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Most Frisians know the name of Great Pier, or ‘Grutte Pier’ in Frisian. But what do we really know about him? Well, all we know for sure is that he was tall. Very tall (read how tall exactly). Spoiler alert: his name gave away that he was tall, right? If you would ask your friends and family what they know about Grutte Pier, then most of them would be able to tell you a handful of characteristics. Some might be even able to add a small story to that name. What most of them kn

Who’s afraid of Jóða Fenris, 'the offspring of Fenrir'? Afraid of hund hrynsævar hræva, 'the hound of the roaring sea of corpses'? Who, today, fears the wolf? The dark creature that once haunted the shadowed forests of the East is rising again in Europe. Nearly two centuries have passed, yet the wolf has returned to the southern shores of the North Sea. Returned to former Frisia, rekindling ancient fears thought long extinguished. It is killing sheep. More unsettling still, m

Where the English Channel meets the Celtic Sea, the ships of the Frisian brothers Corsold and Coarchion are said to have sailed, raided, and held sway in the early sixth century. For a time, they may even have established a short-lived kingdom in Brittany. Breton legend holds that the village of Kersaout—modern-day Corseul—was once the residence of dux Corsold. The place name (Haut)-Bécherel, known for its Roman ruins, might derive from the Old Frisian word beki, meaning ‘str

On the west bank of the mighty River Rhine, halfway between the cities of Koblenz and Mainz, lies the town of Sankt Goar. Named after Saint Goar of Aquitaine, a hermit who retreated here in the sixth century. Diagonally across the river stands the famous and mystical Lorelei Rock: steep and over 130 meters high. A whisper rock where many skippers and ships were wrecked. It is here where the River Rhine reaches its greatest depth of 27 meters, including treacherous rapids and

You might say: “Sure, the study of history is evidence-based and free of politics. For this reason, it is called a science, isn’t it? It is more than just telling a story.” The truth—though slippery in this context—is that politics occasionally do surface in history books. The history of Frisia is no exception. Of course, we recognize that any individual’s perspective is liable to bias, whether that person is a street vendor, a bureaucrat, a parent, a journalist, or indeed, a

Imagine this: one day your husband brings home a young, unmarried woman. A virgin, even. He simply takes her into your house, openly shows her affection—and who knows what else. But that is not all. He also gives this maiden full access to your pantry and your savings account, which she—for crying out loud—starts spending on charity. And when you dare to speak up, your husband brushes you off by comparing you to the jealous queen in Snow White, or Cinderella’s evil stepmother

In the year 1500, when the people of the farmers’ republic of Dithmarschen achieved a stunning victory over a large professional Danish–Holstein army of Landsknechts at the Battle of Dusenddüwelswarft, a girl named Tjede Peckes was born. She came into the world in the hamlet of Padingbüttel, in the region of Land Wursten on the eastern banks of the River Weser. This was a salt-marsh region that the Wurstfriesen ('Wurst Frisians') had skillfully embanked and cultivated. For ce

Let’s go to the omega. To the end of the Frisia Coast Trail . To Ribe in southern Jutland, Denmark. The oldest town in Scandinavia. A town located on the banks of the Ribe Å. A modest river that flows out into the Wadden Sea stoically slow, opposite the islands of Fanø and Mandø. Ribe started as a seasonal marketplace. Year-round settlement began around the year 700. Everything in peaceful times yet. Only with the raid on the island of Lindisfarne in Northumberland in 793 did

In the Middle Age lived a once promiscuous girl named Elisabeth. She had come to repentance, found honourable employ as a maid, and had established herself at the hamlet of Vrieswijc, modern Friezenwijk. This hamlet is located near the scenic village of Heukelum in the region of Batavia (viz. the region of Betuwe) in the province of Gelderland, the Netherlands. Because of Elisabeth’s former dissolute and dishonourable lifestyle, the Devil still preyed on her body and soul. Th

This blog post is not about Aindreas Ó Céirín (1840–1915), better known as Brother Walfrid, the Irish founder of the Scottish football club Celtic F.C.. No, this post is about the original—the one and only: the Frisian Walfrid. The one who, according to legend, was murdered by a band of roaming Vikings in the late tenth century. These atrocities are said to have taken place in the village of Bedum, in that part of former Frisia which today forms the (still exploited and occas

