Deinze is a city

City status in Belgium

City status in Belgium is granted to a select group of municipalities by a royal decree or by an act of law.-History:During the Middle Ages, towns had defined privileges over surrounding villages. As the nobility strengthened their power over regions in feudal Europe, they bestowed on towns the...

 and a municipality

Municipality

A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...

 located in the Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 province of East Flanders

East Flanders

East Flanders is a province of Flanders, one of the three regions of Belgium. It borders on the Netherlands and in Belgium on the provinces of Antwerp, Flemish Brabant , of Hainaut and of West Flanders...

. The municipality comprises the city of Deinze proper and the towns of Astene, Bachte-Maria-Leerne, Gottem, Grammene, Meigem, Petegem-aan-de-Leie, Sint-Martens-Leerne, Vinkt, Wontergem and Zeveren. On January 1, 2006 Deinze had a total population of 28,320. The total area is 75.54 km² which gives a population density

Population density

Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...

 of 375 inhabitants per km².

Deinze is also the starting location of the cycling race Gent–Wevelgem.

Places of interest

• The Ooidonk Castle
  Ooidonk Castle
  Ooidonk Castle is a castle in the city of Deinze, East Flanders, Belgium.- History :A fortress was first built on the site of the present castle in 1230, intended to defend the city of Ghent and to fortify the river Leie...
  
  , from the 16th century

Famous inhabitants

• Dirk van Braeckel
  Dirk van Braeckel
  Dirk van Braeckel , is a Belgian car designer, currently head of design at Bentley Motors.Born in Deinze, after leaving school, van Braeckel studied electrical engineering, before joining Ford as an apprentice car designer in Cologne, West Germany...
  
  , head of design at Bentley Motors
• Raoul De Keyser
  Raoul De Keyser
  Raoul De Keyser is a Belgian painter, who lives and works in Deinze, Belgium.-Work:De Keyser creates abstract paintings and works on paper...
  
  , painter
• Rudy Dhaenens
  Rudy Dhaenens
  Rudy Dhaenens was a Belgian professional road bicycle racer who is most famous for winning the World Cycling Championships in 1990 as a member of the Belgian national team....
  
  , cyclist, World Champion
  World Cycling Championship
  The UCI Road World Championships, often referred to as the World Cycling Championships, is the annual world championship for bicycle road racing organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale . The UCI Road World Championships include championships for elite men's road race and individual time trial...
  
   in 1990
• Poppo of Deinze, saint
• Jacques Rogge
  Jacques Rogge
  Jacques Rogge, Count Rogge , is a Belgian sports bureaucrat. He is the eighth and current President of the International Olympic Committee .-Life and career:...
  
  , president of the International Olympic Committee
  International Olympic Committee
  The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
  
  
• Karel Van Wijnendaele, founder of the Ronde van Vlaanderen

External links

• Official website - Available in Dutch, French, German and English
• Best bed & breakfast in Belgium - Bed & Breakfast, Aan de Leie
• Local radio station website
• De Gazet van Deinze (local newspaper) website
• Pictures of Deinze
• Deinze volgens Willy (local blog by Willy Tack) website