Kennemerland
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Kennemerland is a region in the Netherlands, near the coast in the province of North Holland.
History
Kennemerland gets its name from the Kennemer people, who were Frisians that fought with the Counts of Holland and lost in the Middle Ages. 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 (partly also in West Frisia)
- Heerhugowaard (located completely in West Frisia)
- Bergen (including Egmond, former seat of the Counts of Holland)
- Castricum
- Heiloo
- Graft-De Rijp (technically not part of the original area, since the polders were only pumped dry centuries later)
- Schermer (also a polder)
Middle Kennemerland
South Kennemerland
- Bennebroek
- Bloemendaal
- Haarlem (Capital of North Holland)
- Spaarndam
- Santpoort
- IJmuiden
- Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude
- Heemstede
- Velsen
- Zandvoort
See also
- The story of the Kennemer people
- Zuid-Kennemerland National Park
- Godfrid, Duke of Frisia
- Floris V, Count of Holland
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