Malle

Malle is a municipality located in the Campine region of the Belgian province of Antwerp. The municipality comprises the villages of Oostmalle and Westmalle. On 1 January 2013 Malle had a total population of 14,950. The total area is 51.99 km² which gives a population density of 288 inhabitants per km². The origin and meaning of the word Malle is uncertain: on the one hand it could refer to an extended plain, border or stop, but more likely it refers to a place which was used by the Franks for legal matters. A Mallum was a general court session presided by the count. In Celtic, the name O Maoileoin, means a devotee of St. John. A record of the name Malle emerges for the first time in 1194, when the bishop of Kamerijk donated the altar of Malle and Vorsele to the Chapter of Our Kind Lady of Antwerp. Originally Oostmalle, Westmalle and Zoersel were joined into one domain: Malle, which was part of the County Toxandria.

The origin of Oostmalle dates back to the Roman era, when a settlement was built along the Roman road from Trajectum ad Rhenum. During the Middle Ages 476–1492, Oostmalle was part of the Duchy of Brabant, governed by lords like Jan Van Hesselbeke and Jan Volckaert around 1300. The lower feudal rights belonged to the House of Breda, the higher rights belonged to the Duke of Brabant.