^{This page is part of © FOTW Flags Of The World website}

Wytmarsum (The Netherlands)

Wûnseradiel municipality, Fryslân province

Shipmate Flagchart : http://www.flagchart.net
adopted 19 Apr 1955; design: Kl. Sierksma

Wytmarsum village
Wytmarsum Coat of Arms

See also:

Wytmarsum village

Wytmarsum (Dutch: Witmarsum) is a village in Wûnseradiel municipality in the province of Fryslân, and municipal seat.
Flag: vertical stripes yellow, blue, black; at the hoist the narrowed municipal flag.
adopted 1955; design: Kl. Sierksma.
Arms: or a wvy fess argent with three green waterlilyleaves, 2,1.
This coat of arms was found by Mr. Sierksma after the flag had been designed, in the Royal collection. The wavy stripe probably represents the canal through the village, and the waterlilyleaves ("pompeblêdden") are typical Frisian. It is curious that this Coat of Arms is "false", because in heraldry no colors can be put on colors, or metals on metals - so a white (silver) stripe is not allowed in a yellow (golden) field. The Fryske Rie foar Heraldyk deemed it not necessary to change the arms, because it is old, and since its rediscovery is well liked in the village.

Wytmarsum is the birthplace of Menno Simons, the founder of the Mennonite church, who was a priest here too. In the village was also the castle of the Aylva family. In 1880 the municipal seat was moved from Bolsward to Wytmarsum.

Nickname: "skimmelige koeken" - mouldy cakes. The Wytmarsumers were poor and could only afford old cakes (for stark reduced prices) - 't wasn't too bad if you scraped the mould from the cakes...
Source: It Beaken, jrg. xxxi, # 3-4, Dec 1969
Encyclopedie van Friesland, 1958
Groot Schimpnamenboek van Nederland, by Dirk van der Heide, 1998
Jarig Bakker, 12 Apr 2005

Wytmarsum Coat of Arms

by Jarig Bakker, 12 Apr 2005