Marken

Marken (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈmɑrkə(n)]; Marken's dialect: Mereke) is a village in the municipality of Waterland in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It had a population of 1,770 as of 2019 and occupies a peninsula in the Markermeer. It was formerly an island in the Zuiderzee. The characteristic wooden houses of Marken are a tourist attraction.

Marken
Village
Marken in 2015
Top: location of the municipality of Waterland in North Holland and the Netherlands. Bottom: location of Marken in Waterland.
Coordinates: 52°27′30″N 5°6′24″E
CountryNetherlands
Province North Holland
MunicipalityWaterland
Area
 (2012)[1]
 • Total270 ha (670 acres)
 • Land267 ha (660 acres)
 • Water3 ha (7 acres)
Population
 (2012)[1]
 • Total1,810
 • Density670/km2 (1,700/sq mi)
Postal code
1156[2]
Area code0299[3]

History

Early years

Marken was an island in the Zuiderzee.[4]

For some time during the later 19th and early 20th centuries, Marken and its inhabitants were the focus of considerable attention by folklorists, ethnographers and physical anthropologists, who regarded the small fishing town as a relic of the traditional native culture that was destined to disappear as modernization of the Netherlands gained pace.[5] Among them were Johann Friedrich Blumenbach who examined a human skull from the island which he called Batavus genuinus; and was the Belgian painter Xavier Mellery who stayed in Marken at the request of Charles De Coster. Mellery was asked to create illustrative work and delivered several intimist works.

Cornelis Lely's designs incorporated the island into a proposed Markerwaard. A partial dike, built in 1941 in the north, is the first phase of that project which was stopped by World War II.

  • Girls in traditional costumes (circa 1900)
  • Fisherman in traditional costume (circa 1900)

Recent times

In 1983, the Marker Museum about the history of the island was opened.[6] Marken was a separate municipality until 1991, when it was merged into Waterland.[7]

Geography

Marken is in the municipality of Waterland in the east of the province of North Holland in the west of the Netherlands. Marken is a peninsula in the Markermeer, of which is it is the namesake, and is connected to the mainland of North Holland by a causeway.

A panorama of Marken showing the community of Grote Werf with the village of Marken in the background

Demography

In 2012, Marken had a population of 1,810 and a population density of 679/km2 (1,760/sq mi).[1]

References
  1. (in Dutch) Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2009-2012, Statline, Statistics Netherlands, 2014. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  2. (in Dutch) Zoekresultaten, Postcode.nl. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  3. (in Dutch) Netnummer zoeken, Telefoonboek.nl. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  4. (in Dutch) Geschiedenis van Marken, Marker Museum. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  5. H.W. Roodenburg, "Marken als relict: het samengaan van schilderkunst, toerisme, volkskunde en fysische antropologie rond 1900". Volkskundig Bulletin 25.2/3 (1999), 197-214.
  6. (in Dutch) Het Marker Museum, Marker Museum. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  7. Ad van der Meer and Onno Boonstra, Repertorium van Nederlandse gemeenten, KNAW, 2011.
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