the municipality of Leeuwarden. The town is located on the lake and the Prinses Margriet Canal. Heineken op ...
, in the central part of the Dutch province of
Friesland Friesland ( ; ; official ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia (), named after the Frisians, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen (p ...
. He was the fourth son of the baker and small-time
merchant A merchant is a person who trades in goods produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Merchants have been known for as long as humans have engaged in trade and commerce. Merchants and merchant networks operated i ...
Oppewal and Boorsma, p. 16. Hidde Joasts Halbertsma (1756–1809)Terpstra, p. 317. and his wife Ruerdtsje (or Riurtk) Tsjallings Binnerts (1767–1809). He had three elder brothers: Justus ("Joast") (1789–1869),Breuker 1993, p. 588.Terpstra, p. 316. Tsjalling (1792–1852), and Binnert (1795–1847). Two children who were born later died in early childhood, the little boy in 1803, and the little girl in 1805. The brothers were very close, possibly as a consequence of the fact that both their parents died at a relatively young age in 1809, when Eeltsje was only eleven years of age.Wiersma, pp. 8–9. Justus, Tsjalling and Eeltsje, who, as authors, became known as the
Brothers Halbertsma The Brothers Halbertsma, members of the Halbertsma family, were three brothers born in the Frisian village of Grou towards the end of the 18th century, who played a role of crucial importance for the development of a written literature in the ...
later in life, were much like their father, while Binnert more resembled their mother. This mother, Ruerdtsje Binnerts, was a scion of a prominent family in Grou. Her people were
Mennonites Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...
, and although her husband had been raised a
Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...
, he converted after marrying her. From the letters of Eeltsje's brother Justus Ruerdtsje emerges as a smart businesswoman, a loving mother, and a deeply religious person.Wiersma, p. 8. About Hidde Halbertsma, the father, much less is known. It is thought that he might have been a
mariner A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor' ...
before his marriage. He is described as a gentle soul, who was, however, apt to take offence, and could be quite sharp-tongued in such cases. In 1784, he published a long
Dutch-language Dutch ( ) is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken by about 25 million people as a first language and 5 million as a second language and is the List of languages by total number of speak ...
poem under the title ''Schrikkelijke IJsgang en Overstroominge in Gelderland'' ("Terrible Ice-drift and Flooding in
Gelderland Gelderland ( , ), also known as Guelders ( ) in English, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands, located in the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Nethe ...
"). From this intriguing work it is clear that his sons' literary talents ran in the family.


Education

Like his elder brother Justus, Eeltsje Halbertsma was sent to the French school in the provincial capital of
Leeuwarden Leeuwarden (; ; ; ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 127,073 (2023). It is the provincial capital and seat of the Provin ...
for a year by his mother, and after that, he was enrolled in the
Latin school The Latin school was the grammar school of 14th- to 19th-century Europe, though the latter term was much more common in England. Other terms used include Lateinschule in Germany, or later Gymnasium. Latin schools were also established in Colon ...
, also in Leeuwarden. There, he started following lessons probably just before Ruerdtsje Binnerts' death in December 1809. As their father, Hidde Halbertsma, had died in January of that same year, the brothers became
orphan An orphan is a child whose parents have died, are unknown, or have permanently abandoned them. It can also refer to a child who has lost only one parent, as the Hebrew language, Hebrew translation, for example, is "fatherless". In some languages ...
s because of this unfortunate event. Justus, the eldest brother, was studying in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
at the time. Eeltsje could continue his education in the Latin school because the middle brothers, Tsjalling and Binnert, kept their father's bakery running with the help of their father's baker's mates. As
commuting Commuting is periodically recurring travel between a place of residence and place of work or study, where the traveler, referred to as a commuter, leaves the boundary of their home community. By extension, it can sometimes be any regular o ...
from Grou to Leeuwarden and back again on a daily basis was out of the question with roads and transportation being what they were at that time, Eeltsje boarded in the city with one Hawerdink, an acquaintance of his brother Justus, who apparently introduced him to the most vulgar form of City Frisian, a Dutch (not Frisian) dialect which is spoken in the cities in Friesland. When he had finished his training in the Latin school, towards the end of 1814, Eeltsje Halbertsma left for
Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...
, where he started a study of medicine at the
University of Leiden Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange as a Protestant institution, it holds the distinction of being the oldest university in the Neth ...
which lasted until April 1818. In the student city of
Leiden Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...
, however, he became caught up in the rough night life, and that was why, by way of reorientation, he left for
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
, in Germany, for half a year in the spring of 1818.Breuker 2016, p. 1124. There he enjoyed himself tremendously at the
Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is Germany's oldest unive ...
, and later in his life he always looked back on his Heidelberg period with a sense of wistfulness.Terpstra, p. 318.Wiersma, p. 10. The lessons he followed in Heidelberg for the most part had to do with
obstetrics Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a su ...
. After the summer, he returned to Leiden, where he ended his study by obtaining his doctorate in medicine on 13 October 1818. Afterwards, Halbertsma became physician in
Purmerend Purmerend () is a city and municipality in the west of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. The city is surrounded by polders, such as the Purmer, Beemster and the Wormer. Purmerend's population grew relatively slowly until the 1960s ...
, in northern Holland, where he lived for a year and a half, and also became involved with a local girl whom he referred to as "the Little Peacock" in his letters to his brother Justus. Eventually, though, he became ill, and was brought back to his family in Grou, probably towards the end of 1820. When he had recovered, he did not go back to Holland, but instead started a practice in the village where he was born. He would spend the rest of his life there, because, he wrote to his brother Justus, "Grou is always lovely to me." Because of his good education, but also because of his compassionate bedside manner, Halbertsma had a very spread-out practice, with patients not only in Grou, but also scattered around the
countryside In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry are typically describ ...
and in neighbouring villages. This required him to travel a lot, for which he often had to depend on boats in the marshy lake country of Central Friesland.Terpstra, p. 319.


