Earliest Couperus in Warga and Idaard

The origins of the Couperus name seem to occur somewhere between 1595 and 1674 when the Scottish "Couper" was first translated into the Dutch "Cuiper" and then became Couperus when the original name was latinized by appending the suffix "us" on the end. The son of the man who lived during this transformation of the name became the preacher in the church in Idaard and held office there from 1647 to 1664.

This is the church in Idaard where Dirk Janssen Couperus (also known as Theodorus Couperus) preached. The church has been extensivly restored and what we see here is the original tower/steeple that dates from the 15th Century but the building itself dates back only to 1774. This is apparent from the smaller bricks used in its construction (kloostermoppen) as opposed to the larger bricks used for the tower that were used towards the end of the 12th century

Here is a detail of one of the windows in this church where you can see the smaller bricks dating from around the time of the 1774 restoration.

In 1664, Dirk Janssen Couperus (Theodorus) moved from Idaard to preach in the church at Warga - a neighboring village. He preached there until 1684. There are a number of churches in Warga (some of which have recently been converted to other uses) so it is hard to say exactly which one, and they too have been extensively restored in the intervening years. Above is a picture of one of those churches as it appears now.

The Vicarage in Warga - obviously built (or re-built) after the time of Dirk~Theodorus in the 1600's, but this may very well be the location where his house stood.

Here are two views of the village Bakery in Warga which dates from 1663. This gives us an idea of the architecture from the time that Dirk~Theodurus lived in this neighborhood. Note the brick-paved streets and the narrow sidewalks in these old villages.