Hamont-Achel

Hamont-Achel
Municipality
Flag Coat of arms
Hamont-Achel Location in Belgium
Location of Hamont-Achel in Limburg
Coordinates: 51°15′N 05°33′E / 51.250°N 5.550°ECoordinates: 51°15′N 05°33′E / 51.250°N 5.550°E
Country	Belgium
Community	Flemish Community
Region	Flemish Region
Province	Limburg
Arrondissement	Maaseik
Government
• Mayor	Theo Schuurmans (CD&V)
• Governing party/ies	CD&V
Area
• Total	43.66 km^2 (16.86 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2016)[1]
• Total	14,356
• Density	330/km^2 (850/sq mi)
Postal codes	3930
Area codes	011
Website	www.hamont-achel.be

Hamont-Achel (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɦaːmɔnt ˈɑxəl]; Limburgish: Haëmet-Achel) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. It was founded in 1977 by a fusion of the city Hamont and the village Achel. On January 1, 2006, Hamont-Achel had a total population of 13,770. The total area is 43.66 km² which gives a population density of 315 inhabitants per km². The municipality houses the Trappist Abbey of Achel, part of which is Brouwerij de Achelse Kluis, one of the ten Trappist breweries.

The professional cyclist Jelle Vanendert lives in Hamont-Achel.

Demographics

Languages

• Dutch in Hamont-Achel is often spoken with a distinctive Limburgish accent, which should not be confused with the Limburgish language.
• Limburgish (or Limburgian) is the overlapping term of the tonal dialects spoken in the Belgian and Dutch provinces of Limburg. The Hamont dialect is only one of many variants of Limburgish, and is spoken only in Hamont, not Achel.^[2]

Deadly explosion

On 18 November 1918, the municipality was the site of one of the worst train explosions in history, when two German munitions trains caught fire and exploded. Not only were the trains destroyed, but three German ambulance trains were also wiped out, along with most of the town. More than 1,000 individuals were killed.

Tumulus on Haarterheide

Tumulus (2000-1000 BC)

References

1. Population per municipality as of 1 January 2016 (XLS; 397 KB)
2. Verhoeven (2007), p. 219.

Bibliography

• Verhoeven, Jo (2007), "The Belgian Limburg dialect of Hamont", Journal of the International Phonetic Association, 37 (2): 219–225, doi:10.1017/S0025100307002940

External links

• Media related to Hamont-Achel at Wikimedia Commons
• Website about Hamont-Achel (Dutch)
• The Pessimist's Guide to History
• sporza.be report on Jelle Vanendert's return home after the 2011 Tour de France