Rotterdam

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Rotterdam
File:Rotterdamochtendmist.jpg

Location

Country
The Netherlands
Province
South Holland
Population
604,819 (2005)
Coordinates
51° 55' N.; 4° 30' E.
Website
www.rotterdam.nl
Mayor
Ivo Opstelten
For other places named Rotterdam, see Rotterdam (disambiguation)

Rotterdam (pronunciationⓘ), located in the province of South Holland, is the second largest municipality in the Netherlands (after Amsterdam). The city has the largest port in Europe and was until recently the largest port on earth; it is found on the banks of the river the Nieuwe Maas, one of the streams in the delta formed by the Rhine and Meuse rivers. The name "Rotterdam" is derived from a dam in a small river, the Rotte, which joins the Nieuwe Maas at the heart of the city.

Municipality

As of 1 January 2006 (CBS statistics) the municipality had an area of 304.22 km² (206.44 km² land) with a total population of 588,500. The population of the greater Rotterdam metropolitan area (Rijnmond) is 1,145,673 (01-01-2006, CBS). In 1965 the municipality population was 731,000 but by 1984 it had decreased to 555,000.

In some occasions, Rotterdam is listed as part of the Rotterdam-Den Haag(The Hague) urban area, which has a population of 3,345,000 and also consists of cities like Schiedam, Vlaardingen, Spijkenisse, Rijswijk, Delft and Zoetermeer. This area is considered to be the 8th biggest urban area of Europe.

Apart from the city itself the municipality consists of the following towns, villages and townships: Charlois (including Heijplaat), Delfshaven, Feijenoord, Hillegersberg-Schiebroek, Hoek van Holland, Hoogvliet, IJsselmonde, Kralingen-Crooswijk, Noord, Overschie, Pernis, Prins Alexander, and the industrial and port areas Botlek, Eemhaven, Europoort, Maasvlakte, Spaanse Polder, Vondelingenplaat, Waalhaven.

Harbour

Main article: Port of Rotterdam
The Waalhaven by night
Europe Container Terminals

Rotterdam has the largest port in Europe. Since 2004 Asian ports like Singapore and Shanghai have taken over its world leading position. In 2004 Rotterdam was the seventh largest port in the world in terms of containers (TEU) handled.

Most important for the port of Rotterdam are the petrochemical industry and general cargo transhipment handlings. The harbour functions as an important transit point for transport of bulk and other goods between the European continent and other parts of the world. From Rotterdam goods are transported by ship, river barge, train or road. Since 2000 the Betuweroute, a fast cargo railway from Rotterdam to Germany, has been under construction. Large oil refineries are located west of the city. The rivers Meuse and Rhine also provide excellent access to the hinterland.

In the first half of the twentieth century the port activities moved from the centre towards the North Sea. The Nieuwe Waterweg was dug from Rotterdam to the North Sea, a canal to disembogue the shallow Rhine and Meuse. The Nieuwe Waterweg was ready in 1872 and all sorts of industrial activity formed on the banks of this canal.

Rotterdam's harbour territory has been enlarged by the construction of the Europoort (gate to Europe) complex along the mouth of the Nieuwe Waterweg, and by the Maasvlakte in the North Sea near Hoek van Holland. The lay-out of a second Maasvlakte was the subject of political debate in the 1990s, because it would be partly government-financed. Construction started in the summer of 2004 (press release, PDF in Dutch).

History and recent developments

Rotterdam, by Johan Barthold Jongkind

Rotterdam was granted city rights on 7 June 1340 by Willem IV of Holland.

The port of Rotterdam grew out, slowly but steadily, to a port of importance; in Rotterdam one of the six chambers of the VOC, or the Netherlands East India Company, was seated.

The greatest spurt of growth, both in port activity and population, followed after the already mentioned completion of the Nieuwe Waterweg in 1872. The city and harbor started to expand on the South bank of the river. Delivering evidence of its rapid growth and success is the skyscraper in the French Chateau style, the White House, or Witte Huis, built in the American spirit of office buildings in 1898; its height is 45 m, it was at the time of completion the tallest office building in Europe.

On May 14, 1940 Rotterdam was bombed by the German Luftwaffe, on the last of five days of war in the Netherlands (save Zeeland). The heart of the city was almost completely destroyed, which Ossip Zadkine later expressed strikingly with his statue Stad zonder hart (City without a heart). The statue is located near the Leuvehaven, not far from the Erasmusbrug in the north of the city. From the 1950s through the 1970s the city was rebuilt. It remained quite windy and open until the city councils from the 1980s on began developing an active architectural policy. Daring and new styles of apartments, office buildings and recreation facilities resulted in a more 'livable' city center with a new skyline. In the 1990s a new business centre on the south bank of the river, the Kop van Zuid has been built. The White House survived the bombing campaign.

Rotterdam, Amsterdam, The Hague and a number of smaller cities in the west of the country are expanding towards each other to the extent that the entire area is sometimes denoted as a single metropole known as Randstad.

