South African Projenator - Andreas Anderson Appelgren Q2

[Anton Appelcryn]

Thank you to those who have sent some responses!

I found the ones that the Appelgren surname was first Appelquist very interesting and wondered how did that "just change"?

I also got some more information recently on my ancestor and in the records his surname is spelled Appelgrein.  Is that commonly Swedish

I was sent something recently by a South African researcher on the first settlers  -some were pro English involveemnt in the cape and others against. In  a book titled "Scandinavians & South Africa – Their impact on cultural. social and economic development before 1900” by Alan H Winquist, there appear to be a number of Swedish involvements in the early forming of the country, of particular Appelgren/Appelgrein

“Scandinavian Particicpation: Pro-Boer Involvement”

P163: “The Scandinavian corps and ambulance unit consisted of one hundred thirteen men and four women. Of the combatants, forty-five were Swedes….. Of the Swedes, fifteen came from Gothenburg, three from Stockholm, and the rest from various areas in Sweden…. The original officers were mainly Swedish (…. Carl David Appelgren – field commissioner….)

P212: Appendix J: members of the Scandinavian Corps

Officers:

Appelgren, Carl David (Swedish), field commissioner


“Scandinavian Participation: Pro-British Involvement”

P179: “Other outstanding Scandinavians serving with the British included…… Karl Apelgren wrote letters to his parents in Stromstad, Sweden, describing the awful siege of Ladysmith, and after the war became director of a large gold mining company; ………..”

P 203: Appendix C: Scandinavian settlers in South Africa before 1825.

Arrivals between 1801 and 1825

Appelgrein, Andries A (S)  -   [(S) denotes from Sweden]


So there were two Appelgrens - a Carl and a Karl on opposing sides, and from his records, my ancestor appears to have been documented as Appelgrein - but that cannot be assumed to be correct spelling necessarily as it depends on who was filling in the forms!  By profession, my ancestor was a school teacher in the cape Colony.

Is this likely to be any more help to anyone in helping me?!

Thanks for all your time and efforts!

Regards
Anton Appelcryn

[Kalle Birgersson]

I found the ones that the Appelgren surname was first Appelquist very interesting and wondered how did that "just change"?

Appelgren is probably not a family name, but rather a one generation surname given to a soldier so that not everyone had the same Andersson, Johansson or Larsson. It would be a mess in the army if too many had the same name. And because of that the name could change a bit without no one cared too much about it. The name was often chosen from the farm he was representing as a soldier, in the example given by Roland earlier the farm is called "Apalle". And even if it was a one generation name, it sometimes remained, like in your case.

[Kristina Gunnarsdotter]

The spellings Appelgrein and Andries are not Swedish. Seem more like Dutch.

[Anton Appelcryn]

Thanks Kristina

You are correct that they are "Dutch"!  That is what was originally thought of so many of the first South African projenators!  There is a reason behind this which has been well documented in South Africa.  The Dutch who colonised the Cape Colony first felt that they were the true founders of South Africa, and they treated pretty much everyone else as "foreigners"!  Because the only record keepers of births, baptisms and marriages were the dutch churches and their ministers, there was a blatant disregard for any language preferences, and they spelled names and surnames "as they heard them, with the Dutch ear"!

They even did this with the French Hugenots so we have what we think should be French surnames such as Du Pre' etc which were changed to Du Preez etc.  There is 1 record of my ancestor where he signed a marriage recotrd of his eldest daughter as AA Appelgren, but the minsiter who filled in the forms with the names of the bride and groom spelled hers as Appelgryn!  In the same "county" in the mid 1800's 2 generations later, in the same church record book, there are great grandaughter and grandson's who 's baptisms have been captured with the spellings Appelgryn, Appelcryn, Appelcrijn etc - even when the parents names have been speeled differently on the same document!

Sons after Andreas were right through to my grandfather became Andries, with the odd Andreas thrown in every generation or so!

So it comes as no surprise!

[LarsOlof Lööf]

Dear Sir,
As I am working with the officers in The Swedish East India Company (1731-1813) and just came across your question and looked down in my own database after some Appelgren/Apelgren and found none! - Still I have something about 10 to 15 thousand names recorded. Many of the personell in SEIC ended up in South Africa or the Cape Colony. It was a try anyway !
It seems he was very young when he arrived in South Africa, did he was accompanied by his parents?
Regards LarsOlof Lööf

[Anton Appelcryn]

Thanks LarsOlof

Your research must be very interesting!!

If his age at death is correct as per his death certificate he was born in 1782 which would have made him 26 at the time he emmigrated.  I don't belive he came with his parents but I cannot rulel that out at all.  I have not been able to track when or how he came into the country but family stories passed down are that he travelled to Holland first and arrived at the Cape with a Dutch ship - I am trying to find ship manifests.

I really appreciate everyone's help and oif I track any more local infor I will post an update and hope that it will help the search!

Regards
Anton

[LarsOlof Lööf]

Hai
I have looked a little in the dutch database of seamen in VOC (Vereignite Ostindische ...) but I couldn´t find him. This is the way to look into this source


 : http://www.gahetna.nl/en/collectie/index/nt00444/view/NT00444_OPVARENDEN/ 


Please find yourself some different ways of looking into it.




Regards LarsOlof Lööf