Oostkamp
Oostkamp (; ) is a municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the villages of Hertsberge, Oostkamp proper, Ruddervoorde and Waardamme. On January 1, 2019, Oostkamp had a total population of 23,698. The total area is 79.65 km² which gives a population density of 289 inhabitants per km². History. The name Oostkamp comes from the Medieval name "Orscamp", meaning place of the horses. The old word "ors" is a cognate of the English word "horse". Oostkamp during World War II. The Canadian 4th Armoured Division liberated the village on 8 September 1944 (World War II) during  the Battle of Moerbrugge. A monument was erected by the Ghent-Bruges Canal to honour the 53 Canadian casualties. Fusion of 1977. With the Belgian Unity Law the four villages of Oostkamp proper, Hertsberge, Ruddervoorde and Waardamme became the municipality of Greater Oostkamp. Landmarks and Monuments. OostCampus. In 2012, all the different municipal services which had been accommodated over the years in a scattered collection of facilities, moved to a new complex: 'OostCampus'. On March 9, 2017, the mayor and the chairman of the Social Services (OCMW) also moved from their former site in 'Beukenpark' to OostCampus, which is now  effectively the City Hall and Civic Centre of Oostkamp. The building, designed by Spanish architect Carlos Arroyo, has received important awards, such as: Section::::"Kastelen": Castles, Châteaux and Mansions. Oostkamp has about twenty outstanding examples of "Kasteel" (plural "kastelen"), meaning castles, châteaux and mansions. These were erected as 'countryside retreats' of 'leisure houses' by the nobles and merchants of the area, many of them with permanent abodes in nearby Bruges. Most "kastelen" are private property and therefore not to be visited. Many are visible from the public road.