Archive Kornelis ter Laan

Brief overview

Name of the archive: Archive Kornelis ter Laan

Provenance: Kees ter Laan, Amsterdam

Dated: 1833-2013

Size: ca. 50 cm / ca. 600 items

Language of the materials: Dutch

Summary:

Personal archive containing pieces such as correspondence, notes, transcripts and published works from and about K. ter Laan. Ter Laan was a multifaceted person, as is described below. This archive contains information about his personal life, his career in local and national politics, and published works by and pertaining to Ter Laan. Furthermore, there’s items about the Ter Laan family genealogy. Lastly, the archive contains items showing Ter Laan’s posthumous influence: the ‘Ter Laan Fonds’ (a foundation) and the ‘Ter Laan Prijs’ (an award), information about a portrait of Ter Laan made by Jan Altink, and pieces regarding the Ter Laan memorial in Slochteren.

Collection number: UBG046

Institute: University of Groningen

Retainer: University Library Groningen

Provenance and acquisition

Acquisition

The archive was passed on to the University Library Groningen in 2013 by the heirs of K. ter Laan, represented by Kees ter Laan, a grandson of K. ter Laan from Amsterdam (1923-2017).

Future additions

An addendum to this archive has been received by the heirs of K. ter Laan. Part of this addendum are pieces that were already in the original archive, but there are also new pieces. These additions have not yet been described. Once it has, it will be available under the shelfmark uklu Ter Laan ADD.

Biography

Kornelis ter Laan (Slochteren 1871 – Utrecht 1963) attended the ‘HBS’ school in Sappemeer. His family was not financially able to allow him to continue his studies after this. After taking extra lessons, Kornelis became a teacher in Noordbroek.

From a young age, Kornelis was exposed to socialist ideology. He was a member of the ‘Sociaal Democratische Bond’ and later switched to the ‘SDAP’ (‘Sociaal Democratische Arbeiderspartij’). In 1901, at age 30, Ter Laan was elected to the ‘Tweede Kamer’ (Dutch House of Representatives) representing the district Hoogezand. Whilst he was a member of the ‘Tweede Kamer’, he also kept working as a teacher. From 1913 onwards, he was a member of several committees within the House, especially those concerning education and anti-militarism. In 1937 Ter Laan left the Dutch House of Representatives.

Besides this successful career in national politics, Ter Laan was a ‘Gemeenteraadslid’ in The Hague (1905-1914) as well as mayor of Zaandam (19114-1937), being the first social democrat to hold this post. Regardless of Ter Laan’s move to Delft, he kept a close connection to his roots in Groningen. This is exemplified in his authorship. He published many works about Groningen and particularly about the local dialect. He was particularly interested in preserving idiomatic expressions and local folklore. He compiled dictionaries and encyclopedias that helped put Groningen culture and language on the map.

A selection of Ter Laan’s published works

• De riekdom van de Grunneger toal, Groningen 1924

• Groninger overleveringen, Groningen 1928-1930 (2 volumes)

• Nieuw Groninger woordenboek, Groningen 1929

• Groningen voor honderd jaar, Groningen 1937

• Joodse overleveringen, Haarlem 1937

• Woordenboek van de vaderlandse geschiedenis …, ’s-Gravenhage 1939

• Van Goor’s aardrijkskundig woordenboek van Nederland, ’s-Gravenhage 1942

• Hoezen van Gruindiek, Groningen 1951

• K. ter Laan’s Multatuli encyclopedie, Den Haag 1995

• As ik nou moar eerst wat verdain …, Leeuwarden 2013
  Contents and collation

The archive contains four archive boxes (ca. 50cm): photo’s, manuscripts, correspondence, newspaper clippings, offprints and official documents.

Instructions for users of the archive

Accessibility

The collection is accessible for research purposes. To look at the collection, a University Library Access Pass is required.

Limitations to use

The materials in this collection are available for viewing only. They cannot be borrowed. When consulting this collection, the rules set out in the Reglement voor de gebruikers van de Bibliotheek der Rijksuniversiteit Groningen apply. Reproductions, insofar as they are allowed are to be made in line with the rules set out in the Tarieven en diensten Bibliotheek der Rijksuniversiteit Groningen.

The copyright for the documents is held by the heirs of Kornelis ter Laan. As the owners of the collection, the University Library Groningen has the right to publish (parts of) the collection.

Accessing the collection

An inventory of the archive is available.

Citations

When referencing (materials from) this archive, the following information must be provided in full at least once. After this, an abbreviated citation suffices.

• Archive: University Library Groningen, Archive Kornelis ter Laan

• Individual items: Groningen, UB, Laan, K. ter (or Laan, Kornelis ter) [number]

Requests

Materials from this collection can be requested by sending an email to Special Collections department.

Other access

Most of Ter Laan’s published works are available through the University Library Groningen collection. These can be requested through SmartCat, the online catalogue. Use search term: “Laan, K. ter”

Appendix

Literature

• Een mens komt dagen te kort : over Kornelis ter Laan (1871-1963) / contributions from Rein  Brouwer … et al.]; [red.: Eddy de Jonge … et al.], Groningen, 1990

• Ter Loan en aal zien aander bouken: tentoonstellingscatalogus ter gelegenheid van het 75-jarig bestaan van K. ter Laans 'Nieuw Groninger Woordenboek' (1929) / [Siemon Reker, introduction Tonnis Musschenga, bibliography and annotations; ed.  Ruud Strooboer], 2nd edition, [Groningen]: Universiteitsbibliotheek RUG, 2010

• K. ter Laan, 8 juli 1961: verschenen ter gelegenheid van de negentigste verjaardag van Nederlands volkskunde-nestor: aangeboden door het Nederlands Volkskundig Genootschap, het Beraad voor het Nederlands Volksleven en de in Neerlands Volksleven samenwerkende organisaties / ed. Tj.W.R. de Haan et al., Wassenaar, 1961

• https://socialhistory.org/bwsa/biografie/laan-k