Dinxperlo, Netherlands

Dinxperlo is located directly on the border with Germany. Together with the German town of Suderwick, it forms a contiguous building through which the border runs. This border largely follows the Heelweg, which on the other side extends to the sidewalk of Dutch territory, where the houses are evenly numbered, and which is called Hellweg on the German side, with odd numbers. Thus, it is the only place where German citizens live and are registered on a Dutch street. Nevertheless, the difference in spatial design (e.g., house style and type of street lamps) is immediately recognizable. Until the Schengen Agreements, there were two border posts, but long before that, with the exception of World War II, the border here was rather permeable. At the beginning of the 20th century, the narrowness of the German part of the road was seen as a problem since pedestrians entering it with goods could accidentally end up in Dutch territory. [2] Besides Dutch and German, people on both sides of the line speak or spoke a common dialect, which is a variant of Low German. Suderwick originated in the 13th century as an extension of Dinxperlo (the southern district), and its population has always been about 20% of the total population.

jnotten