Walloon Brabant

**Walloon Brabant**  (, , , , ) is one of the five provinces of Wallonia in the country of Belgium.

## History

_Walloon_ in _Walloon Brabant_ means that it is in the Wallon part of the former province of Brabant of Belgium. _Brabant_ was an old region, the Duchy of Brabant. The word _Brabant_ appears for the first time in the seventh century when the abbey of Nivelles was founded in the _pagus Bracbatensis_ (_pagus_ is a Latin word meaning a very small town, with only few houses).

Walloon Brabant is the youngest and the smallest province of Belgium. The province was created in 1995 when the former province of Brabant was split along the language border in three parts: a Flemish part (Flemish Brabant), a Wallon part (Walloon Brabant) and the Brussels Capital Region, which no longer belongs to any province.

## Geography

The total area of the province is  with a population of about 410,000 in 2022.

The province is very flat and the highest point is in Genappe, with an altitude of  above sea level.

Also the geographical centre of Belgium is in the province, in the municipality of Walhain.

The province has an elongated shape and measures from east to west about  and about  from north to south.

The capital is Wavre; it is much more centrally located than the old capital, Nivelles.

## Administrative division

The province of Walloon Brabant has only one _arrondissement_ that is divided in 27 municipalities.

|colspan ="2" style="vertical-align:top;text-align:center;background:#dddddd;"|**Arrondissement Nivelles**|||
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
|colspan ="2" style="vertical-align:top;text-align:center;"||||
|width="50%" style="vertical-align:top;background:#ddffff;"|# Beauvechain # Braine-l'Alleud # Braine-le-Château # Chastre # Chaumont-Gistoux # Court-Saint-Étienne # Genappe # Grez-Doiceau # Hélécine # Incourt # Ittre # Jodoigne # La Hulpe # Lasne|width="50%" style="vertical-align:top;background:#ddffff;"|<ol start="15"> <li>Mont-Saint-Guibert</li> <li>Nivelles</li> <li>Orp-Jauche</li> <li>Ottignies-Louvain-la-Neuve</li> <li>Perwez</li> <li>Ramillies</li> <li>Rebecq</li> <li>Rixensart</li> <li>Tubize</li> <li>Villers-la-Ville</li> <li>Walhain</li> <li>Waterloo</li> <li>Wavre</li> </ol>|

## Population by arrondissement

Population x 1,000 (on 1 January since 1980).

|Arrondissement|1970|1980|1990|2000|2010|2020||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|align="left"|Nivelles|235|286|315|350|380|406|

The province of Walloon Brabant did not exist before 1995.

## Other websites

- The province's official site

## Infobox (settlement)

- **name**: Walloon Brabant
- **settlement type**: Provinces of Belgium, Province of Belgium
- **image flag**: Drapeau Province BE Brabant Wallon.svg
- **flag size**: 120x80px
- **image shield**: Arms of Walloon Brabant.svg
- **shield size**: 100x90px
- **image map**: Province du Brabant wallon in Belgium.svg
- **subdivision type**: Country
- **subdivision type1**: Region
- **seat type**: Capital

- **seat**: Wavre
- **leader title**: Governor
- **leader name**: Gilles Mahieu (PS (Belgium), PS)
- **area total km2**: 1,097
- **population total**: 409,782
- **population as of**: 1 January 2022
- **population density km2**: 374
- **blank name sec2**: Human Development Index, HDI (2019)
- **blank info sec2**: 0.948
 · List of Belgian provinces by Human Development Index, 1st
- **iso code**: BE-WBR