Dutch colonisation of the Guianas control of the three colonies (Demerara, Berbice, and Essequibo) west of the Courantyne River. These three colonies became British Guiana. After 1815, there were five Guianas, referred to by their dominant languages: Spanish Guayana (Venezuela), British Guiana, Dutch Guiana, French Guiana, and Portuguese Guiana (Brazil). The colony that remained was part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands until 1975, when it became independent as the Republic of Suriname. Dutch Guiana covered the majority of the Guiana Shield, with its borders ranging from the Orinoco Delta in the northwest, the eastern banks of the Caroní River in the southwest, to the
Dutch name for everyday use ("Wilhelmus" and "Willem" became "Wim"). In 2014 39% of Dutch children received one name, another 38% were given two names, 20% had three names, 2% got four names and only a few hundred children had five or more given names. The Dutch naming legislation allows nearly all given names unless they are too similar to an existing surname, or if the name is inappropriate. There is no legal limit on the number of given names for one child. The history of Dutch given names can roughly be divided in four main periods: The Germanic names are the