Leeuwarden

Leeuwarden (; fy, Ljouwert, longname=yes /; Town Frisian: ''Liwwadden''; Leeuwarder dialect: ''Leewarden'') is a city and municipality in Friesland, Netherlands, with a population of 123,107 (2019). It is the provincial capital and seat of the Provincial Council of Friesland. It is located about 50 km west of Groningen and 110 km north east from the Dutch capital Amsterdam (as the crow flies).

The region has been continuously inhabited since the 10th century. It came to be known as Leeuwarden in the early 9th century AD and was granted city privileges in 1435. It is the main economic hub of Friesland, situated in a green and water-rich environment. Leeuwarden is a former royal residence and has a historic city centre, many historically relevant buildings, and a large shopping centre with squares and restaurants. Leeuwarden was awarded the title European Capital of Culture for 2018.

The Elfstedentocht (Eleven Cities Tour), an ice skating tour passing the eleven cities of Friesland, started and finished in Leeuwarden.

The following towns and villages within the municipality have populations in excess of 1,000 people: Leeuwarden, Stiens, Grou, Goutum, Wergea, Jirnsum, Reduzum, and Wirdum. The municipality is governed by the mayor Sybrand van Haersma Buma and a coalition of the Labour Party, Christian Democratic Appeal, and GreenLeft.

Etymology

The name "Leeuwarden" (or older variants of it) first came into use for Nijehove, the most important of the three villages (the other two being Oldehove and Hoek) which in the early 9th century merged into Leeuwarden (Villa Lintarwrde  825). There is much uncertainty about the origin of the city's name. Historian and archivist Wopke Eekhoff summed up a total of over 200 different spelling variants, of which ''Leeuwarden'' (Dutch), ''Liwwadden'' ( Stadsfries), and ''Ljouwert'' ( West Frisian) are still in use.

The second part of the name is easily explained: ''Warden'', West Frisian/Dutch/Low German for an artificial dwelling-hill, is a designation of terps, reflecting the historical situation.

The first part of the name, ''leeuw'', means lion in modern standard Dutch. This interpretation corresponds with the coat of arms adopted by the city, which features a heraldic lion. However, modern standard Dutch was not used in this region in the Middle Ages, when the city was called ''Lintarwrde''. Some scholars argue that the name of the city is derived from ''leeu-'', a corruption of ''luw-'' (Dutch for sheltered from the wind, cf. the maritime term leeward) or from ''lee-'' (a Dutch word for waterway). ''Sheltered landing place or harbour'' could be the original meaning. This suits the watery province of Friesland and the position of the original three villages at the end of an important estuary called Middelzee.

The name is also similar to that of the French commune Lewarde, located in the Nord Department, an originally Flemish-speaking area annexed to France in the 17th century. Western Flemish was related to Frisian and also to Saxon up to the 11th century.

History

The oldest remains of houses date back to the 2nd century AD in the Roman era and were discovered during an excavation near the Oldehove. Inhabited continuously since the 10th century, the city's first reference as a population centre is in German sources from 1285, and records exist of city privileges granted in 1435. Situated along the Middelzee, it was an active centre of maritime trade. The waterway silted-up in the 13th century.

The Grote of Jacobijnerkerk ( en, Great, or Jacobin Church) is the oldest building in the city. The 15th century was the period of the two opposing Frisian factional parties Vetkopers and Schieringers. The bastions and a moat were built in the period 1481–1494. In 1747 William IV, Prince of Orange was the last stadtholder residing in the Stadhouderlijk Hof. In the first half of the 19th century the fortifications were demolished.

The Jewish community of Leeuwarden was one of the earliest in the Netherlands aside from Amsterdam, and was first mentioned in 1645. By 1670, the city council granted a man referred to as "Jacob the Jew" (in Dutch) permission to build a Jewish cemetery, meaning that there were enough Jews living there to require a cemetery and other communal institutions. Land for 'The Jodenkerkhof' (Jews' cemetery) was purchased in 1679, near the Oldehove tower.

The first synagogue in the city was built in the 17th century as well, and was also used by the city's Catholics who were not allowed to build a house of worship of their own because of the Protestant city authorities. The Jewish community enjoyed generally good relations with authorities in the 18th century and continued to expand throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, reaching a peak population of 1,236 in 1860.

In 1901 the city's population was 32,203.

After occupation by German forces (1940-1945), the Royal Canadian Dragoons disobeyed direct orders on 15 April 1945 and charged into the heavily defended city, driving out German forces by the end of the next day. The anniversary of the liberation is celebrated by the Dragoons and the city, who fly each other's flags on the day.

'' Kneppelfreed'' ( en, Baton Friday) was an incident on 16 November 1951 in front of the courthouse at Wilhelminaplein (Wilhelmina Square), when the police used batons against Frisian language activists during a protest against the exclusive use of Dutch in the courts. A committee of inquiry recommended that the Frisian language should receive legal status as a minority language.

On 19 October 2013, a fire broke out in a clothes shop on a busy pedestrian street. The fire started late in the afternoon and burned through the night, destroying five shops and eleven flats. The only casualty was a 24-year-old man who was living in one of the flats. The birthplace of Mata Hari was at first thought to be destroyed, but survived, albeit with considerable smoke and water damage.