Nature and views

From stories of people who knew him, Eeltsje Hiddes Halbertsma emerges as a man who was quickly moved, but could also have a lot of fun.Dykstra and Oldenhof, p. 40. According to the bookseller and historian Wopke Eekhoff, who was acquainted with him for many years, Halbertsma was big-hearted and generous, and a droll story-teller. One of Halbertsma's biographers described him as "a fine-feeling spirit, an idealistic dreamer, an independent and courageous man, afflicted by periods of melancholy and
doubt Doubt is a mental state in which the mind remains suspended between two or more contradictory propositions, and is certainty, uncertain about them. Doubt on an emotional level is indecision between belief and wikt:disbelief, disbelief. It may i ...
; a '' bohémien'' and a rascal, such as there has been no second of in all of Western Frisian literature."Wiersma, p. 13. Halbertsma's letters to his brother Justus are lively and open-hearted, and also quite entertaining still. As for his views, Halbertsma had become influenced by
Deism Deism ( or ; derived from the Latin term '' deus'', meaning "god") is the philosophical position and rationalistic theology that generally rejects revelation as a source of divine knowledge and asserts that empirical reason and observation ...
in his student days, but according to himself he had changed his opinion after reading the German philosopher
Johann Gottfried Herder Johann Gottfried von Herder ( ; ; 25 August 174418 December 1803) was a Prussian philosopher, theologian, pastor, poet, and literary critic. Herder is associated with the Age of Enlightenment, ''Sturm und Drang'', and Weimar Classicism. He wa ...
. Politics Halbertsma tried to stay away from. In the company of others he was sometimes seduced into speaking on that subject, but he was always afraid to say too much; his father had been a supporter of the
Patriot movement In the United States, the patriot movement is a term which is used to describe a conglomeration of non-unified right wing populist and nationalist political movements, most notably right-wing armed militias, sovereign citizens, and tax pro ...
, and Halbertsma could never forget how badly that had ended. For all that, he did not just stand by when his sense of justice was violated, as is shown by his poems ''De Grytman'' ("The
Grietman A grietman (from Old Frisian ''greta'' to accuse, to indict) was a judge and administrator of a local district; this role was partly a forerunner of the current rural mayor in the province of Friesland, and partly the forerunner of a judge. East of ...
"; about corruption in the political upper classes in Friesland) and ''Batthyany's Dea'' ("Batthyany's Death"; about the execution of
Lajos Batthyány Count Lajos Batthyány de Németújvár (; ; 10 February 1807 – 6 October 1849) was the first Prime Minister of Hungary. He was born in Pozsony (modern-day Bratislava) on 10 February 1807, and was executed by firing squad in Pest, Hungary, Pe ...
, the leader of the
Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...
in the Hungarian Rebellion of 1848–1849). He also wrote, in
Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...
, a poem in which he rages against the fact that Frisian members of the
Tweede Kamer The House of Representatives ( , literally "Second Chamber of the States General", or simply ) is the lower house of the bicameral parliament of the Netherlands, the States General, the other one being the Senate. It has 150 seats, which are fi ...
voted against the proposal to abolish
slavery Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
in 1853.Breuker 1993, p. 593. On the other hand, he was not so progressive that he felt himself in any way connected to those he called, in 1855, "red democrats" (that is to say socialists and other political
radicals Radical (from Latin: ', root) may refer to: Politics and ideology Politics *Classical radicalism, the Radical Movement that began in late 18th century Britain and spread to continental Europe and Latin America in the 19th century *Radical politics ...
), whom he separated from "the decent-minded", with which he meant the progressive, liberal section of the settled middle class, to which he himself belonged. In 1827, Halbertsma became a member of the Provinciaal Friesch Genootschap ter Beoefening van Friesche Geschied-, Oudheid- en Taalkunde ("Provincial Frisian Society for the Study of Frisian History, Antiquities and Linguistics"), but in 1834, he cancelled his membership because he felt this club was full to the rafters with silly people.Van der Schaaf, p. 38 He could not stomach the affected poshness of the middle class gentlemen, and neither could he reconcile such graveness of bearing with the 'gluttony and wine-guzzling' which followed the gatherings. "''Es gibt Narren aller Art''" ("It takes fools of all kinds"), he wrote to his brother Justus. Justus did remain a member of the society, but because he was a
Mennonite Mennonites are a group of Anabaptism, Anabaptist Christianity, Christian communities tracing their roots to the epoch of the Radical Reformation. The name ''Mennonites'' is derived from the cleric Menno Simons (1496–1561) of Friesland, part of ...
minister in
Deventer Deventer (; Sallaans dialect, Sallands: ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Salland historical region of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Overijssel, ...
, in the province of
Overijssel Overijssel (; ; ; ) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the eastern part of the country. The province's name comes from the perspective of the Prince-Bishopric of Utrecht, Episcopal principality of Utrecht ...
, and was therefore mostly a member by correspondence, it was somewhat easier for him to look at things with a certain detachment. Later, Eeltsje Halbertsma became a member of the Selskip foar Fryske Taal en Skriftekennisse ("Society for Knowledge of Frisian Language and Literature"), where he felt much more at home.


