Friesland

Friesland Fryslân
Province of the Netherlands
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: "De âlde Friezen" "The Old Frisians"
Location of Friesland in the Netherlands
Coordinates: 53°8′N 5°49′E / 53.133°N 5.817°ECoordinates: 53°8′N 5°49′E / 53.133°N 5.817°E
Country	Netherlands
Capital	Leeuwarden (Ljouwert)
Largest city	Leeuwarden (Ljouwert)
Government
• King's Commissioner	Joan Leemhuis-Stout (VVD)
Area
• Land	3,349 km^2 (1,293 sq mi)
• Water	2,392 km^2 (924 sq mi)
Area rank	3rd nationally
Population (2010)
• Land	646,305
• Rank	8th nationally
• Density	190/km^2 (500/sq mi)
• Density rank	11th nationally
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
ISO 3166 code	NL-FY
Religion (2005)	Protestant 30% Roman Catholic 6% Muslim 2%
Website	www.fryslan.frl

Friesland (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈfrislɑnt]; official, West Frisian: Fryslân [ˈfrislɔ̃ːn]) or Frisia is a province in the northwest of the Netherlands. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of Flevoland, northeast of North Holland, and south of the North Sea. In 2010, the province had a population of 646,000 and a total area of 5,749 km² (2,220 sq mi).

The capital and seat of the provincial government is the city of Leeuwarden (West Frisian: Ljouwert), a city with 91,817 inhabitants. Since 2016, Joan Leemhuis-Stout is the King's Commissioner in the province. A coalition of the Labour Party, the Christian Democratic Appeal, and the Frisian National Party forms the executive branch. The province is divided into 24 municipalities.

The area of the province was once part of the ancient, larger region of Frisia. The official languages of Friesland are West Lauwers Frisian and Dutch.

History

A proto-Frisian culture slowly began to emerge around 400–200 BC known for its artificial dwelling hills as a defence against the sea. The Roman claim on Frisia began in 12 BC with the campaign of Nero Claudius Drusus in Germania. After a series of costly battles against the Frisians, the Romans were suddenly sworn fealty. The de facto independence they later enjoyed as a Roman vassal shows that this might have been a mostly diplomatic decision based on the temporary favourable bargaining position. Together with other Germanic tribes such as the Salians (later Franks) and the Batavii they managed to keep the region north of the Lower Rhine mostly free from Roman influence.

The early eighth-century AD is known for the Frisian kingdom, king Redbad and the missionary Saint Boniface who was killed near Dokkum, Westlauwers Friesland.^[1] At the start of the Middle Ages, the Frisian Kingdom reached its zenith, stretching from what is now the French/Belgian border to the River Weser in Germany, within its center the flourishing trading post Dorestad. After incorporation into the Frankish empire, Friesland was divided into three parts. The westernmost part developed at the start of the second millennium into the County of Holland, while the remainder of Frisia had no feudal overlord, a situation known as the Frisian freedom.

That ended when Charles V added Frisia to the Habsburg Netherlands as Lordship of Frisia. Under Napoleon, the department was named Frise. After Napoleon was defeated in 1813, the department became part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands as the province of Friesland.

Cities

The ancient cities of Friesland are shown below:

Dutch	West Frisian	Charter granted
Leeuwarden	Ljouwert	1285
Sneek	Snits	1456
IJlst	Drylts	1268
Sloten	Sleat	1426
Stavoren	Starum	1118
Hindeloopen	Hylpen	1285
Workum	Warkum	1399
Bolsward	Boalsert	1455
Harlingen	Harns	1234
Franeker	Frjentsjer	1374
Dokkum	Dokkum	1298

Geography

Satellite image of Friesland

Map of Friesland (2012)

View of the Wadden Sea to the north of Friesland

Friesland is situated at 53°8′N 5°49′E / 53.133°N 5.817°E in the northwest of the Netherlands, west of the province of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of Flevoland, northeast of the IJsselmeer and North Holland, and south of the North Sea.

Friesland is the largest province of the Netherlands if one includes areas of water; in terms of land area only, it is the third largest province.

Most of Friesland is on the mainland, but it also includes a number of West Frisian Islands, including Vlieland, Terschelling, Ameland and Schiermonnikoog, which are connected to the mainland by ferry. The province's highest point is at 45 metres (148 ft) above sea level, on the island of Vlieland.

There are four national parks: Schiermonnikoog, De Alde Feanen, Lauwersmeer (in Groningen and Friesland), and Drents-Friese Wold (in Drenthe and Friesland).

