Date
Meaning & History
Transferred use of the surname Tenbroeck.The surname has never been in use as a given name in the Netherlands, as Dutch law has always expressly forbidden the use of surnames as given names. It is only found as a given name in countries where there are no such naming laws and where large portions of the population descend from immigrants, such as the United States. People in these countries will sometimes use surnames as given names, in order to honour their distant ancestors. As such, people with Dutch ancestry will sometimes choose to use Dutch surnames from their family tree for their offspring. In other words: the use of surnames like Tenbroeck as a given name is not a Dutch phenomenon, but a foreign one.