The Formal Relative Pronoun: hetgeen
In everyday Dutch, when you want a relative pronoun to refer back to a complete preceding clause (rather than just one noun), you use the word wat (which). However, in formal contexts such as legal contracts, corporate guidelines, or official reports, you will frequently encounter the highly formal alternative hetgeen.
Hetgeen translates to "which" or "that which", and it always points back to the entire action or situation described in the first half of the sentence.
| They modified the guideline, which was necessary. | Zij hebben de richtlijn gewijzigd, hetgeen noodzakelijk was. |
| One must comply with the policy, which is often difficult. | Men moet het beleid naleven, hetgeen vaak moeilijk is. |
Corporate and Legal Vocabulary
Because hetgeen is elevated and formal, you will usually see it paired with official vocabulary. Common terms include de regelgeving (the regulation), de clausule (the clause), and the verb schenden (to violate or breach).
| The regulation will be amended soon, which improves the quality. | De regelgeving wordt binnenkort gewijzigd, hetgeen de kwaliteit verbetert. |
| He breached the clause, which is unacceptable. | Hij heeft de clausule geschonden, hetgeen onacceptabel is. |
Provisions and Consequences
Legal texts often outline specific conditions, such as a bepaling (provision), and the consequences for breaking them, like choosing to ontbinden (to dissolve or terminate) an agreement.
| If you violate this provision, the contract will be dissolved. | Als u deze bepaling schendt, wordt het contract ontbonden. |
When reading incident reports or evaluations, hetgeen is an excellent tool for describing the consequence of a past action.
| We respected the strict regulation, which the boss appreciates. | We hebben de strenge regelgeving gerespecteerd, hetgeen de baas waardeert. |
| The manager had ignored the guideline, which caused the error. | De manager had de richtlijn genegeerd, hetgeen de fout veroorzaakte. |