The English-language Canon tells the story of Flanders worldwide

Minister of Education Ben Weyts and Minister-President Jan Jambon presented the first copies of “The Canon of Flanders” to the British ambassador and official representatives of Scotland, Wales, the United States of America and the Netherlands. After the Dutch version, an audio version and a version for people with poor literacy skills, the Canon of Flanders now also has an English translation for the international audience. The Canon of Flanders Foundation took the time to produce a high-quality and complete translation of all 60 windows. “We want as many people as possible to learn about the events and the people that shaped Flanders,” say Weyts and Jambon. “The Canon has found an unexpectedly large audience in our own country, but there is also interest in our history and culture abroad.”

The Canon of Flanders sketches a fascinating overview of anchor points in our history and culture in 60 windows. The work was presented in May 2023 and immediately became a great success. It was the best-selling non-fiction book for four months and eventually made it into the top three of the best-selling books last year. There have already been 10 printings. In addition, the Canon of Flanders Foundation was established, which further manages and develops the work of the Canon Commission. For example, an audio version for the blind and visually impaired and a version tailored to people with poor literacy skills have already been produced. The Foundation also commissioned the translation of the Canon.

The world in Flanders

Minister of Education Ben Weyts and Minister-President Jan Jambon have now presented the first copies of “The Canon of Flanders” to the British Ambassador Martin Shearman, the American Deputy Chief of Mission Timothy Richardson, Scottish representative to the EU Martin Johnson, Welsh assistant representative Oana Bucsa and the Dutch Chargé d’Affaires Han Peters in the historic Hof van Busleyden in Mechelen. The English translation of the Canon tells the story of Flanders to a broad international audience. By the way, there is an interesting link with other countries in many of the 60 windows, because Flanders and the outside world have, of course, been influencing each other for a long time. It is with good reason that the Canon Committee chose “A place in the world” as the first window and “The world in Flanders” as the last window.

French and German

“We want to tell the story of Flanders to the whole world,” say Weyts and Jambon. “Flemish people can be proud of their culture and history. We should promote this more often, also internationally. After this English translation, we also want to have versions in French and German.”