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Kootstertille (The Netherlands)

Achtkarspelen municipality, Fryslân province

by Jarig Bakker, 14 Sep 2004
adopted 7 Sep 2004; design: Fryske Rie foar Heraldyk

Kootstertille village
Kootstertille CoA
Kootstertille rejected flag
Kootstertille rejected CoA
Kooten village CoA

See also:

Kootstertille village

Kootstertille / Koatstertille (2510 inhabitants) - Kooten is derived from Cottum - keuterboeren - crofters. In 1571 the Spanish officer and "stadhouder" of the northernmost provinces of the Netherlands ordered the digging of the "Kolonelsdiep" (colonel's channel), renamed in 1945 to Prinses Margrietkanaal. In Kooten came a high bridge over this channel, in order to function as "kar ga door" - cart go on (voluntarily pushing and afterwards asking for money). The bridge was named in Frisian "De Tille" - high bridge or: where one had to lift. Now there are some wharfs and a harbour, and de Tille swallowed the village of Koten.
In 1959 the village of Kooten became part of Kootstertille, and it was decided to change the village CoA. It is unknown whether the new CoA has been adopted. The high bridge (tille) can be opened for large ships travelling from Lemmer to Groningen; it is represented in the new arms by a golden broken chevron in blue. The blue color stands for the Prinses Margrietkanaal. The shipbuilding is of provincial interest, so the blue and gold equally represent the Frisian CoA. Two ship-screws of gold, above and below the chevron, symbolize shipbuilding and shipping in the canal.
In the flag the elements of the CoA return. The blue hoist-triangle is the canal; the ship-screw symbolizes shipbuilding and shipping in the canal, and the broken black chevron the big movable bridge. The colors black and white refer to the old CoA of Kooten, while the blue hoist-triangle refers to the new elements in the arms. (proposal rejected in 2001 - see below)
Source: Wapens en vlaggen in de gemeente Achtkarspelen, Buitenpost, 1999.

The flag and CoA of Kootstertille (municipality of Achtkarspelen) are registered in the Genealogysk Jierboekje of 2000, pp.
196-197. The arms were designed by Jelle Terluin (Fryske Rie foar Heraldyk), the flag by me.
However they have not been adopted. Some prominent Kootstertillers prefer the arms of the old village of Kooten.
Hans van Heijningen, 3 Aug 2003

It appears now that there was a village meeting in 2001 in which the new flag and CoA were outvoted by 27 to 115.
The "Fryske Rie foar Heraldyk" (Frisian Council of Heraldry) went back to the drawing board and discovered that the old CoA of Kooten, on which the new CoA was based, was a family-CoA, probably of a family from Western or Central Netherlands, where merlettes were used on arms, while they weren't in Fryslân. Therefore the FRfH advised the village to
change the arms. A meeting was organised on 7 Sep 2004 - but nobody attended. The board of the society for village interests ("Plaatselijk Belang") decided to stick to the vote of 2001, and adhere to the old arms.
The FRfH then proposed to change the colors, by which the CoA changed, but retained its old appearance. The Board could live with that, so that it was adopted.
The vilage arms are now:
"In silver two blue fesses in chief with two red merlettes".
The colors red, blue and silver are derived from the Achtkarspelen arms.

At the same time a new flagdesign was adopted, derived from the new arms:
"Five equally high stripes of white-blue-white-blue-white, with on the top and middle stripe towards the hoist a red merlette".
An impromptu explanation: the blue stripes may represent the water of the Prinses Margriet Kanaal; the red color of the merlettes are derived from the churches on the Achtkarspelen CoA; the colors are the same as on the Frisian flag.
According to the Kollumer Krante everybody was extremely pleased about the outcome, as even the mayor's chain didn't need to be changed (it had the old arms in silver).
Source: Nieuwsblad van Noord-Oost Friesland (newspaper, aka Kollumer Krante), 8 Sep 2004, and a press-release by the "Fryske Rie foar Heraldyk".
Thanks to Mr. Hans van Heijningen.
Jarig Bakker, 14 Sep 2004

Kootstertille new Koot of Arms

by Jarig Bakker, 14 Sep 2004

Kootstertille rejected flag

Shipmate Flagchart : http://www.shipmate.nl/flags.htm
design: Hans van Heijningen

Kootstertille rejected CoA

from the Achtkarspelen municipal website.

Kooten village CoA

image from the Encyclopedie van Friesland, 1958.

The CoA of Kooten was rediscovered in 1957 in the armory of Andries Schoemaker, who made this c. 1695. Twelve Frisian village CoAs were drawn in this manuscript, among which the arms of Kooten. The two bars in the CoA may point at the CoA of the former Frisian division of Oostergo (the Oostergo arms is red with two silver bars). The meaning of the merlettes is unknown.
Source: Wapens en vlaggen in de gemeente Achtkarspelen, Buitenpost, 1999.