Aalter, municipality in East Flanders, Belgium
Aalter is a municipality in the Belgian province of East Flanders, situated between Ghent and Bruges. The town center is made up of brick buildings around a modest square with a church tower, while the surrounding area is mostly flat farmland.
The settlement was first recorded in 974 under the Latin name Villa Haleftra, making it one of the older documented places in this part of Flanders. A railway station built in the 19th century brought new residents and shaped the layout of the town as it stands today.
The name Aalter traces back to a medieval Latin form recorded in the 10th century, and locals still use it with a strong sense of regional identity. The central square regularly hosts markets and seasonal gatherings where people from the surrounding hamlets come together.
The town is easy to reach by train on the line running between Ghent and Bruges, with the station close to the center. A bicycle is the most practical way to move around, as the terrain is flat and the roads connecting the different hamlets are manageable even for casual riders.
Aalter was formed by merging several formerly independent villages, including Bellem, Knesselare, Lotenhulle, Poeke, and Ursel, each of which still has its own church and village center. Riding through the area, you notice that each of these places feels like a separate community rather than a single town.
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