Zwammerdam

Zwammerdam is a village in the Dutch province of South Holland along Oude Rijn river. It is a part of the municipality of Alphen aan den Rijn, and lies about 6 km southeast of Alphen aan de Rijn. The name derives from a dam built in the Rhine river in 1165 AD by Count Floris III of Holland, to protect the land stream downwards from floods.

Zwammerdam
Village
Centre of Zwammerdam
Flag Coat of arms
Zwammerdam Location in the province of South Holland in the Netherlands Show map of South Holland Zwammerdam Location in the Netherlands Show map of Netherlands
Coordinates: 52°6′21″N 4°43′38″E
Country	Netherlands
Province	South Holland
Municipality	Alphen aan den Rijn
Area [1]
• Total	1.60 km2 (0.62 sq mi)
Elevation [2]	0.2 m (0.7 ft)
Population  (2021)[1]
• Total	1,900
• Density	1,200/km2 (3,100/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	2471[1]
Dialing code	0172

In 2020, the village of Zwammerdam had 1850 inhabitants. The built-up area of the town was 62 km², and contained 484 residences.^[3] The statistical area "Zwammerdam", which also can include the surrounding countryside, has a population of around 1810.^[4]

Zwammerdam was a separate municipality until 1964, when it was divided between Alphen aan den Rijn and Bodegraven.^[5] The town is the current home of the Jostiband Orchestra.

The ancient Romans built fortress (castrum) Nigrum Pullum as part of the defence system of the Roman Empire ’s northern frontier (Limes Germanicus) close to where now Zwammerdam is.^[6] In the 1970s during groundwork for the building of a new caregiving residence, remains were found of wooden ships from the Roman period.^[7] Extensive archeological excavations brought up six ships of different sizes, known as Schepen van Zwammerdam, now exhibited at the nearby open-air museum Archeon.^[8][9]

Gallery

• 
  Kerklaan
• 
  Windmill for waterpumping
• 
  Oude Rijn at Zwammerdam
• 
  Castrum Nigrum Pullum, artist impression Stevie Xinas
• 
  Excavation ancient Roman ship 1973

References

1. "Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2021". Central Bureau of Statistics. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
2. "Postcodetool for 2471AA". Actueel Hoogtebestand Nederland (in Dutch). Het Waterschapshuis. 24 July 2019. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
3. Statistics Netherlands (CBS), Bevolkingskernen in Nederland 2001 Archived 2007-01-24 at the Wayback Machine. (Statistics are for the continuous built-up area).
4. Statistics Netherlands (CBS), Gemeente Op Maat 2004: Alphen aan den Rijn ^{[permanent dead link]}.
5. Ad van der Meer and Onno Boonstra, "Repertorium van Nederlandse gemeenten", KNAW, 2006. "Repertorium van Nederlandse gemeenten 1812-2006". Archived from the original on February 20, 2007. Retrieved December 3, 2009.
6. Nigrum Pullum, Zwammerdam livius.org
7. (in Dutch) F. den Houter, 'Zwammerdam - kerkhof van schepen uit Romeinse tijd' NRC Handelsblad, 24th of January 1973, page 9
8. Boats from Zwammerdam, wealth of knowledge, Leiden University, 2nd November 2016
9. Zwammerdam ships restoration yard, website Archeon