The NOE family from the Meetjesland in East-Flanders, Belgium

The NOE name

We don't know where the story comes from that a certain Noë, one of Napoleon's soldiers, staid behind and founded this, our tribe. When you read the work presented here you will soon realize that was a fable.

A similar story claims the origin of the Noë family was a soldier from France who remained behind after an earlier occupation of our country. This is also very wishy washy. Indeed we go back to the beginning of the 17^th Century. There were at that time other Noë's in the south of the Netherlands. We found some at Axel in 1643 and at Hulst in 1648. Elsewhere in Holland there were Noë's even in the 16^th Century.

a) Meaning
Van der Schaar and Jozef van Overstraeten doubt whether the family name comes from the Flemish first name Noë which is derived from the vulgar Latin Noah. The Hebrew word means rest, solace and also long life. Our cousin Prudent Rijckaert refers in his book on the Rijckaerts to Dr. Grauls who explains the meaning of the name of the French town called Noé (halfway between Luchon and Albi) as a derivation of the French word Noël meaning Christmas.
Others claim Noë comes from the French word noié or noué which meant marshy, swampy.

b) Distribution
The Noë family name is definitely not a typical Meetjeslandish name: we find the name in the Antwerp region, in the Ruddervoorde area in West-Flanders, around Leuven (Louvain) and in the Walloon part of Belgium. And who some years ago had not heard of the French Monseigneur Noë, who was the right hand man of His Holiness the Pope for everything to do with protocol. It's difficult to say whether or not there is a relationship. That might require a lot of research in regions far away from our home. And our daily work does not allow for that.

Even in the area where our research was done we found several namesakes who didn't find a place in our family tree. Here is the list:

Assenede: death on 23/3/1706 of Petronella Noeé, 32 years old.
Bassevelde: death on 25-9-1759 of Petrus Noë, son of Joannes, 12 years old.
Eeklo: on 9-12-1687 Joannes Noë died. He was the husband of Judoca Haeck; they had 6 children but only the youngest son, Egidius is know to have had children himself. He remarried to Paschasia Herreman. Egidius, born in Eeklo on 28-5-1677. He was first married in Eeklo on 29-4-1710 to Judoca Van Peteghem, who gave him 1 son, Joannes. Egidius died in Eeklo on 29-4-1721. His son Joannes Noë, born in Eeklo on 10-2-1711 first married Joanna Vandenabeele, who died without issue in 1735. His second wife was Joanna De Meyer who gave him 2 children. She died on 6-2-1739 in Eeklo. From his third marriage on 28-9-1739 to Maria Anna Brusseel 10 children were born in 20 years but not a single son made it to adulthood and Joannes died in Eeklo on 10-1-1764, before his 53rd year.
Eeklo: on 24-12-1696 birth of Catharina Francisca Van Noë, daughter of Petrus and Joanna Maria De Sutter. We could find nothing further on them.
Eeklo: † 19-5-1821 Jacobus Albertus Noye, son of Jacobus Anthonius and Joanna Theresia Van Rentergem, born in Brugge (Bruges), 50 years old, husband of Regina Van Damme. In the population registry of Eeklo of 1825 Regina Van Damme is listed under number 3083 as the widow of Jacob Noé.
Knesselare: on 20-8-1779 Norbertus Noë married Barbara Theresia Rots. Both were born in Oedelem. On 6-8-1780 and again on 13-1-1783 Barbara was delivered of girls called resp. Maria Theresia and Regina.
Lovendegem: on 15-1-1867 Joanna Noe, without profession, died aged 70 years. She was the unmarried daughter of Dominicus Noe and Petronella De Coninck, born in Berthem (Brabant). She died in the convent of the Sisters of Mercy (as a nun?).
Maldegem: on 13-6-1728 Anthonius Noe (or Noel) died. He was 63 years old and came from Maldegem-Donk. He was married to Judoca Ronse and had 6 children the youngest of which Cornelius, continued this line. After the death of Judoca Anthonius had remarried twice, first with Anna Van Ootteghem and later with Anna Maria Lippens. His son Cornelius, born at Maldegem on 3-11-1705 married there on 6-10-1726 with Joanna Rotse, who gave him 8 children. Only his son Joannes Franciscus born at Maldegem on 1-10-1736 gave them male descendants. Joannes Franciscus married Isabella Verstraete who came from Oedelem and gave him 7 children. But none of these children reached the age of 4. After the death of his wife on 5-12-1786, he remarried. His new bride Isabella Dousselaere, gave him one son. But this son died when he was 6 years old. Joannes Franciscus died at Maldegem on 29-1-1789 and with him this branch died out.
Merendree: death on 21-12-1832 of the two month old Clemence Noé, daughter of Joanna Catharina Noé, innkeeper, domiciled at Ghent. The child had died in the house of Jan Baptist Campe, weaver, domiciled in Kerkweg (Church Road) at Merendree.
Death on 29/12/1733 of Jan Noë fs Jan, not married, 22 years old.
St. Jan Bentille: Joanna Noë, 53 years old, the daughter of Isaac Noë and Cornelia Gijssels and the wife of Egidius Onghena, is baptized on 2-12-1770. She had been baptized before in a protestant service at Aardenburg.
St. Kruis-Winkel: on 8-9-1744 Petrus Noë died. He was 53 years old and was married only about a year before on 2-8-1743 to Livina Libbrecht who was 26 years old. Their only son, Jan Baptiste was born at St. Kruis-Winkel on 16-4-1744 and died there on 4-10-1746.
St.-Laureins: in the orphanage between 15-9-1849 and 5-7-1857 there was a certain Maria Theresia Noë. She was born in Ghent on 25-9-1843 the daughter of the 17 year old Pauline Noé, embroiderer living in Ghent, but born in Bruges as the illegitimate daughter of Anna Noé.
St.-Margriete: on 23-1-1826 Marie Charlotte Noë, 36 years old died. She was born at St. Winoksbergen (French Flanders), unmarried, with profession and without fixed address.
Wachtebeke: publication of the bans of marriage in June 1622 of Joanna Noë and Paulus Dielman; the wedding itself took place in Bruges !
Wachtebeke: birth on 6-5-1646 of Anna Noë daughter of Joannes and Magdalena De Vos.
Watervliet: sale on 20-9-1651 by Pieter Noé and Cornelis De Wulf of 6 acres of land in the Christoffelpolder to Christoffel Claeys, farmer on the Bandam in Kaprijke.
Watervliet: death of 13-10-1735 Noye Maria Glandina, 28 years old, peregrina (travelling through the region), wife of Joannes Le Fond.
Zelzate: marriage on 16-9-1618 of Philips Nowe and Cathelijne Baltazar.
Zelzate: death on 18-2-1635 of Livinus Noé.
Zelzate: death on 29-4-1638 of Barbara Nowe, wife of Gerardus Sucaet.
Zelzate: birth on 21-9-1682 of Thomas Noé son of Philippus and Maria Blancq.
Zomergem: on 2-12-1744 Anna Noé, 82 years old died at Zomergem. She was the widow of Guillelmus Bastiaen, who had died there at the age of 74 on 27-3-1742.

