In 1996 about 150 persons bearing the name "Afman" lived in foreign countries. Most namesakes of this group, namely 125 persons, lived in the USA and 14 persons lived in Canada. Other countries in which one or more members of our family lived, are Aruba (Netherlands Antilles), Belgium, England, Norway, Italy, Philippines, Portugal and Mexico.
At the end of the 19th and in the beginning of the 20th century some persons from many Dutch families moved to the USA. The first Dutch emigrants, bearing the name Afman, departed after 1880 to the USA. Some further followed in the twenties of the 20th century. And around 1950, some members of our family chose the USA as their new native country.
B.H. Wabeke mentions in his "Dutch Emigration to North America 1624-1860" a nice characterization of the Dutch emigrants in the USA:
"When one reviews the whole Dutch emigration during this period of 1624-1860 two things come clear. The first is that nothing is so powerful as religious conviction to make a group cohere and to ensure its lasting influence. Probably the greatest contrihution of the early Dutch settlements along the eastern coast was the American hranch of the Nederlandse Gereformeerde Kerk and the longevity of the Dutch tradition in the Middle West is due in large measure to the strong bonds of religious fellowship. The other outstanding observation is that in spite of their small numbers there was a character so resilient and yet independent in the Dutch settlers that although they adapted themselves well to a new world, they were never altogether submerged in it. As visitors from Europe still discover, even today there is something of the old Hollander in the modern American of Dutch descent."
(From the first Family Book Afman, 1996)
Displayed in the tables are the counts of home addresses, so children who still live at their parents home are not included in the counts.
| WORLD | |
|---|---|
| USA | 123 |
| Canada | 12 |
| Australia | 3 |
| Belgium | 1 |
| Germany | 1 |
| Italy | 1 |
| Japan | 1 |
| Slowakia | 1 |
| Thailand | 1 |
| Vietnam | 1 |
| South Afrika | 1 |
| CANADA | |
|---|---|
| Ontario | 10 |
| Manitoba | 1 |
| British Columbia | 1 |
| USA | |
|---|---|
| Michigan | 28 |
| Colorado | 26 |
| California | 16 |
| Arizona | 9 |
| Illinois | 7 |
| Washington | 6 |
| Indiana | 3 |
| Georgia | 3 |
| Pennsylvania | 3 |
| Florida | 2 |
| Connecticut | 2 |
| Texas | 2 |
| New Mexico | 2 |
| Maryland | 2 |
| New Hampshire | 2 |
| Maine | 1 |
| Tennessee | 1 |
| Virginia | 1 |
| Montana | 1 |
| North Carolina | 1 |
| Iowa | 1 |
| Delaware | 1 |
| Ohio | 1 |
| Louisiana | 1 |
| Oregon | 1 |