Vandaag ben ik de koning

What does “lakei” mean in Dutch?

A boy playing king calls his helper over: lakei, kom erbij! (“footman, come here!”). A lakei is a servant in uniform at a royal court. The king soon hands over his hardest job too: “ik krijg een beetje last van mijn pols, kan jij het zwaaien even doen?” His wrist hurts, so could the lakei please do the waving for him?

Dutch borrowed lakei from French laquais (household servant) in the sixteenth century, and English “lackey” comes from the same French word. Like “lackey,” it can also be used as an insult for someone who does whatever a powerful person tells them. Here it stays playful: the lakei carries the cup, waves to the crowd, and has to hear the king complain about a very smelly donkey.