History, Wonder Tales, Fairy Tales, Myths and Legends The Flemish | Page 15
THE WORD “FLANDERS”
In Belgium : The word "Flanders" has several main meanings:
The social, cultural and linguistic, scientific and educational, economical and
political community of the Flemings; generally called the "Flemish community"
(small "c") (others refer to this as the "Flemish nation") which is, with over 6
million inhabitants, the majority of all Belgians;
The constituent governing institution of the federal Belgian state through the
institutions named the Flemish Community (capital "C"), exercising the powers
on most of those domains for aforementioned community, and the officially
Dutch-speaking Flemish Region which has powers mainly on economical
matters. The Community absorbed the Region, leading to a single operative
body as the Flemish government and a legislative one as the Flemish
parliament;
The geographical region in the north of Belgium coinciding with the federal
Belgian state's constituent part of the Flemish Region that unlike the
Community excludes the bilingual Capital Region; historically there had been
no distinction between Brussels and the surrounding geographical area;
The geographical area comprising the two westernmost provinces of the
Flemish Region, West Flanders and East Flanders, parts of a former countship
named Flanders.
In France : Main articles: French Flanders and Nord (department)
In the Netherlands : Main article: Zeelandic Flanders
EVOLUTION OF THE MEANING OF THE WORD “FLANDERS”
Vlaanderen literally means Flooded Land or Lowland. The name appeared first
around the 8th century. The precise geographical area denominated by "Flanders" has
evolved a great deal over the centuries.
In the Middle Ages, the term Flanders was applied to an area in western Europe, the
County of Flanders, spread over:
Belgium :
The area that is now approximately the Flemish provinces of East Flanders and
West Flanders
The French-speaking area at the west of the Scheldt river, called Tournaisis
(from the now Wallonian town Tournai in the province of Hainaut)
France :
French Flanders or, in French language: La Flandre Lilloise is the region
comprising the arrondissements of Lille and Douai, in the north of France, to
which it was ceded in the 14th century.
Because of French being spoken, the area was also called la Flandre romane
(Romance Flanders) or la Flandre gallicante (Gallic Flanders), or incorrectly
Fla