Meppel is a municipality and a city in the northeast of the Netherlands, in the south-west of the province Drenthe.
Meppel is the smallest municipality in the province of Drenthe, with a total area of 58 km².
People born in Meppel are occasionally referred to as 'Meppeler Muggen'; this translates as mosquitoes/gnats from Meppel. This is due to a traditional folk tale. The people of Meppel thought the church tower was on fire. After closer inspection it was only a swarm of mosquitoes.