Demographics

With 55% of the inhabitants earning a low income, Rotterdam has its fair share of typical urban problems, such as dilapidated inner city areas.

Racial make-up of the city

Figures are from 2004:

Rotterdam is the city of the Netherlands with the highest percentage of non-western foreigners. Nearly half the population is not born or have at least one parent who is not born in the Netherlands. The city has the biggest Cape Verdian community in the world outside of Cape Verde and the biggest Antillean community outside of the Dutch Antilles.

Historical population

Geography

Satellite image of Rotterdam

Rotterdam is divided into North Rotterdam and South Rotterdam by the river Nieuwe Maas (for connections see that article). A former railway lift bridge "De Hef" is preserved as a monument, in lifted position. It connects the Noordereiland island with 'Rotterdam-South'.

Education

Rotterdam has one major university, the Erasmus University Rotterdam, named after one of the city's famous former inhabitants, Desiderius Erasmus. Many of the departments are world renowned. The Rotterdam School of Management is a top ranked MBA school. In Financial Times' 2005 rankings it placed 29th globally and 7th in Europe. The School of Economics is ranked 8th globally. Another department, Erasmus MC (Medical School), holds the 3rd worldwide ranking in medical research, behind the American institutions Harvard and Johns Hopkins.

There are also three Hogescholen in Rotterdam. These schools award their students a Bachelor degree. The three Hogescholen are Hogeschool Rotterdam, Hogeschool INHOLLAND and Hogeschool voor Muziek en Dans.

Students in higher education comprise around 20% of the Rotterdam's population.

Museums

Rotterdam has many musea. Well known museums are the Boijmans-van Beuningen Museum, the Historisch Museum, the Volkenkundig Museum (foreign peoples and cultures), the KunstHal (arthall), the Maritiem Museum and the Brandweermuseum (Fire brigade museum). Other museums include the tax museum, historical museum the Dubbelde Palmboom en the Schielandhuis.

Culture

Rotterdam was one of the European Culture Capitals of 2001. The city has its own orchestra, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra with its world famous musical director Valery Gergiev, a large congress and concert building De Doelen, plus many theatres (among which the new Luxor theatre) and movie theatres. The spacious Ahoy-complex in the south of the city is being used for pop concerts, exhibitions, tennis tournaments and other such activities. A major Zoo called "Blijdorp" is situated at the North side of Rotterdam, complete with a walkthrough sea aquarium called "Oceanium".

The city is home to the Rotterdam Academy of Fine Arts.

Rotterdam is currently going through somewhat of a renaissance, with some urban renewal projects featuring ambitious architecture, an increasingly sparkling nightlife, and a host of summer festivals celebrating the city's multicultural population and identity, such as the Caribbean-inspired 'Summer Carnival', the Dance Parade, Rotterdam 666, the Metropolis popfestival and the World Port days. With the International Filmfestival in january, Poetry International Festival in June, the Valery Gergiev Festival in September they make Rotterdam a real event city.

The self-image of the city is that of a no-nonsense workers' city. In that sense, there is a healthy competition with Amsterdam, which is often viewed as the 'cultural' capital of the Netherlands.

Rotterdam is also the home of Gabber, the real sound of Holland with hard beats and samples. Bands like Neophyte and Rotterdam Terror Corps (RTC) started all in Rotterdam.

Architecture

Modern residential architecture (cube houses) in downtown Rotterdam

In the first decades of the 20th century some influential architecture in the modern style was built in Rotterdam. Notable are the Van Nelle fabriek (1929) a monument of modern factory design by Brinkman en Van der Vlugt, and Feyenoords soccer stadium de Kuip (1936) also by Brinkman en Van der Vlugt. The architect J. J. P. Oud was a famous Rotterdammer in those days.

During the early stages of World War II the center of Rotterdam was bombed by the Germans, destroying much of the older buildings in the center of the city. After initial crisis re-construction the center of Rotterdam has become the site of ambitious new architecture.

Rotterdam is also famous for its Kubuswoningen or cube houses build by an architect Piet Blom in 1984. In addition to that there are many international well known architects based in Rotterdam like O.M.A (Rem Koolhaas), MVRDV and Neutelings & Riedijk to name a few. Further, newer and upcoming offices like Star (strategies + architecture) and board - architecture and urbanism.

The Erasmus Bridge
The Euromast

Rotterdam houses several of the tallest structures in the Netherlands.

  • The Erasmus Bridge is a 2,600-foot cable stayed bridge linking the north and south of Rotterdam. Held up by a 138 meter tall pylon, with a characteristic bend.
  • Rotterdam has the tallest residential building in the Netherlands, called Montevideo: 152 meter
  • Rotterdam is also home to the tallest office builing Delftse Poort: 151 meter, which houses Nationale Nederlanden insurance company, part of ING Group. [1], [2]
  • The city also houses the 186 meter tall Euromast (Eurotower), which has long been a major tourist attraction.

