Fransum () is an old church hamlet in the municipality of
Westerkwartier,
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 ...
. The village in the north-east of the country contains an early 13th century
Romanesque church, a farm and a house.
The hamlet was first mentioned in 1285 as ''Frenchem in Hunesgonia'', and probably means "settlement of Frank (person)". The explanation "settlement of the
Franks
file:Frankish arms.JPG, Aristocratic Frankish burial items from the Merovingian dynasty
The Franks ( or ; ; ) were originally a group of Germanic peoples who lived near the Rhine river, Rhine-river military border of Germania Inferior, which wa ...
" is unlikely due to the k → s shift.
Archaeological excavations have discovered artefacts from the 5th until the 8th century in the ''
terp
A ''terp'', also known as a ''wierde, woerd, warf, warft, werf, werve, wurt'' or ''værft'', is an artificial dwelling mound found on the North European Plain that has been created to provide safe ground during storm surges, high tides and ...
''. Also bodies have been discovered which are older than the 13th century church. The church is currently in use for weddings, expositions and concerts due to the excellent acoustics.
From
Den Ham
Den Ham ɛn ɦɑmis a village in the Netherlands, Dutch province of Overijssel. It is located in the municipality of Twenterand, about 15 km northwest of Almelo.
Den Ham was a separate municipality until 2001, when it became a part of V ...
a narrow road leads to the
wierde, with the last part being unpaved. A ''dodenweg'', or 'death road', runs across the wierde from north to south. From Fransum there used to be church paths to
Aduard,
Altenaauw,
Beswerd and
Den Ham
Den Ham ɛn ɦɑmis a village in the Netherlands, Dutch province of Overijssel. It is located in the municipality of Twenterand, about 15 km northwest of Almelo.
Den Ham was a separate municipality until 2001, when it became a part of V ...
. Many of these paths disappeared later, but some have been restored as bike paths.
Fransum is not a statistical entity,
and the postal authorities have placed it under
Den Ham
Den Ham ɛn ɦɑmis a village in the Netherlands, Dutch province of Overijssel. It is located in the municipality of Twenterand, about 15 km northwest of Almelo.
Den Ham was a separate municipality until 2001, when it became a part of V ...
.
Fransum was home to 166 people in 1840. Nowadays, it consists of three buildings and a dozen farms in the surrounding area.
Gallery
File:Fransum - panoramio.jpg, View on Fransum
File:Oude Boerderij achter de Kerk.JPG, Farm in Fransum
References
Bibliography
* Meinema, J. (1997), ''Fransum: uit de geschiedenis van Fransum en zijn kerk''. Onnen: 't Widde Vool. 31 p.
* IJzerman, M.J. et al. (1996), ''Den Ham en Fransum door de jaren heen''. Bedum: Profiel. 94 p.
External links
*
{{Authority control
Populated places in Groningen (province)
Westerkwartier (municipality)
Westerkwartier