Also found in: Dictionary, Wikipedia.
Brabant(Fr. bräbäN`, Du. bräbänt`), former province, central Belgium. The region is drained by the Dijle, Senne, and Demer rivers. Much of its soil is fertile and under cultivation, and industry is prevalent. Belgian Brabant occupies the southern part of the former duchy of BrabantBrabant, duchy of,
former duchy, divided between Belgium (Brabant and Antwerp provs.) and the Netherlands (North Brabant prov.). Louvain, Brussels, and Antwerp were its chief cities. The duchy of Brabant emerged (1190) from the duchy of Lower Lorraine.
..... Click the link for more information. . In 1995 it was split into two provinces—Dutch-speaking Flemish Brabant (1995 pop. 999,186), 813 sq mi (2,106 sq km), with its capital at LouvainLouvain
, Du. Leuven, city (1991 pop. 85,018), Flemish Brabant prov., central Belgium, on the Dijle River. It is a commercial, industrial, and cultural center, as well as a rail junction. Mentioned in the 9th cent.
..... Click the link for more information. , and French-speaking Walloon Brabant (1995 pop. 339,062), 421 sq mi (1,091 sq km), with its capital at Wavre (1995 pop. 29,906). The BrusselsBrussels
, Fr. Bruxelles, Du. Brussel, city and region (1995 pop. 948,122), 63 sq mi (162 sq km), capital of Belgium, central Belgium, on the Senne River and at the junction of the Charleroi-Brussels and Willebroek canals.
..... Click the link for more information. capital region is surrounded by, but not part of, Flemish Brabant.
a historical region of northwestern Europe. In the early Middle Ages the territory of Brabant was part of the Duchy of Lorraine (later Lower Lorraine). In the 11th century Louvain County (from 1106, Louvain Duchy) was formed around the rapidly developing towns of Louvain and Brussels, and from the end of the 12th century it was called the Duchy of Brabant. Struggling for hegemony over the counts of Flanders, their main rivals, the dukes of Brabant significantly widened their possessions. Their centralization policies rested on the growing economic significance of the towns that blossomed in the 13th and 14th centuries.
In the 14th century the structure of a class monarchy was established on this base. In 1430, Brabant came under the sovereignty of the dukes of Burgundy, and from 1477 to 1482 it was under the Hapsburgs, thus becoming one of the 17 provinces of the Netherlands.
In the 16th century, Brabant was one of the main regions of the bourgeois revolution in the Netherlands. It was divided by the Dutch-Spanish reconciliation of 1609 (and then by the peace of 1648). Its southern part remained within the Spanish Netherlands until 1714 when it went to Austria, and the northern part went to the Dutch republic.
As a result of the so-called Brabant Revolution of 1789–90, South Brabant was temporarily liberated from Austrian rule. In 1794 it was taken by French troops, and in 1797 it was annexed by France, which in 1810 also took North Brabant. From 1814 to 1830, Brabant was part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. After the Belgian Revolution of 1830, it became part of the Belgian kingdom (the Belgian province of Brabant). North Brabant is part of the Netherlands (the Netherlands province of North Brabant).
REFERENCESchouteden-Wery, J. Brabant. Brussels, 1951.
a province in Belgium. Area, 3,300 sq km. Population, 2.1 million (1968). Flemings live in the northern part, and Walloons live in the southern part. Brussels (the capital of Belgium) is the province’s administrative center. Industry is concentrated mainly in the capital and its suburbs. Intensive farming (wheat, sugar beets, truck farming, and floriculture) is combined with the raising of dairy cattle.