Present Description

The Waasland is a socio-economic-historical region lying in the north-east quarter of the Province of East Flanders and west of Antwerp, comprising 32 townships.

Inhabitants of the Waasland are proud people, and when asked about their origin, they will almost always add to the name of their village: "in het Waasland".

Territorial Subdivisions

Short history with bibliography

• Ancien Régime

  Historically, the Waasland was a kind of "lower county" (or castellany), part of the old County of Flanders. Renowned for the yield of its land, it was called the garden of Europe.

• Contemporary history

  See the history of the Arrondissement Sint-Niklaas (Administrative District)

Sources

Repositories

Societies

Migration / Emigr/Immigration

• Waaslanders who emigrated in 1903

Families and Family Histories

• Picavet

Sciences

• Heraldry, Coats of Arms, and Seals

  

  Whereas most coats of arms are of a more belligerent nature, that of the Waasland carries a silver turnip on a red field, symbolising the fertility of the land. The turnip was a second crop, meant to feed the animals in winter time.

This web site is the collective work of the subscribers to the mail list BELGIUM-ROOTS-L founded June 1998 by Georges Picavet (see our members page and the copyrights page for more info) Q:\webbeta\rw_belgiumroots\bel\bel_ar\flanders\waasland\index.html (br_bel_ar) This Global file was last updated 18/01/2007 23:47:19 CET and uploaded Thursday, 18-Jan-2007 16:11:47 MST