c) Variations in spelling
It is incredible that for such a short name we find so many variations in spelling in the archives. Besides Noë and Noé we also the following variations during our searches:

Noe:	° Assenede: 25/11/1669 Franciscus, son of Henricus Noe and Petronella De Pau
Noel:	Maldegem: estate reckonings of Jooris Noel, number 78 deed of 5/1/1692
Nowé:	° Assenede: 11/1/1758 Joanna Livina daughter of Henricus and Joanna De Sutter
Nowè:	° Assenede: 17/1/1755 Carolina, daughter of Henricus and Joanna De Suttere
Noeè:	° Assenede: 14/9/1755 Franciscus, son of Jacobus and Livina De Bilst
Noeë:	° Assenede: 27/9/1758 Joanna Maria daughter of Jacobus and Livina De Bilst
Noywé:	° Assenede: 12/12/1763 Maria Jacoba, daughter of Henricus and Joanna De Suttere
Noeé:	† Assenede: 20/7/1757 mortua est filia Jacobi Noeé
Noewe:	x Eeklo: 16/2/1681 Judocus Basselaer and Judoca Noewe
Noée:	° Eeklo: 10-11-1750 Petrus Cornelius son of Petrus and Maria de Bue
Van Noë:	° Eeklo: 24-12-1696 Catharina Francisca, daughter of Petrus and Joanna Maria De Sutter
Nowee:	° Wachtebeke: 18-8-1756 Joannes, son of Livinus and Judoca Temmerman
Nowée:	° Zelzate 25-3-1718: Maria Adriana daughter of Joannes and Adriana De Bock
Nowie:	° Wachtebeke 12-2-1759 Joanna Cornelia daughter of Livinusand Judoca Temmerman
Nove:	† Lembeke 22-11-1695 Judocus, widower of Anna Beelaert
Noewie:	° Lembeke 13-1-1680 Jacobus, son of Judocus and Anna Beelaert
Nohe:	° Lovendegem 22-1-1731 Joannes Franciscus son of Adrianus and Ludovica Roets
Nowe:	° Bassevelde 7-5-1698 Catharina daughter of Joannes and Judoca Slock
Noez:	State Archive, Ghent (RAG) Boekhoute 847 p. 218
Noevé:	† Assenede: 23-3-1706 Petronella Noevé, 32 years old
Noye:	Boekhoute: 844 p. 151 V: estate reckonings of Pieter Noye fs. Jan
Noëe:	° Boekhoute: 4-10-1772: Joannes Franciscus son of Judocus and M. Catharina Van Zele
Noê:	Waarschoot: 245 deed of 21-1-1749
de Noë:	° Eeklo: 30-11-1754 Martinus, son of Petrus and M.Theresia de Bue
Noèe:	Boekhoute: old number 464 p. 100R: estate reckonings of Petronella Theresia Duytschaever, wife of Judocus Noèe
Noy:	° Eksaarde: 19-3-1668 Hamelberghe, daughter of Jan and Maria Goethals
Noè:	x St. Jan in Eremo: 27-4-1756 Martinus Noè and Elisabeth De Munck
Noué:	x Boekhoute: 24-7-1813 Judocus Himschoot and Marie Anne Noué
Noyé:	Eeklo: population registry 1825, number 3036: Noyé Livina (x Bernard Lecomte)
Nowez:	RAG Boekhoute: 832 p. 211
Noeê:	RAG Assenede: 1309 p. 63 Jacobus Noeê as a member of the Ambrosius guild.
Noee:	° Assenede: 24-12-1781: signature of father Jacobus for the registration of the birth of his son Bernardus
Nouwe:	† Eeklo 9-12-1688 Joannes Nouwe, viduus Judoca Haeck.

As Thomas Jefferson said:
"I have nothing but contempt for all those
who can spell a word in only one way".

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