Eierland () is a former island in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. It is now the northern part of the island of

Texel Texel (; Texels dialect: ) is a municipality and an island with a population of 13,643 in North Holland, Netherlands. It is the largest and most populated island of the West Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea. The island is situated north of Den ...

. The name means "egg land", named for the seagull eggs that were collected on the island and sent to Amsterdam. The island of Eierland was a part of

Vlieland (; ) is a municipality and island in the northern Netherlands. The municipality of Vlieland is the second most sparsely populated municipality in the Netherlands, after Schiermonnikoog. Vlieland is one of the West Frisian Islands, lying in t ...

until the 13th century, when it became a separate island. During the 16th century, a sand bank grew in the sea arm between Texel and Eierland, which eventually was submerged only at extremely high tide. In 1629 and 1630, a dam was built connecting the two islands, and Eierland ceased to exist as a separate island. The shallow waters between the two islands were sold to a group of developers led by trader Nicolaas de Cock from

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

in 1835. Within twenty weeks, a dyke was built around this area, and a

polder A polder () is a low-lying tract of land that forms an artificial hydrology, hydrological entity, enclosed by embankments known as levee, dikes. The three types of polder are: # Land reclamation, Land reclaimed from a body of water, such as a ...

was created, the Eierlandse Polder. This meant a significant enlargement of the island of Texel. The lighthouse of Texel, the

Eierland Lighthouse The Eierland Lighthouse is a lighthouse on the northernmost tip of the Dutch island of Texel. It is named for the former island Eierland. History The lighthouse was designed by Quirinus Harder and construction began on 25 July 1863. The lighth ...

, is located on the northern tip of the former island. This area was formerly known as ''het Engels Kerkhof'', the English Cemetery. Many sailors from nearby shipwrecks were buried here. The village of De Cocksdorp (named after Nicolaas de Cock) and the hamlets Midden-Eierland and Zuid-Eierland are located in the Eierlandse Polder.

References

* {{Frisian Islands Texel Former islands of the Netherlands West Frisian Islands