Sibbe
| Sibbe | |
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Church of Saint Rose of Lima at Kerkstraat
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| Coordinates: 50°50′36″N 5°49′32″E / 50.84333°N 5.82556°ECoordinates: 50°50′36″N 5°49′32″E / 50.84333°N 5.82556°E | |
| Country | Netherlands |
| Province | Limburg |
| Municipality | Valkenburg aan de Geul |
| Population (1 January 2005) | 1,080 |
| Dialling code | 043 |
Sibbe (Limburgish: Sub or Süp) is the official Dutch name of a village in the municipality of Valkenburg aan de Geul in the province of Limburg in the Southern part of the Netherlands.
It has been proposed that the name of the village derives from the German word sippe, meaning a clan of a limited number of families. Another possibility is that the name derives from the Latin cippus, meaning young forest. However, both explanations do not fit with the local pronunciation Süp.
It is not known when the first inhabitants settled here. It is assumed that the Plateau of Margraten, at the edge of which Sibbe is situated, was gradually deforested and settled after the year 1000. The village was first mentioned ('Cybde') in a document in 1307. Until 1940 Sibbe was part of the municipality of Oud-Valkenburg.
In spite of some small-scale building projects, population has decreased over the last decades. This is the case for most parts of South Limburg, caused by population ageing, low birthrates and negative migration.
Sibbe is situated at the edge of the Plateau of Margraten, a fertile loess plain at 160 meters above NAP. Until recently, agriculture was the main means of life on the Plateau. Nowadays, most villagers commute to work in nearby towns like Valkenburg, Maastricht and Heerlen. Being close to tourist hotspot Valkenburg, the village offers some bed and breakfast accommodation, as well as a camping site. The last operating marl quarry in the Netherlands is situated in Sibbe. Tours on mountain bikes and quads are offered in the underground labyrinth in parts of the quarry that are no longer used for mining.
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