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Meyboom
The Meyboom plantation (or Meiboom in Dutch, "May tree" – a bastardisation of the Dutch ''tree of joy'') is the oldest tradition in Brussels, Belgium, attested since 1308. It is held every year on 9 August, the eve of St Lawrence's Day, and consists mainly in planting a beech at the intersection of the / and the / in the City of Brussels' Marais–Jacqmain District. It is accompanied by processions and various folk activities during the day. The celebration is reminiscent of Brussels' long-standing (folkloric) feud with Leuven, which dates back to the Middle Ages. Following a friendly incident in 1974 in which the Meyboom was stolen and brought to Leuven, both cities have claimed to be planting the "real" Meyboom. Since 2008, it is recognised as a Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. History According to tradition, the celebration commemorates a victory of Brussels over the nearby Flemish town of Leuven in 1213. The ''Companions of St Lawren ...
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Processional Giants And Dragons In Belgium And France
The processional giants and dragons (french: Géants et dragons processionnels) of Belgium and France are a set of folkloric manifestations involving processional giants, which have been inscribed by UNESCO on the lists of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2008, originally proclaimed in November 2005. Through these festivals and their giants, this concerns the set of gigantic manifestations specific to each country. In the case of Belgium, these are the festivities of Dendermonde ( Ommegang van Dendermonde), Mechelen (Ommegang van Mechelen), Mons (the Ducasse de Mons, and the fight which is named the "Lumeçon"), Ath (the Ducasse d'Ath) and Brussels (the Meyboom). For France, these are the feasts at Douai (feasts of Gayant) and Cassel (carnival) and the totemic animals and their celebrations in Tarascon and Pézenas (Mardi Gras, inauguration of the Mirondela dels Arts on the first Sunday in July). This proclamation allows for a valorisation of these popular festivals and t ...
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Brussels-Capital Region
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest), is a region of Belgium comprising 19 municipalities, including the City of Brussels, which is the capital of Belgium. The Brussels-Capital Region is located in the central portion of the country and is a part of both the French Community of Belgium and the Flemish Community, but is separate from the Flemish Region (within which it forms an enclave) and the Walloon Region. Brussels is the most densely populated region in Belgium, and although it has the highest GDP per capita, it has the lowest available income per household. The Brussels Region covers , a relatively small area compared to the two other regions, and has a population of over 1.2 million. The five times larger metropolitan area of Brussels c ...
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Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest), is a region of Belgium comprising 19 municipalities, including the City of Brussels, which is the capital of Belgium. The Brussels-Capital Region is located in the central portion of the country and is a part of both the French Community of Belgium and the Flemish Community, but is separate from the Flemish Region (within which it forms an enclave) and the Walloon Region. Brussels is the most densely populated region in Belgium, and although it has the highest GDP per capita, it has the lowest available income per household. The Brussels Region covers , a relatively small area compared to the two other regions, and has a population of over 1.2 million. The five times larger metropolitan area of Brusse ...
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History Of Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest), is a region of Belgium comprising 19 municipalities, including the City of Brussels, which is the capital of Belgium. The Brussels-Capital Region is located in the central portion of the country and is a part of both the French Community of Belgium and the Flemish Community, but is separate from the Flemish Region (within which it forms an enclave) and the Walloon Region. Brussels is the most densely populated region in Belgium, and although it has the highest GDP per capita, it has the lowest available income per household. The Brussels Region covers , a relatively small area compared to the two other regions, and has a population of over 1.2 million. The five times larger metropolitan area of Brussels co ...
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Processional Giant
Processional giants, french: géants processionnels, es, gigantes y cabezudos, va, gegants i cabuts, ca, gegants i capgrossos, eu, erraldoi eta buruhandiak are costumed figures in European folklore, particularly present in Culture of Belgium, Belgian, Culture of France, French, Culture of Portugal, Portuguese, Culture of Spain, Spanish, and Culture of England, English folkloric processions. The main feature of these figures is typically their papier maché mask, head, whilst bodies are covered in clothing matching the costume's theme. Since 2008, Belgian and French processional giants have been recognised as a Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity, Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO, as part of the binational listing of 'Processional giants and dragons in Belgium and France'. Background The processional giant is a gigantic costumed figure that represents a fictitious or real being. Inherited from medieval rites, t ...
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City Of Brussels
The City of Brussels (french: Ville de Bruxelles or alternatively ''Bruxelles-Ville'' ; nl, Stad Brussel or ''Brussel-Stad'') is the largest municipality and historical City centre, centre of the Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region, as well as the capital of the Flemish Region (from which it is List of capitals outside the territories they serve, separate) and Belgium. The City of Brussels is also the administrative centre of the European Union, as it hosts a number of principal Institutions of the European Union, EU institutions in its Brussels and the European Union#European Quarter, European Quarter. Besides the central historic town located within the Pentagon (Brussels), Pentagon, the City of Brussels covers some of the city's immediate outskirts within the greater Brussels-Capital Region, namely Haren, Belgium, Haren, Laeken, and Neder-Over-Heembeek to the north, as well as the Avenue Louise, Avenue Louise/Louizalaan and the Bois de la Cambre, Bois de la Cambre/Ter Kamer ...
