Sint Jacobiparochie

Sint Jacobiparochie
Village
Country Netherlands Netherlands
Province Friesland Friesland
Population
 • Total c. 1,700

Coordinates: 53°16′N 5°36′E / 53.267°N 5.600°E / 53.267; 5.600 Sint Jacobiparochie (West Frisian: Sint Jabik) is a town in the municipality of Het Bildt in Friesland, the Netherlands. It lies about 13 km north of Franeker and has approximately 1,700 inhabitants.

St. Jacobiparochie was founded in the 16th century, largely by Dutch settlers from South Holland. Today, both Dutch and West Frisian are spoken in the town. The town was originally named Wijngaarden (not to be confused with Wijngaarden in South Holland), while "St. Jacobiparochie" was the name used for the local Roman Catholic parish. Eventually, the name for the parish came to be used as the name for the town as well. The change in name may have been due in part to the fact that the soil in Het Bildt (Frisian sea-clay) was not suitable for growing grapes, making the original name (which means "Vineyard") inappropriate.

There was a station on the North Friesland Railway which opened in 1902 and closed to passengers in May 1935. It reopened to passengers in May 1940 and closed to passengers again in October 1942. Final closure took place in May 1966.

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