Family

In June 1823, Halbertsma married Baukje Fockens (1795–1877), a woman from a well-to-do family from
Bolsward Bolsward (, West Frisian: ''Boalsert'') is a city in Súdwest-Fryslân in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. Bolsward has a population of just under 10,200. It is located 10 km W.N.W. of Sneek. History The town is founded on th ...
, whom he had met in the autumn of 1822. She was the daughter of Livius (Liuwe) Regnerus Fockens, a mayor of Bolsward who had died not long before. Halbertsma and his wife had four children: two sons and two daughters. Only their son Hidde would survive his father, as the other son, Liuwe, died in 1854, and both of the girls, Ruerdtsje and Anna, were laid to rest yn 1851. The death of Anna (1832–1851), with whom he was exceptionally close, hit Halbertsma especially hard; about this loss he wrote the touching poem ''Op Anna's Dea'' ("On Anna's Death"), which was published in 1854, in the poetry and short story collection ''Leed en Wille en de Flotgerzen'' ("Grief and Pleasure and Down Upon the Lee Shore"). Halbertsma's marriage was, after the first few years, not very happy, as he was much too fond of alcohol, while his wife nagged constantly, was distrustful and reproached him continuously for living off her money. It is therefore probably not coincidental that in several of Halbertsma's stories the main characters are a drunken man and his angry wife. In 1853, when both marriage partners had neglected their household for years, the parents were placed under guardianship by both of their sons, which was done especially on the initiative of Liuwe. Although Halbertsma managed to become his own master again in 1857, this was a humiliation for which it was not easy for him to forgive his son, and there is no
elegy An elegy is a poem of serious reflection, and in English literature usually a lament for the dead. However, according to ''The Oxford Handbook of the Elegy'', "for all of its pervasiveness ... the 'elegy' remains remarkably ill defined: sometime ...
for Liuwe's passing in 1854, as Halbertsma did make for both of his daughters.


