(French, ) or (Dutch, ), often simply called in French or in Dutch, is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the north-eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels and Schaerbeek.

, the municipality had a population of 27,003. The total area is , which gives a population density of . From a total of 581 municipalities in Belgium, Saint-Josse is both the smallest in area size and the most densely populated. Like all municipalities in Brussels, it is officially bilingual (French–Dutch).

History

Named after Saint Judoc, Saint-Josse was originally a farming village on the outskirts of Brussels. In the centuries before the dismantling of the ramparts encircling Brussels, noblemen built country estates there, the most notable of which was the Castle of the Dukes of Brabant, built by Philip the Good in 1456. The area surrounding that castle was planted with wine groves, which explains the presence of the bushel of grapes in the municipality's coat of arms.

Following the demolition of the ramparts, Saint-Josse was one of the first areas outside Brussels to urbanise. The rich built houses around the new boulevards and higher parts of the municipality, while industries and workers' cottages were built in the lower-lying part close to the river Senne. In 1855, 58% of Saint-Josse's land area was annexed by the City of Brussels to make way for the /, the /, the / and the / of the newly created Leopold Quarter (now the European Quarter).

According to an inventory of architecture commissioned by the Brussels Region, Saint-Josse has on average the oldest buildings of all 19 Brussels municipalities.

Demographics As of 2026, the population is 27,003, of which 52.3% are male, and 47.7% are female. Minors make up 20.6% of the population, and seniors make up 9.6%.

Foreign population While foreigners were a majority in 1995, in 2007 most of the population had Belgian citizenship, which has resulted in a sharp increase of municipal councillors with a foreign background, benefitting from the open proportional electoral system: from none in 1988 to two (from Morocco) in 1994, a near majority of 13 (seven from Morocco, five from Turkey) out of 27 in 2000 (including three aldermen) and a majority of 20 out of 27 in 2007 (including six aldermen out of seven, the seventh is a member of the Flemish minority).

+ NationalitiesInstitut National de Statistiques Citizenship 1979 1995 2007 Belgium 12,222 54.5% 9,231 42.1% 14,656 61.6% Turkey 2,304 10.3% 3,904 18.1% 1,527 6.4% Morocco 2,664 11.9% 3,761 17.5% 1,482 6.2% France ― ― ― ― 674 2.8% Italy 1,661 7.4% 785 3.6% 458 1.9% Congo (DRC) 198 0.9% ― ― 453 1.9% Poland ― ― ― ― 432 1.8% Romania ― ― ― ― 387 1.6% Spain 840 3.7% 443 2.1% 317 1.3% Bulgaria ― ― ― ― 251 1.1% Total pop. 22,409 21,522 23,785

Based on 2023 figures, Saint-Josse is also the poorest municipality in Belgium by median equivalised disposable income, as well as the one with the highest percentage of population with an income below the national poverty threshold (33%).

Politics

Mayors Historical list of mayors or burgomasters of Saint-Josse:Histoire de Saint Josse Ten Noode et de Schaerbeek (Van Bemmel, 1869) and other sources available at the local public library 1800–1808: André-Etienne-Joseph O'Kelly 1808–1813: Jacques-Joseph De Glimes (GLIM) 1813: Théodore-Nicolas-Joseph Aerts 1813 1813–1823: Jean-François Wauvermans 1823–1842: Urbain Henri Verbist 1842–1846: Léonard Constant Willems 1846–1867: Jacques Joseph Damas Gillon 1867–1870: Louis Guillaume Felix Sainctelette 1870–1884: Fritz Jottrand 1885–1899: Armand Steurs 1900–1926: Henri Frick 1926–1942: Georges Petre (alderman, then mayor from 1926 until his destitution and assassination by the Rexists in 1942) 1944–1947: Joseph Dery 1947–1953: André Saint-Remi 1953–1999: Guy Cudell 1999–2012: Jean Demannez (councillor in 1976, alderman in 1977, mayor in 1999, reelected in 2000 and 2006) 2012–present: Emir Kir

Culture The Charlier Museum is devoted to Belgian art of the end of the 19th century. The Jazz Station is a museum and archive on jazz, and a venue for jazz concerts. The Botanical Garden of Brussels, currently serving both as a park and as a venue for events known as Le Botanique.

References

External links

Official website Municipal archives – ArchivIris