Urk

'''Urk''' ({{IPA|nl|ˈʏr(ə)k|lang|258 Urk.ogg}}; {{langx|wep|label=[[Urkers dialect|Urkers]]|Urrek}}; {{langx|nds-nl|Ürrek}}) is a [[Municipalities of the Netherlands|municipality]] and a [[town]] in the [[Flevoland]] province in the center-north of the [[Netherlands]] with a population of 22,173 as of 2025.{{Cite web |last=Statistiek |first=Centraal Bureau voor de |title=Inwoners per gemeente |url=https://www.cbs.nl/nl-nl/visualisaties/dashboard-bevolking/regionaal/inwoners |access-date=25 August 2025 |website=Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek |language=nl-NL }} It is surrounded by the [[Noordoostpolder]] on land and is on the coast of the [[IJsselmeer]]. Urk was formerly an [[island]] in the Almere, an inland sea that would become part of the [[Zuiderzee]] in the 13th century after a series of incursions by the [[North Sea]]. The building of a [[levee|dike]] from [[Lemmer]] in 1939 ended Urk's status as an island and connected it to the Dutch mainland.

'''Urk''' ({{IPA|nl|ˈʏr(ə)k|lang|258 Urk.ogg}}; {{langx|wep|label=[[Urkers dialect|Urkers]]|Urrek}}; {{langx|nds-nl|Ürrek}}) is a [[Municipalities of the Netherlands|municipality]] and a [[town]] in the [[Flevoland]] province in the center-north of the [[Netherlands]] with a population of 22,173 as of 2025.{{Cite web |last=Statistiek |first=Centraal Bureau voor de |title=Inwoners per gemeente |url=https://www.cbs.nl/nl-nl/visualisaties/dashboard-bevolking/regionaal/inwoners |access-date=25 August 2025 |website=Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek |language=nl-NL }} It is surrounded by the [[Noordoostpolder]] on land and is on the coast of the [[IJsselmeer]]. Urk was formerly an [[island]] in the Almere, an inland sea that would become part of the [[Zuiderzee]] in the 13th century after a series of incursions by the [[North Sea]]. The building of a [[levee|dike]] from [[Lemmer]] in 1939 ended Urk's status as an island and connected it to the Dutch mainland.

The mainstay of the town's formal economy has always been [[fishing]], with Urk having the largest fishing fleet in the Netherlands.{{Cite web |title=Presenting multifunctional fishing cutter Janneke, built on Urk｜2024｜News｜YANMAR |url=https://www.yanmar.com/eu/news/2024/10/31/143931.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241211010224/https://www.yanmar.com/eu/news/2024/10/31/143931.html |archive-date=11 December 2024 |access-date=25 August 2025 |website=YANMAR |language=en }} The products of the sea coming in through Urk harbor continue to be exported widely, although today Urk's fishing boats must travel greater distances to gather them than was required in most historical periods. Urk's inhabitants are socially tight-knitted and maintain their own unique Dutch [[dialect]].{{Cite news |last=Boffey |first=Daniel |date=31 December 2017 |title='Urk has a problem': Dutch fishing town caught up in cocaine-smuggling trial |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/31/dutch-fishing-town-embroiled-international-cocaine-smuggling-trial |access-date=25 August 2025 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 }} Religious life has traditionally been very important to Urk's inhabitants, with active, conservative congregations of the Dutch [[Reformed churches|Reformed]] denominations playing key roles in the life of the community.

The mainstay of the town's formal economy has always been [[fishing]], with Urk having the largest fishing fleet in the Netherlands.{{Cite web |title=Presenting multifunctional fishing cutter Janneke, built on Urk｜2024｜News｜YANMAR |url=https://www.yanmar.com/eu/news/2024/10/31/143931.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241211010224/https://www.yanmar.com/eu/news/2024/10/31/143931.html |archive-date=11 December 2024 |access-date=25 August 2025 |website=YANMAR |language=en }} The products of the sea coming in through Urk harbor continue to be exported widely, although today Urk's fishing boats must travel greater distances to gather them than was required in most historical periods. Urk's inhabitants are socially tight-knitted and maintain their own unique [[dialect]] of Netherlands.{{Cite news |last=Boffey |first=Daniel |date=31 December 2017 |title='Urk has a problem': Dutch fishing town caught up in cocaine-smuggling trial |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/dec/31/dutch-fishing-town-embroiled-international-cocaine-smuggling-trial |access-date=25 August 2025 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077 }} Religious life has traditionally been very important to Urk's inhabitants, with active, conservative congregations of the Dutch [[Reformed churches|Reformed]] denominations playing key roles in the life of the community.

==Geography==

==Geography==