Laren () is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an o ...

and

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

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 ...

North Holland North Holland ( nl, Noord-Holland, ) is a province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevoland. In November 2019, it had a ...

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Located in the

Gooi The Gooi () is an area around Hilversum, in the centre of the Netherlands. It is a slightly hilly area characterised by its green landscape, its historical charm, the wealth of its inhabitants, and its villas. The Gooi is known in the Netherlan ...

region, it is the oldest town in the area. Together with its neighbor

Blaricum Blaricum () is a municipality and village in the province of North Holland, the Netherlands. It is part of the region of Gooiland and part of the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area (Metropoolregio Amsterdam). It is known for its many monumental farm bui ...

, Laren is one of the most affluent towns in the Netherlands. Nationally, Laren is well known for its history as a late 19th-century

art colony An art colony, also known as an artists' colony, can be defined two ways. Its most liberal description refers to the organic congregation of artists in towns, villages and rural areas, often drawn by areas of natural beauty, the prior existence o ...

, preserved in the museum

Singer Laren Singer Laren is a museum and concert hall located in the center of Laren, the Netherlands. The museum is devoted to presenting and preserving the collection of the American artist William Henry Singer (1868–1943) and his wife Anna (1878–196 ...

, its retirement home for elderly artists

Rosa Spier Huis The Rosa Spier Huis is a retirement home founded in 1963 in Laren, Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands ...

, as well as its wide array of shops. Laren is part of the

Amsterdam metropolitan area The Amsterdam metropolitan area ( nl, Metropoolregio Amsterdam) is the city region around the city of Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands. It lies in the Noordvleugel (English: "North Wing") of the larger polycentric Randstad metropolitan ...

, situated east of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

Government

The

municipal 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 ...

of Laren consists of 15 seats, which since 2014 are divided as follows:

Demographics

In 2007, Laren had the following demographic data: *Birth rate: 7.29 per 1,000 *Death rate: 17.94 per 1,000 *NGR: -1.07% per year In August 2017, there were 11,135 inhabitants in Laren. The municipality has a population density of 897/km² (2,320/sq mi).

Notable residents

The arts

Anton Mauve Anthonij "Anton" Rudolf Mauve (18 September 18385 February 1888) was a Dutch realist painter who was a leading member of the Hague School. He signed his paintings 'A. Mauve' or with a monogrammed 'A.M.'. A master colorist, he was a very signific ...

(1838-1888), painter,

Hague School The Hague School is a group of artists who lived and worked in The Hague between 1860 and 1890. Their work was heavily influenced by the realist painters of the French Barbizon school. The painters of the Hague school generally made use of relat ...

& Laren School, lived in Laren 1886/1888 * Albert Neuhuys (1844-1914), painter Laren School * (1885-1980) artist, illustrated H. G. Wells' books * Maurits Cornelis Escher (1898–1972), graphic artist, illustrator and printmaker, lived in

from 1970 * Barthold Fles (1902–1989) a Dutch-American literary agent, author and translator; lived in

from 1986 * Maarten Krabbé (1908 in Laren – 2005) a Dutch painter and art educator *

Hannie Lips Hannie Lips (16 July 1924 – 19 November 2012) was a Dutch broadcaster and television announcer of among others Dutch public broadcasting association KRO KRO, or (Catholic Radio Broadcasting), was a Dutch public broadcasting organization fo ...

(1924 – 2012 in Laren) a broadcaster and TV announcer *

Roberto Vander Roberto Vander (born Frans Robert Jan van der Hoek; September 20, 1950) is a Dutch-Chilean actor and singer. Biography After living in different Latin American countries such as Chile, Uruguay, Argentina, and Brazil, he settled in Mexico in 19 ...

(born 1950 in Laren) a Dutch-Chilean actor and singer *

Johnny de Mol John Carel "Johnny" de Mol (born 12 January 1979 in Laren) is a Dutch actor An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in moder ...

(born 1979 in Laren) a Dutch actor and presenter IMDb Database
retrieved 31 January 2020 * Saar de Swart (1861-1951) a Dutch sculptor

Public service

Maria Montessori Maria Tecla Artemisia Montessori ( , ; August 31, 1870 – May 6, 1952) was an Italian physician and educator best known for the philosophy of education that bears her name, and her writing on scientific pedagogy. At an early age, Montessori e ...

