Gangelt () is a municipality in the district of Heinsberg, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is on the border with the Netherlands and about 10km east of Sittard and 10km south-west of Heinsberg.

Its most well-known resident was cartographer Gerard Kremer, better known as Gerardus Mercator, who lived the first five or six years of his life there.

Geography

Local subdivisions

• Gangelt with 2,521 inhabitants

• Birgden with 2,977 inhabitants

• Breberen with 828 inhabitants

• Broichhoven with 168 inhabitants

• Brüxgen with 513 inhabitants

• Buscherheide with 132 inhabitants

• Harzelt with 201 inhabitants

• Hastenrath with 536 inhabitants

• Hohenbusch with 45 inhabitants

• Kievelberg with 32 inhabitants

• Kreuzrath with 504 inhabitants

• Langbroich with 807 inhabitants

• Mindergangelt with 244 inhabitants

• Nachbarheid with 120 inhabitants

• Niederbusch with 601 inhabitants

• Schierwaldenrath with 596 inhabitants

• Schümm with 93 inhabitants

• Stahe with 1,029 inhabitants

• Vinteln with 42 inhabitants

(21.02.2007)

History

Gangelt was first mentioned in a document in 828 as a King's property.

In February 2020, a carnival celebration caused a massive COVID-19 outbreak. In April 2020, one in seven residents was seropositive, in a sample of 500.

Population

Town twinning

• Sohland an der Spree, Germany, since 1991

• Kruibeke, Belgium, since 1998

• Onderbanken, Netherlands, since 1975

Local people

• Gerardus Mercator, cartographer born 1512

• Karl-Josef Kutsch (born 1924), German physician and co-author of Großes Sängerlexikon

References

External links