by: Béla Boxman, Yijia Liu, Linda Robertus and Iris van Vlimmeren
Introduction
Between 1828 and 1847, Paramaribo's colonial government kept a detailed register of the city's inhabitants, recording names, ages, occupations, religions, and ethnicities, including both free and enslaved people. This unique collection of ward registers (“wijkregisters” in Dutch) has been digitized and is now available as a searchable database. It offers valuable insights for historical research, family history, and genealogy, revealing residential and familial patterns, and shedding light on the social history of Paramaribo.
In this data story, we aim to further examine one category within the dataset, that of religion, to analyze its distribution among the city's inhabitants. Studying a specific category within the dataset, such as religion, allows for a more focused and detailed analysis of historical trends and social dynamics. By examining the distribution of religions in Paramaribo's wards, we can uncover patterns and shifts in religious affiliations over time. This approach provides insights into religious diversity and broader societal trends, contributing to a deeper understanding of the historical context of the city by using quantitative data.
Our research question is: "How did the distribution of religions among Paramaribo's inhabitants change between 1828 and 1847?" We will focus on two wards, B and D, as they provide the most complete data throughout the years.
Categories of religion
Before determining patterns in religious administration in the different districts in Paramaribo, it is important to understand the different religions that are mentioned in the registers. Figure 1 shows all the religions listed in the ward registers and the number of times each religion is observed. Many religions are only listed a few times, accounting for only a very small group of people. Additionally, the registers span multiple years, meaning that not every observation of a certain religion corresponds to a unique person. If a person lives in the same place for a longer period of time and is registered each year, the observation count goes up, but the person count does not.
Figure 1: Religions in Paramaribo, 1828 - 1847
The religions are also not fully standardised in the sense that they are still showing smaller groups within religions or regional differences. Combining all these religions into standardised categories has not been done due to time constraints and the risk of losing specifics in the dataset. Instead, we opted to take the five largest religious groups visible in the registers; “Hernhutter”, “Rooms-Katholiek”, “Gereformeerd”, “Luthers”, and “Hervormd”. As these groups are significantly larger than the other religions, it is reasonable to assume that they can be found in each district in Paramaribo, allowing for a comparative analysis.
We were able to resolve one standardisation issue in the registers. The different districts are represented by capital letters in the registers. Most of them could be copied into the query without adaptation, but district D was separated into multiple parts. By making a slight addition to the query, all entries with a district that was linked to district D – for example, “D, 1e deel” – were added to the combined district D. Figure 2 shows the total number of people per district, starting with the smallest and ending with the largest district.
Figure 2: Population of different districts, 1828 - 1847
Availability of the data
While it is important to note the total number of observations per district, there is a more relevant aspect to check before being able to carry out comparative research. To determine which districts are available for which year, two steps have been employed. First, figure 3 shows the number of districts administrated each year for the entire duration of the ward registers. As can be seen in the graph, not many districts were registered in the early years and in the 1830s. Moreover, only in the year 1841 were all districts registered. Because of this variability, it is not very instructive to examine all districts for a comparative approach as many cannot possibly be compared.
Second, because of this, two districts have been chosen that have been registered for many of the same years and span most of the period. Districts B and D have been the most consistent, and D is – conveniently – the biggest district based on observations. Figure 4 shows the number of observations per year for districts B and D only, to determine for which years both of these districts are registered. While this is not always the case, and there is a substantial gap at the end, there are many years that have both of these districts registered, allowing for a comparative approach. The timeframe for this comparative approach has been shortened to end in 1842, so as not to include the empty years afterwards.
Note: the decimal numbers are not representative. The number of districts per year is either 0, 1, or 2
To ensure the graphs are not too crowded, the two districts are split up into figure 5 and figure 6. This is also necessary to examine the differences between the districts, as district D is significantly larger than district B. The bar graph is stacked to also show the difference in total observations for all five religious groups in the districts. What has to be noted here is that this total should not be confused with the total observations in each district, as these figures only include the five largest religious groups and not all the other religions. Nonetheless, it offers a good way of showing the evolution of religious administration in the two districts.
Distribution of religion
As can be seen in figure 5, district B has a sudden increase in registered religious people in 1837 at the same time that district D has a sudden decrease in registered people. What exactly causes these changes is unclear, but they accompany a drastic change in religious composition in district D only. This is especially remarkable as the religious composition of district B remains more or less the same, with “Hervormd” being the largest group, followed by Lutherans. In the case of district D it could be explained by a potential change in registration. Before 1837, the largest group was “Gereformeerd” and after it was “Hervormd”. While there are differences between these strands of protestantism, they could have been close enough to explain the difference in registration. Although district B in itself provides a counterargument for this as “Hervormd” and “Gereformeerd” coexist in registration.
Taken together however, there are fluctuations in the religious registrations, with the jump in 1837 being the most apparent, but the division between religious groups remains similar. The differences here are not big enough to account for any large changes in registration visible over the general population. To examine the slight changes in the composition of religious groups, it would be necessary to look at individual observations or follow people over time to check whether their registered religion remained the same.
Mapping the data
Here, we present the approximate boundaries of Districts B and D in Paramaribo for the years 1828 (https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/paramaribo-religion-1828_1214736) and 1842 (https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/paramaribo-religion-1842_1214781), along with the distribution of the top five religions in each district. To delineate the approximate areas of Districts B and D, we followed the steps below. First, we consulted historical maps of Paramaribo from the 19th century, identifying maps from 1804 (https://geheugen.delpher.nl/nl/geheugen/view?coll=ngvn&identifier=SURI01:KRTZL-61-35-17), 1821 (https://geheugen.delpher.nl/nl/geheugen/view/platte-grond-stad-paramaribo?coll=ngvn&maxperpage=36&page=1&query=Paramaribo&identifier=SURI01%3AKAARTENZL-105-16-36), and 1853 (https://geheugen.delpher.nl/nl/geheugen/view?coll=ngvn&identifier=SURI01:193G9P094PL) as references. Second, we filtered the dataset to extract the streets included in Districts B and D for the years 1828 and 1842 (Figures 7 and 8). Finally, by combining information from the historical maps and the street names, we outlined the approximate boundaries of the two districts. It should be noted that, because the historical maps available are from 1804, 1821, and 1853, they do not exactly correspond to the years 1828 and 1842. Moreover, not all sections of the maps clearly indicate district divisions. Therefore, the presented boundaries are only approximate and should be interpreted as indicative rather than definitive.
Figure 7: Streets in district B and D, 1828
Figure 8: Streets in district B and D, 1842
Conclusion and future research
Concluding, the fluctuations in religious registrations, particularly the notable changes in 1837, highlight the dynamic nature of Paramaribo's social fabric during this period. While district B maintained a stable religious composition, district D experienced significant shifts, suggesting possible changes in registration practices or other underlying factors. To fully understand these patterns, further research is needed, including detailed individual analyses and further contextual investigations.
Linking individuals over time and assigning them unique ID numbers can offer valuable insights into household addresses and demographic information, including religion, age, ethnicity, and occupation. This method provides a comprehensive view of the ward masters' demographic observations, which can vary annually. For instance, one person might be registered as 'gereformeerd' one year and 'hervormd' the next, reflecting the challenges of linking individuals over time. Additionally, this approach can reveal differences in the ward masters’ internal logic and how they compiled the registers. It may also suggest that other people, such as new ward masters or heads of households, were involved in the registration process. Future research could further investigate these observations. By delving deeper into these aspects, we can gain a richer understanding of the historical and social dynamics that shaped the lives of Paramaribo's inhabitants.
