Editing Urk (section)

== History ==
[[File:Map of URK (publ. 1853).jpg|thumbnail|Urk Island (1852)]]
[[File:NIMH - 2011 - 0511 - Aerial photograph of Urk, The Netherlands - 1920 - 1940.jpg|thumb|Aerial photograph of the former island Urk, before its integration in the [[Noordoostpolder]], 1920–1940. Nederlands Instituut voor Militaire Historie.]]
[[File:NIMH - 2011 - 0513 - Aerial photograph of Urk, The Netherlands - 1920 - 1940.jpg|thumb|Aerial photograph of the former island Urk, 1920–1940. Nederlands Instituut voor Militaire Historie.]]
The oldest instance of the name "Urk" is a donation certificate of 966 from [[Holy Roman Emperor]] Otto I to the Sint Pantaleonsklooster [[monastery]] in [[Cologne]]. The text reads: ''cuiisdam insulae medietatem in Almere, que Urch vocatur'' ([[Latin]]: "of a certain island in the middle of [[Almere (lake)|Almere]], which is called Urch"). Until 1475 the High and Low Lordship of Urk and Emmeloord (the most northern village of [[Schokland]]) was in the hands of the Van Kuinre family. From 1475 to 1614, the [[Zoudenbalch]] family of [[Utrecht]] were Lords of Urk and Emmeloord. From 1614 to 1660, Urk and Emmeloord were ruled by the [[House of van de Werve|van der Werve]] from Antwerp. From 1660 to 1792 Urk and Emmeloord belonged to the [[Municipalities of the Netherlands|municipality]] of Amsterdam, and ruled from 1660 to 1672 by [[Andries de Graeff]]. From 1792 to 1950 Urk belonged to the province of [[North Holland]].

After [[World War II]], Urk ceased to be an island, and Urk's town expanded into the reclaimed land of the [[polder]]. Many Urkers who previously left the town because of overcrowding before the polder reclamation was completed were able to return to Urk. From 1950 to 1986 Urk belonged to the province of [[Overijssel]]. Since 1986, Urk has belonged to the province of [[Flevoland]].

The [[Noordoostpolder]] in its early years had an alternative name "Urker Land," from which Urk's newspaper, ''Het Urkerland'', gets its name.