The Beijen/Beyen
Family Site

by Laurens Beijen		 The surname Beyen in Belgium



The overview of the site


The list of first names


The photo gallery


The next page


The previous page


The homepage


Searching this site


Questions or comments



Nederlandse pagina's




By clicking an underlined
name in the text you can
jump to the overview of
the Nieuwkapelle family.
Afterwards you can return
to this page by clicking
the "Back" key.

If you notice any lacks of
clarity in the English texts,
or if you have any
linguistic suggestions,
please inform me. 		The proper subject of the Beijen/Beyen Family Site are the Beijen or Beyen families from the Netherlands, including the descendants of Dutch ancestors who are residing in other countries.
The surname Beyen is also fairly common in Belgium. The notation Beijen however is very unusual there. This page discusses, in short, the Belgian Beyen families.

A survey map

The map below, derived from the site www.familienaam.be, is based on the Belgian census of 1998. In that year 237 people with the surname Beyen were living in Belgium. Most of them lived and live in the province of West Flanders, especially in the coastal area in and around the city of Ostend (Oostende). In the northern part of the Belgian province of Limburg there are also several Beyens, especially in the municipality of Hechtel-Eksel.

The West Flemish Beyen family

On the page about Remigius Beyen from Nieuwkapelle it is mentioned that the Nieuwkapelle family has its roots in the town of Nieuwkapelle in West Flanders. Remigius Beyen (2.1), who was born in Nieuwkapelle in 1717, joined the Dutch army in 1742. In later years he settled in the Netherlands and married a Dutch wife. Most of his descendants still live there.

Remigius was the ninth child of Petrus Jacobus Beyen (1.1) and Jacoba Stoet, who married in 1698 in Nieuwkapelle. Jacoba died some days after Remigius' birth. In 1718 Petrus married Jacoba Snick in the neighbouring town of Oudekapelle. He had four more children from this second marriage.

As far as we know, all Beyens in West Flanders descend from Petrus Jacobus Beyen (Senior), the father of Remigius. They are descendants of two elder brothers of Remigius who had, curiously enough, the same given names: they were both called Petrus Jacobus Beyen, just as their father.
The first Petrus Jacobus Beyen Junior was born in 1700. He married Isabella Theresia Vandevyvere and was the ancestor of the so-called Beyen-Vandevyvere branch.
The second Petrus Jacobus Beyen Junior was born in 1710. He married Regina Perpetua Swyngedouw and was the ancestor of the Beyen-Swyngedouw branch.

Therefore the Nieuwkapelle family is actually a branch of the West Flemish Beyen family.
More information about the ancestry tree of the West Flemish family can be found on the website of Nand Staes from Jette near Brussels ("Stamboomgegevens van de familietakken Staes - Degrave - Beyen - Boels").

The Limburg Beyen family

There are no indications of a relationship between the people with the surname Beyen in Limburg and West Flanders. Some centuries ago members of a Beyen family were already living in the village of Wijchmaal, between Peer, Hechtel and Eksel in the northern part of Limburg. It is very likely that all Beyens in Limburg have a common ancestor.
   The overview of the site                                        The next page