Walloon Brabant

Walloon Brabant (French: Brabant wallon; Dutch: Waals-Brabant; Walloon: Roman Payis) is a province in the French-speaking part of Belgium called Wallonia. It is surrounded by several other provinces. Starting from the north, it touches Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, then Liège, Namur, and Hainaut.

The main city, or capital, of Walloon Brabant is Wavre, but the bigger town is Braine-l'Alleud. As of January 2024, about 414,000 people live there across an area of 1,097 square kilometres (424 square miles). This makes it a small but important part of Belgium.

Etymology

Walloon comes from an old word meaning "foreigner" or "stranger." Brabant is an older name from Dutch that means a certain area or region. These names have been used for a very long time, long before the countries we know today were formed.

A writer named Louis de Haynin talked about these names in 1628. He described Belgium as a big country between France, Germany, and the North Sea. He mentioned that people back then divided this country into two main parts: one where people spoke French (Walloon) and another where people spoke a type of German language, often called Flemish. He also talked about different areas like French or Walloon Flanders and Lothier or Walloon Brabant, comparing them to other parts of Brabant that were in what is now the Netherlands. Back then, the term "Belgium" included much more land than it does today, covering areas that are now part of the Netherlands, Luxembourg, and even some of France.

History

The Battle of Waterloo happened in this area in June 1815.

Walloon Brabant started in 1995. Before that, there was one big area called the Province of Brabant. It was divided into three parts: Walloon Brabant, Flemish Brabant, and the Brussels Capital Region. This change happened because Belgium was organized into three regions: Flanders, Wallonia, and Brussels.

Subdivisions

Walloon Brabant is a province in Belgium that covers 1,097 square kilometres (424 sq mi). It has one main administrative area called the arrondissement of Nivelles. This area includes 27 different towns and cities.

Nivelles District includes places like:

1. Beauvechain
2. Braine-l'Alleud
3. Braine-le-Château
4. Chastre
5. Chaumont-Gistoux
6. Court-Saint-Étienne
7. Genappe
8. Grez-Doiceau
9. Hélécine
10. Incourt
11. Ittre
12. Jodoigne
13. La Hulpe
14. Lasne
15. Mont-Saint-Guibert
16. Nivelles
17. Orp-Jauche
18. Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve
19. Perwez
20. Ramillies
21. Rebecq
22. Rixensart
23. Tubize
24. Villers-la-Ville
25. Walhain
26. Waterloo
27. Wavre

Economy

The economy of Walloon Brabant was worth about 19.3 billion € in 2018, making up a small part of Belgium's total economy. However, it is the wealthiest area compared to other Belgian provinces. This wealth is partly because many people from Walloon Brabant work in the nearby city of Brussels.

Historically, the area was important for early industry, especially steel production. Today, the University of Louvain and the Louvain-la-Neuve Science Park help create jobs and support new businesses. The park works with the university and has many companies focused on health, chemistry, and technology.

One famous company, Recherche et Industrie Thérapeutiques, now known as GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals, makes vaccines and employs thousands of people. The area also has historic sites like the castle of Corroy-le-Château, which an artist plans to turn into a modern art museum.

Twin towns and sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Belgium

Walloon Brabant has a special friendship with:

• Shenzhen, China, since 1993