Ekeren () is a northern
district
A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...
of the
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
of
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, in the
Flemish Region
The Flemish Region ( nl, Vlaams Gewest, ),; german: Flämische Region usually simply referred to as Flanders ( nl, link=no, Vlaanderen ) ; german: link=no, Flandern is one of the three regions of Belgium—alongside the Walloon Region and t ...
of
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
. The
suburb
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...
celebrated its 850th birthday in 2005; the name of the town was first mentioned in 1155, as "Hecerna".
The name possibly originates from Vikings who settled there in the ninth century after using the oak trees.
Ekeren used to be the home town of the Germinal Ekeren
football club
A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all- ...
until Germinal merged with
K. Beerschot V.A.C.
Koninklijke Beerschot Voetbal en Atletiek Club, now K Beerschot VA was a Belgian football club from Antwerp. The club was founded in 1899 when most players of Antwerp left the club. It played in the 1920 Olympic Games Stadium named the "Kiel ...
into
K.F.C. Germinal Beerschot
Koninklijke Beerschot Antwerpen Club (), simply known as Beerschot AC, was a Belgian football club based in southern Antwerp. Beerschot played in the Belgian Pro League from 1999–2000 (as Germinal Beerschot) until 2012–13, when they were ...
(in 1999). The new club is based in the
Olympisch Stadion in Antwerp.
Ekeren is home to the
Jozef Pauly municipal academy for music and diction, which has around 2000 pupils as of 2004 (also counting branches in some other districts of the city of Antwerp, and one in the nearby municipality of
Kapellen). The academy hosts many
musical ensemble
A musical ensemble, also known as a music group or musical group, is a group of people who perform instrumental and/or vocal music, with the ensemble typically known by a distinct name. Some music ensembles consist solely of instrumentalists, ...
s; the Jozef Pauly
flute
The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedless ...
ensemble has made concert tours to
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. Municipal music academies in Belgium are distinct from the public educational system; attending these academies is entirely optional, and merely a hobby for most of the students.
The 1 square kilometre large domain of the ''Oude Landen'' is a unique and extremely diverse natural sanctuary situated near the border with the Antwerp city district. Since it was a military area until 1972 (but not often used as such) where trespassing was strictly forbidden, nature was allowed to have its way for decades; the area now contains a rich mixture of plants and animals in eight more or less separate miniature ecosystems.
The border between Ekeren and the
Antwerp district was changed per 1 January 2019, which transferred several Antwerp neighbourhoods with about 5,000 inhabitants to Ekeren.
Ekeren is also the hometown of well known Belgian/American musician
Christian Olde Wolbers
Christian Olde Wolbers (born 5 August 1972) is a Belgian musician, songwriter, and producer who is the bassist and backing vocalist of the heavy metal band Powerflo. He is the former bassist, guitarist and backing vocalist of the heavy metal b ...
of legendary American music group
Fear Factory
Fear Factory is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1989. Throughout the band's career, they have released ten full-length albums and have evolved through a succession of sounds, all in their main style of industrial metal. ...
History
In 1703, Ekeren was the site of a battle in the
War of the Spanish Succession
The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...
, known as the
Battle of Ekeren
The Battle of Ekeren, which took place on 30 June 1703, was a battle of the War of the Spanish Succession. The French surrounded the much smaller Dutch force, which however managed to beat it back, break out and retire to safety. The battle had ...
. Some street names in Ekeren (for example, the "Successiestraat", "Vierkerkenstraat", and "Tweekronenstraat") still refer to this historical event.
During the
Liberation of Belgium
The Liberation of Belgium from German occupation was completed on 4 February 1945 when the entire country was reportedly free of German troops with the liberation of the village of Krewinkel. The operation began when Allied forces entered on 2 ...
, Ekeren was liberated on 4 October 1944 by the
Essex Scottish Regiment
The Essex Scottish was an infantry regiment of the Canadian Army until 1954.
History
Founded in 1885 as the 21st Essex Battalion of Infantry, it went through several name changes including: 1887 - 21st Battalion, Essex Fusiliers; 1900 - 21st R ...
and the
Royal Regiment of Canada
, battle_honours = See #Battle honours
, website =
, identification_symbol =
, identification_symbol_label = Tactical recognition flash
, nickname = Royals
, battles ...