Urban areas

The ten urban areas in Friesland with the largest population are:^[2]

Dutch name	Frisian name	Population
Leeuwarden	Ljouwert	96,578
Drachten	Drachten	44,598
Sneek	Snits	33,401
Heerenveen	Hearrenfean, ItIt Hearrenfean	28,497
Harlingen	Harns	15,729
Dokkum	Dokkum	13,145
Franeker	Frjentsjer	12,995
Joure	Jouwer, DeDe Jouwer	12,902
Wolvega	Wolvegea	12,738
Lemmer	Lemmer, DeDe Lemmer	10,220

Municipalities

The province is divided into 24 municipalities, each with local government.

Municipality	Population[3]	Total Area[4]		Population density[3][4]		COROP group
		km^2	sq mi	/km^2	/sq mi
Achtkarspelen	27,938	103.98	40.15	273	710	North Friesland
Ameland	3,591	268.50	103.67	61	160	North Friesland
Dantumadiel	19,017	87.53	33.80	223	580	North Friesland
De Fryske Marren	51,229	559.93	216.19	142	370	South West Friesland
Dongeradeel	24,097	266.92	103.06	144	370	North Friesland
Ferwerderadiel	8,755	133.18	51.42	90	230	North Friesland
Franekeradeel	20,445	109.17	42.15	199	520	North Friesland
Harlingen	15,769	387.67	149.68	630	1,600	North Friesland
Heerenveen	49,528	187.76	72.49	274	710	South East Friesland
Het Bildt	10,657	116.48	44.97	115	300	North Friesland
Kollumerland c.a.	12,905	116.35	44.92	118	310	North Friesland
Leeuwarden	108,249	166.99	64.48	714	1,850	North Friesland
Leeuwarderadeel	10,264	41.46	16.01	251	650	North Friesland
Littenseradiel	10,900	132.64	51.21	83	210	North Friesland
Menaldumadeel	13,614	70.03	27.04	198	510	North Friesland
Ooststellingwerf	25,696	226.11	87.30	115	300	South East Friesland
Opsterland	29,883	227.64	87.89	133	340	South East Friesland
Schiermonnikoog	942	199.07	76.86	21	54	North Friesland
Smallingerland	55,505	126.17	48.71	469	1,210	South East Friesland
Súdwest-Fryslân	84,356	841.56	324.93	184	480	South West Friesland
Terschelling	4,721	673.99	260.23	55	140	North Friesland
Tytsjerksteradiel	31,940	161.41	62.32	214	550	North Friesland
Vlieland	1,113	315.80	121.93	31	80	North Friesland
Weststellingwerf	25,486	228.45	88.21	115	300	South East Friesland

Climate

The province of Friesland has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification: Cfb).

Climate data for Leeuwarden
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	12.6 (54.7)	14.4 (57.9)	20.4 (68.7)	26.0 (78.8)	28.7 (83.7)	32.5 (90.5)	31.4 (88.5)	32.8 (91)	29.1 (84.4)	23.8 (74.8)	16.4 (61.5)	14.2 (57.6)	32.8 (91)
Average high °C (°F)	4.9 (40.8)	5.4 (41.7)	8.6 (47.5)	12.4 (54.3)	16.2 (61.2)	18.5 (65.3)	21.0 (69.8)	21.1 (70)	18.0 (64.4)	13.7 (56.7)	9.0 (48.2)	5.6 (42.1)	12.9 (55.2)
Daily mean °C (°F)	2.7 (36.9)	2.7 (36.9)	5.3 (41.5)	8.2 (46.8)	12.0 (53.6)	14.6 (58.3)	17.0 (62.6)	16.9 (62.4)	14.2 (57.6)	10.5 (50.9)	6.5 (43.7)	3.3 (37.9)	9.5 (49.1)
Average low °C (°F)	0.1 (32.2)	−0.2 (31.6)	1.9 (35.4)	3.8 (38.8)	7.4 (45.3)	10.2 (50.4)	12.6 (54.7)	12.5 (54.5)	10.2 (50.4)	7.1 (44.8)	3.6 (38.5)	0.6 (33.1)	5.8 (42.4)
Record low °C (°F)	−19.9 (−3.8)	−16.3 (2.7)	−16.3 (2.7)	−5.9 (21.4)	−1.7 (28.9)	1.3 (34.3)	5.7 (42.3)	5.4 (41.7)	2.0 (35.6)	−6. (21)	−14.2 (6.4)	−19.2 (−2.6)	−19.9 (−3.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	68.9 (2.713)	51.1 (2.012)	58.1 (2.287)	38.2 (1.504)	57.3 (2.256)	68.2 (2.685)	74.5 (2.933)	82.7 (3.256)	84.3 (3.319)	81.4 (3.205)	82.1 (3.232)	73.0 (2.874)	819.8 (32.276)
Source: Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute[5][6]

Demography

In 2010, Friesland had a population of 646,305 and a population density of 190/km² (490/sq mi).

