Product Code Database
The Gooi ( ) is an area around Hilversum, in the centre of the Netherlands. It is a slightly hilly area characterised by its green landscape, its historical charm, the wealth of its inhabitants and its villas. The Gooi is known in the country as the home of the rich and famous.This article is an adapted and edited translation of the unfootnoted article on "Het Gooi" on the Dutch version of Wikipedia.
To the north of the Gooi there is a body of water called Lake Gooi (in Dutch, Gooimeer), a southern extension of the IJsselmeer. An area called the Vechtstreek lies to the west of the Gooi. Eemland in the province of Utrecht lies to the east. The towns of Weesp and Eemnes are also sometimes thought to be in the Gooi. Their inclusion would mean that the region extends in the west to the Amsterdam–Rhine Canal (not just to the Vecht) and in the east to the river Eem (not just to the Gooyergracht). However, historically and geographically these towns are not really part of the Gooi. Weesp is part of the Vechtstreek and Eemnes part of Eemland.
To the west and southwest there are two lake systems called the Loosdrecht Lakes (Loosdrechtseplassen) and the Ankeveen Lakes (Ankeveenscheplassen). On 1 January 2002 the towns in the area of these lake systems was organised into a municipality called Wijdemeren. This municipality includes Ankeveen, Breukeleveen, 's-Graveland, Kortenhoef, Muyeveld, Nederhorst den Berg, Nieuw-Loosdrecht and Oud-Loosdrecht. Some of this area is . Since then this area has also been considered to be part of the Gooi, although historically not all of it was. Pasture land called the Utrechtse weilanden lies to the south. To the southeast lies a wooded area in the province of Utrecht called the Laagte van Pijnenburg, or Pijnenburg Depression, marking the transition to the central part of the Utrecht Hill Ridge.
Two motorways run through the Gooi: the A1 runs east and west; the A27 runs north and south. The railways running from Amsterdam to Hilversum and Amersfoort ( Gooilijn, part of the Amsterdam–Zutphen railway) and from Hilversum to Utrecht (Hilversum–Lunetten railway) run through the area. A line called the "Gooiboog" links the Gooilijn with the Weesp–Lelystad railway ( Flevolijn) to Almere and Lelystad.
Originally the Gooi area was covered with woods and heath. It was at one time encircled by treacherous high and low fen areas (with peat bogs) that created a natural barrier and isolated it from the Utrecht area to the south. Today there is still a good amount of variation in the landscape in the Gooi area. The landscape is dominated by a dry, sandy ridge. To the east and west of the ridge there is flat wet low-lying pasture land. The changes in land elevation, and the transition from wet to dry, are important for many animals and plants. The bodies of water at the margins of the area are fed by water seeping through the sandy ridge.
of the woods and heath have survived into the present today, notably Spanderswoud, Hilversumse Heide, Hoorneboegse Heide and Bussumer Heide. These areas are now all nature areas managed by the Gooi Nature Reserve Foundation. The vegetation in the area includes deciduous and coniferous woods, heath, grassland with sand pits, land developed as estates and the unique leftovers of open high ground and commons ( engen en meenten). Some areas have been set aside for protection, including the Naardermeer (the oldest nature reserve in the Netherlands and the home of a unique colony of black cormorants ( phalacrocorax nigra)) and the Gooi Nature Reserve ( Goois Natuurreservaat). These areas are valuable buffers against encroaching urban development. A feature of the landscape in the Gooi is the consistent encirclement of many heath areas with wooded margins, creating the illusion of an uninterrupted landscape and keeping the built-up areas out of sight. In the Netherlands this is rare.
