Spawned out of the considerable barriers to entry in having research published in accessible form within a reasonable time, or in an appropriate periodical or journal, this website was first created in 2000.
Over the intervening years, it has generated a vibrant and often absorbing correspondence with many delightful people from all round the world. Not infrequently, I have been exposed to some fascinating personal stories, often of extraordinary complexity and steeped in pathos, as together the correspondent and I have explored families and relationships.
In toto, the essays are the outcome of many thousands of hours spent in the quiet companionship of one’s own thoughts. After an early hiccough, every attempt has been made to reference my sources both to avoid copyright infringements and to support further academic endeavour, for these products are unlikely to be pluperfect.
The website includes much unique material, firstly relating to my family Pelteret, an unusual name little known to most; and that of our wife and mother’s line, the family Kotzé, known and well-represented throughout South Africa, Germany and elsewhere. But there is a good deal more.
Lastly, though parochial, the inclusion of brief curricula vitae gives expression to the practical.
The assistance of our son and brother, Marc, by applying his artistic merit, computer skills and editorial proficiency in recreating the website, is valued beyond measure.
The introduction to the previous version of this site can be found here, while the original Kotzee / Kotzé Website can be found here.