History

The earliest mention of Wieringen - the phrase "in pago Wirense" ("in the Wieringen region") - occurs in a property list from the monastery at Fulda . This monastery had drawn up a list outlining all property it had lost during the time of the Vikings, in order to be able to reclaim it. The monastery, which served as home base for Boniface (the apostle of the Frisians), had received many gifts from all over Frisia during the 9th century. The word "Frisia" translates as "Friesland", but it consisted of far more than the current province of Friesland. The entire North Sea coast, from Zeeuws-Flanders to East Groningen, were part of Friesland. Wieringen was therefore also part of Frisia, and was quite important in its own right. Centrally and strategically situated on an important travel route to the large trading centre of Dorestad, it was an important centre of settlement. At that time, there were only a few likely settlement spots in the western Netherlands, which, for the most part, consisted of peat bogs.

	On the map, the red areas indicate core regions in 9th century Frisia.

Last updated: 11-8-2000