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Nij Beets (The Netherlands)

Opsterland municipality, Fryslân province

image by Jarig Bakker, 16 Sep 2003
Design: J.C. Terluin.

Nij Beets village
Nij Beets coat of arms

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Nij Beets village

Nij Beets is a village in Opsterland municipality, Fryslân province, with (1954) 1801; (1973) 1428, and (2001) 1611 inhabitants. It is a separate village since WWII, originally built on the territory of the former village of (Oud-) Beets - now Beetsterzwaag for peat-diggers. In Nij Beets was the seat of the "polderboard" Grote Veenpolder. In the village were many admirers of Ferdinand Domela Nieuwenhuis (1846-1919), a Lutheran vicar, who became a socialist activist, and later an anarchist. In Nij Beets a street was named after him (and in the Amsterdam city ward Westerpark is a huge statue).
Nickname: "Turfkloeten", "Turftrapers" (peat-lumps, -walkers) - in 1863 peat-digging was started here. The mayor of Opsterland was the first to put a spade in the soil.
Nij Beets coat of arms: Wavy divided of gold and black with over all a "steekijzer" (peat-cutter) countercharged; in gold with two red cloverleaves; and in black three silver peat blocks placed 2:1.
Flag: three horizontal stripes of black and yellow, of which the central stripes is wavy with three waves, proportioned 1:2:1; the yellow stripe charged with a black peat block, a red clover, and a black peat block.
Peat is represented by the black color, and by the peat-blocks, and the peat-cutter. After the peat-digging finished agriculture became important, symbolized by the red cloverleaves.
Design: J.C. Terluin
Source: Genealogysk Jierboekje 1994.
De Woudklank (local newspaper), 3 Sep 1998.
Encyclopedie van Friesland, 1958.
Groot Schimpnamenboek van Nederland, by Dirk van der Heide, 1998.
Jarig Bakker, 16 Sep 2003

Nij Beets coat of arms

from De Woudklank (local newspaper), 3 Sep 1998.