AUDERGHEM/OUDERGEM

   Located on the edge of the Forêt de Soignes to the west of Brussels, Auderghem ("old dwelling") developed at the site of the Val Duchesse convent. A hamlet arose beginning in the second half of the 13th century along the roads connecting Brussels to Wavre and Tervuren. Auderghem once formed a part of the village of Watermael, namely, it comprised the residential area (approximately 1,600 inhabitants in the mid-19th century) along the chaussée de Wavre. On 1 January 1863 Auderghem became an autonomous commune.

   Rapid development and modernization took place following a link to Brussels via trams in 1901 and, especially, completion of the boulevard du Souverain, finished in 1910 by the national government and named for King Leopold II, who had died the previous year. A residential suburb within the Brussels Capital Region, it is the community noted for hosting the majority of Japanese expatriates in the metropolitan area.