Kennemerland
Encyclopedia
Kennemerland is a region in the Netherlands, near the coast in the province of North Holland
North Holland
North Holland |West Frisian]]: Noard-Holland) is a province situated on the North Sea in the northwest part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is Haarlem and its largest city is Amsterdam.-Geography:...

. In includes the sand dunes north of the North Sea Canal
North Sea Canal
The North Sea Canal is a Dutch ship canal from Amsterdam to the North Sea at IJmuiden, constructed between 1865 and 1876 to enable seafaring vessels to reach the port of Amsterdam...

, as well as the dunes of Zuid-Kennemerland National Park
Zuid-Kennemerland National Park
Nationaal Park Zuid-Kennemerland is a national park in the province Noord-Holland, the Netherlands, west of Haarlem, within the municipalities of Bloemendaal, Velsen and Zandvoort. It includes the southern portion of the region known as Kennemerland. The park was established in 1995.- Geography...

.

History

Kennemerland gets its name from the Kennemer people, who were Frisia
Frisia
Frisia is a coastal region along the southeastern corner of the North Sea, i.e. the German Bight. Frisia is the traditional homeland of the Frisians, a Germanic people who speak Frisian, a language group closely related to the English language...

ns that fought with the Counts of Holland and lost in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

. The name is said to derive from the Canninefates
Canninefates
The Cananefates - also referred to as Canninefates, Caninefates, or Canenefatae; meaning leek masters - were a Germanic tribe that lived in the Rhine delta, on the western part of the Batavian Island , in the Roman era, before and during the Roman conquest...

. Because of the wars and all of the Dutch activity in rerouting waterways, the original borders of Kennemerland have been lost. During the 20th century, the term Kennemerland has been redefined to denote municipal regions of North Holland. Because the Kennemers according to folklore were always on the attack, many sports teams in Haarlem are called Kennemers.

Precisely who these Kennemer people were is unclear. The knights of Kennemerlant, as it was then called, were quarreling continuously over trading rights and land ownership. The rent masters of local farmers were often asked for goods from either Egmond Abbey or their local church, as well as from these knights. In North Holland during the years 900-1300, castles were continuously being built and later destroyed, and archeologists today are still trying to piece together the various local legends as they gain hard evidence from the cold clay.

Municipalities located in Kennemerland today

North Kennemerland

  • Alkmaar
    Alkmaar
    Alkmaar is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of Noord Holland. Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination.-History:...

     (partly also in West Frisia)
  • Heerhugowaard
    Heerhugowaard
    Heerhugowaard is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and the region of West-Frisia.-History:...

     (located completely in West Frisia)
  • Bergen
    Bergen, North Holland
    Bergen is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Its North Sea beaches make it a popular destination for tourists, especially Germans. In 2001, the municipality was expanded to include the former municipalities of Egmond and Schoorl.Since about 1900, Bergen...

     (including Egmond, former seat of the Counts of Holland)
  • Castricum
    Castricum
    Castricum is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.Castricum is a tourist attraction in the province North Holland...

  • Heiloo
    Heiloo
    Heiloo is a municipality and town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. The community is part of the cooperation region Kennemerland and is located in the historical region of West Friesland....

  • Graft-De Rijp
    Graft-De Rijp
    Graft-De Rijp is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.It is twinned with Chalfont St Giles in England.-Population centres :...

     (technically not part of the original area, since the polders were only pumped dry centuries later)
  • Schermer
    Schermer
    Schermer is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. The name came from "skir mere", which means "bright lake" Schermer (West Frisian: Skirmare) is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. The name came from "skir mere", which means "bright...

     (also a polder
    Polder
    A polder is a low-lying tract of land enclosed by embankments known as dikes, that forms an artificial hydrological entity, meaning it has no connection with outside water other than through manually-operated devices...

    )

South Kennemerland

  • Bennebroek
    Bennebroek
    Bennebroek is a town and former municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland, now part of Bloemendaal municipality. Before its merger, it was the smallest municipality in the Netherlands, covering an area of only 1.75 km².-History:...

  • Bloemendaal
    Bloemendaal
    Bloemendaal is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. According to the Dutch Central Statistical Bureau, Bloemendaal is the wealthiest place in the Netherlands.-Population centres :...

  • Haarlem
    Haarlem
    Haarlem is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of North Holland, the northern half of Holland, which at one time was the most powerful of the seven provinces of the Dutch Republic...

     (Capital of North Holland)
  • Spaarndam
    Spaarndam
    Spaarndam is a small village in the province of North Holland, the Netherlands, on the Spaarne and IJ rivers. The oldest part of the village, on the western side of the Spaarne, belongs to the municipality of Haarlem; the newer part on the eastern side is a part of the municipality of...

  • Santpoort
  • IJmuiden
  • Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude
    Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude
    Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.-Population centres :The municipality of Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude consists of the following cities, towns, villages and/or districts: Haarlemmerliede, Halfweg, Penningsveer, Spaarndam ,...

  • Heemstede
    Heemstede
    Heemstede is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.-History :Heemstede formed around the Castle Heemstede that was built on the Spaarne River around 1286. Before 1296, Floris V, Count of Holland, granted Heemstede as a fiefdom to Reinier of Holy...

  • Velsen
    Velsen
    Velsen is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is located on both sides of the North Sea Canal.On the north side of the North Sea Canal, in IJmuiden, there is a major steel plant, Corus Strip Products IJmuiden, formerly known as Koninklijke Hoogovens...

  • Zandvoort
    Zandvoort
    Zandvoort is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.Zandvoort is one of the major beach resorts of the Netherlands; it has a long sandy beach, bordered by coastal dunes...


See also

  • The story of the Kennemer people
    Gijsbrecht van Aemstel (play)
    Gijsbrecht van Aemstel was a 17th century history play by Joost van den Vondel, written to inaugurate Amsterdam's first city theatre. The first production was planned to take place on 26 December 1637, but was postponed until 3 January 1638...

  • Zuid-Kennemerland National Park
    Zuid-Kennemerland National Park
    Nationaal Park Zuid-Kennemerland is a national park in the province Noord-Holland, the Netherlands, west of Haarlem, within the municipalities of Bloemendaal, Velsen and Zandvoort. It includes the southern portion of the region known as Kennemerland. The park was established in 1995.- Geography...

  • Godfrid, Duke of Frisia
  • Floris V, Count of Holland
    Floris V, Count of Holland
    Count Floris V of Holland and Zeeland , "der Keerlen God" , is one of the most important figures of the first, native dynasty of Holland . His life was documented in detail in the Rijmkroniek by Melis Stoke, his chronicler...

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