The years 1880–1900 show slower population growth due to a farm crisis in which 20,000 Frisians emigrated to the United States of America.^[7]

Historical population of Friesland^[8][9]

Year Population 1714 129,243 1748 135,195 1796 161,513 1811 175,366 1830 204,909 1840 227,859 1850 243,191 1860 269,701 1870 300,863 1880 329,877 1890 335,558 1900 340,263	Year Population 1910 363,625 1920 385,362 1930 402,051 1940 424,462 1950 465,267 1960 478,206 1970 521,820 1982 592,314 1990 599,151 1999 621,222 2010 646,305

Anthropometry

Since the late Middle Ages, Friesland has been renowned for the exceptional height of its inhabitants, who were deemed among the tallest groups of Indo-Europeans. Even early Renaissance poet Dante Alighieri refers to the height of Frisians in his Divine Comedy when, in the canticle about Hell, he talks about the magnitude of an infernal demon by stating that "not even three tall Frieslanders, were they set one upon the other, would have matched his height".^[10]

Economy

Friesian horse

Friesland is mainly an agricultural province. The black and white Frisian cattle, black and white Stabyhoun and the black Frisian horse originated here. Tourism is another important source of income: the principal tourist destinations include the lakes in the southwest of the province and the islands in the Wadden Sea to the north. There are 195 windmills in the province of Friesland, out of a total of about 1200 in the entire country.

Culture

Languages

Friesland is the only one of the twelve provinces of the Netherlands to have its own language that is recognized as such, West Frisian. For over half of the inhabitants of the province of Friesland, 55% (ca. 354,000 people), Frisian is the native language. Most of the other inhabitants are native speakers of Dutch.

West Frisian is also spoken in a small adjacent part of the province of Groningen, to the east. Closely related languages are spoken in nearby areas of Germany. They are East Frisian (Seeltersk, which is different from East Frisian (Ostfriesisch) and is spoken in the Saterland, and a collection of Low German dialects of East Frisia) and North Frisian, spoken in North Friesland. These languages are also closely related to English.

In Stellingwerf, in south-east Friesland, a dialect of Low Saxon is spoken.^[11]

Sports

Finish of the Elfstedentocht in 1956

The province is famous for its speed skaters, with mass participation in cross-country ice skating when weather conditions permit. When winters are cold enough to allow the freshwater canals to freeze hard, the province holds its traditional Elfstedentocht (Eleven cities tour), a 200-kilometre (120 mi) ice skating tour. A traditional sport is Frisian handball. Another Frisian practice is fierljeppen, a sport with some similarities to pole vaulting. A jump consists of an intense sprint to the pole (polsstok), jumping and grabbing it, then climbing to the top while trying to control the pole's forward and lateral movements over a body of water and finishing with a graceful landing on a sand bed opposite to the starting point. Because of all the diverse skills required in fierljeppen, fierljeppers are considered to be very complete athletes with superbly developed strength and coordination. In the warmer months, many Frisians practice wadlopen, the traditional art of wading across designated sections of the Wadden Sea at low tide.

There are currently two top level football clubs playing in Friesland: SC Cambuur from Leeuwarden (home stadium Cambuur Stadion) and SC Heerenveen (home stadium Abe Lenstra Stadion).

Politics

Seat of the provincial government in Leeuwarden

The acting King's Commissioner of Friesland is Joan Leemhuis-Stout.^[12] The States of Friesland have 43 seats. The Provincial Executive is a coalition of the Christian Democratic Appeal, the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, the Socialist Party and the Frisian National Party (FNP).

2015 provincial elections^[13]

Party		Votes	Seats
	Labour Party	40.984	7
	Christian Democratic Appeal	55.017	9
	People's Party for Freedom and Democracy	29.085	5
	Frisian National Party	25.027	4
	Party for Freedom	23.112	4
	Socialist Party	28.930	5
	ChristianUnion	19.669	3
	GreenLeft	9.393	1
	Democrats 66	18.454	3
	50PLUS	6.372	1
	Party for the Animals	6.806	1
Total		297,307	43

Transport

Leeuwarden railway station is a national heritage site^[14]

The four motorways in the province are A6, A7 (E22), A31, and A32.^[15]

The main railway station of Friesland is Leeuwarden, which connects the railways Arnhem–Leeuwarden, Harlingen–Nieuweschans, and Leeuwarden–Stavoren which are all (partially) located in the province.

Trajectory	Railway stations in Friesland
Arnhem–Leeuwarden	Drenthe – Wolvega – Heerenveen IJsstadion – Heerenveen – Akkrum – Grou-Jirnsum – Leeuwarden
Harlingen–Nieuweschans	Harlingen Haven – Harlingen – Franeker – Dronrijp – Deinum – Leeuwarden – Leeuwarden Camminghaburen – Hurdegaryp – Veenwouden – Zwaagwesteinde – Buitenpost – Groningen
Leeuwarden–Stavoren	Leeuwarden – Mantgum – Sneek Noord – Sneek – IJlst – Workum – Hindeloopen – Koudum-Molkwerum – Stavoren

Ameland Airport near Ballum^[16] and Drachten Airfield near Drachten^[17] are the two general aviation airports in the province. The Royal Netherlands Air Force uses Vlieland Heliport and the Leeuwarden Air Base.

