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47-454: Hoegaarden ( Dutch: [ˈɦuɣaːrdə(n)] ) is a municipality in the province of Flemish Brabant , in Flanders , one of the three regions of Belgium . The municipality comprises the villages of Hoegaarden proper, Meldert and Outgaarden . On January 1, 2006, Hoegaarden had a total population of 6,225. The total area is 33.93 square kilometres (13.10 square miles) which gives

94-428: A governor of Brussels-Capital , analogously to provinces. The Walloon Region or Wallonia ( French : Région Wallonne or Wallonie ) occupies the southern part of Belgium. It has a surface area of 16,901 km (6,526 sq mi), or 55.1% of Belgium, and is also divided into 5 provinces which contain a total of 262 municipalities. Its capital is Namur . The official languages are French and, only in

141-525: A population density of 183 inhabitants per km. The current village was founded in 981 by the last ruler of the county of Brunengeruz . Countess Alpaïdis (Alpeide) later gave her county and castle (today the site of St-Gorgoniuskerk) to the Prince-Bishop of Liège. As an enclave of the Liège prince bishopric the village had tax advantages over the villages in the surrounding Duchy of Brabant, leading to

188-649: A compromise designed to minimize linguistic, cultural, social, and economic tensions. This is a schematic overview of the basic federal structure of Belgium as defined by Title I of the Belgian Constitution. Each of the entities either have their own parliament and government (for the federal state, the communities and the regions) or their own council and executive college (for provinces and municipalities). The entities in italics do not have their own institutions—arrondissements because they are purely administrative; language areas because they merely define

235-549: A dozen particular " municipalities with language facilities " around the Brussels-Capital Region and at the border with the Walloon Region . The Flemish Region has no institutions on its own. Upon the creation of the provisional regions in 1974, a provisional Flemish Regional Council was installed with Mechelen as seat. However, with the definitive regions in 1980, its competencies were transferred to

282-502: A law carried by special majorities can change the language status of any municipality, these arrangements have prevented some small municipalities with facilities to be merged in the 1970s, and thus the most minute Belgian municipalities are still found in this group, notably Herstappe with only 84 inhabitants (in 2006). Lucien Harmegnies, Minister of the Interior in the government of Gaston Eyskens (1968–1972) decided to continue

329-835: A result, there are several differences between the municipal institutions in Flanders, in Wallonia and in Brussels. Wallonia has also further devolved part of its responsibilities to the German-speaking Community with regards to its 9 municipalities. The three Regions can amend or replace the existing legislation on the municipalities, most notably the New Municipal Law. In the Flanders the Municipal Decree of 15 July 2005 applies. In Wallonia

376-417: Is also responsible for the maintenance of public order in their municipality. They chair the college of mayor and aldermen or the municipal college, depending on the region , as well. In the Flanders and Brussels , the mayor is appointed by the regional government, on the nomination of the municipal council, for a term of office of six years. In Wallonia , the mayor is the municipal councillor who received

423-521: Is centrally located and completely surrounded by the province of Flemish Brabant and thus by the Flemish Region . With a surface area of 162.4 km (62.7 sq mi), or 0.53% of Belgium, it is the smallest of the three regions. It contains the City of Brussels , which acts both as federal and regional capital, and 18 other municipalities. Its official languages are both Dutch and French. In

470-405: Is not a province, nor does it contain any. The three regions are further subdivided into 581 municipalities , which in general consist of several sub-municipalities . These sub-municipalities were independent municipalities in the past, but no longer serve an official purpose. Lesser subnational entities include the intra-municipal districts (which currently only exist in the city of Antwerp ),

517-454: Is responsible for the daily administration of the municipality. It is also responsible for the preparation and implementation of the decisions of the municipal council. The municipal council ( Dutch : gemeenteraad ; French : conseil communal ; German : Gemeinderat ) is the representative assembly of the municipality and consists of members directly elected for a term of office of six years. The number of municipal councillors depends on

