Overleden

Overleden is een Dutch term that denotes persons who have died. It is the past participle of the verb overlijden (to die) and can function as an adjective or a noun. In obituaries, necrologies and news reports, the word identifies people who have passed away, distinguishing them from the living. The term is widely used in both the Netherlands and the Dutch-speaking community in Belgium.

Grammatical forms and usage. As a participle, overleden appears in perfect tenses: iemand is overleden; meerdere personen zijn overleden. As a noun phrase, de overledene is singular and de overledenen plural, referring to the person or people who have died. Indefinite forms such as een overledene can occur in contexts describing an unidentified deceased person. The term is generally neutral and formal, and is common in official language, media, and memorial contexts.

Nuance and context. Overledene conveys respect and neutrality, avoiding some of the bluntness of terms like dood or dode. It is commonly used in obituaries, memorial notices, and legal or administrative texts dealing with inheritance, succession, or estate matters. In everyday speech, people may still say iemand is dood, but overledene is preferred in more formal or respectful contexts.

See also. Related terms include overlijdensbericht (death notice), necrologie, obituary, and rouw. The verb form overlijden is the root concept, with overledenen and overledene serving as the preferred noun forms for discussing those who have died.