Change of name

In 1996 the States of Friesland resolved that the official name of the province should follow the Frisian spelling rather than the Dutch spelling, resulting in "Friesland" being replaced by "Fryslân".^[18] In 2004 the Dutch government confirmed this resolution, putting in place a three-year scheme to oversee the name change and associated cultural programme.^[19]

The province of Friesland is occasionally referred to as "Frisia" by, amongst others, Hanno Brand, head of the history and literature department at the Fryske Akademy since 2009,^[20] however the English-language webpage of the Friesland Provincial Council refers to the province as "Fryslân".^[21]

Media

Friesch Dagblad^[22] and Leeuwarder Courant^[23] are daily newspapers mainly written in Dutch. Omrop Fryslân is the public broadcaster with radio and TV programs mainly in Frisian.^[24]

References

1. Harmer, F. E. (1955). "The Anglo-Saxon Missionaries in Germany: being the Lives of S.S. Willibrord, Boniface, Strum, Leoba and Lebuin, together with the Hodoeporicon of St. Willibald and a selection from the Correspondence of St. Boniface. Translated and edited by C. H. Talbot". The Journal of Ecclesiastical History. 6 (2): 230–231.
2. Fryslan.nl (1 December 2009), mun. and CBS
3. "Bevolkingsontwikkeling; regio per maand" [Population growth; regions per month]. CBS Statline (in Dutch). CBS. 26 June 2014. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
4. "Kerncijfers wijken en buurten" [Key figures for neighbourhoods]. CBS Statline (in Dutch). CBS. 2 July 2013. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
5. (Dutch) Leeuwarden extremen tijdvak 1971 t/m 2000, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute. Retrieved on 26 April 2014.
6. (Dutch) Leeuwarden, langjarige gemiddelden, tijdvak 1981–2010, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute. Retrieved on 26 April 2014.
7. (Dutch) Emigration to the United States.
8. (Dutch) Overzicht aantal inwoners Provincie Friesland 1714–2000, Tresoar.
9. (Dutch) Bevolking; geslacht, leeftijd, burgerlijke staat en regio, 1 januari, Statistics Netherlands, 2014.
10. Alighieri, Dante. Divine Comedy, "Inferno", Canto 31, line 64, in The Portable Dante, ed. Paolo Milano, trans. Laurence Binyon, Penguin, 1975 ISBN 0-14-015032-3
11. Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin; Bank, Sebastian, eds. (2016). "Stellingwerfs". Glottolog 2.7. Jena: Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History.
12. "Mevrouw Joan Leemhuis-Stout waarnemend commissaris in Fryslân - Provincie Fryslân". www.fryslan.frl (in Dutch). Retrieved 19 November 2016.
13. (Dutch) Verkiezingsuitslagen Provinciale Staten 1918 – heden, Electoral Council. Retrieved on 27 April 2014.
14. (Dutch) Station Leeuwarden in Leeuwarden, Rijksmonumenten.nl. Retrieved on 26 April 2014.
15. (Dutch) Wegenoverzicht, Rijkswaterstaat. Retrieved on 27 April 2014.
16. (Dutch) Algemene informatie, Ameland Airport. Retrieved on 27 April 2014.
17. (Dutch) Aanwijzingsbesluit Luchthaven Drachten, 2007. Retrieved on 27 April 2014.
18. "Beslut fan Provinsjale Staeten van Friesland" [Resolution of the Provincial Council of Friesland]. Provinciaal Blad van Friesland (in Western Frisian) (7). 28 March 1996.
19. "Ook voor rijk heet Friesland Fryslân" [Friesland to be called Fryslân across the realm]. Leeuwarder Courant (in Dutch). 10 November 2004. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
20. Brand, Hanno (2011). Cole, Jeffrey E., ed. Frisians. Ethnic Groups of Europe: An Encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, California. p. 150. ISBN 978-1-59884-302-6.
21. "provinsje Fryslan, provincie fryslan English". provinsje Fryslan/provincie fryslan. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
22. (Dutch) Missie Friesch Dagblad, Friesch Dagblad. Retrieved on 27 April 2014.
23. (Dutch) Over de LC, Leeuwarder Courant. Retrieved on 27 April 2014.
24. (West Frisian) Oer de Omrop, Omrop Fryslân. Retrieved on 27 April 2014.

External links

• Province of Fryslân, official government website
• Provincial Tourist Board
• Frisian Film Archive
•  "Friesland". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.