. The last V-Bomb to land in the area of Antwerp was in Ekeren, on 28 March 1945.
Government
Ekeren was a distinct
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
with its own
town hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
,
mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
, and
city council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...
until 1983, when most of it, along with 8 other municipalities was merged into the city of
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, .
In 2000 the Antwerp city council initiated additional
district councils with responsibilities including sports, culture, youth and elderly people. Since this
decentralization
Decentralization or decentralisation is the process by which the activities of an organization, particularly those regarding planning and decision making, are distributed or delegated away from a central, authoritative location or group.
Conce ...
, the Antwerp municipality consists of nine districts (the old city, seven former municipalities at its borders, and the ''
Bezali'' merger of three towns). The first district council of Ekeren, elected in 2000, was led by
Christophe Thomas Christophe may refer to:
People
* Christophe (given name), list of people with this name
* Christophe (singer) (1945–2020), French singer
* Cristophe (hairstylist) (born 1958), Belgian hairstylist
* Georges Colomb (1856–1945), French comic str ...
(Open Vld); the second district council, elected in 2006, by
Ronny Kruyniers
Ronny is a given name, sometimes a short form (hypocorism) of Ryan. It may refer to:
* Ronny (footballer, born 1986), Brazilian footballer Ronny Heberson Furtado de Araújo
* Ronny (footballer, born 1991), Brazilian footballer Ronieri da Silva Pin ...
(sp.a). The current district council chairman is
Koen Palinckx (N-VA) (elected in 2012). The district council gathers in the 16th century-era
Hof van Veltwijck, which had seen major restructuring works around 2000; this complex also houses local administrative offices.
Notable residents
*
Vlaams Belang
, ideology =
, predecessor = Vlaams Blok
, position =
, europarl = Identity and Democracy
, european = Identity and Democracy Party
, youth_wing = Vlaams Belang Jongeren
, colours =
, ...
politician
Filip Dewinter
Philip Michel Frans "Filip" Dewinter (born 11 September 1962) is a Belgian politician. He is one of the leading members of Vlaams Belang, a right-wing Flemish nationalist and secessionist political party. Together with Hugo Coveliers of the VLOT ...
(1962–)
*
Libera Carlier Libera Carlier (19 January 1926 in Nijlen – 25 April 2007 in Ekeren) was a Belgian seaman and writer. He attended the ''Hogere Zeevaartschool'' (E: higher seagoing school) and was a member of the resistance during World War II. When sixteen years ...
, writer (1926–2007)
*
Georges Morren, painter, sculptor, engraver (1868–1941)
*
Sanne Cant
Sanne Cant (born 8 October 1990) is a Belgian Cycle sport, racing cyclist, who currently competes in cyclo-cross for UCI Cyclo-cross Team IKO–Crelan, and in road cycling for UCI Women's Team, UCI Women's Continental Team . Cant's cousin Loes Se ...
,
Belgian
Belgian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to, Belgium
* Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent
* Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German
*Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...
Cyclo-cross racing
In sport, racing is a competition of speed, in which competitors try to complete a given task in the shortest amount of time. Typically this involves traversing some distance, but it can be any other task involving speed to reach a specific goa ...
cyclist
Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...
, three times
world champion
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
(1990–)
Sister cities
*
Andernach
Andernach () is a town in the district of Mayen-Koblenz, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, of about 30,000 inhabitants. It is situated towards the end of the ''Neuwied basin'' on the left bank of the Rhine between the former tiny fishing village ...
,
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
*
Newry
Newry (; ) is a city in Northern Ireland, divided by the Clanrye river in counties Armagh and Down, from Belfast and from Dublin. It had a population of 26,967 in 2011.
Newry was founded in 1144 alongside a Cistercian monastery, althoug ...
,
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
References
External links
official website of the district of Ekeren(in Dutch)
website for the municipal academy for music and word(in Dutch)
{{Authority control
Districts of Antwerp
Populated places in Antwerp Province