The Dutch royal family has bestowed the Order of Orange-Nassau in the “Knights” class upon Hans Beelen, lecturer in Dutch language and cultural studies at the university’s Institute of Dutch Studies. He was presented with the order ceremony in October at a farewell marking his retirement after 38 years of teaching. With this order, the Dutch king honours the work of people with a connection to the Netherlands who have made a special contribution to society and the community.
“Hans Beelen has taught the Dutch language to generations of students and awakened their interest in Dutch culture,” said Prof. Dr. Esther Ruigendijk, who heads the Institute of Dutch Studies and led the initiative for him to receive the award. “It is an extraordinary achievement and not to be taken for granted that as a language and culture teacher he performed so many additional tasks,” added Prof. Dr. Ralf Grüttemeier, Professor of Dutch Literature and the university’s Vice President for Research and Transfer. “With his work, Hans Beelen has made a significant contribution to raising the profile of Dutch Studies in Oldenburg in particular and of Dutch language and culture in general.”
Beelen studied Dutch philology at Leiden University (the Netherlands). He joined the University of Oldenburg as a lecturer in 1987 and was appointed Lecturer for Special Tasks (Lehrkraft für besondere Aufgaben) in 1995. The order was awarded to him in recognition of the fact that in addition to regular language teaching he contributed to the success and visibility of the Oldenburg Dutch Studies programme through numerous activities that went far beyond what would normally be expected – both at the national and international level. For example, he organised regular multi-day excursions to the Netherlands for Oldenburg students, and when the Dutch Studies professorship was left vacant for two years, Beelen coordinated the degree courses on a temporary basis.
Raising the profile of Dutch Studies
The Dutch royal family also conferred this honour in recognition of the numerous exhibitions and lecture series organised by Beelen together with partner institutions such as the Oldenburg State Library and the University of Groningen – many of which dealt with cultural and historical topics related to the Netherlands. At the State Library, for example, he curated an exhibition concept based on 50 Dutch prints dating back to the 15th to 18th centuries and introduced visitors to “The World of Sheep in Book Treasures from Eight Centuries”. He dealt with the history of the Dutch East India Company Dutch and whalers in the Arctic in popular science publications, and published articles on language history in the specialised language magazine Onze Taal.
Outside of the university, Beelen was chairman of the German-Speaking Association of Dutch Studies for many years. This organisation aims to promote the interests of Dutch studies in German-speaking countries as well as the study of Dutch language and culture at universities in Germany. He was also a coordinator at the Foundation for Voluntary Work for the Dutch Language (Stiftung für Freiwilligenarbeit Niederländische Sprache).