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564-673: The Belgian Railways which is in fact an exception on regionalized transport ; the Post Office was federal as well, but is being privatised). The State is responsible for the obligations of Belgium and its federalized institutions towards the European Union and NATO . It controls substantial parts of public health, home affairs and foreign affairs. Communities exercise competences only within linguistically determined geographical boundaries, originally oriented towards

611-666: The Directoire reorganised the structures of the Ancien Régime . The municipalities with less than 5,000 inhabitants were grouped in so-called canton municipalities. In 1800, these canton municipalities were abolished again and the number of autonomous municipalities became 2,776. Not much changed during the United Kingdom of the Netherlands , only a number of smaller municipalities were merged. In 1831, Belgium

658-687: The Flemish Community in order to have unified Flemish institutions that combine both regional and community competencies, namely the Flemish Parliament and Flemish Government and its administration. Regional laws (called decrees) do however need to mention whether they are applicable to the community, the region or both. Since the capital of the Flemish Community is Brussels and its institutions have their seats there, it also indirectly serves as seat of government of

705-435: The regular elections of 14 October 2018 , and the change took effect on 1 January 2019. The mayor ( Dutch : burgemeester ; French : bourgmestre ; German : Bürgermeister ) is not only the head of the municipality but also the representative of the regional and the federal government at the local level. In that capacity, they are responsible for the execution of laws , decrees , ordinances and orders. The mayor

752-625: The Code of Local Democracy and Decentralization applies. In Brussels several provisions of the New Municipal Law have been modified by ordinance , such as the Ordinance of 17 July 2003. The legal framework in the three Regions is still relatively similar, but that could change in the future. Since 1970, the Belgian Constitution includes the possibility to create agglomerations and federations of municipalities by law. This possibility

799-874: The Dutch language area (which coincides with the Flemish Region) and bilingual Brussels-Capital language area (which coincides with the Region by that name); the French Community analogously has powers only within the French language area of the Walloon Region and in the Brussels-Capital Region, and the German Community in the German language area, which is a small part of the province of Liège in

846-484: The Flemish Community, with one parliament, one government and one administration, exercising both regional and community competencies, although Flemish parliamentarians from the Brussels-Capital Region cannot vote on competencies of the Flemish Region; thus in the Dutch language area a single institutional body of parliament and government is empowered for all except federal and specific municipal matters. While

893-535: The Flemish Region, even though the city is not part of it. Additionally, the city of Mechelen still has a relation to the Flemish Region as seat; it serves as the location for head office during European (and formerly Senate) elections. Flanders contains five provinces: West Flanders , East Flanders , Antwerp , Flemish Brabant and Limburg . The Brussels-Capital Region (Dutch: Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest , French: Région de Bruxelles-Capitale , German: Die Region Brüssel-Hauptstadt ) or Brussels Region

940-514: The German-speaking Community with regards to its area. The Flemish Region or Flanders (Dutch: Vlaams Gewest or Vlaanderen ) occupies the northern part of Belgium. It has a surface area of 13,626 km (5,261 sq mi), or 44.4% of Belgium, and is divided into 5 provinces which contain a total of 300 municipalities. The official language is Dutch . French can be used for certain administrative purposes in

987-797: The Walloon Region and the French Community have separate parliaments and governments, the Parliament of the French Community draws its members from the French-speaking members of the Walloon Parliament and the Parliament of the Brussels-Capital Region, and ministers of the Walloon Government often serve as ministers in the Government of the French Community as well. The Flemish Region and the Walloon Region each comprise five provinces . The Brussels-Capital Region

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1034-530: The Walloon region, and borders Germany. The constitutional language areas determine the official languages in their municipalities, as well as the geographical limits of the institutions empowered for specific matters: Although this would allow for seven parliaments and governments, when the Communities and Regions were created in 1980, Flemish politicians decided to officially merge the Flemish Region into

1081-425: The administrative, the electoral and the judicial arrondissements , police districts, as well as the new inter-municipal police zones (lower level than the police districts). The Federal State retains a considerable "common heritage". This includes justice, defence ( armed forces ), federal police , social security, public debt and other aspects of public finances, nuclear energy , and state-owned companies (such as

