Updated July 3rd, 2020 at 11:14 IST

City of Brussels in Belgium to name a square after the Brontë sisters

In a move that is part of a wider push which aims at the feminization of public places, a square in Brussels will be named after the Brontë sisters.

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In a move that is part of a wider part which aims at the 'feminization' of public places, a square in Brussels will be named after the Brontë sisters. According to reports, this will be the first move of its kind and will mark 178 years after Charlotte and Emily arrived in the city to study French. Its name change was approved by councillors in the north-west district of Koekelberg who have agreed to name the square ‘Place des Sœurs Brontë’.

A recognition which was long overdue

According to reports, the Brontë sisters have been described as ‘models of emancipation’. The square that will be renamed after the sisters is currently undergoing development and reportedly contains the local Dutch-language cultural centre and library. The new name will celebrate the literary talents of the Brontë sisters and will also honour the presence of two of the Brontë sisters in the Koekelberg municipality.

Emily, Charlotte and Anne Brontë published their first work, ‘Poems’, #onthisday in 1846.

Uncertain as to how poetry by women would be received, the Brontë sisters published the volume under male pseudonyms of Currer, Ellis and Acton Bell, retaining their own initials. pic.twitter.com/9K1ggPpU4g
— Portrait Gallery (@NPGLondon)

The two of the Brontë sisters, Charlotte and Emily, arrived in Brussels in 1842, aged 25 and 23 respectively. Both the sisters dreamed of opening a boarding school in their home town of Haworth Parsonage and therefore wanted to master various languages in Brussels. Their plan to open a boarding house ultimately never came to pass because both the sisters focused their energy towards writing masterpieces like Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights.

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According to reports, Helen MacEwan who is the founder of Brussels Brontë Society and author of The Brontës in Brussels has said that the news that a square will be named after the sisters is a piece of delightful news even though the square is not located at the centre of Brussels where the sisters actually lived. Currently, the only reminder that the Brontë sisters lived in Brussels is a commemorative plaque. The plaque was erected by the Brontë Society in 1979.

Brontë news: A Brussels square is to be named after the Brontë sisters. The district of Koekelberg has decided to establish ‘Place des Soeurs Brontë/Zusters Brontëplein’ to commemorate Charlotte and Emily's link with the Belgian capital. https://t.co/5Gvg31K6CV pic.twitter.com/5uIQKj7QOl
— Brontës in Brussels (@Brontes_Bxl)