Lommel () is a

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 ...

and a

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

in the Belgian province of Limburg. The Kempen city has about 34,000 inhabitants and is part of the electoral district and the judicial district Lommel Neerpelt. Besides residential town of Lommel also has a number of nature reserves, such as the nature reserve De Watering, the Lommel Sahara, and numerous forests and heathlands. Lommel is the third shopping city in Belgian Limburg with a commercial and shopping center ''De Singel''. Importantly, the silver sand that is mined here for the benefit of the glass industry. Some

sand mining Sand mining is the extraction of sand, mainly through an open pit (or sand pit) but sometimes mined from beaches and inland dunes or dredged from ocean and river beds. Sand is often used in manufacturing, for example as an abrasive or in conc ...

quarries are transformed into nature reserves and recreational areas, including Lommel Sahara. The city of Lommel is the watershed of the basins of the

Scheldt The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corresponding to ...

, and

Meuse The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a ...

, and within these basins Nete Dommel respectively.

Language

The dialect of Lommel – the Lommel – is part of the East Brabant, and not to the West Limburg dialects, reflecting the particular history of the place.

Etymology

The name comes from Lommel Loemelo. Loem means moist, swampy and Lo is forest or woodland.

Demographic development

All historical data relating to the current municipality, including towns such as arose after the merger of January 1, 1977.

Politics

Structure

The city of Lommel is located in the

electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...

Neerpelt Neerpelt (, literally ''Lower Pelt'') is a town in Pelt and a former municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. In 2018, the municipality had a total population of 17,174. The total area is 42.78 km². Effective 1 January 201 ...

(which is identical to the

county district Neerpelt A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

) and the

Hasselt Tongeren-Maaseik (same as the

constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...

Limburg).

List of mayors of Lommel

* 1808 – 1813:

Joannes Aerts Joannes or John ( la, Iohannes; died 425) was western Roman emperor from 423 to 425. On the death of the Emperor Honorius (15 August 423), Theodosius II, the remaining ruler of the House of Theodosius, hesitated in announcing his uncle's dea ...

, Catholic * 1813 – 1847: William Karel Koek Court, Catholic * 1847 – 1857: Jan Daels, Catholic * 1857 – 1861:

Jan Van Leemput 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 ...

, Catholic * 1861 – 1863: Henry Alen, Catholic * 1863 – 1872: Peter Slegers, Catholic * 1872 – 1879: Peter Stevens, Catholic * 1879 – 1885: Jan Alen, Catholic * 1885 – 1890: Jan Vanden Boer, Catholic * 1891 – 1904: Peter Senders, Catholic * 1904 – 1921: François Van Ham, Catholic * 1921 – 1923: John Bouly, Catholic * 1924 – 1927:

Peter Joosten Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

, Catholic * 1927 – 1941: Joseph Tournier, liberal Catholics * 1941 – 1944: Peter Luykx, Flemish nationalist * 1944 – 1945: Joseph Tournier, liberal Catholics * 1945 – 1958: Henri Van Reempts, Catholic * 1959 – 1979: René Verhoeven, Catholic * 1979 – 1988: Staff Matthijs, Catholic * 1989 – 2006:

Louis Vanvelthoven Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis (d ...

, socialist * 2007 – 2018: Peter Vanvelthoven, socialist * 2019–present: Bob Nijs, Catholic

Results municipal elections since 1976

seats formed coalition '' 'bold' '' printed

Sport events

Since 2017 the European Open a

Snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sport played on a rectangular table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six pockets, one at each corner and one in the middle of each long side. First played by British Army officers stationed in ...

ranking tournament of the World Snooker Tour took place in Lommel.

Notable people from Lommel

* Kevin Hulsmans, road bicycle racer * Peter Luykx, federal representative *

Peter Maes Peter Maes () (born 1 June 1964) is a Belgian retired footballer turned coach. He is currently unemployed after most recently managing Beerschot VA in the Belgian First Division A. Prior to Lokeren, he also managed KV Mechelen and Genk. until ...

, former soccer player, coach of

Sporting Lokeren Koninklijke Sporting Club Lokeren Oost-Vlaanderen (; often simply called Sporting Lokeren or Lokeren) was a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Lokeren, in the province of East Flanders. The club was founded in 1923 but ce ...

Roy Meeus Roy Meeus (born 24 May 1989) is a Belgian professional footballer. Career Born in Lommel, Belgium, Meeus has played for KVSK United, Club Brugge, Dender, and Lommel United. Personal life Meeus married Ashlee Bond, an American-Israeli Oly ...

(born 1989), professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugb ...

* Wim Mennes, soccer player *

Pieter Mertens Pieter Mertens (born 28 August 1980) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer. He was professional for four years, spending two years at Chocolade Jacques-T Interim between 2004 and 2005 and then two years at UCI ProTeam UCI most com ...

, road bicycle racer *

Steve Ramon Steve Ramon (born 29 December 1979 in Bruges) is a Belgian former professional motocross racer. He competed in the Motocross World Championships from 1996 to 2011. Ramon was a two-time motocross world champion. Ramon rode a KTM to win the 2003 ...

, motocross world champion *

Kathleen Smet Kathleen Smet (born 19 January 1970, in Beveren) is an athlete from Belgium who competes in triathlon, becoming European champion in 2000 and 2002. She competes in Olympic and Long Distance Triathlons. Smet competed at the first Olympic triathl ...

, athlete in triathlon * Dirk Swartenbroekx, DJ Buscemi * Johan Vansummeren, road bicycle racer * Marcel Vanthilt, musician,

TV presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for people who garne ...

, honorary-mayor, former chairman of the

Flemish Parliament The Flemish Parliament ( Dutch: , formerly called Flemish Council or ''Vlaamse Raad'') constitutes the legislative power in Flanders for matters which fall within the competence of Flanders, both as a geographic region and as a cultural commu ...

* Peter Vanvelthoven, mayor, former Belgian Minister for Employment and Informatisation * Steven Van Broeckhoven, professional windsurfer, two-time champion on the European Freestyle Pro Tour

References

External links

Official websiteWebsite tourism LommelSteven van Broeckhoven´s profile on efpt.net
{{Authority control Municipalities of Limburg (Belgium)