Writing career

Halbertsma felt the drive to write for the first time, as his brother
Justus Justus (died on 10 November between 627 and 631) was the fourth archbishop of Canterbury. Pope Gregory the Great sent Justus from Italy to England on a mission to Christianise the Anglo-Saxons from their native paganism; he probably a ...
would later tell it, when he came back from his half-year in
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
, and noticed that the street songs in the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
were of a very low quality compared to those in Germany. According to Justus, Eeltsje Halbertsma set out writing poetry to replace the existing songs with better ones of his own making. The
linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...
Philippus H. Breuker, who added an extensive and penetrating
afterword An afterword is a literary device that is often found at the end of a piece of literature. It generally covers the story of how the book came into being, or of how the idea for the book was developed. An afterword may be written by someone oth ...
to the
reprint A reprint is a re-publication of material that has already been previously published. The term ''reprint'' is used with slightly different meanings in several fields. Academic publishing In academic publishing, offprints, sometimes also known ...
of ''
Rimen en Teltsjes ' ('Rhymes and Tales', ) is the national book of Western Frisian literature, written by the three Brothers Halbertsma. It is an extensive collection of short stories and poems, the first of which was published in 1822 under the title of '. deve ...
'' of 1993, observed, however, that this assertion could "never be more than half the truth," as Halbertsma's early poetry was not of a high literary value; quite the opposite, in fact. According to Breuker, it seems more likely that Halbertsma wanted to emulate these Dutch street songs. Later on, he must have come under the influence of Justus' ideas, who wanted to preserve the
Western Frisian language West Frisian (; ), or simply Frisian ( ; ), is a West Germanic language spoken mostly in the province of Friesland () in the north of the Netherlands, mostly by those of Frisian ancestry. It is the most widely spoken of the Frisian languages ...
by reintroducing it for writing after it had been used almost exclusively as a
spoken language A spoken language is a form of communication produced through articulate sounds or, in some cases, through manual gestures, as opposed to written language. Oral or vocal languages are those produced using the vocal tract, whereas sign languages ar ...
for three centuries.Wiersma, p. 11. From that it followed that Justus had to get the Frisians to read in their own language (otherwise, writing it would not be of much use), and to achieve that aim, he set out writing the sort of
folk literature Oral literature, orature, or folk literature is a genre of literature that is spoken or sung in contrast to that which is written, though much oral literature has been transcribed. There is no standard definition, as anthropologists have used va ...
which dovetailed nicely with Eeltsje Halbertsma's work. As Justus remained the editor of Eeltsje's work for his entire life, their poetry and
short fiction A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...
were strongly connected and published together from the very beginning. Although writing short stories and poems was something which Eeltsje Halbertsma could not do without, from approximately 1830 onwards the social prestige he won with it also started to play a role. In 1822, the best of the early works of Eeltsje and Justus were collected under the title ''De Lapekoer fan Gabe Skroar'' ("Gabe Tailor's Rag Basket"; original, archaic
spelling Spelling is a set of conventions for written language regarding how graphemes should correspond to the sounds of spoken language. Spelling is one of the elements of orthography, and highly standardized spelling is a prescriptive element. Spelli ...
: ''De Lape Koer fen Gabe Skroor''), a booklet consisting of 36 pages, and including six poems and one short story. This publication was attributed to the fictional 'Gabe Skroar', a lame farmer's son who became a tailor and a writer, but died young.Breuker 1993, p. 597.Twerda, p. 297. This character was in all probability a creation of Eeltsje's. Hiding behind such a fictional author was fairly normal at that time. A second, expanded edition of ''De Lapekoer fan Gabe Skroar'', consisting of 237 pages, was published in 1829, followed by a third, further expanded edition in 1834, running to almost 500 pages of a larger size.Terpstra, p. 313.Twerda, p. 298. After that, additions were published separately in 1836 (''De Noarger Rún oan Gabe Skroar''), 1840 (''Twigen út in Alde Stamme''), 1854 (''Leed en Wille en de Flotgerzen''), and 1858 (''De Jonkerboer'' and ''Teltsjes fan de Wize Mannen fan Esonstêd''). Eeltsje Halbertsma was almost certainly the most talented of the three writing Halbertsma Brothers. While Tsjalling's works were intended purely for entertainment, and Justus composed his stories and poetry in a somewhat distant, cerebral way, which keeps the reader a little detached from what is read, Eeltsje put his heart and soul into his poems and stories. It is this
emotion Emotions are physical and mental states brought on by neurophysiology, neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavior, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or suffering, displeasure. There is ...
which brings his work closer to the reader. Furthermore, Eeltsje's prose and poetry are in proportion to each other, qualitatively, while in Justus' works the poetry is generally quite clearly not of the same high standing as his prose. In the middle of the 20th century the author and
literary critic A genre of arts criticism, literary criticism or literary studies is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical analysis of literature' ...
Anne Wadman stated that Eeltsje was the greatest poet of his time in the Netherlands; as neither
Willem Bilderdijk Willem Bilderdijk (; 7 September 1756 – 18 December 1831) was a Dutch poet, historian, lawyer, and linguist. Life Willem Bilderdijk was born on 7 September 1756 in Amsterdam in the Dutch Republic.Joris van Eijnatten,Bilderdijk, W., ''Bio- en bi ...
nor
Isaäc da Costa Isaäc da Costa (14 January 1798 – 28 April 1860) was a Sephardi, Jewish Dutch poet. Da Costa was born in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. His father, an aristocratic Sephardic Spanish and Portuguese Jews, Portuguese Jew, Daniel da Costa, a ...