1128-572: The article Communes of Luxembourg for details). New municipalities were created until 1928. There were 2,528 municipalities in 1850, 2,572 in 1875, 2,617 in 1900 and a maximum of 2,675 in 1929. This also includes the municipalities of the East Cantons that were added to Belgium following the First World War . In 1961, the so-called Unitary Law ( Dutch : Eenheidswet ; French : Loi unique ; German : Einheitsgesetz ), of which

1175-406: The autonomy of the communities neither includes decisions about the compulsory aspect nor sets minimum requirements for awarding qualifications, which remain federal matters. Each level can be involved in scientific research and international relations associated with its powers. Communities were created in 1970 as "cultural communities" with limited power. In 1980, more power was transferred from

1222-455: The beers to the Jupille brewery in southern Belgium. However, the beer could not be brewed there with the right characteristics, and so the plan was cancelled. Hoegaarden is twinned with: Municipalities of Belgium Here are three lists of municipalities for each one of the three regions: The municipalities, as an administrative division , were officially created in 1795, when

1269-461: The empowered subdivisions. The institutional communities are thus equally geographically determined. Belgian Communities do not officially refer directly to groups of people but rather to specific political, linguistic and cultural competencies of the country. All Communities thus have a precise and legally established area where they can exercise their competencies: the Flemish Community has legal authority (for its Community competencies) only within

1316-532: The federal level to the three regions. This did not instantly have any significant effect on the reorganisation of municipalities, up until the Flemish Bourgeois Government (2014-2019) provided a legal framework and financial incentives for municipalities to consider merging. This led 15 Flemish municipalities to merge into seven, decreasing the total number of Flemish municipalities from 308 to 300. Their municipal councils were elected in

1363-508: The federal state to these entities and they became simply "communities". Both the Flemish and French Community have jurisdiction over the area of the Brussels-Capital Region. Consequently, they do not have a defined number of inhabitants. The German-speaking Community is the only community with an area over which they have sole jurisdiction as a community. It is located within the Walloon Region, which has even transferred some regional powers to

1410-487: The fourth chapter was dedicated to the territorial organisation of the municipalities, was adopted. The authority to abolish municipalities was entrusted to the executive branch for a period of 10 years. Municipalities could be merged on financial grounds or on grounds of a geographical, linguistic, economic, social or cultural nature. In 1964 and in 1969 and 1970, roughly 300 municipalities ceased to exist and were subsumed into other municipalities. The number of municipalities

1457-604: The growth of the brewing industry. This tax advantage was lost after the French Revolution once the Prince-Bishopric of Liège was abolished. The industry had withered to nothing by 1955, but Pierre Celis later re-launched the town's now iconic white beer which has since gone on to become a global brand. In December 2005, it was decided to close the Hoegaarden Brewery and move the production of

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1504-448: The individuals of a community's language: culture (including audiovisual media), education, the use of the relevant language. Extensions to personal matters less directly attributed to the language comprise health policy (curative and preventive medicine) and assistance to individuals (protection of youth, social welfare, aid to families, immigrant assistance services, etc.) Regions have authority in fields connected with their territory in

1551-521: The interests of both linguistic communities (de facto the Flemish community). Since the splitting of the Province of Brabant in 1995 (into Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant ), the Brussels Region does not belong to any of the provinces. Within the Region, most of the provincial competencies are assumed by the Brussels regional institutions and community commissions. Additionally, there is

1598-439: The largest number of preferential votes of the majority party that received the largest number of votes in the municipal elections. Hence, it is also possible that the mayor is not a member of the largest party, as the largest party is not always part of the governing coalition. It is also possible in Wallonia for the municipal council to adopt a constructive motion of no confidence in the municipal college. The executive organ of

1645-592: The linguistic regime of a municipality; and the Flemish Region because its powers are exercised by the Flemish Community. The three communities are: The three regions are: The four language areas (as taalgebieden in Dutch and Sprachgebiete in German), occasionally referred to as linguistic regions (from French régions linguistiques ), are: All these entities have geographical boundaries. The language areas have no offices or powers and exist de facto as geographical circumscriptions, serving only to delineate

