Reinigingspigen

Reinigingspigen is a historical Dutch term used to describe young female cleaners, typically employed to perform domestic or public cleaning tasks. The expression appears in late-19th- and early-20th-century sources and reflects the gendered language and labor divisions of that period. In everyday usage, reinigingspigen often worked in private households, hotels, schools, and sometimes municipal cleaning services.

Etymology and use. The word is a compound of reiniging, meaning cleaning, and pigen, an archaic spelling of girl. In historical texts, reinigingspigen denotes women or girls who were primarily engaged in cleaning activities rather than other forms of domestic labor. The label conveyed both the nature of the work and the expectation of youth orgendered roles, and it recurs in advertisements, job postings, and archival records from the era.

Roles and conditions. Tasks attributed to reinigingspigen varied from sweeping, washing, and tidying to laundry-related duties in households or institutional settings. Working conditions could be demanding: long hours, limited job security, and modest wages were common, with some workers living with their employers or in boarding arrangements. The term is now regarded as outdated and reflective of past social norms around gender and labor.

Contemporary status. Today the term reinigingspigen is rarely used and is considered archaic. Modern Dutch uses terms such as schoonmaker, schoonmaakmedewerker, or schoonmaakster, representing cleaner in a more neutral, inclusive vocabulary. The concept remains of interest in historical studies of labor, gender, and domestic work in the Netherlands and the broader Flemish-speaking regions.