Dockyards, quays, terminals, warehouses, wharves, anchorages, lighthouses, and beacons. Craftsmen, shipping companies, customs offices, pilot services, and other port authorities. Fish auctions, boarding houses, lodgings, packing sheds—you name it. Seaports exist to meet the needs of everything that arrives from the sea or sets out to it. But beyond commerce, ports have traditionally also responded to another, persistent demand: sex. Since the Frisia Coast Trail tells the sto

Pagare il fio is Italian for 'paying the penalty,' though literally it means 'paying the fee,' a phrase inherited from the northern peoples—the so-called Barbarians—who toppled the Western Roman Empire. The English word fee comes from Old English feoh , which survives as fee in Mid Frisian, vee in Dutch, and Vieh in German, all meaning 'cattle.' The Anglo-Frisian rune ᚠ, feh , likewise signified 'wealth.' The literal sense of pagare il fio is therefore 'paying the cattl

'In the navy', a song by the Village People. Of the small villages along the southern coast of the North Sea. A water people once united in the mythical Seven Sealands . Moreover, a people who laid the foundations of two of history’s most impressive navies: that of the Kingdom of England and that of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. It should not come as a surprise we are talking about Frisians. In spite of the Latin saying Frisia non cantat ‘Frisia does not sing

The Battle of Tours in 732 was a turning point in the wars against the Umayyad Caliphate. The Caliphate was one of the biggest empires in history, but it lost this battle. At the confluence of the rivers Clain and Vienne, the Franks, led by statesman majordomo Charles Martel, only just managed to defeat the great army of Emir Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi, governor of al-Andalus ‘Andalusia’. Historians estimate tens of thousands of soldiers died. In the run-up to this historic batt

The heart of Western democracies is the joint assembly of Parliament, Cabinet, and High Councils of State. Its Celtic-Germanic origin is the thing, also called ting, ding, or þing in other writings. Today, national assemblies in Scandinavian countries still refer to this ancient tradition. For example, the parliaments of the Faroes Løgting, of Greenland Landsting, of Iceland Alþingi, and of Norway Storting. However, the oldest written attestation of the thing institution come

At the end of the eighth century, by decree of Charlemagne and under the supervision of the wise men Wlemar and Saxmund, the customary law of the Frisians was codified. It is called the Lex Frisionum . Its jurisdiction included the land between the Flehum and Sincfalam rivers 'between Vlie and Sincfalam River'. The River Flehum flowed into the North Sea, where the sea strait Vlie is located today, between the islands of Terschelling and Vlieland. Sincfalam , also written as

In 1934, while dredging the River Scheldt near the village of Appels in the region of Flanders, workers unearthed an extraordinary ship’s figurehead (see featured image above). Dated to around AD 400, scholars generally agree it is Germanic in origin and hails from the southern North Sea coast. Yet, to this day, no people or nation has laid rightful claim to this remarkable carving. The Vikings may come to mind, but they only began their raids four centuries later—so, these n

"If you don't care about your own history, you may as well leave the classroom." Words from the geography teacher at high school Simon Vestdijk in the port town of Harlingen in 1988. We, the two Frisian bastards , were about sixteen years old and in the fifth grade of VWO, i.e., pre-university education. The annoyed words were addressed to two giggling girls from the villages of Arum and Witmarsum , sitting in the back of the classroom. The teacher had already opened the door

If you want to track down who killed the whale, the Frisia Coast Trail region is the place to start. Stop people on the streets along this southern North Sea littoral and ask whether they know anything, and you will likely hear: “I hear nothing, I see nothing, I know nothing.” Politicians and officials—say, in The Hague—will lament that they have no recollection of the affair. Better call them all Ishmael. In this blog post, we set out the unvarnished truth: how the peoples l

The peoples of islands and archipelagos do not let others dictate how to live their lives. One of those archipelagos that meets these criteria as well is the Wadden Sea. For centuries, it is from here that sea explorers, tax evaders, sturdy Arctic whalers, self-righteous women, pirates, privateers, and other vagabonds have come. An archipelago that the Sea Beggars and the earliest trouser-wearing women call home. Even the first atheist of modern times comes from this archipel