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The Meertens Instituut confirms that the surname Laken, at least as a Dutch one, is a reference to a profession related to 'sheets' or likewise. Thus a seller or manufacturer of sheets most likely. The surname Laken is indeed rare in the Netherlands. The same source tells us that in 1947 when the census was held that there were only 42 persons bearing this surname, of which 37 lived in the province Zuid-Holland, but not in The Hague or Rotterdam. Remarkable is that the Lakenhal, a building where sheets were traded (the only one in the Netherlands) is in Leiden, Zuid-Holland. This could be a lead.