were fit to hold a candle to him (he wrote), one would look invain for someone of the same stature in the
Dutch literature Dutch-language literature () comprises all writings of literary merit written through the ages in the Dutch language, a language which currently has around 23 million native speakers. Dutch-language literature is the product of the Netherlands, ...
of that period. On the basis of
Romanticism Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...
, which he had acquired in
Heidelberg Heidelberg (; ; ) is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fifth-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with a population of about 163,000, of which roughly a quarter consists of studen ...
, Eeltsje Halbertsma often needed a first impulse for his works, an existing text or melody that he could, as he himself put it, Western Frisian language, frisify "in such a way that no one could recognise the original anymore." Because of this it is thought that the masterful ''Jonker Pyt en Sibbel'' ("Squire Pete and Sibylle") could possibly be a much improved version of the Dutch-language poem ''Steedsche Jonker en een Friessche Boerin'' ("City Squire and a Frisian Farmer's Wife"), from the 18th century. It is beyond dispute that Halbertsma based some of his poetry on earlier works by such poets as Johann Peter Hebel and Ludwig Hölty. For instance, ''De Boalserter Merke'' ("The Bolsward Fair"), still one of his most well-known works, is a ''Nachdichtung'' of Hebel's lovesong ''Hans und Verene'', in which the main characters were renamed Hoatse and Wobbel, the background was shifted from a German well to a fair in the Frisian city of
Bolsward Bolsward (, West Frisian: ''Boalsert'') is a city in Súdwest-Fryslân in the province of Friesland, the Netherlands. Bolsward has a population of just under 10,200. It is located 10 km W.N.W. of Sneek. History The town is founded on th ...
, and quite a few smaller changes were made. An example of a poem based on Hölty's work is the somewhat morbid ''Deagraverssankje'' ("Grave-digger's Song"). Though Halbertsma often wrote idyllic poems in his early years, such as ''It Marke'' ("The Little Lake") and ''Geale' Sliepke'' ("Geale's Nap"), and, to a lesser degree, ''It Famke'' ("The Girl"), later the circumstances of his family life and professional difficulties so depressed him that he wrote, "you [will] find in my last works nothing of that Arcadia (utopia), Arcadia." In its place came moving elegy, elegies, such as ''De Likeblommen'' ("The Leek, Netherlands, Leek Flowers"), ''Op Anna's Dea'' ("On Anna's Death"), and ''It Tsjerkhôf by Jûntiid'' ("The Churchyard in the Evening"), and also poems such as ''It Libbensein'' ("Life's End"), and ''Deagraverssankje'' ("Grave-digger's Song"), which reflect upon the transitory nature of human existence. Halbertsma was, however, also the author of the mildly humorous ''Ald Jan-om'' ("Old Uncle John"), in which a farm-hand of advanced years complains of the farmer's daughter's constant stream of suitors, who are always getting in his way, and of the love poem ''Skipperssankje'' ("Skipper's Song"), a
mariner A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor' ...
's entreaty to his beloved not to forget him, even if his ship should sink and he should drown. The appreciation for Halbertsma's strongly rhetorics, rhetorical hymn, freedom hymns has eroded in the course of the 20th century, but even so, the nationalism, nationalistic song ''
De Alde Friezen "De Âlde Friezen" () is the anthem of the Friesland province of the Netherlands. The text is by the Frisian writer Eeltsje Halbertsma. The version commonly sung today is an abridgement, dating from 1876, by Jacobus van Loon. The words were no ...
'',''Fryslân Sjongt'', p. 10-11. ("The Frisians of Old") is still the
national anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...
of the Western Frisian people, which it was proclaimed to be yn 1875 (in a thoroughly revised version by Jacobus van Loon). In his
prose Prose is language that follows the natural flow or rhythm of speech, ordinary grammatical structures, or, in writing, typical conventions and formatting. Thus, prose ranges from informal speaking to formal academic writing. Prose differs most n ...
Halbertsma shows himself to be a smooth story-teller, occasionally using a poetic-realism (arts), realistic approach, such as in the story ''Utfanhûs by de Boer'' ("Staying the Night on the Farm"), at other times becoming irony, ironic, such as in ''De Klúnskonk fan Us Ald Dominy'' ("Our Old Minister's Skate-walking Leg"). ''De Noarger Rún oan Gabe Skroar'' ("The Norg Gelding to Gabe Tailor"), which has the form of a letter from the afterlife to Gabe Tailor, written by his dead horse, is a satire, while in ''De Reis nei de Jichtmasters'' ("The Journey to the Gout Masters") Halbertsma uses mild humour and a little mockery to poke fun at his own medical profession. In the longer story ''De Jonkerboer'' ("The Gentleman Farmer"), which some literary critic, critics call a novella, the main motif (literature), motif is a longing for a peaceful and diligent existence in the country-side. That same feeling is also embodied by ''De Quickborn'' ("The Quickborn"), a choice of poems Halbertsma translated very freely from the poetry collection of the same name which was originally written in the Low German language, Low German dialect of the northern German region of Dithmarschen by Klaus Groth. Striking things about Eeltsje Halbertsma's literary works are the wonderful sound patterns in some of his poems, especially ''Geale' Sliepke'' ("Geale's Nap"), and his playful additions of phrases in other languages or dialects, which occur mostly in his stories, but also in some poems, like ''Jonker Pyt and Sibbel'' ("Squire Pete and Sibylle"), where the squire has just returned from fashionable France, and now believes it shows his breeding and social status to throw around French words and phrases. "Gibberish, odd names, strange types of people, filler (linguistics), stopgap words, [...] the most surprising metaphors, and the most unexpected jumps in a train of thought," all of these occur regularly in Halbertsma's prose. In his works he was guided by the ideal image he had in his mind of the Western Frisians as simple but genuine people, which he contrasted against the Dutch people, Dutch, who were in his eyes refined but insincere.


