Frequently asked questions about Aad Fock
These brief answers cover the points most often asked about the name, its origin and the tradition surrounding it.
What does Aad Fock mean?
Aad Fock is a hereditary honorary name from Fockbek on the Eider. Since it was bestowed in 1667, it has stood for enterprise, wit and loyalty. The village assembly of farmers gave it to the Eider boatman and eel merchant Adriaan Focke. “Aad” comes from Adriaan, while “Fock” means a foresail and also recalls Fockbek.
Is Aad Fock a title of nobility?
No. Aad Fock is not a title of nobility and confers no rank. In the family story, the village assembly of farmers in Fockbek bestowed it as an honorary name. It is therefore always written Aad Fock and never “von Fock”.
Where does the name Aad Fock come from?
The tradition traces the name to Fockbek on the Eider. Adriaan Focke came from Friedrichstadt, founded by Dutch religious refugees, and grounded at Grönsfurt near Fockbek in 1666. A year later, the village assembly of farmers joined the short form Aad to the foresail that had kept his boat under control in the storm.
How is Aad Fock pronounced?
In “Aad”, the A is long, much like the vowel in the English word “father”; the O in “Fock” is short. In standard German, the name is written as two words. In Low German village usage it is “de Aadfock” (the Aadfock).
What does Aad Fock stand for?
The honorary name stands for enterprise, wit and loyalty. Enterprise means beginning the work under one’s own initiative. Wit allows people to laugh together rather than at one another. Loyalty means remaining faithful to people, places and promises even when staying costs more.
Does the Aad Fock family still exist?
Yes. Hagen Aad Fock is the present bearer of the name and follows the tradition according to which Adriaan Focke was his ancestor. This chronicle does not set out a family tree.
What does Aad Fock have to do with Fockbek?
Fockbek is the setting of the origin story and the place where the village assembly of farmers bestowed the honorary name in 1667. The local tale of the Aalversupen (the drowning of the eel) also forms part of the beginning. When the condemned eel swam away, Adriaan coined the words that became the motto.
What does “De Aal swemmt wieder” mean?
It means: “The eel swims on.” The fuller sense is that what was meant to be drowned lives. Adriaan Focke spoke the Low German words at the Fockbeker See in 1666; they now appear on the scroll of the coat of arms.
Is this chronicle real?
The chronicle joins facts from local history to a clearly identified family myth. Fockbek, the Eider, the Aalversupen tale and the canals are real. The Aad Fock family with its historical bearers of the name, and the Fockbeker Blätter, the Fockbek Papers, belong to the literary story.