Witmarsum, Netherlands Explained

Witmarsum
Native Name:Wytmarsum
Settlement Type:Village
Pushpin Map:Netherlands Friesland#Netherlands
Pushpin Label Position:right
Pushpin Mapsize:250
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in the Netherlands
Coordinates:53.1019°N 5.4672°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: Netherlands
Subdivision Type1:Province
Subdivision Name1: Friesland
Subdivision Type2:Municipality
Subdivision Name2: Súdwest-Fryslân
Unit Pref:Metric
Area Total Km2:12.78
Elevation Footnotes:[1]
Elevation M:0.5
Population As Of:2021
Population Footnotes:[2]
Population Total:1,675
Population Density Km2:auto
Timezone:CET
Utc Offset:+1
Timezone Dst:CEST
Utc Offset Dst:+2
Postal Code Type:Postal code
Postal Code:8748
Area Code Type:Dialing code
Area Code:0517

Witmarsum (Western Frisian: Wytmarsum) is a village in the northern Netherlands. It is located in Súdwest-Fryslân, Friesland. Witmarsum had a population of around 1,735 in January 2017.[3] Witmarsum was birthplace of Menno Simons (1496–1561), the leader of what would become the Mennonites.

History

The village was first mentioned in the 13th century as Witmarsum, and means "settlement of Witmer (person)".[4] Witmarsum is a terp (artificial living hill) village which developed in the early middle ages. The village used to concentrate on the terp, along the canal and along the road from Bolsward to Harlingen.[5]

The Dutch Reformed church was built in 1633 as a replacement of its medieval predecessor, because it was damaged by a lightning strike. The tower was again replaced in 1819.[5] [6] Witmarsum contains four churches: a Dutch Reformed church, a Catholic church, a former Reformed Church and a modest Mennonite church.[6]

Witmarsum was home to 659 people in 1840.[7] In 1879, an obelisk was erected as a memorial for Menno Simons.[5] In 1880, Witmarsum became the capital of the municipality of Wûnseradiel.[6] In 1911, an electricity factory was opened by a local electricity company for the villages of Witmarsum, Pingjum, Arum en Achlum. In 1919, Witmarsum was connected to the provincial grid, and the building was turned into a transformer.[5]

There are two windmills in the village, De Onderneming and De Pankoekstermolen.[7] Before 2011, the village was part of the Wûnseradiel municipality.[7]

Notable people

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Postcodetool for 8748AA . nl . Actueel Hoogtebestand Nederland . Het Waterschapshuis . 7 April 2022 .
  2. Web site: Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2021 . Central Bureau of Statistics . 7 April 2022. two entries.
  3. http://statline.cbs.nl/Statweb/publication/?DM=SLNL&PA=83765NED&D1=0-1,3-4,8,11,14,28,31-32,99-104&D2=13314-13470&HDR=T&STB=G1&VW=T Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2017
  4. Web site: Witmarsum - (geografische naam) . Etymologiebank . 7 April 2022 . nl.
  5. Web site: Witmarssum . Ronald Stenvert & Sabine Broekhoven . 2000 . Waanders . Zwolle . 90 400 9476 4 . nl . 7 April 2022.
  6. Web site: Witmarsum . Friesland wonderland . 7 April 2022 . nl.
  7. Web site: Witmarsum . Plaatsengids . 7 April 2022 . nl.
  8. Web site: Menno Simons . Biography portal of the Netherlands . 7 April 2022.
  9. Web site: Hobbe Smith . Nederlands Instituut voor Kunstgeschiedenis . 7 April 2022.