Nederweert

Nederweert Ni-jwieërt
—  Municipality  —
Flag Coat of arms
Coordinates: 51°17′N 5°45′E / 51.283°N 5.75°E / 51.283; 5.75
Country	Netherlands
Province	Limburg
Area[1]
- Total	101.79 km2 (39.3 sq mi)
- Land	100.27 km2 (38.7 sq mi)
- Water	1.52 km2 (0.6 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2009)[1]
- Total	16,695
- Density	167/km2 (432.5/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)

Nederweert ( pronunciation (help·info)) (Limburgish: Ni-jwieërt) is a municipality and a town in southeastern Netherlands with 16.561 inhabitants as of November 1, 2006 (bron: Statistics Netherlands) and has a surface area of 101,78 km² (of which 1,51 km² is water).

Nederweert lies at the intersection of three channels: the Zuid-Willemsvaart, the Noordervaart and the channel Wessem-Nederweert. In the 19th century these channels provided transport routes to export peat that was harvested from the Peel. These channels connect Nederweert to Maastricht and 's-Hertogenbosch.

History

Nederweert was originally called 'Merefelt' which means 'amongst the lakes', though it was later named Weert van den nedersten eynde. A 'Weert' in old Dutch means a high place in the landscape. This latter name later changed into Nederweert as it is called today.

Before the 14th century Nederweert was part of the municipality of Weert. The first reference which speaks of Nederweert as independent was in 1419.

Nederweert has been under rule of the Graven van Horn (the dukes of Horn) until 1701. Later in 1715 it became part of the southern states of the Netherlands.

In 1785 it was annexed by the French. During this era it was part of the Belgian departement of the Nedermaas.

Monuments

The most prominent monument of Nederweert is the Sint-Lambertus Kerk. It is a Brabantine Gothic style church that was built in 1467.

Population centres

Budschop, Leveroy, Nederweert, Nederweert-Eind, Ospel, Ospeldijk, Schoor.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (2009), Demografische kerncijfers per gemeente 2009, ISBN 978-90-357-1559-2, ISSN 1569–8033, http://www.cbs.nl/nl-NL/menu/themas/bevolking/publicaties/publicaties/archief/2009/2009-b55-pub.htm 

External links

• Official Website (Dutch)
• Official Website of the Nederweert Fire Department (Dutch)

Coordinates: 51°17′N 5°45′E / 51.283°N 5.75°E / 51.283; 5.75