Death

In his last years there was not much which connected Halbertsma to the village of
Grou Grou () is a town in the province Friesland of the Netherlands and had around 5655 citizens in January 2017. Since 2014 Grou is part of the municipality of Leeuwarden. The town is located on the lake and the Prinses Margriet Canal. Heineken op ...
. Because of his unhappy marriage, he could not find solace at home, and the death of his daughter Anna, in 1851, had made him lose his cheerfulness. The following year his brother Tsjalling also died, who had been the steadfast centre of the family. That is why Eeltsje, after he had transferred his medical practice to his son Hidde in 1856, started a wandering life visiting family members who lived far away. Later on, he lived for a little while by himself in
Leeuwarden Leeuwarden (; ; ; ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 127,073 (2023). It is the provincial capital and seat of the Provin ...
, but a few weeks before his death he arranged to be brought back to Grou. He died there on 22 March 1858, when he was sixty years of age. He was buried in a double-deep grave which later came to lie outside of the churchyard boundaries, and is now marked by three red stones in an otherwise yellow-paved pathway.


Legacy

After the death of all three
Brothers Halbertsma The Brothers Halbertsma, members of the Halbertsma family, were three brothers born in the Frisian village of Grou towards the end of the 18th century, who played a role of crucial importance for the development of a written literature in the ...
, their short fiction and poetry was gathered under the supervision of librarian and archivist Gerben Colmjon and bookseller and historian Wopke Eekhoff.Wiersma, p. 5. In 1871, it was published by the firm of J. de Lange in
Deventer Deventer (; Sallaans dialect, Sallands: ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Salland historical region of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Overijssel, ...
, under the title of ''
Rimen en Teltsjes ' ('Rhymes and Tales', ) is the national book of Western Frisian literature, written by the three Brothers Halbertsma. It is an extensive collection of short stories and poems, the first of which was published in 1822 under the title of '. deve ...
'' ("Rhymes and Tales"). This work is now thought of as the national book of Western Frisian literature, and although the literature, literary value of this collection was later disputed by some literary critic, critics, it is undeniable that ''Rimen en Teltsjes'' and its predecessor ''De Lapekoer fan Gabe Skroar'' played a role of crucial importance in the development of a new literary tradition after Western Frisian had been used almost exclusively as a spoken language for three centuries. In 1949, the author and literary critic Anne Wadman wrote that the Halbertsmas gave "the Western Frisian people a literary monument, in which they saw their own life as a nation [...] reflected." As of today ''Rimen en Teltsjes'' still occupies the first slot in the ranking of Western Frisian literary classics. In 1993, the tenth
reprint A reprint is a re-publication of material that has already been previously published. The term ''reprint'' is used with slightly different meanings in several fields. Academic publishing In academic publishing, offprints, sometimes also known ...
of the book was published, including for the first time some (earlier, lower-quality) work of Eeltsje Halbertsma which had until then remained outside of ''Rimen en Teltsjes''.Breuker 1993, p. 610. This reprint had a (for Western Frisian literature) ambitious printing of 3,000 copies, but was sold out within two months. The Selskip foar Fryske Taal en Skriftekennisse hired the sculptor Willem Molkenboer in 1875, to make a stone tablet in which the likeness of Eeltsje Hiddes Halbertsma was chiselled out. This was placed as a gable stone in the front wall of the house where the Halbertsma Brothers were born, on what later was renamed Halbertsmaplein ("Halbertsma Square").Koopmans, p. 309.Twerda, p. 299. In 1879, another stone tablet by the same artist was added to the left with the likeness of Justus Hiddes Halbertsma. Furthermore, in 1903 the Selskip ordered a statue of Eeltsje Halbertsma to be made and placed on Parkstrjitte ("Park Street") in Grou, consisting of a bust (sculpture), bust on a more than man-high limestone column resting on a pedestal of granite, made by Johan Schröder.De Vries, p. 98. The inscription reads: "TO DR EELTSJE HIDDES HALBERTSMA", with on the back of the column: "''Ljeaf bliuwe ús Fryske tael en liet.''" ("Beloved to us remain the Western Frisian language and its songs.")


