3 ms·
Dool-Hoff: A Dutch Maze with New Jerusalem at Its Centre (1705)
- OrderlyTiamat 4y agoIt might be worth to point out that "doolhof" is literally the Dutch word for maze. According to etymologiebank.nl it originated in the 16th century, as a composition of "dolen" (wandering, having lost the way) with "hof".
- joostdevries 4y agoFor those who speak Dutch: here's a higher, more readable, resolution at the Rijksmuseum. https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/RP-P-OB-76.978 https://www.rijksmuseum.nl/en/collection/RP-P-OB-76.978
- johnyzee 4y ago> ... with "hof" Which means (court)yard. In some languages, it exclusively means the royal court. Its origin is apparently obscure, but I am guessing it derives from the Nordic word for 'head' ('huvd' in Swedish), which is also the base for the nordic word for ruler ('hovding' in Swedish).
- Insanity 4y agoHof is still used as yard in "Belgian Dutch" (Flemish). At least in some dialects such as my grandparents'
- oplaadpunt 4y agoTo add to this, it can still have a similar meaning in regular Dutch. I would usually associate the yard-like meaning with the diminutive form 'hofje', and the the (royal) court meaning with an included article: 'het hof' (_the_ court).
- teddyh 4y agoSee also: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy_Town https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy_Town