Frisian farmhouse

Last updated
A typical Frisian Head-Neck-Body farmhouse. Kop-hals-rompboerderij, Noordoost-Friesland.jpg
A typical Frisian Head-Neck-Body farmhouse.
Drawing of an earlier "longhouse type". Farmhousedev1.jpg
Drawing of an earlier "longhouse type".
Drawing of an earlier "longhouse type" in evolution. Farmhousedev.jpg
Drawing of an earlier "longhouse type" in evolution.


A "Head-Neck-Body farmhouse" (Dutch : kop-hals-rompboerderij) or Head-Neck-Rump farmhouse is a typical Frisian farmhouse. [1] It consists of a residence (the head) and a kitchen (the neck) placed in line in front of a big shed (the body). A striking fact is that the residence was never built in the centre front of the shed - this has to do with the origin of this type of farmhouse from a smaller type of farmhouse that has now disappeared. This original Old Frisian longhouse consisted of a residence with a cattle shed immediately behind it. The harvest was stacked in the attic or in open barns which were logically located near the livestock shed.

Dutch language West Germanic language

Dutch(Nederlands ) is a West Germanic language spoken by around 23 million people as a first language and 5 million people as a second language, constituting the majority of people in the Netherlands and Belgium. It is the third most widely spoken Germanic language, after its close relatives English and German.

Frisians ethnic group

The Frisians are a Germanic ethnic group indigenous to the coastal parts of the Netherlands and northwestern Germany. They inhabit an area known as Frisia and are concentrated in the Dutch provinces of Friesland and Groningen and, in Germany, East Frisia and North Frisia. The Frisian languages are still spoken by more than 500,000 people; West Frisian is officially recognised in the Netherlands, and North Frisian and Saterland Frisian are recognised as regional languages in Germany.

Farmhouse main house of a farm

A farmhouse is a building that serves as the primary residence in a rural or agricultural setting. Historically, farmhouses were often combined with space for animals called a housebarn. Other farmhouses may be connected to one or more barns, built to form a courtyard, or with each farm building separate from each other.

Due to the development of better harvesting materials at the beginning of the 16th century there was a need for more storage space for the harvest. This was solved by building a bigger shed behind the 'head and neck' of the original farmhouse.

These farmhouses can be found in Friesland, Groningen [1] and (in the northern part of) North Holland. Although sometimes considered as typically Frisian, the origin of this kind of farmhouse is found in the Het Bildt county where for the first time intensive agriculture flourished; the Bildt was especially suitable for harvesting large areas of land. Because harvest quantities became larger, the inhabitants, who were mostly of South Holland origin, were some of the first who needed more storage and ordinary open barns gradually developed into large, enclosed sheds. Although there is a distinct difference between the typical Frisian farmhouses in northern provinces and the Bildts farmhouses, only the Bildts farmhouses have the feature whereby the sheds are placed at right-angles to the residential part of the house. These days both types can be found in the Bildt.

Friesland Province of the Netherlands

Friesland, also historically known as Frisia, is a province of the Netherlands located in the northern part of the country. It is situated west of Groningen, northwest of Drenthe and Overijssel, north of Flevoland, northeast of North Holland, and south of the Wadden Sea. In 2015, the province had a population of 646,092 and a total area of 5,100 km2 (2,000 sq mi).

North Holland Province of the Netherlands

North Holland is a province of the Netherlands located in the northwestern part of the country. It is situated on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevoland. In 2015, it had a population of 2,762,163 and a total area of 2,670 km2 (1,030 sq mi).

het Bildt Municipality in Friesland, Netherlands

het Bildt is a former municipality in the province of Friesland in the northern Netherlands; its capital was Sint Annaparochie. The population was 10,610 in 2017. On 1 January 2018 it merged with the municipalities of Franekeradeel, Menameradiel and parts of Littenseradiel to form the new municipality Waadhoeke.

Related Research Articles

Wadden Sea An intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea (Netherlands, Germany and Denmark)

The Wadden Sea is an intertidal zone in the southeastern part of the North Sea. It lies between the coast of northwestern continental Europe and the range of low-lying Frisian Islands, forming a shallow body of water with tidal flats and wetlands. It has a high biological diversity and is an important area for both breeding and migrating birds. In 2009, the Dutch and German parts of the Wadden Sea were inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List and the Danish part was added in June 2014.

Ameland Municipality in Friesland, Netherlands

Ameland is a municipality and one of the West Frisian Islands off the north coast of the Netherlands. It consists mostly of sand dunes. It is the third major island of the West Frisians. It neighbours islands Terschelling to the west and Schiermonnikoog to the east. This includes the small Engelsmanplaat and Rif islands to the east.

Terschelling Municipality and island in Friesland, Netherlands

Terschelling is a municipality and an island in the northern Netherlands, one of the West Frisian Islands. It is situated between the islands of Vlieland and Ameland.

Vlieland Municipality in Friesland, Netherlands

Vlieland is a municipality and island in the northern Netherlands. The municipality of Vlieland has one major town, Oost-Vlieland. It is the second most sparsely populated municipality in the Netherlands, after Schiermonnikoog.

Barn Agricultural building used for storage and as a covered workplace

A barn is an agricultural building usually on farms and used for various purposes. In the North American area, a barn refers to structures that house livestock, including cattle and horses, as well as equipment and fodder, and often grain. As a result, the term barn is often qualified e.g. tobacco barn, dairy barn, sheep barn, potato barn. In the British Isles, the term barn is restricted mainly to storage structures for unthreshed cereals and fodder, the terms byre or shippon being applied to cow shelters, whereas horses are kept in buildings known as stables. On the Continent, however, barns were often part of integrated structures known as byre-dwellings. In addition, barns may be used for equipment storage, as a covered workplace, and for activities such as threshing.

Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park national park of Germany

The Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea National Park is a national park in the Schleswig-Holstein area of the German Wadden Sea. It was founded by the Parliament of Schleswig-Holstein on 1 October 1985 by the National Park Act of 22 July 1985 and expanded significantly in 1999. Together with the Lower Saxon Wadden Sea National Park, the Hamburg Wadden Sea National Park and those parts of Elbe estuary which are not nature reserves, it forms the German part of the Wadden Sea.

Hood (headgear) type of headgear

A hood is a kind of headgear that covers most of the head and neck, and sometimes the face. Hoods that cover mainly the sides and top of the head, and leave the face mostly or partly open may be worn for protection from the environment, for fashion, as a form of traditional dress or uniform, or in the case of knights, an armoured hood is used for protection against bladed weapons. In some cases, hoods are used to prevent the wearer from seeing where they are going. Hoods with eye holes can be used to prevent the wearer from being identified, as in the case of Ku Klux Klan members, terrorists, or criminals such as robbers.

Frisian Islands archipelago in the Wadden Sea

The Frisian Islands, also known as the Wadden Islands or the Wadden Sea Islands, form an archipelago at the eastern edge of the North Sea in northwestern Europe, stretching from the northwest of the Netherlands through Germany to the west of Denmark. The islands shield the mudflat region of the Wadden Sea from the North Sea.

Connected farm

A connected farm is an architectural design common in the New England region of the United States, and England and Wales in the United Kingdom. North American connected farms date back to the 17th century, while their British counterparts have also existed for several centuries. New England connected farms are characterized by a farm house, kitchen, barn, or other structures connected in a rambling fashion. This style evolved from carrying out farm work while remaining sheltered from winter weather. In the United Kingdom there are four distinct types of connected farmsteads, all dissimilar to the New England style.

Bildts farmhouse

Bildts farmhouses are of a characteristic right-angled type. This means that the house has been placed on a right angle with the barn. The reason for this is unknown, but it has been suggested that they were constructed this way so as to have a more logical location in relation to the farmlands and the dike-road. In a time of prosperity it also gave farmers the opportunity to show off their wealth.

Old-frisian longhouses were, as the name indicates, long-bodied houses which can be found in the Dutch province Friesland. This type of house had more than two different parts behind or beside each part. It is the forerunner of the "Head-Neck-Body farmhouse".

Lower Saxon Wadden Sea National Park

The Lower Saxon Wadden Sea National Park was established in 1986 and embraces the East Frisian Islands, mudflats and salt marshes between the Bay of Dollart on the border with the Netherlands in the west and Cuxhaven as far as the Outer Elbe shipping channel in the east. The national park has an area of about 345,800 hectares (1,335 sq mi). The National Park organisation is located in Wilhelmshaven. Since June 2009 the Lower Saxon Wadden Sea National Park has become a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with the Schleswig-Holstein Wadden Sea and the Dutch Wadden Sea.

Gulf house farm

A Gulf house, also called a Gulf farmhouse (Gulfhof) or East Frisian house (Ostfriesenhaus), is a type of farmhouse that emerged in the 16th and 17th centuries in North Germany. It is timber-framed and built using post-and-beam construction. Initially Gulf houses appeared in the marshes, but later spread to the Frisian geest. They were distributed across the North Sea coastal regions from West Flanders through the Netherlands, East Frisia and Oldenburg as far as Schleswig-Holstein. This spread was interrupted by the Elbe-Weser Triangle which developed a type of Low German house instead, better known as the Low Saxon house.

Housebarn

A housebarn is a building that is a combination of a house and a barn.

The Geestharden house, also called the Cimbrian house, Schleswig house, Slesvig house or Southern Jutland house due to its geographical spread in Jutland, is one of three basic forms on which the many farmhouse types in the north German state of Schleswig-Holstein are based. The other two basic designs are the Gulf house and the Low German hall house. By far the best known variant of the Geestharden house is the Uthland-Frisian house which is also referred to as the Frisian house (Friesenhaus).

Uthland-Frisian house

The Uthland-Frisian house, a variation of the Geestharden house, is a type of farmhouse that, for centuries, dominated the North Frisian Uthlande, that is the North Frisian Islands, the Halligen and the marshlands of northwest Germany.

Haubarg farm

A Haubarg, rarely also Hauberg, is the typical farmhouse of the Eiderstedt peninsula on the northwest coast of Germany and is a type of Gulf house. It emerged in the late 16th century when West Frisian immigrants brought with them the Gulf type of farm building and it was to continue to be used until the late 19th century as a farmhouse. In the Netherlands these houses are called stolpboerderij.

Byre-dwelling type of a farmhouse combining living quarters and stables

A byre-dwelling or Wohnstallhaus is a farmhouse in which the living quarters are combined with the livestock and/or grain barn under the same roof.

Waadhoeke Municipality in Friesland, Netherlands

Waadhoeke is a municipality of Friesland in the northern Netherlands. It was established 1 January 2018 and consists of the former municipalities of Franekeradeel, het Bildt, Menameradiel and parts of Littenseradiel, all four of which were dissolved on the same day.

References

  1. 1 2 Vollmer, Manfred et al. (2001). Landscape and Cultural Heritage in the Wadden Sea Region, Wadden Sea Ecosystem No. 12 - 2001, CWSS, Wilhelmshaven, p. 323. ISSN 0946-896X.