Ookflevoland

Urk

Urk has a rich history which, as far as we know, goes back to the year 966. This is easily seen in the culture Urk radiates through its old village centre, the harbours, the traditional costumes and the town’s dialect. For more information, click on one of the subjects below.
Urk, like other fishing villages, has its own traditional costume. Nowadays these are only worn by a small number of elderly people, and during public holidays. Despite the fact this type of dress is no longer used as much, it is certainly great to still see it being worn.
Traditionally the people of Urk depended on fishing and to a lesser extent, agriculture, for their livelihood. This resulted in a high level of poverty, because fishing was not always successful. Fishing was also a dangerous activity, as you can see from the fisherman’s monument which shows the names of all the fishermen who lost their lives at sea.