Flevoland, province, 931 sq mi (2,412
sq km), central Netherlands, on the E shore of the Markermeer and
IJsselmeer. Lelystad is the capital; other cities include Almere and
Emmeloord. The Netherlands' youngest province, Flevoland comprises the
Northeast Polder, Eastern Flevoland, and Southern Flevoland, almost all of
which were reclaimed from the IJsselmeer after it had been converted
from an arm of the North Sea into lake in 1932. Reclamation occurred in
stages from 1937 to 1968, and the three areas were joined to form a single
province in 1986. More than a third of province's area, which includes much
of the Markermeer and the southern part of the IJsselmeer, is water. Eastern
and Southern Flevoland are completely surrounded by wate; the Ketelmeer in
the north separates them from the Northeast Polder. Much of the mostly flat,
reclaimed land is agricultural with some planned, modern urban areas and
villages, but there are a large deciduous forest (Horsterwold) in the
southeast and a nature reserve (Oostvaardersplassen) on the Markermeer
between Almere and Lelystad.
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