Bibliography

* 1821 – ''Soe Ik Net in Wurdsje Sizze'' ("Would I Not Say a Few Words"; poem) * 1822 – ''Hjir Is in Krintebôle'' ("Take This Currant Bread"; rhyme) * 1822 – ''De Lapekoer fan Gabe Skroar'' ("Gabe Tailor's Rag Basket"; collection of poetry and short stories, with Justus Hiddes Halbertsma) * 1823 – ''Nijjierswinsk oan in Ald Boargemaster'' ("New Year's Wish to a Former Mayor"; poem) * 1823 – ''Us Gysbertomme'' ("Our Uncle Gysbert"; poem about Gysbert Japiks) * 1829 – ''De Lapekoer fan Gabe Skroar'' (collection of poetry and short stories, with Justus Hiddes Halbertsma; expanded version) * 1830 – ''Yn de Dollejoarum Rinne'' ("Walking Deep in Thought"; short story) * 1831 – ''Foeke Skutter en Hospes' Tryn'' ("Citizen Soldier Foeke and Tryn the Innkeeper's Wife"; short story with a poem) * 1833 – ''Fêsteljûnpraatsje'' ("Shrove Tuesday's Talk"; dialogue) * 1833 – ''Ybel en Jelke, of: De Boask op it Iis'' (Ybel and Jelke, or: The Marriage on the Ice"; poem) * 1834 – ''De Lapekoer fan Gabe Skroar'' (collection of poetry and short stories, with Justus Hiddes Halbertsma; further expanded version) * 1835 – ''De Skearwinkel fan Joutebaas'' ("Boss Joute's Barbershop"; frame-story with several poems and short stories, with Justus Hiddes Halbertsma en Tsjalling Hiddes Halbertsma) * 1836 – ''De Noarger Rún oan Gabe Skroar'' ("The Norg Gelding to Gabe Tailor"; short story with a poem) * 1836 – ''De Treemter fan it Sint-Anthonygasthûs'' ("The Conversation Room of St. Anthony's Hospital"; short story) * 1837 – ''Eölus, Grewa fan Stoarm en Onwaar'' ("Aeolus, Lord of Storm and Thunder"; poetry and short story collection, with Justus Hiddes Halbertsma) * 1837 – ''Op it Doktor-wurden fan Myn Miich K.T. Halbertsma'' ("To the Doctorate of My Relative K. T. Halbertsma"; poem) * 1839–1841 – ''Grouster Weachbryfkes'' ("Notes from the Weigh-house in Grou"; speeches with poems; with Tsjalling Hiddes Halbertsma) * 1840 – ''Twigen út in Alde Stamme'' ("Twigs from an Old Trunk"; poetry and short story collection, with Justus Hiddes Halbertsma) * 1841 – ''De Foarname Utfanhûzers yn Fryslân'' ("The Distinguished Guests in Friesland"; short story with a poem) * 1841 – ''Nijjierswinsk foar 1841'' ("New Year's Wish for 1841"; poem) * 1841 – ''Oan Petrus, Doe't er Doktor Waard'' ("To Petrus, When He Took His Doctor's Degree"; poems) * 1841 – ''Grouster Rattelwachts Nijjierswinsk foar it Jier 1842'' ("New Year's Wish for the Year 1842 from the Night Watchmen of Grou"; poem) * 1842 – ''As de Wite Flokken Fleane'' ("When the White Flakes Fly"; poem) * 1842 – ''In Wurdmannich fan de Weachmasters'' ("A Couple of Words from the Weigh-house Masters"; speech) * 1843 – ''De Grouster Weachmasters oan de Merkegasten'' ("The Weigh-house Masters of Grou to the Visitors of the Fair"; speech) * 1844 – ''Gysbert Japix' Grutte Namme'' ("Gysbert Japix' Great Name"; poem) * 1846 – ''Wettersang'' ("Water Song"; poem) * 1847 – ''De Grytman'' ("The
Grietman A grietman (from Old Frisian ''greta'' to accuse, to indict) was a judge and administrator of a local district; this role was partly a forerunner of the current rural mayor in the province of Friesland, and partly the forerunner of a judge. East of ...
"; poem)
* 1848 – k Haw Him as Jong'ling Kend'' ("I Knew Him as a Young Man"; poem) * 1849 – ''Batthyany's Dea'' ("Lajos Batthyány, Batthyany's Death"; poem) * 1851 – ''Minne Jorrits Reis nei it Kollumer Oproer'' (Minne Jorrits' Journey to the Rising of Kollum"; historical fiction, historical short story based on the Rising of Kollum in 1797) * 1851 – ''Riurtk'' or ''Sy, Dy't de Dierb're Namme Droech'' ("Riurtk" or "She, Who Bore That Cherished Name"; poem) * 1853 – ''Oer Swarte Minsken'' ("On Black People"; short story) * 1854 – ''Leed en Wille en de Flotgerzen'' ("Grief and Pleasure and Down Upon the Lee Shore"; poetry and short story collection, with Justus Hiddes Halbertsma) * 1855 – ''Blomke op it Grêf fan Petrus'' ("A Small Flower on Petrus' Grave"; poem) * 1855 – ''Joukebier Is Swiet Bier'' ("Jouke's Beer Is Sweet Beer"; short story) * 1855 – ''Jurjen mei de Leppel'' ("Jurjen with the Spoon"; poem) * 1855 – ''It Oardeel fan Minsken oer Minsken'' ("People's Judgment on People"; short story) * 1855 – ''Samenspraak oer de Russen en de Turken'' ("Dialogue on the Russians and the Turks"; short story) * 1857 – ''De Quickborn'' ("The Quickborn"; poetry collection) * 1858 – ''De Jonkerboer'' ("The Gentleman Farmer"; short story) * 1858 – ''Teltsjes fan de Wize Mannen fan Esonstêd'' ("The Wise Men of Esonstad"; collection of tales) * 18?? – ''De Blom fan Fryslâns Hearen'' ("The Flower of Friesland's Lordships"; poem) * 18?? – ''Dominy Hollema en Reid Jeltes'' ("Minister Hollema and Reid Jeltes"; poem) * 18?? – ''De Faam en de Bargekop'' ("The Maid and the Pig's Head"; short story) * 18?? – ''It Famke út de Frjemdte'' ("De Girl from Far Away"; poem) * 18?? – ''Fammen Hâlde fan it Trouwen'' ("Girls Want to Marry"; poem) * 18?? – ''Foar de Toanbank en Derefter'' ("In Front of the Counter and Behind It"; short story) * 18?? – ''Grouster Freonen!'' ("Friends from Grou!"; poem) * 18?? – ''Hollân en Fryslân'' ("Holland and Friesland"; poem) * 18?? – ''De Tsjustersinnige Minske'' ("Dark-minded Mankind"; poem) * 1871 – ''
Rimen en Teltsjes ' ('Rhymes and Tales', ) is the national book of Western Frisian literature, written by the three Brothers Halbertsma. It is an extensive collection of short stories and poems, the first of which was published in 1822 under the title of '. deve ...
'' ("Rhymes and Tales"; poetry and short story collection, with Justus Hiddes Halbertsma en Tsjalling Hiddes Halbertsma)


