City and municipality in Flemish Community, Belgium
Bilzen (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈbɪlzə(n)] ⓘ ) is a formermunicipality andcity [ 2] located in theBelgian province ofLimburg .
In 2021, Bilzen had a total population of 32,536.[ 3] The total area is 75.90 km2 which gives apopulation density of 426 inhabitants per km2 .
Bilzen consists of the city of Bilzen and the following villages:Beverst ,Eigenbilzen ,Grote-Spouwen [nl ] ,Hees [nl ] ,Hoelbeek [nl ] ,Kleine-Spouwen [nl ] ,Martenslinde [nl ] ,Mopertingen [nl ] ,Munsterbilzen [nl ] ,Rijkhoven ,Rosmeer [nl ] , andWaltwilder [nl ] . In 1977 they all became part of the municipality Bilzen because of the fusion of municipalities.
Cities in Bilzen's neighbourhood are all within a distance of some 10 to 15 kilometers: to its north isGenk , to its eastMaastricht (Netherlands ), to its southTongeren , and to its north-westDiepenbeek .
From 1965 to 1981 Bilzen hostedJazz Bilzen , an annual multi-day open air jazz and rock festival. In its time Jazz Bilzen was the most important Belgian festival. Artists that performed, among many others, included:Humble Pie ,The Moody Blues ,Deep Purple ,Black Sabbath ,Humble Pie ,The Kinks ,The Troggs ,Procol Harum ,Golden Earring ,Rod Stewart ,Status Quo ,Lou Reed ,Aerosmith ,AC/DC ,The Cure ,Toots Thielemans ,Keith Jarrett andJohn McLaughlin . From the 1980s onwards, the festival was superseded by Torhout-Werchter, which has now becomeRock Werchter .
For over 300 years, Bilzen was part of theCounty of Loon (French :comté de Looz ).
Bilzen, church: parochiekerk Sint-Mauritius
Bilzen, townhall
Beverst, Schoonbeek castle
Mopertingen, church: parochiekerk Sint-Catharina
Munsterbilzen, church: parochiekerk Onze-Lieve-Vrouw-ten-Hemelopneming
Rijkhoven, Alden Biesen commandry
^ "Wettelijke Bevolking per gemeente op 1 januari 2018" . Statbel. Retrieved9 March 2019 .^ "Wet tot toekenning van de titel van stad aan de gemeenten Beringen, Bilzen, Blankenberge, Borgloon, Ciney, Couvin, Damme, Geel, Genepiën, Gistel, Halen, Hamont-Achel, Hannuit, Harelbeke, Herk-de-Stad, Lo-Reninge, Mesen, Oudenburg, Peer, Scherpenheuvel-Zichem, Vilvoorde en Walcourt" .www.ejustice.just.fgov.be (in Dutch).Belgian Official Gazette . 19 July 1985. Retrieved22 April 2025 .^ "Bevolking per statistische sector - Sector 73006" .Statistics Belgium . Retrieved13 May 2022 .Including Oosterwijk Wikimedia Commons has media related to
Bilzen .
Places adjacent to Bilzen
International Geographic Other