Heraldry

The coat of arms of Leeuwarden is the official symbol of the municipality. It consists of a blue escutcheon, a golden lion, and a crown. The fact that Leeuwarden carries a lion in its seal seems logical, considering that "Leeuw" is Dutch for "Lion". However, it is very plausible the oldest name of the city conceals an indication of water rather than an animal, and some sources suggest that the lion may have only been added after the name became official. It is also possible the coat of arms was a gift to the city from the powerful ''Minnema'' family.

Geography

Leeuwarden is located centrally in Friesland. The military Leeuwarden Air Base lies northwest of the city. East of the city lies recreational area and nature reserve ''De Groene Ster''. It contains the windmill Himriksmole, a golf course and ''AquaZoo Friesland''.

Population centres

On 1 January 2014 parts of the neighbouring Boarnsterhim municipality were added to Leeuwarden. On 1 January 2018 it was enlarged by Leeuwarderadeel and parts of former municipality of Littenseradiel.

Hamlets

The hamlets within the municipality are: Abbenwier, Angwier, Baarderbuorren, Bartlehiem (partially), De Him, De Hoek, De Trije Romers, Domwier, Finsterbuorren, Fûns, Groote Bontekoe, Goatum, Hesens, Hoarne, Hoptille, It Hoflân, It Wiel , Marwert, Midsbuorren, Narderbuorren, Noardein, Oude Schouw (partially), Poelhuzen, Rewert (partially), Skillaerd, Skrins, Suderbuorren, Suorein, Tichelwurk, Truerd, Tsienzerbuorren, Tsjaard, Tsjeintgum, Vierhuis, Vrouwbuurtstermolen (partially), Wammert and Wieuwens

Climate

Culture

Museums

Museums in the city of Leeuwarden:
* Fries Museum. An art, culture and history museum.Tresoar
Tresoar. Retrieved on 28 February 2018. The building (2013) was designed by Hubert-Jan Henket.
** Fries Verzetsmuseum, a museum that documents the impact of World War II on Friesland. The museum is part of the Fries Museum.
* Princessehof Ceramics Museum, a ceramics museum.
* Pier Pander Museum, an art museum dedicated to the works of sculptor Pier Pander.
* Natuurmuseum Fryslân, a natural history museum.
* ''The Other Museum''. Collections: old-timers, model trains, lace and photography, radio and Meccano.
* Tresoar, a historical centre and museum with archives about Friesland.
* Fries Landbouwmuseum, an agricultural museum.

Architecture

There are over 800 Rijksmonuments (national heritage sites) in the municipality of Leeuwarden. The Oldehove, a leaning unfinished church tower, is a symbol of the city. Other well-known buildings in the city centre include the ''Kanselarij'' (former chancellery), the Stadhouderlijk Hof (former residence of the stadtholders of Friesland), the city hall (1715), the ''Waag'' (old weigh house), the Saint Boniface church (an important part of the neogothic movement) and the ''Centraal Apotheek'', a pharmacy in the Art Nouveau style. The ''Blokhuispoort'' is a former prison that has been transformed into a public library, hostel and restaurant.

The '' Froskepôlemolen'' (built in 1896), is the last surviving windmill to have stood in Leeuwarden. The remains of the '' Cammingha-Buurstermolen'' were demolished in 2000. The Slauerhoffbrug is a fully automatic bascule bridge named after the poet Jan Jacob Slauerhoff. It uses two arms to swing a section of road in and out of place within the road itself. This movable bridge is also known as the 'Flying' Drawbridge.

The tallest building in the city is the Achmeatoren ( Achmea insurance tower), built in 2001 and designed by Abe Bonnema – who also designed the second-tallest building, Averotoren at .

File:Leeuwarden, Netherlands - panoramio (26).jpg, Oldehove
File:20120519 Stadhuis Leeuwarden NL.jpg, City hall
File:Leeuwarden Blokhuispoort 40 Voormalige Gevangenis Blokhuispoort.jpg, ''Blokhuispoort''
File:Leeuwarden, Netherlands - panoramio (23).jpg, Leeuwarden canal Kelders
File:Leeuwarden 1558.jpg, ''Centraal Apotheek''
File:Achmeatoren (rechts) vanuit de lucht.JPG, Aerial view of the Achmea tower

Cultural events and festivals

On 6 September 2013 Leeuwarden was voted European Capital of Culture for the year 2018. Many events were organised throughout the year. The largest art project was the ''11Fountains'', fountains in the Frisian eleven cities. The ''Love Fountain'', located in front of the train station, was designed by artist Jaume Plensa. The fountain is seven metres high and consists of two white heads of a boy and a girl, their eyes closed and dreaming.

Annual music festivals are ''Cityrock'', ''Dancetour'', ''Welcome To The Village'', ''Into the Grave'', ''Explore the North'' and ''Fries straatfestival''. Other festivals are ''Noordelijk Film Festival'' (an event for film makers), photofestival ''Noorderlicht'' and the ''Media Art festival''. Other events are ''Racing Expo'' and a large flower market (held on Ascension Day). There is also a weekly cattle market.

Transport

Leeuwarden railway station (opened on 27 October 1863) is the main railway station of Leeuwarden. It is a terminus station of the NS railway line from Zwolle. Regional trains, served by Arriva

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