Rotterdam has a reputation in being a platform for the architectural discurse and education. This is obvious by the Berlage Institute a postgraduate laboratory of architecture, and the NAi (Netherlands Architecture Institute), which is open to the public and has various very good exhibitions on architecture and urban planning issues.

Sports

File:Feyenoord.gif

Rotterdam is the home of two Eredivisie football clubs (Feyenoord and Sparta), one Eerste Divisie club (Excelsior,but they're Eerste Divisie champion and they also play in the Eredivisie next season) and one Hoofdklasse club (PVV DOTO). Feyenoord play in the Dutch Premier League and were Dutch champions (for the last time) in 1999. In 2002 Feyenoord won the UEFA Cup. The large Feyenoord stadium with its popular name De Kuip (The Tub) in the southeast of the city has hosted many international football games, including the final of Euro 2000.

Rotterdam has its own annual international marathon, which offers one of the fastest courses in the world. From 1985 until 1998 the world record was set in Rotterdam, first by Carlos Lopes and later in 1988 by Belayneh Dinsamo. The marathon starts and ends on the Coolsingel in the heart of Rotterdam.

Shopping

Well-known streets in Rotterdam are the shopping center the Lijnbaan (the first set of pedestrian streets of the country, opened in 1953), the Coolsingel with the city hall, and the Weena, which runs from the Central Station to the Hofplein (square).

A modern shopping venue is de 'Beurstraverse', also informally called 'Koopgoot'. The Koopgoot crosses the Coolsingel at substreet level.

Commerce and Industry

Rotterdam is home to the Dutch half of Unilever, and Mittal Steel Company N.V., the world's largest steel company.

Rotterdam has the largest port of Europe. The Port of Rotterdam has a strong relationship with the Port of Shanghai, the only port in the world exceeding the port of Rotterdam in terms of containers and oil shipped.

The Erasmus University has a strong focus on research and education in management and economics. The University is located on the east side of the city and is surrounded by numerous multinational firms. On Brainpark I, Brainpark II, Brainpark III and 'Het Rivium' you can find offices from Deloitte, PWC, AIG, KPMG, CMG, Procter & Gamble, Coca Cola Company, Cap Gemini, Ernst and Young etc. In the centre of the city you find the above mentioned Unilever offices, but also Robeco, Fortis (including Mees Pierson and Stad Rotterdam Verzekeringen) ABN AMRO, ING (Nationale Nederlanden) and the Rotterdam WTC.

Yearly events

Public transport

Rotterdam is well connected in international, national, regional and local public transport systems.

Airport

Albeit much smaller than the major Dutch hub Schiphol airport, Rotterdam has the second largest airport of the country, Rotterdam Airport (formerly known as Zestienhoven), which is located north of the city. The airport has shown a very strong growth over the past 5 years, this is mostly caused by the growth of low-cost carrier market. It is unknown whether the growth can continue in the future because of the environmental regulations.

Train

Building of Rotterdam Central Station from 1953. The Central Station is currently under reconstruction

See also Hofplein Line.

Lightrail

To bridge the gap between national train services and local public transportation the Netherlands Randstad is currently developing a regional lightrail system called Randstad Rail. First trains are scheduled for September 2006.

Metro

Rotterdam operates two local subway lines.

  • Erasmus Line: Rotterdam Central station - Albrandswaard (Rhoon, Poortugaal) - Hoogvliet - Spijkenisse
  • Caland Line: two lines from the northeast of Rotterdam (Ommoord and since September 2005 to the new constructed neighbourhood Nesselande (before it ended at Zevenkamp which is one stop before Nesselande), both in Prins Alexander) and one from Capelle aan den IJssel join; the combined line terminated in the west of Rotterdam, but on November 4, 2002, an extension was opened: the line now connects to the main railway network at Schiedam railway station, has a stop in Pernis and joins the Erasmus Line in Hoogvliet; trains on the Caland Line, like those on the Erasmus Line, terminate in Spijkenisse.
The eastern parts of the Caland Line have some level crossings (with priority), and could therefore be called light rail instead of metro; however, they are integrated in the system; these parts have overhead wires, while the rest has a third rail, the vehicles can handle both.

See also List of Rotterdam metro stations.

Tram

Rotterdam offers 9 tramlines with a total length of 93.4 kilometers.

Bus

Rotterdam offers 38 buslines with a total length of 432.7 kilometers.

Fast Ferry

Miscellaneous

During the summer of 2003 and 2005 there was an artificial beach at the Boompjeskade along the Nieuwe Maas, between the Erasmus Bridge and the Willems Bridge. Swimming was not possible, digging pits was limited to the height of the layer of sand, ca. 50 cm. Alternatively people go the beach of Hoek van Holland.

Statue of Erasmus

Famous Rotterdammers

See also: List of mayors of Rotterdam

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Rotterdam.

famous rotterdammers: Wim van Hanegem

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