References


Sources

* , ''Twataligens: Ynlieding yn Underskate Aspekten fan de Twataligens'', Leeuwarden (Afûk), 1981, . * , ''Oer Skriuwers, Boek en Utjeften'', in: , ''Rimen en Teltsjes'', Drachten (A.J. Osinga Utjouwerij), 1993, , pp. 587–613. * , ''Halbertsma, Eeltsje'', in: , ''Nieuwe Encyclopedie van Fryslân'', Gorredijk/Leeuwarden (Utjouwerij Bornmeer/Tresoar), 2016, , pp. 1123–1124. * , ''Monumentenwijzer: Wegwijs in de Doolhof van Monumenten'', Zutphen (Walburg), 1983, . * , ''Lyts Hânboek fan de Fryske Literatuer'', Leeuwarden (Afûk), 1997, , pp. 37–42. * ――, ''Fryslân Sjongt'', Leeuwarden (Afûk), 2000, . * , ''Rimen en Teltsjes'', Bolsward/Leeuwarden (A.J. Osinga Utjouwerij/R. van der Velde), 1958, no ISBN. * , ''Rimen en Teltsjes'', Drachten (A.J. Osinga Utjouwerij), 1993, . * , ''Fryslân: Fêstens en Feroaring'', in: , ''De Fryslannen'', Leeuwarden (Frisian Council/Afûk), 2008, . * , ''Cultuur in Friesland en Friese Cultuur, 1795–1917'', in: , ''Geschiedenis van Friesland 1750–1995'', Amsterdam/Leeuwarden (Uitgeverij Boom/Fryske Akademy), 1998, , pp. 172–212. * , ''Muurvast & Gebeiteld: Beeldhouwkunst in de Bouw 1840–1940, Rotterdam (NAi Uitgevers), 1997, . * , ''Spiegel van de Friese Poëzie: Van de Zeventiende Eeuw tot Heden'', Amsterdam (J.M. Meulenhoff B.V.), 1994, . * , ''Nieuwe Encyclopedie van Fryslân'', Gorredijk/Leeuwarden (Utjouwerij Bornmeer/Tresoar), 2016, . * , ''Tweeduizend Jaar Geschiedenis van Friesland'', Leeuwarden (Uitgeverij M.Th. van Seyen), no year, no ISBN, pp. 312–323. * , ''Fan Fryslâns Forline'', Bolsward (A.J. Osinga N.V.), 1968, no ISBN, pp. 296–299. * , ''Skiednis fan de Fryske Biweging'', Leeuwarden (De Tille), 1977, no ISBN. * , ''Frieslands Dichters'', Leiden (L. Stafleu), 1949, no ISBN. * , ''Foarwurd'' and ''De Bruorren Halbertsma'', in: , ''Rimen en Teltsjes'', Bolsward (A.J. Osinga N.V.), 1958, pp. 5–14. {{DEFAULTSORT:Halbertsma, Eeltsje Hiddes 1797 births 1858 deaths 19th-century Dutch male writers Dutch general practitioners Dutch short story writers 19th-century Dutch poets Dutch male songwriters Dutch songwriters 19th-century Dutch translators West Frisian-language writers Translators to West Frisian People from Boarnsterhim Leiden University alumni Dutch male poets