Rijkmans (formerly Ryckmans), a Dutch Mennonite family at Zuidveen, province of Overijssel, where Matthys Ryckmans was a member of the Mennonite congregation as early as 1600. The Rijkmans family in the 18th century was less conservative than most members of the Zuidveen congregation; this caused some friction. In 1768 Berend Thijssen Rijkmans was banned from the congregation because he opposed the decision of the elder and the deacons to rebaptize his wife, who had come from the Borne Mennonite congregation. Rijkman Roelofs belonged to this family. The Rijkmans family has played an important part in the Zuidveen congregation, which since 1848 has been called Steenwijk, and in which many of its members served as deacons.

Bibliography

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 333. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

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