(1870-1952) an Italian physician and education reformer, lived in Laren 1936/1939 *

Mona Louise Parsons Mona Louise Parsons (February 17, 1901 – November 28, 1976) was a Canadian actress, nurse, and member of an informal Dutch resistance network in the Netherlands from 1940 to 1941 during the Nazi occupation. She became the only Canadian female ...

(1901–1976) a Canadian actress, nurse and member of an informal Dutch resistance network * Gerard Croiset (1909 in Laren – 1980) a Dutch parapsychologist, psychometrist and

psychic A psychic is a person who claims to use extrasensory perception (ESP) to identify information hidden from the normal senses, particularly involving telepathy or clairvoyance, or who performs acts that are apparently inexplicable by natural laws ...

Jan van den Brink Jan, JaN or JAN may refer to: Acronyms * Jackson, Mississippi (Amtrak station), US, Amtrak station code JAN * Jackson-Evers International Airport, Mississippi, US, IATA code * Jabhat al-Nusra (JaN), a Syrian militant group * Japanese Article Numb ...

(1915 in Laren – 2006) a Dutch politician and businessman * Henk Zanoli (1923 in Laren – 2015) a lawyer and member of the Dutch resistance in WWII * Paul Joan George Kapteyn (born 1928 in Laren) a judge at the

European Court of Justice The European Court of Justice (ECJ, french: Cour de Justice européenne), formally just the Court of Justice, is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European U ...

* Roelof Nelissen (1931–2019) a Dutch politician and businessman; lived in Laren *

Pim van Lommel Pim van Lommel (born 15 March 1943) is a Dutch author and researcher in the field of near-death studies. Education and career He studied medicine at Utrecht University, specializing in cardiology. He worked as a cardiologist at the Rijnstate ...

(born 1943 in Laren) a Dutch cardiologist, author and researcher into

near-death studies Near-death studies is a field of psychology and psychiatry that studies the physiology, phenomenology and after-effects of the near-death experience (NDE). The field was originally associated with a distinct group of North American researchers that ...

Elbert Roest Elbert Jan Roest (born 13 October 1954 in Hoogezand) is a Dutch historian, politician and former teacher. He is a member of Democrats 66 (D66). From 1992 to 2002, Roest was a member of the municipal council of Doesburg and also an alderman. Roe ...

(born 1954) a Dutch historian, politician, former teacher and former mayor of Laren

Sport

Willemien Aardenburg Willemien Aardenburg (born August 30, 1966, in Laren, North Holland) is a former Dutch field hockey player, who won the bronze medal with the National Women's Team at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea Seoul (; ; ), offic ...

(born 1966 in Laren) a former Dutch field hockey player, team bronze medallist the

1988 Summer Olympics The 1988 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad () and commonly known as Seoul 1988 ( ko, 서울 1988, Seoul Cheon gubaek palsip-pal), was an international multi-sport event held from 17 September to 2 October ...

* Marcel van der Westen (born 1976 in Laren) a retired Dutch hurdler * Thomas Boerma (born 1981 in Laren) a field hockey player, competed at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

Jacobine Veenhoven Jacobine Veenhoven (born 30 January 1984, Laren, North Holland, Laren) is a Dutch female rower. She won the bronze medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in the Rowing at the 2012 Summer Olympics – Women's eight, women's eight event. Refer ...

(born 1984 in Laren) a Dutch female rower, team bronze medallist at the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, th ...

Gallery

Image:Laren Brink 17juni2006.jpg, Town centre Image:HervormdeKerkLaren.png, ''De Hervormde Kerk'' File:Laren DSCF0253.JPG, Laren File:Laren, de Sint Jansbasiliek RM511274 foto6 2014-09-03 13.38.jpg, Laren, basilica: ''de Sint Jansbasiliek'' Image:CoeswaerdeLaren.png, The Coeswaerde

References

External links

*
Official website
Municipalities of North Holland Populated places in North Holland {{NorthHolland-geo-stub