Stekene

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STEKENE

Province : Oost-Vlaanderen
Additions : 1977 Kemzeke

Official blazon

(1818) Van lazuur, beladen met drie visschen van goud.
(1845) D'azur, à trois poissons contournds, d'or, posés en fasce.
(1985) In lazuur drie omgewende zwemmende vissen van goud, boven elkaar geplaatst.

Origin/meaning

The arms were granted on October 13, 1819 and confirmed on June 18, 1845 and September 2, 1985.

The exact meaning of the arms is not known. When the council applied for the arms in 1815 no explanation was given. Neither were the colours, so the Dutch national colours were used. These were also confirmed in 1845 after the Belgian independence in 1839.

One explanation of the arms is that the fish symbolise the terrible floods of 1583 in which the whole village was flooded. The floods depopulated the area and the council of Stekene was joined with Kemzeke and the village belonged to Kemzeke until 1792.