A Dictionary of Dutchness

DAF

DAF might be one of the biggest producers of trucks in the world and wholly owned by the US corporation PACCAR, but its heritage is firmly rooted in Eindhoven which is still the company’s HQ. This is where the brothers Hub and Wim van Doorne started a small engineering firm and blacksmith’s workshop in 1928. In 1932 the firm decided to focus on making trailers and the name DAF was born (Van Doorne’s Aanhangwagenfabriek or van Doorne’s trailer factory). The first truck was made in 1949 along with a new name – DAF (Van Doorne’s Automobiel Fabriek).