Kanfen

Kanfen is a village in France near Thionville. It is in the Grand Est region, in the Moselle department, in north-eastern France. The population as of 2007 is about 996.CartesFrance.fr 

History
Origin of the name
The first mention of the village is under the name Cantevanne, in a 1239 text. Later it became Kaufen. In 1801, it changed to Kanfen. The name stayed the same when Alsace-Moselle became part of the German Empire in 1870.

The most likely etymology is a contraction of the Gaulish word canto (mountain) and the Germanic radical Fenn (marshland).

History of the commune
Kanfen and all of the Thionville region was dependent of the Duchy of Luxembourg. Le Grand Condé took Thionville in 1643. The village became part of the Kingdom of France. This was confirmed by the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659.

As it was part of Alsace-Moselle, the commune was part of the German Empire from 1871 to 1918. It was annexed by the Third Reich between 1940 and 1944.

Geography
Kanfen is next to the Kudertsberg hill, around 230 metres high. The river Kiesel has its source in the village flows through it.

The commune is 12 km north of Thionville and 20 km south of the city of Luxembourg. It is only a few kilometres away from the border with Luxembourg.

The commune regroups Kanfen and Kanfen-sous-Bois.

Monuments
Old Castle of the Lord of Kanfen, called Keybourg. It is now a presbytery where the castle used to be.
Saint-Maurice Church, located in Keybourg. It was built in 1744 on the side of a hill.
A bildstock dating back to 1634. It is where the Rue Volmerange and the Rue de Keybourg cross.

Demography

References

Category:Communes in Moselle
Category:Villages in France