Wellen (; ) 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. On 1 January 2024, Wellen had a total population of 7,490. The total area is 26.72 km
2 with 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 279 inhabitants per km
2.
The municipality consists of the following
sub-municipalities: Wellen, Berlingen, Herten and Ulbeek. Other population centres and hamlets include: Bos, Beurs, Kukkelberg, Langenakker, Oetersloven, Overbroek, Russelt, and Vrolingen.
History
Archaeological findings suggest the place was inhabited already during the
Frankish period (5th to 7th century). Debris from the river Herk on that spot made the soil fertile for farming. However, any mention of the name Wellene or Welnis doesn't occur until the second half of the 12th century.
The name Wellen derives from the
Middle Dutch
Middle Dutch is a collective name for a number of closely related West Germanic dialects whose ancestor was Old Dutch. It was spoken and written between 1150 and 1500. Until the advent of Modern Dutch after 1500 or , there was no overarching sta ...
"''wellene''", meaning "source" or "pit" or, alternately, from
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
''terra Villina'', "agricultural holding". Wellen was long associated with the
abbey of Munsterbilzen, founded around 670.
References
External links
*
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Municipalities of Limburg (Belgium)
{{LimburgBE-geo-stub