There is some concern about the motorways running through the area (the A1 and A27) because they cut through important nature areas. Near Hilversum the longest wildlife crossing overpass in the world has been constructed over the N524 and the Amsterdam-Hilversum railway line. Called the Natuurbrug Zanderij Crailo (literally, the "Crailo Sand Quarry Nature Bridge"), the massive structure is over 800 meters long and spans not just the motorway and railway line, but also a business park, river and sports complex. Monitoring is currently under way to examine the effectiveness of this innovative project combining wildlife protection with urban development.Danby, D. 2004. A Green Latticework. Worldchanging.com
In this area water gathered in lower locations on the edges. These drinking spots provided a source of water for livestock and became the centres of the settlements in the area. Because of the low fertility of the sandy soil, the grazing of sheep was the main agricultural activity. This led to the development of wool production.
Until around 1300 the Gooi was mostly undeveloped. There were only a few farming settlements that used the land, woods and open fields in common.
The first village in the Gooi was Naarden (Oud-Naarden) and was referenced on a list that dates from 887 as "Naruthi". In 1085 a chapel was founded at the current location of the St. John's Cemetery (St.-Janskerkhof) in Laren. It became the religious centre for the area. It developed into a church and a place of pilgrimage, which would later acquire the status of basilica and make Laren the site of an annual St. John's Procession held on the Feast of St. John on 24 June. In 1285 Floris V, Count of Holland, purchased the heerlijkheid rights from the convent. (Afterwards there were disputes between the County of Holland and the Bishopric of Utrecht over the governance of the area.) The churches founded in the other towns in the area all bore the name of St. Vitus, the patron saint of the Gooi. Naarden and Hilversum each had two churches so named; Bussum and Blaricum one each.
Around 1300 a sort of farmer's co-operative ( boerenzelforganisatie) was formed in the area. Unique in the Netherlands, its members asserted their rights to use and regulate the land as a commons. Called "the erfgooiers", this medieval organisation remarkably lasted until 1972.
The people in the area (especially Bussum, Laren and Blaricum) spoke a Dutch Low Saxon dialect called "Goois". Emigration from Frisia to Huizen meant that a Frisian dialect was spoken there.
in 1924]]With the laying of canals, and later the railways, wealthy people from Amsterdam and Utrecht began to build grand country homes in the area. Affluent neighbourhoods (e.g. the Bussum neighbourhood of 't Spiegel) developed. As a result of the railway between Amsterdam and Amersfoort in 1874, Hilversum and Bussum were the first to grow. In 1892, after the tram line connecting Laren, Blaricum and Huizen was laid, these towns also developed. In the 1950s the construction of motorways (the A1 and the A27) continued this process.
The broadcast industry in the Gooi developed after the NSF factory (Nederlandse Seintoestellen Fabriek, Dutch Broadcasting-equipment Factory) was built in Hilversum in 1918. It expanded from Hilversum to the other towns nearby. The first television broadcast in the Netherlands was from Bussum. Today the Netherlands Public Broadcasting has offices and studios all over the area.
The Gooi has become heavily populated. Because of the nature in the area and its historic charm, the villages have become attractive to the affluent, including retirees. The population is relatively older and there are many old-age homes. The original inhabitants of the area have been submerged by the flood of newcomers. The local dialect that used to be spoken here has virtually disappeared.
Hilversum became the centre of the Gooi as a result of the rapid development of wool production and the textile and carpet-making industry. A Philips radio and transmitter factory, called "NSF" or Nederlandse Seintoestellen Fabriek, was built in Hilversum in 1918. This led to the founding of the Netherlands Public Broadcasting system and the various networks, including AVRO, VARA, KRO, NCRV, NTS and the NOS and others. Broadcasting became the major economic activity in the town. In 1965 the town's population was 103,000, but in recent decades it had lost some of its industries and the population has declined. In 2016 the population was 88,000. The city is encircled by nature reserves and unable to expand.
People from the Gooi are known for how they pronounce "r" at the end of syllables. The "r" in a word like "vier" is not rolled as it is in Standard Dutch language. It is pronounced almost like the American "r" and so that "daardoor" sounds like "daawrwdoowrw". That is not the original local dialect but a modern speech pattern of people who have moved to the Gooi from Amsterdam and elsewhere in the Randstad. Because so many people from the area of the Gooi appear on television, this manner of speech is influential throughout the country.
|
|
