the spelling with double "a" strikes many as unusual. Which it is! This rendering is typical in Afrikaans or in the Friesian dialect. Incidentally, the first heart transplant was done by the South African surgeon Christiaan Barnard. Born in Vancouver in 1959, I came to Germany in 1977 to attend a theological college. In 1980, Regina - a German class mate from college - and I got married. Together we have 3 children and one grandson.