Lanaken (; ) is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

located in the Belgian province of

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

. On January 1, 2007, the municipality of Lanaken had a total population of 24,724. Its area is 59.00 km² which gives a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

of 415 inhabitants per km². Lanaken is located on the Belgian-

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

border, bordering

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; ; ; ) is a city and a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital city, capital and largest city of the province of Limburg (Netherlands), Limburg. Maastricht is loca ...

directly. In the 2006 census, some 20 percent of the inhabitants turned out to have the Dutch nationality. A number of neighbourhoods in Lanaken is characterized by these immigrants' numerous villas and exclusive landhouses. Lanaken consists of the following villages: Lanaken proper, Rekem, Neerharen, Gellik, Veldwezelt, Smeermaas and Kesselt. Also located in Lanaken are the hamlets Briegden and Herbricht and the old village centre Oud-Rekem. The Veldwezelt-Hezerwater

Palaeolithic The Paleolithic or Palaeolithic ( years ago) ( ), also called the Old Stone Age (), is a period in human prehistory that is distinguished by the original development of stone tools, and which represents almost the entire period of human prehist ...

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or recorded history, historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline ...

is located in the municipality.

History

Archaeological finds on the territory of Lanaken are known from the

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

and

Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from around the middle of the 5th century until Pepin the Short in 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the ...

periods. There were several

Gallo-Roman Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization (cultural), Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire in Roman Gaul. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, Roman culture, language ...

cemeteries and in Smeermaas was the Gallo-Roman villa of Smeermaas was located. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, the domain of Lanaken probably belonged to the emperor of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

. From the 12th century Lanaken was part of the

seigniory In English law, seignory or seigniory, spelled ''signiory'' in Early Modern English (; ; ), is the lordship (authority) remaining to a grantor after the grant of an estate in fee simple. '' Nulle terre sans seigneur'' ("No land without a lord") ...

of Pietersheim of Loon, whose lords founded the Abbey of Hocht around 1186. In 1106 the patronage right of the parish church was given to the Maastricht chapter of St. Servaas. In 1808 the present borough was formed, merging Lanaken with Smeermaas, Hocht, Pietersem, Ca(u)berg, Bessemer and Briegden. In 1839, as a result of the

Belgian revolution The Belgian Revolution (, ) was a conflict which led to the secession of the southern provinces (mainly the former Southern Netherlands) from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium. The ...

and subsequent Treaty of London, the municipality was split into a Belgian and a Dutch part (Caberg). Caberg then became an independent parish. Smeermaas received its own church in 1870. The borough of Bessemer was later incorporated into the municipality of

Zutendaal Zutendaal (; ; in English sometimes also referred to as "Sweet Valley") is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. On 1 January 2017 Zutendaal had a total population of 7,269. The total area is 32.07 km2, giving a populat ...

. From 1824-1829 the South Willemsvaart was built, and from 1930-1934 the Briegden-Neerharen canal. These canals cut through the territory of Lanaken. In 1856 followed the Hasselt-Maastricht railroad line, which was closed to passenger traffic in 1954. On October 4, 1914, during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the center of Lanaken was set on fire by the Germans, partly in retaliation for the resistance of a Belgian volunteer group led by Mayor Edgard de Caritat de Peruzzis. The castles of de Caritat de Peruzzis and Alicebourg were then blown up. On May 10, 1940, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, German planes bombed the barracks of de Caritat de Peruzzis killing Captain-Commander Henri Giddelo and five other soldiers. In 1957, the Saint Barbara Hospital in Lanaken was established by the Limburg mines to enable research and combat occupational diseases, especially dust lung, which mostly affected the miners of the Kempen coal basin. On January 1, 1977, Lanaken merged with the surrounding municipalities of Gellik, Neerharen, Rekem and Veldwezelt to form the present municipality of Lanaken.

Etymology

Lanaken was mentioned in 810 as ''Ludinaca'' and in 1106 as ''Lodenaken''. This contains the personal name ''Hlodo'' or ''Ludo'' followed by the word ''haka'', meaning sand plate.

Nature and landscape

Lanaken is characterized by being located on the southern edge of the Kempen Plateau, separated from the more southern region of Haspengouw by the

Albert Canal The Albert Canal (, ; , ) is a canal located in northeastern Belgium, which was named for King Albert I of Belgium. The Albert Canal connects Antwerp with Liège, and also the Meuse river with the Scheldt river. It also connects with the Des ...

. To the southeast, Lanaken is cut off from Smeermaas and the Maas basin by the Briegden-Neerharen Canal. Lanaken itself lies at an altitude of about 60 meters, to the northwest one finds steep edges to the plateau, which reaches heights of up to 100 meters, and the deeply cut valleys of the brooks Asbeek and Ziepbeek. This part, which is part of the

Hoge Kempen National Park Hoge Kempen National Park (''Nationaal Park Hoge Kempen'') is the first National Park in Flanders, Belgium. It is located in the Campine in the East of the Province of Limburg, between Genk and the river Meuse (Dutch: ''Maas'') Valley. It includ ...

, has marshy lowlands, heaths, and forests, consisting of coniferous forest, once planted for the production of mining wood, and mixed forest. The most famous areas are Pietersembos and Asbroek. Marked walks through this area start both at Pietersheim Castle and at the parking lot near the Saint-Barbara Hospital.

Economy

Lanaken grew as a result of the presence of railroad and canals, there was commuter traffic to Maastricht, and jobs were created at the Eisden coal mine. Also established were a paper factory (today:

Sappi Sappi Limited, originally incorporated as ''South African Pulp and Paper Industries Limited'' in 1936, is a South African pulp and paper company with global operations. Products and operation South African Pulp and Paper Industries Limit ...

), a rubber factory (today: Hercorub) and a factory for synthetic fibers (

Celanese Celanese Corporation, formerly known as Hoechst Celanese, is an American technology and specialty materials company headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is a Fortune 500 corporation. The company is the world's leading producer of acetic acid, pr ...

), among others. In 2006, four 100 meter high wind turbines were built to provide electricity to the Celanese factory. Later on 8 more have been built. The

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

n pulp and paper company Sappi operates a large mill on the outskirts of the town and is an important source of employment for the town's residents. In October 2023, Sappi announced the closure of their facility in Lanaken. Lanaken is part of the Albert Canal Economic Network together with 24 other municipalities through which the canal runs.

Transportation

The reactivation of the former railway

-Lanaken-

Hasselt Hasselt (, , ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of Limburg (Belgium), Limburg in the Flemish Region of Belgium. As of 1 August 2023, Hasselt had a total population of 80,846. The old ...

as a

light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...

known as the

Hasselt – Maastricht tramway The Hasselt – Maastricht tramway ( Dutch: ''Sneltram Hasselt - Maastricht'') was a proposed light rail system linking Hasselt, Belgian province of Limburg and Maastricht, Dutch province of Limburg. The project was part of the ''Spartacusplan' ...

as part of the Belgian Spartacus plan was scheduled for 2014. It was later postponed to 2025, to be later canceled in June 2022 and in favour of an electric "trambus" which will start operations in 2024.

Born in Lanaken

Eric Gerets Eric Maria Gerets (; born 18 May 1954) is a Belgian association football, football manager (association football), manager and former player. As a Forward (association football), striker, he started his playing career as an amateur for his local ...

(1954) Former professional football (soccer) player for Belgium, born in Rekem * Edgar Willems (1890–1978), artist, musician, and music educator

History

Etymology

Nature and landscape

Economy

Transportation

Born in Lanaken

Gallery

References

External links