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St V
Saint V is the commonly used name for a holiday for freethinking university students in Brussels, Belgium, celebrating the founding of the Free University of Brussels. The day's long form (french: Saint-Verhaegen, nl, Sint-Verhaegen) differs in the two official languages, but both are a reference to Pierre-Théodore Verhaegen, the founder of the university, who notably is not a saint and was never canonized; the name was chosen to mock the ''Saint-Nicolas'' festivities of the rival Catholic University instead. The festivities take place on November 20, commemorating the anniversary of the university's official opening. It is celebrated by students of both the Université Libre de Bruxelles and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, which officially separated in 1970. Origins The event dates back to November 20, 1888, when students of the university organized to protest a university reorganization that was perceived as undemocratic and against the principle of ("libre examen" in Fr ...
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Royal Theatre Toone
The Royal Theatre Toone (french: Théâtre royal de Toone, nl, Koninklijk Poppentheater Toone), often simply referred to as Toone, is a folkloric theatre of marionettes in central Brussels, Belgium, active since 1830, and the only traditional Brussels puppet theatre still in operation. Originally founded by Antoine "Toone" Genty in the Marolles/Marollen district of Brussels, since 1966, the theatre has been located at the end of two narrow alleyways, at 66, /, near the Grand-Place/Grote Markt (Brussels' main square). The theatre's premises also house a tavern and a small puppetry museum. The current director is Nicolas Géal, also known as Toone VIII. The theatre still puts on puppet plays in the Brusselian dialect (also sometimes referred to as Marols or Marollien), the traditional Brabantian dialect of Brussels. Performances are also given in other languages interspersed with Brusselian, always in the spirit of '' zwanze'', a sarcastic form of folk humour considered typic ...
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Manneken Pis
''Manneken Pis'' (; ) is a landmark bronze fountain sculpture in central Brussels, Belgium, depicting a puer mingens; a naked little boy urinating into the fountain's basin. Though its existence is attested as early as the 15th century, it was designed in its current form by the Brabantine sculptor Jérôme Duquesnoy the Elder and put in place in 1618 or 1619. ''Manneken Pis'' has been repeatedly stolen or damaged throughout its history. The current statue is a replica dating from 1965, with the original being kept in the Brussels City Museum. Nowadays, it is one of the best-known symbols of Brussels and Belgium, inspiring many imitations and similar statues. The figure is regularly dressed up and its wardrobe consists of around one thousand different costumes. Due to its self-derisive nature, it is also an example of '' belgitude'' ( French; ), as well as of folk humour ('' zwanze'') popular in Brussels. ''Manneken Pis'' is an approximate five minutes' walk from the Grand ...
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Marching Band
A marching band is a group of instrumental musicians who perform while marching, often for entertainment or competition. Instrumentation typically includes brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. Most marching bands wear a uniform, often of a military-style, that includes an associated organization's colors, name or symbol. Most high school marching bands, and some college marching bands, are accompanied by a color guard, a group of performers who add a visual interpretation to the music through the use of props, most often flags, rifles, and sabres. Marching bands are generally categorized by function, size, age, instrumentation, marching style, and type of show they perform. In addition to traditional parade performances, many marching bands also perform field shows at sporting events and marching band competitions. Increasingly, marching bands perform indoor concerts that implement many songs, traditions, and flair from outside performances. In some cases, at higher ...
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Schaerbeek
(French language, French and History of Dutch orthography, archaic Dutch, ) or (contemporary Dutch language, Dutch, ) is one of the List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, 19 municipalities of the Brussels, Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the north-eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Etterbeek, Evere and Saint-Josse-ten-Noode. In common with all of Brussels' municipalities, it is legally Multilingualism, bilingual (French–Dutch). Schaerbeek has a multicultural identity stemming from its diverse population. , the municipality had a total population of 132,861 inhabitants, 66,010 men and 66,851 women, for an area of , which gives a population density of . Toponymy Etymology The first mention of Schaerbeek's name was ''Scarenbecca'', recorded in a document from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cambrai, Bishop of Cambrai in 1120. The origin of the name may come from the Franconian languages, Franconian (Old Dutch) w ...
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Saint-Josse-ten-Noode
Saint-Josse-ten-Noode () or Sint-Joost-ten-Node (), often simply called Saint-Josse or Sint-Joost, is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the north-eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels and Schaerbeek. , the municipality had a total population of 26,965. The total area is , which gives a population density of . From a total of 581 municipalities in Belgium, Saint-Josse is both the smallest in area size and the most densely populated. In common with all of Brussels' municipalities, it is legally bilingual (French–Dutch). History Named after Saint Judoc, Saint-Josse was originally a farming village on the outskirts of Brussels. In the centuries before the dismantling of the ramparts encircling Brussels, Saint-Josse was also the place where noblemen built country estates, the most notable amongst them the Castle of the Dukes of Brabant built by Philip the Good in 1456. The area surrounding that castle wa ...
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