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Lommel

Coordinates: 51°14′N 05°18′E / 51.233°N 5.300°E / 51.233; 5.300
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Lommel (disambiguation).
Lommel
City and municipality
St. Peter in Chains Church
St. Peter in Chains Church
Flag of Lommel
Flag
Coat of arms of Lommel
Coat of arms
Location of Lommel
Map
Lommel is located in Belgium
Lommel
Lommel
Location in Belgium
Location of Lommel in Limburg
Coordinates: 51°14′N 05°18′E / 51.233°N 5.300°E / 51.233; 5.300
Country Belgium
CommunityFlemish Community
RegionFlemish Region
Province Limburg
ArrondissementMaaseik
Government
 • MayorBob Nijs (CD&V)
 • Governing party/iesCD&V, N-VA
Area
 • Total
102.28 km2 (39.49 sq mi)
Population
 (2018-01-01)[1]
 • Total
34,044
 • Density330/km2 (860/sq mi)
Postal codes
3920
NIS code
72020
Area codes011
Websitewww.lommel.be

Lommel (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈlɔməl]) is a municipality and city[2] in the Belgian province of Limburg. Lying in the Kempen, it has about 34,000 inhabitants and is part of the arrondissement of Maaseik.

Besides the residential town, Lommel also has a number of nature reserves, such as the nature reserve De Watering, the Lommel Sahara, and numerous forests and heathlands. Lommel is the third shopping city in Belgian Limburg with a commercial and shopping center De Singel. Importantly, the silver sand that is mined here for the benefit of the glass industry. Some sand mining quarries are transformed into nature reserves and recreational areas, including Lommel Sahara.

The city of Lommel is in the watershed of the basins of the Scheldt, and Meuse, and within these basins Nete Dommel respectively.

Tamar, a maternity home for pregnant girls and unmarried mothers and their children run by the Congregation of Kindsheid Jesu, is located in Lommel. Despite its religious mission to help young women, Tamar was notorious for numerous scandals, including forced adoptions, unwanted sterilizations, and abuse of the women placed in its care.[3]

Language

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Lommelse Sahara

The dialect of Lommel is, despite its location in Limburg, part of the East Brabantian, not the Limburgish dialects, reflecting the particular history of the city.

Etymology

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The name comes from Loemelo. Loem means moist, swampy and Lo is forest or woodland.[citation needed]

Demographic development

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All historical data relating to the current municipality, including towns such as arose after the merger of January 1, 1977.

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
18462,486—    
18663,009+0.96%
18803,042+0.08%
18903,252+0.67%
19004,431+3.14%
19107,022+4.71%
19207,811+1.07%
19309,666+2.15%
YearPop.±% p.a.
194713,487+1.98%
196117,923+2.05%
197021,984+2.30%
198125,412+1.33%
199027,427+0.85%
200030,433+1.05%
201032,917+0.79%
201533,852+0.56%

Politics

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Structure

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The city of Lommel is located in the arrondissement of Maaseik and the Limburg parliamentary constituency (which coincides with the province of Limburg).

Lommel Supranational National Community Region Province Arrondissement County district Canton Municipality
Administration Level  European Union  Belgium  Flanders  Limburg Maaseik Limburg Lommel
Executive European Commission Federal Government Flemish Government Provincial Executive Mayor
Elected body European Parliament Chamber of Representatives Flemish Parliament Provincial Council Municipal Council
Electoral area Dutch-speaking electoral college Limburg Limburg Hasselt-Tongeren-Maaseik Maaseik Neerpelt Neerpelt Lommel
Elections Europe Federal Regional Provincial Municipal

List of mayors of Lommel

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Results municipal elections since 1976

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Partij 10-10-1976[4] 10-10-1982 9-10-1988 9-10-1994 8-10-2000 8-10-2006[5] 14-10-2012[6]
Stemmen / Zetels % 27 % 29 % 29 % 29 % 31 % 31 % 31
CVP1/CD&V2 49,181 14 38,031 13 33,221 11 26,791 9 25,241 9 - 19,682 7
CD&V+N-VA - - - - - 28,55 9 -
VU1/VU&ID2 9,721 2 10,961 3 9,081 2 - 3,732 0 - -
N-VA - - - - - - 17,20 6
PVV1/VLD2/VLD-VIVANT3/Open Vld4 9,561 2 6,551 1 11,561 3 13,182 3 12,692 4 10,903 3 9,294 2
SP 31,55 9 37,57 12 39,51 13 46,21 16 47,75 17 - -
sp.a-spirit - - - - - 42,44 15 -
Burgemeester - - - - - - 40,33 15
AGALEV1/Groen2 - - 3,21 0 - - - 4,342 0
PVDA - 4,55 0 3,44 0 4,11 0 - - -
Vlaams Blok1/Vlaams Belang2 - - - - 7,171 1 9,772 2 3,982 0
LGB - 2,34 0 - - - - -
BOOS - - - 7,86 1 - - -
HOOP - - - 1,85 0 - - -
LEL - - - - 3,42 0 - -
AKTIEF - - - - - 8,33 2 5,19 1
Totaal stemmen 14873 16710 18306 19495 20598 20452 21465
Opkomst % 97,07 95,9 95,32 95,71 93,70
Blanco en ongeldig % 3,68 4,84 4,23 4,41 3,71 4,2 2,47
seats formed coalition 'bold' printed

Sporting events

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Since 2017 the European Open a Snooker ranking tournament of the World Snooker Tour took place in Lommel.

Lommel is home to the Belgian Motocross Grand Prix, part of the Motocross World Championship. The track at Lommel is among the most famous in the motocross world and is known for its deep and unforgiving sand surface. Notable motocross racers such as Jeffrey Herlings and Ryan Villopoto have said that Lommel is the most physically demanding motocross track to ride in the world, and many top European motocross riders live in or around the city to hone their skills at the track.

Notable people

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Wettelijke Bevolking per gemeente op 1 januari 2018". Statbel. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
  2. ^ "Wet tot toekenning van de titel van stad aan de gemeente Lommel". www.ejustice.just.fgov.be (in Dutch). Belgian Official Gazette. 28 December 1990. Retrieved 4 March 2025.
  3. ^ "Catholic Church put up 30,000 children for adoption without mothers' consent". Brussels Times. 14 December 2023. Archived from the original on 28 January 2025.
  4. ^ "Verkiezingsdatabase". fgov.be.
  5. ^ "Verkiezingen van 8 oktober 2006 – Resultaten". vlaanderenkiest.be.
  6. ^ "Startpagina – Lokale verkiezingen 2012". vlaanderenkiest.be.
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