About Us : : Family History

Introduction

My global research started when I was very young. One night over dinner, when we used to have long conversations on many varied topics, my father, Ferdinand Coenraad Balfoort (sr) (born 18 March 1937 in Utrecht, Holland) happened to mention that, according to family legends, our family was descended or related to the Balfour clan in Scotland from his father's side, Hendrik Balfoort. He also mentioned another time that from his mother's side, Oma Klabbers-de Ruyter, the family was related to Admiral de Ruyter, a folk hero of the Netherlands war of independence (Tachtig jarige oorlog, 1568 - 1648).

I was at that time still at primary school in the Netherlands, in Ede, Gelderland, where history was still being taught the old fashioned way, with dates and memorable events and personae a weekly drill. This detailed knowledge was augmented by my father's general knowledge and interest in political science and history, especially covering the late 19th century and the first part of the 20th century.

These two legendary connections excited my interest, for what boy would not want to be related to famous historical figures. In those days internet was just in its infancy and not publicly available, but we were fortunate to have at home a very old version of the encyclopedia Brittanica from the 1950's, with additional encyclopediae purchased by my parents for our continued usage and development.

And so the first Balfour I managed to "meet" was Lord Arthur James Balfour, England's Prime Minister who signed the Balfour Declaration in 1917, creating a homeland for the Jews in Palestine. With great curiosity I tried and failed to look for any obvious similarities between the old photo of Lord Balfour in the book and my own. And as there were precious few records owned by our family, and not many avenues for obtaining others as a 9 year old boy, these two family legends stayed with me until I was older and able to undertake my research more thoroughly, with a view to confirming the family legends.

At the same time, my grandmother, Sophia Anna Geertruida Koopman (born 5 March 1918 in Voorthuizen, Holland) used to excite my interest with stories about her family and their adventures in Indonesia. This vast country had first been the property of the Vereenigde Oost Indische Companie (VOC) which had been established in 1602, and thereafter a colony of the Netherlands from 1800 onwards until the Netherlands recognized its independence on 27 December 1949. I spent many a happy vacation at her apartment in Rotterdam, amongst the relics of a by-gone age, many with a distinctly Asian flavor. In equal measures, the items in the apartment of her stepmother, Oma Koopman in Voorthuizen, merited a lot of my interest, especially the old photo albums from the late 19th century and the wall decorations with Chinese calligraphy, as well as the occasional gifts of old pictures and drawings, which I still have at home.

As I moved closer to Asia through emigration to New Zealand in 1981 I somehow paradoxically became closer to my family ties without being fully aware of this. On the one hand, New Zealand is a very British former colony as many visitors will attest to, which brought me into contact with Anglosaxon ways of life. On the other hand it is also closer to Asia. As a teenager, through the stories from Oma Koopman and my maternal grandmother as well as exciting stories from my father's side about Balfoort members marrying into Indonesia's royal family, I had started to take a lot of interest in all things Asian.

Having been brought up to enquire through reading and research I added continuously to my general knowledge of the places I visited and the regions closest to me, especially Asia, and gradually made my first forays into Asian languages, continuing where my father left off in 1946 when he learnt his first Indonesian words in preparation for a prematurely aborted stay in Indonesia with his family in "Oost Indie".

From the earliest times of global European exploration starting in the 15th century, Asia was among the main targets for discovery and establishment of trading posts for a number of maritime nations, including England, Holland, Spain, Portugal and France. The region also attracted its fair share of adventurers many of whom left their physical or genetic footprints here. The European nations were at various times competing with each other for dominance of trading routes and trade in specific goods that were desired in Europe. The position and dominance of the middle eastern traders was also under severe pressure with the increasing presence of European traders and vessels in this region.

The European desire to expand their search for trading opportunities was natural, based on their earlier existing experience trading in the Mediterranean and Baltic States and the increased size of their fleets of war as naval battles became important deciding factors in conflicts. They were quite fortunate that China had become increasingly isolated and inward looking after the voyages of Cheng Ho which avoided any major conflicts with the Sleeping Dragon until the 19th century.

While I progressed with family and genealogical research over the past 30 years I noticed the natural connection between these historical developments and the past of our own family. Some of these discoveries have been very exciting and it makes a great deal of sense for me to have traveled globally in order to firstly find the ghosts of the past and then unravel the strange coincidences. As I write this I remember explaining to my children once that they are a diverse mix of bloods including Arab, Chinese, Malay, Filipino, French, Scottish, German, Dutch and Scandinavian, and all of these nations are part of the fabric of history in this region.

The following family lines are covered in individual chapters on this website, in alphabetical order:

• Balfoort
• Balfour (Origins of Balfour, 1000 AD - 1100 AD)
• Koopman
• Ledeboer
• Mat Darus
• Polack
• Van Popta
• Westrik

While I have tried to be as accurate as possible there will be facts which are incorrect, and gaps that need to be filled. I appreciate any feedback and comment which you can leave on the Contact Page.