52°23N 4°54E, pop (2000e) 746 000. Major European port and capital city of The Netherlands, in North Holland province, W Netherlands; at the junction of the R Amstel and an arm of the Ijsselmeer; chartered, 1300; member of the Hanseatic League, 1369; capital, 1808; airport (Schiphol), railway; two universities (1632, 1880); harbour industry developed after World War 2; major transshipping point; important commercial and cultural centre; banking, shipbuilding, engineering, cars, aircraft, textiles, brewing, foodstuffs, publishing and printing, chemicals, data processing, diamond-cutting; Concertgebouw Orchestra; House of Anne Frank, Rembrandt House (1606), Oude Kerk (consecrated 1306), Nieuwe Kerk (15th-c), royal palace (17th-c), Rijksmuseum, Stedelijk Museum, Van Gogh Museum; international Windjammer Regatta Sail Amsterdam (Aug).
Amsterdam Location Flag Country Netherlands Province North Holland Population 741,329 (1 August 2006) Demonym Amsterdammer Coordinates 52°22′N 4°54′E Website www.amsterdam.nl Mayor Job Cohen (PvdA)Amsterdam (help·info), the official capital of the Netherlands, lies on the banks of two bodies of water, the IJ bay and the Amstel river. Amsterdam is also one of the core urban centres of the greater metropolitan area called "Randstad" which encompasses other Dutch cities such as Haarlem, Utrecht, The Hague and Rotterdam and has a population of over 7.5 million.
Amsterdam has one of the largest historic city centres in Europe, dating largely from the 17th century.
Although Amsterdam is officially designated as the capital of the Netherlands, it has never been (save a brief period between 1808 and 1810), the seat of the court, government, or parliament of the Netherlands, which are all located at The Hague. Amsterdam is also not the capital of the province in which it is located, North Holland, whose capital is located at Haarlem.
Amsterdam is famous for its free-spirited liberalism, diversity and tolerance.
History
Amsterdam began as a fishing village in the in the late 12th century. The damming of the river Amstel gave it its name (in Dutch: Amstelredam "Dam in the Amstel", turned into Amsterdam in the course of time). The traditional founding of the city of Amsterdam is October 27, 1275, when the inhabitants living around the Amstel dam were granted freedom from paying the tolls associated with the locks and bridges of Holland. From the 14th century on, Amsterdam flourished, largely on the basis of trade with the cities of the Hanseatic League. Jews from Spain and Portugal, prosperous merchants from Antwerp (economic and religious refugees from the part of the Low Countries still controlled by Spain), Huguenots from France (persecuted for their religion) sought safety in Amsterdam.
The 17th century is considered Amsterdam's "Golden Age". In the early 17th century Amsterdam became one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Ships sailed from Amsterdam to the Baltic Sea, North America, Africa and present-day Indonesia and Brazil and formed the basis of a worldwide trading network. Amsterdam was the most important point for the trans-shipment of goods in Europe and it was the leading financial centre of the world.
The 18th and early 19th centuries saw a decline in Amsterdam's prosperity. The wars of the Dutch Republic with the United Kingdom and France took their toll on Amsterdam. In Amsterdam new developments were started by people like Samuel Sarphati who found their inspiration in Paris.
The end of the 19th century is sometimes called Amsterdam's second Golden Age. The Amsterdam-Rhine Canal was dug to give Amsterdam a direct connection to the Rhine and the North Sea Canal to give the port a shorter connection to the North Sea.
Shortly before the First World War the city began expanding and new suburbs were built.
Coat of arms
The coat of arms of Amsterdam is composed of three St Andrew's crosses, aligned vertically, but rotated 90 degrees for the flag.
City government
As all Dutch municipalities, Amsterdam is governed by a mayor, his aldermen, and the municipal council. However, unlike most other Dutch municipalities, Amsterdam is subdivided into fifteen stadsdelen (boroughs), a system that was implemented in the 1980s to improve local governance. The fifteenth, Westpoort, covers the harbour of Amsterdam, has very few inhabitants, and is governed by the central municipal council.
See also: List of mayors of Amsterdam
Tourist attractions
Amsterdam is noted for many outstanding museums, including the Rijksmuseum, the Stedelijk Museum, Rembrandt House Museum, and its world-class symphony orchestra, the Concertgebouworkest, whose home base is the Concertgebouw.
Amsterdam is also famous for its red-light district, de Wallen. However, this is not unique to Amsterdam as other Dutch cities such as Utrecht, The Hague, Leeuwarden, Haarlem and Groningen also have "Hoerenbuurten" ("Hooker areas").
Nightlife
Amsterdam has a vibrant nightlife and is famous for its many (lounge) clubs.
Amsterdam has a vibrant gay scene centred around The Reguliersdwarsstraat next to Rembrandtplein.
