Meedenken: Dutchness in a nutshell

Having lived in the Netherlands for nigh on 40 years, I have come to know a few things about the country, some of which I love (otherwise why would I still be here, you might ask), and some of which will always be challenging. Challenges can also be fascinating! As a translator and editor, I have a strong interest in words and their meanings. Everyone knows that lovely, untranslatable word ‘gezellig’. Life would be very dry without it. But it’s not just the word that can’t easily be translated, it’s the whole concept.

By Marilyn Hedges

Another linguistic Dutchism that often gives Dutch to English translators a bit of a headache is that telling little prefix ‘mee’ – and ‘mee’ is not the only one. You can add it to all kinds of words:, resulting in meedenken, meewerken, meepraten, meedoen, to mention just a few. Our translator hearts sink when we see ‘meedenken’ in a text. The reason? Well, we simply don’t have a natural equivalent. We can concoct any number of expressions to get the meaning across, but they often sound just that: concocted. 

So, why is that? It’s not just a language issue; it also opens up a whole world of what’s important in Dutch society. It’s about taking part, having your say, doing your bit. It means that you and your opinion matter. That really does something for your feelings of self-worth. These cultural norms are intrinsic to Dutch society. They are embodied in the famous ‘polder model’, which is known – and envied – the world over as a valuable and effective consensus model.

It does take me back to early days here, though, when frequent meetings about every conceivable issue first had to take place before anything could be done. This often evoked responses like: ‘I spend all my time in meetings’, ‘There are so many meetings, I have no time to actually get on with any work’ or ‘Not another one!’ 

I have for years praised Dutch efficiency and organisation to family and friends in the UK, so during the Covid pandemic when the Brits were faster with a vaccine, I was incensed. How could they possibly be ahead of us? It was unthinkable. And then, of course, after all the meetings and consultations were held with the many relevant bodies here, the vaccination programme got off to a flying start and proceeded with typical Dutch efficiency. The effect of that little ‘mee’ prefix triumphed again.

About the author:
I am Brit who came to the Netherlands in 1986. Our first home was in Gouda, after which we spent three years in Stockholm. We returned in 2001 and now live in Marlot.