Hamont-Achel

Hamont-Achel
Municipality

Flag
Coat of arms
Hamont-Achel
Location in Belgium
Location of Hamont-Achel in Limburg
Coordinates: 51°15′N 05°33′E / 51.250°N 5.550°E / 51.250; 5.550Coordinates: 51°15′N 05°33′E / 51.250°N 5.550°E / 51.250; 5.550
Country Belgium
Community Flemish Community
Region Flemish Region
Province Limburg
Arrondissement Maaseik
Government
 • Mayor Theo Schuurmans (CD&V)
 • Governing party/ies CD&V, BALANS
Area
 • Total 43.66 km2 (16.86 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2017)[1]
 • Total 14,427
 • Density 330/km2 (860/sq mi)
Postal codes 3930
Area codes 011
Website www.hamont-achel.be

Hamont-Achel (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɦaːmɔnt ˈɑxəl]; Limburgish: Haëmet-Achel) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. It was founded in 1977 by a fusion of the city Hamont and the village Achel. On January 1, 2006, Hamont-Achel had a total population of 13,770. The total area is 43.66 km² which gives a population density of 315 inhabitants per km². The municipality houses the Trappist Abbey of Achel, part of which is Brouwerij de Achelse Kluis, one of the 11 Trappist breweries.

The professional tennis player Elise Mertens (WTA 35 - 2017) lives in Hamont-Achel.

Demographics

Languages

  • Dutch in Hamont-Achel is often spoken with a distinctive Limburgish accent, which should not be confused with the Limburgish language.
  • Limburgish (or Limburgian) is the overlapping term of the tonal dialects spoken in the Belgian and Dutch provinces of Limburg. The Hamont dialect is only one of many variants of Limburgish, and is spoken only in Hamont,[2] not Achel, where another Limburgish dialect called Achels is spoken.

Deadly explosion

On 18 November 1918, the municipality was the site of one of the worst train explosions in history, when two German munitions trains caught fire and exploded. Not only were the trains destroyed, but three German ambulance trains were also wiped out, along with most of the town. More than 1,000 individuals were killed.

Tumulus on Haarterheide

Tumulus (2000-1000 BC)

References

  1. ↑ Population per municipality as of 1 January 2017 (XLS; 397 KB)
  2. ↑ Verhoeven (2007), p. 219.

Bibliography

  • Verhoeven, Jo (2007), "The Belgian Limburg dialect of Hamont", Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 37 (2): 219–225, doi:10.1017/S0025100307002940


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.