North Brabant
—  Province  —
North Brabant-Flag.svg
Noord-Brabant wapen.svg
Coat of arms
Anthem: 'None'
Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands.svg
Location of Noord-Brabant in the Netherlands
Country Netherlands
Inclusion 1815
Capital 's-Hertogenbosch
Largest city Eindhoven
 • Queen's Commissioner Wim van de Donk
 • Land 4,919 km2 (1,899 sq mi)
 • Water 162 km2 (63 sq mi)
Area rank 2nd
Population (2006)
 • Land 2,415,946
 • Rank 3rd
 • Density 490/km2 (1,300/sq mi)
 • Density rank 5th
ISO 3166 code NL-NB
Religion (2005) Protestant 6%
Catholic 57%
Muslim 4.5%

North Brabant (Dutch: Noord-Brabant, [ˈnʊːrt ˈbraː.bɐnt]  (Speaker Icon.svg listen)), mostly called Brabant, is a province of the Netherlands, located in the south of the country, bordered by Belgium in the south, the Meuse River (Maas) in the north, Limburg in the east and Zeeland in the west.

History Edit






The period from 1900 till the late 1960s is called Het Rijke Roomse Leven (translated as 'the rich Roman life', with 'Roman' meaning 'Roman Catholic'), a religious and spiritual awakening. Het Rijke Roomse Leven came about as result of the emancipatory drive of the province's disadvantaged Catholic population and was supported by a Roman Catholic pillar, which was directed by the clergy, and not only encompassed churches, but also Roman Catholic schools and hospitals, which were run by nuns. In those days every village in North Brabant had a convent from which the nuns operated. Politically, the province was dominated by Catholic parties: the Roomsch-Katholieke Staatspartij and its post-war successor, the Katholieke Volkspartij, which often held around 75% of the vote.

Zundert welkom in Brabant


In the 1960s secularisation and the actual emancipation of the Catholic population brought about the gradual dissolution of the Catholic pillar, as church attendance decreased in North Brabant as elsewhere in Western Europe. The influence of Het Rijke Roomse Leven remains in the form of education still being Roman Catholic (today it is run by professional teachers rather than nuns) and in North Brabant's culture, politics, mentality and customs, such as carnival. The province still has a distinct Catholic atmosphere when compared to the provinces north of the major rivers.

Politics Edit

The provincial council (Provinciale Staten) has 55 seats, and is headed by the Queen's Commissioner, currently Wim van de Donk. While the provincial council is elected by the inhabitants, the Commissioner is appointed by the Queen and the cabinet of the Netherlands. With 12 seats, People's Party for Freedom and Democracy is the largest party in the council, closely followed by Christian Democratic Appeal with 10 seats.


Municipalities Edit

North Brabant is currently divided into 67 municipalities. Traditionally, almost every town was a separate municipality, but their number was reduced greatly in the 1990s by incorporating smaller towns into neighbouring cities or by other mergers. The municipalities in North Brabant are:


Map of North Brabant (2012)

DrentheFlevolandFrieslandGelderlandGroningenLimburgNorth BrabantNorth HollandOverijsselSouth HollandUtrechtZeelandNetherlands map large
About this image

Map of the Netherlands, linking to the province pages; the red dots mark the capitals of the provinces and the black dots other notable cities or towns

Geography Edit

Like most of the Netherlands, North Brabant is mostly flat but nearly every part of North Brabant is above sea level, therefore there are not as many canals as in the lower parts of The Netherlands. While most of the population lives in urban areas, the province is scattered with villages and most of the land is cultivated. Consistent with naturally raised areas, forests, heathlands and dune areas can also be found.

Rivers and deltasEdit

The province is bordered by the Meuse River in the north. Its delta flows through the Biesbosch area, a national park.

Economy Edit

Employment is found in the agricultural, industrial and service sectors. The main agricultural products are wheat and sugar beet, while cows and pigs are held as livestock. The chief industries are automobile production, electronics (both mainly in Eindhoven), textile and shoes.

In the twentieth century, tourism has become an important sector for North Brabant, the woods and its quiet atmosphere combined with the beauty of some of the cities having proved successful. Another big tourist attraction is theme park Efteling in Kaatsheuvel, the largest of the Benelux.

See alsoEdit

External links Edit

Coordinates: 51°40′N 5°00′E﻿ / ﻿51.667, 5

This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at North Brabant. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License.

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