Weather
Amsterdam enjoys a moderate temperate climate, with the weather patterns being strongly influenced by Amsterdam's proximity to the Atlantic Ocean to the west and the prevailing westerly winds.
Economy
Amsterdam is the financial/business capital of the Netherlands and repeatedly chosen the fifth most important city in Europe to do business after London, Frankfurt, Paris and Brussels, but has reacently moved to a sixth place just behind Barcelona (Cushman and Wakefield). Many large Dutch corporations and banks have their headquarters in Amsterdam, like ABN Amro, Heineken, ING Group, Ahold, Delta Lloyd Group and Philips. KPMG International's global headquarter is located in Amsterdam, just as the European headquarter of Cisco Systems.
Because of the many large companies in Amsterdam, and the rest of the Netherlands, Reuters has a relatively large representation in the city.
Though many subsidiaries are located along the old canals, more and more companies decide to move to a newly built office tower outside the city centre.
The Amsterdam Stock Exchange (AEX) is part of Euronext, and is the oldest stock exchange on earth.
Academia
Amsterdam has two universities: the University of Amsterdam (Universiteit van Amsterdam), and the Free University (Vrije Universiteit). Amsterdam's International Institute of Social History is one of the world's largest documentary and research institutions concerning social history, and especially the history of the labour movement. Amsterdam's Hortus Botanicus, founded in the early 1600s, is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world, with many old and rare specimens, amongst which the coffee plant that served as the parent for the entire coffee culture in Central and South America.
Public transport
Public transport in Amsterdam, operated by Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf, Connexxion, Arriva, and Nederlandse Spoorwegen, consists of:
national and international train connections 3 metro lines, 1 light rail line and 1 metro line under construction, together the Amsterdam metro 16 tram lines An express tram line (IJtram) 55 local bus lines regional bus lines several ferries for pedestrians and cyclists across the IJ (free of charge) a Fast Flying Ferry towards Velsen-Zuid on the North Sea shore local night bus linesA new underground line, the North/South Line (Noord/Zuidlijn) is under construction. The estimated completion date is in 2012.(See also Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf, Amsterdam metro, Amsterdam Centraal).
History
During the construction of the Amsterdam metro, plans to demolish the entire former Jewish neighbourhood near the Nieuwmarkt led to strong protests. The metro was still built (wall decorations at the Nieuwmarkt station are dedicated to the protests), but plans to build a highway through the neighbourhood in the centre of Amsterdam were abolished.
Private transport
Amsterdam is known as one of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the world and is a center of bicycle culture.
Airport
Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, is less than 20 minutes by train from Amsterdam Central Station.
Sports
Amsterdam is the home town of Ajax, a team in the Dutch Football League. Its home base is the modern stadium Amsterdam ArenA, located in the south-east of the city. The team shares that facility with the Amsterdam Admirals, an American football team.
In 1928, Amsterdam hosted the Games of the IXth Olympiad.
Amsterdam also is home to a famous ice rink, the Jaap Eden baan.
The city also has a baseball team, the Amsterdam Pirates who play in the Dutch Major League. Three field hockey teams, Amsterdam, Pinoké and Hurley, and a basketball team, the Amsterdam Astronauts who play in the Dutch premier division and play their games in the Sporthallen Zuid, near the Olympic Stadium. August - Amsterdam Pride, first weekend of August, gay pride weekend August - Hartjesdag, 3rd Weekend in August. August - Uitmarkt, last weekend in August, the start of the cultural season August - Amsterdam Tournament, late August, International Football-tournament hosted by AFC Ajax August - Sail Amsterdam, a five-yearly event, when tall ships from all over the world can be visited. October - Amsterdam Marathon, mid-October October – The Bokbier Beer Festival in the Beurs van Berlage (Old stock Exchange) October – Grachtenrace (Canal Race), 25km rowing race, 2nd Saturday in October. November – The International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam November - Cannabis Cup, mid-November annual cannabis competition, hosted by High Times. December – Sinterklaas
Demography
Demographic evolution of Amsterdam between 1300 and 2006| 1300 | 1400 | 1500 | 1600 | 1650 | 1796 | 1830 | 1849 | 1879 | 1899 | 1925 | 2006 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1,000 | 3,000 | 12,000 | 60,000 | 140,000 | 200,600 | 202,400 | 224,000 | 317,000 | 510,900 | 714,200 | 743,905 |
Famous Amsterdammers
| Karel Appel - painter Frits Bolkestein - Dutch politician and former EU commissioner George Hendrik Breitner - painter Simon Carmiggelt - writer and columnist Johan Cruijff - football player Anne Frank - Holocaust diarist Theo van Gogh - filmmaker and columnist André Hazes - singer | Freddy Heineken - beer magnate Meindert Hobbema - painter Jozef Israëls - painter Wim Kok - former prime minister Harry Mulisch - writer Multatuli - writer Rembrandt - painter Baruch Spinoza - philosopher |
For an overview of more famous Amsterdammers see this category
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