Vlieland

Vlieland (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈvlilɑnt]; West Frisian: Flylân) is a municipality and island in the northern Netherlands. The municipality of Vlieland has only one major town: Oost-Vlieland (West Frisian: East-Flylân). It is the second-least densely populated municipality in the Netherlands (after Schiermonnikoog).

Vlieland is one of the West Frisian Islands, lying in the Wadden Sea. It is the second island from the west in the chain, lying between Texel and Terschelling. The island was permanently separated from the mainland in St. Lucia's flood in 1287. Vlieland was named after the Vlie, the seaway between it and Terschelling that was the estuary of the river IJssel in medieval times.

History

The northern part of the island of Texel, Eierland, once was the southwestern part of Vlieland. A storm surge in 1296 probably separated Eierland from Vlieland. Erosion further diminished the size of Vlieland from the west, leading in 1736 to the disappearance of a second village on Vlieland, West-Vlieland (Westeijnde), after the inhabitants had tried for decades to rebuild the town following numerous floods.