Texel

Texel
	Texel
; Flag	; Coat of arms
	Coordinates: 53°03′N 4°48′E / 53.05°N 4.80°E
Country	Netherlands
Province	North Holland
	Area (2006)
- Total	463.28 km2 (178.9 sq mi)
- Land	161.96 km2 (62.5 sq mi)
- Water	301.32 km2 (116.3 sq mi)
	Population (1 January 2007)
- Total	13,617
- Density	84/km2 (217.6/sq mi)
	Source: CBS, Statline.
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Website	www.texel.nl

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This article is about the Dutch island, also see: Texel (disambiguation).

Texel is a municipality and an island in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It is the biggest and most populated of the Frisian Islands in the Wadden Sea, and also the westernmost of this archipelago, which extends to Denmark. The next island in the archipelago, to the north of Texel, is Vlieland.

The name Texel is Frisian, but because of historical sound-changes in Dutch, where all -x- sounds have been replaced with -s- sounds (compare for instance English Fox, Frisian Fokse, German Fuchs with Dutch Vos), the name is typically pronounced Tessel in Dutch ^[1].

[edit] Geography

Satellite image of the island of Texel and its surroundings

The island includes the seven villages De Cocksdorp, De Koog, De Waal, Den Burg, Den Hoorn, Oosterend, and Oudeschild, and the small townships of Bargen, De Nes, Dijkmanshuizen, Driehuizen, Harkebuurt, 't Horntje, Midden-Eierland, Molenbuurt, Nieuweschild, Noorderbuurt, Ongeren, Oost, Spang, Spijkdorp, Tienhoven, Westermient, Zevenhuizen, and Zuid-Eierland.

The Slufter

The municipality also includes the uninhabited sand bar of Noorderhaaks. The island of Texel, which received city rights in 1415, originally was made up of two islands, Texel proper to the south and Eierland to the northwest, which were connected by shoals. In the seventeenth century, the islands were poldered together. Today, Texel forms the largest natural barrier between the North Sea and the Wadden Sea.

The dune landscape on Texel is a unique habitat for wildlife. Texel is known for its wildlife, particularly in winter, when birds of prey and geese take up residence. About one third of Texel is a protected nature reserve.

[edit] Transport

Transport around the island is typically by bicycle, bus [1] or car. Texel has an extensive cycle path network. Transport to Texel is usually by ferry (Royal TESO), from Den Helder, or by air via Texel International Airport.

Old 1991 Ferry "Schulpengat" from Den Helder to Texel

[edit] History

In the early Middle Ages and before, Texel and Wieringen may have been much bigger and met each other as opposite banks of the Marsdiep, which was then a river with banks of permanent land: see here.

Notable battles involving Texel:

1653 Battle of Scheveningen - During the First Anglo-Dutch War.
1673 Battle of Texel - During the Third Anglo-Dutch War.
1945 Georgian Uprising of Texel - During the Second World War

On the night of 31 August 1940 the sea to the North-West of Texel was the scene of the sinking of two British destroyers and the severe damage of a third by German mines in what became known as the Texel Disaster.

[edit] Tourism

The tourism industry forms a substantial part of the economy in Texel. Approximately 70% of activities on Texel are in some way related to tourism. Popular forms of tourism on Texel include cycling, walking, swimming and horse riding.