Eeklo () is a Belgian

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 ...

in the

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

East Flanders , native_name_lang = , settlement_type = Province of Belgium , image_flag = Flag of Oost-Vlaanderen.svg , flag_size = , image_shield = Wapen van O ...

. The municipality comprises only the town of Eeklo proper. The name ''Eeklo'' comes from the contraction of "eke" and "lo", two Old German words meaning ''oak'' and ''sparse woods'' (compare English ''Oakley'').

History

Origins and Middle Ages

There are not many traces of early habitation in the Eeklo area. It is presumed that some oaks would have attracted the attention of travellers on the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

road that ran along the local sandbar among the marshes. By 1240, a town had grown here and had already become important enough to warrant a civic

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the re ...

by Jeanne of Constantinople, Countess of Flanders. Over the years, the marshes were drained to give place to fortified farms, some remnants of which can still be seen today (''Groot Goed''). Like most other cities in the

County of Flanders The County of Flanders was a historic territory in the Low Countries. From 862 onwards, the counts of Flanders were among the original twelve peers of the Kingdom of France. For centuries, their estates around the cities of Ghent, Bruges a ...

, Eeklo's economy was based on the cloth industry, and commercial relations were established with the more powerful neighbouring cities,

Ghent Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded i ...

and

Bruges Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the countr ...

16th century until now

During the second half of the 16th century, Eeklo was in the unfortunate position of being on the border between the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

south and the

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

north, which resulted in so much destruction that the town was nearly abandoned by its inhabitants. At around that time the legend of "recooking" appeared, actually a rejuvenation recipe that involved drinking a youth elixir, cutting one's head off and baking it again. While the head was in the oven, a green cabbage took its place on the body, symbol of the empty head. The 18th and 19th century were more favourable and the

textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, different #Fabric, fabric types, etc. At f ...

industry took off again. Most of the town's schools and

neo-gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

buildings date from that period. Today, Eeklo is changing its vocation from an industrial town to one of services to the neighbouring communities.

Main sights

*The town hall and belfry have been designated by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

in 1999. *Eeklo has a few notable churches and chapels, such as the St Vincent Church (''Sint-Vincentiuskerk'') and the chapel of the clinic of the Holy Heart (''Heilig Hartkliniek''). *A nearby provincial park, “Het Leen”, includes an arboretum and museum. *A local park, the ''Heldenpark'', offers concerts in summer, and houses a playground for children, bowling areas for seniors, and a soccer and baseball field.

Famous inhabitants

* Leon L. Van Autreve, fourth

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 Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

Sergeant Major of the Army (1920-2002) *

Edouard Heene Edouard Heene (27 Jul 1872 – 24 Jul 1947) was a Belgian master builder in the Meetjesland late in the 19th and early in the 20th century. He was a major figure in the monumental architectural development of Eeklo; among his projects was ...

, (born 1872 in Eeklo), master builder *

Erik De Vlaeminck Erik De Vlaeminck (23 March 1945 − 4 December 2015) was a Belgian cyclist who became cyclo-cross world-champion seven times (in 1966, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973), a record for male riders. Professional career De Vlaeminck missed 1967 ...

, cyclist, 7 times world champion cyclo-cross (born 1945) * Roger De Vlaeminck, cyclist, world champion cyclo-cross in 1975, winner of 11 "Monument"

classic cycle races The classic cycle races are the most prestigious one-day professional road cycling races in the international calendar. Some of these events date back to the 19th century. They are normally held at roughly the same time each year. The five most ...

(born 1947) *

Paul Van Hyfte Paul van Hyfte (born 19 January 1972 in Eeklo) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer. He is a former rider at the Danish professional cycling team, from 2002 to 2003. He left the team after 2003 and joined a Belgian team, Vlaander ...

(born 1972 in Eeklo), cyclist * Rudy Matthijs (born 1959 in Eeklo), cyclist * Frederik Willems (born 1979 in Eeklo), cyclist * Dirk Braeckman, artist and photographer (b. 1958) *

Olivier De Cock Olivier De Cock (born 9 November 1975) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a right-back. He is manager of the reserve team of R. Knokke FC. Club career De Cock was born in Eeklo. He joined Club Brugge in 1987. In 1995, h ...

(born 1975 in Eeklo), soccer player *

Maarten Martens Maarten Martens (born 2 July 1984) is a Belgian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder, either as an attacking midfielder or winger. Martens was known for his flair, dribbling and goalscoring ability as well as his precise pas ...

(born 1984 in Eeklo), soccer player * Tonny Mols (born 1969 in Eeklo), soccer player * Guido van Heulendonk (

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individu ...

of Guido Beelaert) (born in Eeklo), writer * Karel Lodewijk Ledeganck (born 1805 in Eeklo), writer *

Peter Van de Veire Peter Van de Veire (born Eeklo, Belgium, 1 December 1971) is a well-known radio personality in Flanders. Early life Van de Veire grew up in the town of Waarschoot. After attaining a degree in communications management, he briefly sold vacuum ...

(born 1971 in Eeklo), radio personality *

Tom Dice Tom Dice (born Tom Eeckhout, 25 November 1989) is a Belgian singer-songwriter. He finished runner-up in the Flemish version of ''X Factor (Belgian TV series), The X Factor'' in 2008 using his birth name Tom Eeckhout, but soon after changed his na ...

(born 1989 in Eeklo), singer and songwriter, represented

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 ...

in Eurovision Song Contest 2010

Twin cities

* Newbury, England *

Braunfels Braunfels () is a town in the Lahn-Dill-Kreis in Hesse, Germany. It is located on the German Timber-Frame Road. Geography Location The climatic spa of Braunfels lies at a height of some 100 m above the Lahn valley. It is 9 km southwes ...

, Germany *

Bagnols-sur-Cèze Bagnols-sur-Cèze (, literally ''Bagnols on Cèze''; oc, Banhòus de Céser) is a commune in the Gard department in the Occitanie région in southern France. History A small regional center, Bagnols-sur-Cèze was quite certainly a Roman town ...

, France *

Carcaixent Carcaixent (, Spanish: ''Carcagente'') is a town and municipality in the province of Valencia, eastern Spain, with c. 20,000 inhabitants. Its origins go back to prehistoric Iberian and Roman times, with some remainders in its area. It is loca ...

, Spain *

Feltre Feltre ( vec, Fèltre) is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Belluno in Veneto, northern Italy. A hill town in the southern reaches of the province, it is located on the Stizzon River, about from its junction with the Piave, and southwes ...

, Italy

References

External links

Official website
- Information available in Dutch and limited information available in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

and Spanish. {{Authority control Municipalities of East Flanders World Heritage Sites in Belgium