1692-477: The municipalities of Berchem , Borgerhout , Deurne , Hoboken , Ekeren , Merksem and Wilrijk in 1983 finally reduced the number of municipalities in Belgium to 589 and was the last reorganization of the municipalities for several decades because the merger of the 19 municipalities of Brussels was postponed indefinitely. The fifth state reform (2001) transferred the responsibility over municipalities from

1739-426: The municipality is known as the college of mayor and aldermen ( Dutch : college van burgemeester en schepenen ; French : collège des bourgmestre et échevins ), commonly referred to as the college of aldermen ( Dutch : schepencollege ; French : collège échevinal ), in Flanders and Brussels, and as the municipal college ( French : collège communal ; German : gemeindekollegium ) in Wallonia. This college

1786-530: The number of inhabitants of the municipality, and can vary from 7 to 55. It is responsible for all matters that are of municipal interest. Following the Fifth State Reform in 2001, the responsibility for the composition, the organization, the competences and the activities of the municipal institutions were devolved to the Regions , as well as the responsibility for the provincial institutions . As

1833-475: The number of municipalities in Belgium from 2,359 to 596. Because of the specific nature of the reorganization in Antwerp , the law of 30 December 1975 did not enter into force for Antwerp until 1 January 1983. The formerly-independent municipalities were called districts and were given an advisory function. However, on 1 January 2001 they were given an administrative function again. The merger of Antwerp with

1880-512: The process of territorial reorganization of Belgium. In 1971, the provisions of the Unity Law were extended and modified to apply to large agglomerations, which were initially excluded from its provisions. It was another Minister of the Interior, Joseph Michel, who managed the process. On 30 December 1975 the law regarding the merger of the municipalities was adopted. The merger became effective on 1 January 1977. The merger of 1977 further reduced

1927-539: The region ~75% speak French at home and ~25% speak Dutch, although a significant number of people combine these two languages. The Brussels Capital Region contains only one administrative arrondissement, the Arrondissement of Brussels-Capital . However, for juridical purposes, it forms an arrondissement with surrounding Flemish areas, the arrondissement of Brussels (equivalent in area to the former electoral district of Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde ). Within Brussels,

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1974-543: The subdivisions together make up the entire country; in other words, the types overlap. The language areas were established by the Second Gilson Act , which entered into force on 2 August 1963. The division into language areas was included in the Belgian Constitution in 1970. Through constitutional reforms in the 1970s and 1980s, regionalisation of the unitary state led to a three-tiered federation: federal , regional, and community governments were created,

2021-494: The two Communities have their own institutions that act as "intermediary levels" of government and public service, sitting below the Community institutions, and above the municipal institutions: In addition to these two, a Common Community Commission exists which is the entity when the Brussels-Capital Region exercises community powers. In these cases, there are more requirements for the legislative process in order to safeguard

2068-430: The widest meaning of the term, thus relating to the economy, employment, agriculture, water policy , housing, public works, energy, transport, the environment, town and country planning, nature conservation, credit, and foreign trade. They supervise the provinces, municipalities and intercommunal utility companies. In several fields, the different levels each have their own say on specificities. On education for instance,

2115-576: Was divided into 2,739 municipalities, a number which remained more or less constant until 1961. The law of 30 March 1836 regulated municipalities and their governing bodies. The number of municipalities was reduced to 2,508 when the Belgian borders were recognised in 1839, as 124 municipalities were ceded to the Netherlands and another 119 municipalities became the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg (see

2162-603: Was only used once in 1971 when the Brussels Agglomeration, comprising the 19 municipalities of Brussels , was put into place. It de facto ceased to exist in 1989 when the organs of the Brussels-Capital Region were established. Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium Belgium is a federal state comprising three communities and three regions that are based on four language areas. For each of these subdivision types,

2209-433: Was reduced from 2,663 in 1961 to 2,586 in 1965 and to 2,359 in 1971. Article 4 of the constitution states that each municipality must belong to only one of the four official language areas that were established in 1962–63. In the three officially unilingual language areas, a couple of dozen municipalities in the vicinity of another language area must provide limited facilities for speakers of that other language. As only

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