This page is part of © FOTW Flags Of The World website

Valkenswaard (The Netherlands)

Noord-Brabant province

Last modified: 2005-06-25 by jarig bakker
Keywords: valkenswaard |
Links: FOTW homepage | search | disclaimer and copyright | write us | mirrors



Valkenswaard municipality Shipmate Flagchart : http://www.shipmate.nl/flags.htm
adopted 28 Apr 1959
 

See also:

Valkenswaard municipality

Population (1 Jan 2003): 31.105; area: 56,50 km². Settlements: Valkenswaard (seat), Borkel en Schaft, Dommelen.
On 1 May 1934 the former municipalities of Borkel en Schaft, Dommelen, and Valkenswaard were merged to form the new municipality of Valkenswaard. Valkenswaard was a popular place to practice falconry, and after the sports to enjoy a good cigar from the Willem II factory (demolished 1998/99).
Flag: two equally wide horizontal stripes of blue and yellow; adopted 28 Apr 1959 by municipal resolution.
The colors are derived from the municipal arms.

In Valkenswaard pre-Roman pottery has been found in large quantities. In the beginning of the 8th century Willibrord preached the Evangelium here. He converted a noble Frankish family, of which two children went to the monastery. The grateful father gave in 704 all land between the Tongelreep and the Dommel to Willibrord, who presented it to the Benedictine Abbey in Echternach (Luxemburg). Until 1800 this abbey was to be consulted when land was sold.
Valkenswaard was named at first "Weedert" (diked piece of land), later "Weert op den Dries" (dries = low land), to distinguish it from Weert in Limburg. Next: "Verkensweert" (pig-weert), because of important pig-markets held here; it finally became Valkenswaard because of falconry (valk = falcon). Unfortunately the last falconer died in 1935.
Valkenswaard was part of the quarter Kempenland of the Meierij van Den Bosch; it became a possession of the States General in 1648. Till 1864 it was an agricultural municipality - then a cigar-factory was founded, followed by a railway, a beerbrewery (Dommelsch), diamonds, leather, car-parts, textiles, washing, metal hardware, glue, transformators and
carpentry ("You name it: we got it"!)
Source: Prisma-toeristengids Zeeland-Brabant-Limburg, by P.G. Bins, 1965.

Nicknames:
"Kalen" - baldies: apparently people working in cigar-factories were above average bald
"Valken" and "Haviken" (hawks) - after the placename, and the old falconers.
Source: Groot Schimpnamenboek van Nederland, by Dirk van der Heide, 1998.
Jarig Bakker, 29 May 2005


Valkenswaard old flag (c.1935)

[Valkenswaard old flag] by Jarig Bakker, 29 May 2005
Used c. 1935

According to "Wie, Wat, Waar? 1940<