Hazebrouck (Dutch: Hazebroek) is a commune in the Nord department in northern France. Hazebrouck in Flanders was a small market town before it became an important railway junction in the 1860s. West Flemish was the usual popular language used in the town until 1880. At that time French was taught at school and became spoken thanks to the development of the railways which links Hazebrouck to Lille to Calais and Dunkirk.