Hesbaye

The Haspengauw or Haspengau (Dutch and Limburg Haspengouw, French Hesbaye ) is a region in Belgium, which lies between the cities of Hasselt, Liege, Namur, Tienen and Leuven and has in the south and east of the Meuse as a natural boundary.

The region rests on a limestone massif, which is covered by a loess cover and is an intensive agricultural area.

History

Latin documents of the 11th century mention in the field a county ( Comitatus ) Haspinga. From this name, today's names in French, Dutch and German language derived. The area is situated on the linguistic border between Dutch ( " Flemish " ) in the north and French or Walloon in the south. Significantly, the pair of names of places Heure- le- Romain is (since 1977 the district of Oupeye ) and Diets Heur ( today part of the city of Tongeren ).

The Haspengauw is auftgeteilt in:

  • The fertile dry Haspengau in the south with the cultivation of wheat, corn, and beet, and cattle, and
  • The hillier damp Haspengau in the north with grassland management and occasional fruit growing.

The distinction is based on the number of flowing waters, which are frequently found in the hills than in the plains.

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