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We first come across the name “Wagtebeke” in 1198, in a charter of a gift of meadows and lakes by Filip Van den Elzas to the abbey of St. Pieters.
There are two explanations of the origin of the name ‘Wachtebeke’:

◙ The Germanic ‘Wähwö’ (guard) and ‘Baki’ (brook), which would mean “guarded river”
◙ A shallow place in a river, which is more consistent with the dialect name ”Wabeke”.

Around 1200, the grounds of Wachtebeke were predominantly in the hands of the abbeys of St. Bavo and St. Pieters in Ghent, the Marquette abbey in Lille and an abbey in Ninove. The labour intensive search for peat attracted many people to the area. The ‘Langlede’-canal, for instance, was dug for the export of peat along the ‘Moer’-canal to Ghent.
In the sixties, Wachtebeke evolved from a peaceful rural borough into a village and a home for workers and servants from the canal-zone towards Ghent.

 In this interesting region, you can easily make daytrips to our fabulous towns Ghent, Bruges, Brussels (see “links” for more info). You best go by car or by train (NMBS) departing from Ghent.




 
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