Does anyone know the meanings of the Dutch surnames "Van Donge", "Moeka", and "teMooke"??

Question

I am researching our family geneology, and have checked several sources for these names, but came up with nothing. Not sure if these names may have been changed when my ancestors came through Ellis Island or not. All I know for certain is that the family named "Moeka" came from Freisland province in the Netherlands in 1912. Also, does anyone know of some good websites where I could look these up?

Answer 1

Here's a link to the primary research site for the Netherlands. It's a master database of records from most of the regional archives. Some parts of the country, such as Amsterdam, have not joined the project yet. The Donge name has 393 records listed, so it should give you a good place to start. http://www.genlias.nl/en/page0.jsp

Be careful with the Ellis Island theory, though. Ellis Island agents didn't fill out the paperwork based on verbal answers. They filled out paperwork based on documents provided by the shipping line and the passengers' passports. It's risen to urban legend status that they were careless with names, but the reality is that even if an error was made on the documents, it wasn't permanent. People had three different opportunities to correct spelling errors. If someone changed their name when they arrived in the US, it was done intentionally.

There's a good book called "Dutch to America" that most good libraries have in their Reference section. It lists actual immigrants with their dates of birth and hometowns. Ellis Island and the Battery Conservancy also have some pretty significant records (depending on when they arrived). They can be researched at:

http://www.ellisisland.org

http://www.castlegarden.org

Answer 2

"van Donge" or "van Dongen" means from the place "Dongen" in North Brabant

"Moeka" and "te Mooke" don't excist