Dinxperlo is a town and former municipality

Municipalities of the Netherlands

|All provinces of the Netherlands are divided into municipalities , together 418 , excl. the 3 "special municipalities" of the Caribbean Netherlands.Among the municipalities we can distinguish:...

 (7442 habitants) in the eastern Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 (Achterhoek

Achterhoek

The Achterhoek is a region in the eastern part of the Netherlands, Europe.Its name is geographically appropriate because the area lies in the Eastern-most part of Gelderland, and therefore of the Netherlands, protruding into Germany...

 region), situated directly at the border with Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. Since 1 January 2005, Dinxperlo is a part of the municipality of Aalten

Aalten

Aalten is a municipality and a village in the eastern Netherlands. The former municipalities of Bredevoort and Dinxperlo have been merged with Aalten....

.

The name of the village probably is derived from dingspel (justice court

Thing (assembly)

A thing was the governing assembly in Germanic and introduced into some Celtic societies, made up of the free people of the community and presided by lawspeakers, meeting in a place called a thingstead...

 or area) and loo (wood). It is assumed that in the Middle Ages there was a court

Court

A court is a form of tribunal, often a governmental institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accordance with the rule of law...

 in the woods here. Dinxperlo used to have a coat of arms

Coat of arms

A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...

 depicting Lady Justice

Lady Justice

Lady Justice |Dike]]) is an allegorical personification of the moral force in judicial systems.-Depiction:The personification of justice balancing the scales of truth and fairness dates back to the Goddess Maat, and later Isis, of ancient Egypt. The Hellenic deities Themis and Dike were later...

.

One of the town's main attractions is the Netherlands' smallest church (Kerkje "De Rietstap"), another one is a border

Border

Borders define geographic boundaries of political entities or legal jurisdictions, such as governments, sovereign states, federated states and other subnational entities. Some borders—such as a state's internal administrative borders, or inter-state borders within the Schengen Area—are open and...

 museum (Grenslandmuseum).

One street in Dinxperlo, Heelweg, is partly German. The road itself lies in the Netherlands, but one side of the housing zone is in Germany (where it is called Hellweg). The houses there belong to the small town of Suderwick, which might be translated as "southern area". Also, Dinxperlo houses a shared Dutch-German police station

Police station

A police station or station house is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, along with locker rooms, temporary holding cells and interview/interrogation rooms.- Facilities...

.

Besides Dutch

Dutch language

Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...

 and German

German language

German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

, at both sides of the border a common dialect is spoken, which is a variety of Low Saxon.

Before 2005, Dinxperlo was a separate municipality, covering the town of Dinxperlo itself and the village of De Heurne

De Heurne

De Heurne is a village in the municipality of Aalten, near Dinxperlo in the eastern Netherlands.The village contains a Protestant church and a school. At the beginning of the 20th century, De Heurne had its own train station, on the Varsseveld - Dinxperlo railway line...

.

The nearest train stations are Aalten railway station

Aalten railway station

Aalten is a railway station located in Aalten, the Netherlands. The station is on the Winterswijk–Zevenaar railway and the station opened on 15 July 1885. The building began construction in 1884 and was finished in 1885. It was rebuilt in 1919 and has since remained unaltered...

 and Terborg railway station

Terborg railway station

Terborg is a railway station in Terborg, The Netherlands. The station was opened on 15 July 1885 and is located on the Winterswijk–Zevenaar railway. The train services are operated by Syntus.-Train Services:The following services currently call at Terborg:...

. These can be reached by bus from Dinxperlo. Service 40 to Terborg station and service 195 to Aalten station. Both services start in the Willem van Oranjeplein. The train service is operated by Syntus

Syntus

Syntus bv is a public transport company operating bus and passenger train services in the east of the Netherlands. It is owned jointly by NS Reizigers and Keolis...

 every half hour. The service runs from Arnhem

Arnhem

Arnhem is a city and municipality, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland and located near the river Nederrijn as well as near the St. Jansbeek, which was the source of the city's development. Arnhem has 146,095 residents as one of the...

 (Arnhem railway station

Arnhem railway station

Arnhem is a railway station located in Arnhem, the Netherlands. The station was opened on 14 May 1845 and is located on the Rhijnspoorweg , the Arnhem–Leeuwarden railway and the Arnhem–Nijmegen railway...

) to Doetinchem

Doetinchem

Doetinchem is a city and municipality in the east of the Netherlands. It is situated along the Oude IJssel river in a part of the province of Gelderland called the Achterhoek . The municipality has 56,700 inhabitants and has an area of 79.66 km²...

 and Winterswijk

Winterswijk

Winterswijk is a municipality and a town in the eastern Netherlands.Winterswijk is a town with a population of some 30,000 in the Achterhoek which lies in the most eastern part of the province of Gelderland in the Netherlands. It was also known as Winethereswick, Winriswic or Wenterswic...

stopping at various places on the way.

External links

• Official website of the former municipality Map of the former municipality, around 1868.