Urk - Flevoland For centuries, Urk did not look out over a polder landscape, but was surrounded by water on all sides. A thousand years ago it was actually a fairly large island with enough space for the locals to farm. They also fished in rowboats, always staying close to shore. Yet with every storm, the Zuiderzee swept away another piece of farmland, until the Urkers had only one survival strategy left: to fish further afield.