Groningen

This article is about the Dutch city and municipality. For the province, see Groningen (province). For other uses, see Groningen (disambiguation).

"OOG" redirects here. For other uses, see OOG (disambiguation).
Groningen
Grunn(en) (Gronings)
City and municipality
Gasunie building
Gasunie building
Grote Markt Square
Grote Markt Square
Groningen City Theater
Groningen City Theater
Aa Church/Korenbeurs
Aa Church/Korenbeurs
Martini Tower
Martini Tower
Goudkantoor
Goudkantoor
Groninger Museum
Groninger Museum
White flag with a horizontal green band in the middle
Flag
Two black eagles holding a crowned yellow shield
Coat of arms
Official logo of Groningen
Brandmark
Highlighted position of Groningen in a municipal map of Groningen
Location in Groningen
Groningen is located in Netherlands
Groningen
Groningen
Location within the Netherlands
Groningen is located in Europe
Groningen
Groningen
Location within Europe
Coordinates: 53°13′08″N 06°34′03″E / 53.21889°N 6.56750°E / 53.21889; 6.56750
Country Netherlands
ProvinceGroningen
City HallGroningen City Hall
Government
[2]
 • BodyMunicipal council
 • MayorKoen Schuiling (VVD)
Area
[3]
 • Municipality
197.96 km2 (76.43 sq mi)
 • Land185.60 km2 (71.66 sq mi)
 • Water12.36 km2 (4.77 sq mi)
Elevation
[4]
7 m (23 ft)
Highest elevation
12 m (39 ft)
Population
 (January 1st 2023)
 • Municipality
238 147[1]
 • Density1,257/km2 (3,260/sq mi)
 • Urban
216,655
 • Metro
360,748
Demonym(s)Groninger, Stadjer
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Postcode
9700–9747
Area code050
Websitegemeente.groningen.nl/en
Map
Click on the map for a fullscreen view

Groningen (/ˈɡroʊnɪŋən/ GROH-ning-ən, UK also /ˈɡrɒnɪŋən/ GRON-ing-ən,[5][6] Dutch: [ˈɣroːnɪŋə(n)] ⓘ; Gronings: Grunn or Grunnen [ˈχrʏnn̩]) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of the northern part of the country;[7][8] as of December 2021, it had 235,287 inhabitants, making it the sixth largest city/municipality in the Netherlands and the second largest outside the Randstad.

Groningen was established more than 950 years ago and gained city rights in 1245.[9] Due to its relatively isolated location from the then successive Dutch centres of power (Utrecht, The Hague, Brussels), Groningen was historically reliant on itself and nearby regions. As a Hanseatic city, it was part of the North German trade network, but later it mainly became a regional market centre. At the height of its power in the 15th century, Groningen could be considered an independent city-state and it remained autonomous until the French era.[10]

Today Groningen is a university city, home to some of the country's leading higher education institutes; University of Groningen (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen), which is the Netherlands's second oldest university, and Hanze University of Applied Sciences (Hanzehogeschool Groningen).[11] Students comprise an estimated 25% of its total population and makes it the country's demographically youngest city.[12]

  1. ^ "CBS Statline kerncijfers". cbs.nl.
  2. ^ "Burgemeester" [Mayor] (in Dutch). Gemeente Groningen. Archived from the original on 22 December 2013. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  3. ^ "Kerncijfers wijken en buurten 2020" [Key figures for neighbourhoods 2020]. StatLine (in Dutch). CBS. 24 July 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  4. ^ "Postcodetool for 9712HW". Actueel Hoogtebestand Nederland (in Dutch). Het Waterschapshuis. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 22 December 2013.
  5. ^ "Groningen". The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (5th ed.). HarperCollins. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  6. ^ "Groningen" Archived 1 May 2019 at the Wayback Machine (US) and "Groningen". Oxford Dictionaries UK English Dictionary. Oxford University Press. n.d. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  7. ^ "Minicruises to Groningen". Holland Norway Lines. Archived from the original on 15 September 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  8. ^ "Groningen: Small City, Full of Life". University of Groningen. 19 September 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  9. ^ "Stadsrechten in Groningen en Drenthe". 24 July 2011. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  10. ^ van de Broek, Jan (2007). Groningen, een stad apart : over het verleden van een eigenzinnige stad (1000-1600). Assen: Koninklijke Van Gorcum. p. 71.
  11. ^ administrator. "Study in Groningen, The Netherlands". Study In Holland. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  12. ^ "Groningen: student city". Groningen.nl. Archived from the original on 9 August 2023. Retrieved 15 September 2022.