# European Capital of Culture

The **European Capital of Culture** is a city (or multiple cities) chosen by the European Union for a period of one calendar year. The city is given a chance to show its cultural life and cultural development. Most of the cities are very popular and are known internationally (by people around the world).

The idea to have a European Capital of Culture came from Melina Mercouri who was the Minster for Culture in Greece. It began in 1985. It was originally known as the 'European City of Culture' until 1999, when it was re-named 'European Capital of Culture'.

The European Capitals of Culture for 2025 are Chemnitz in Germany, and Nova Gorica in Slovenia (with Gorizia in Italy).

## List of by year

### Past years

List of capitals chosen by year| Year | Cities | Image | Details |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1985 |  Athens |  |  |
| 1986 |  Florence |  |  |
| 1987 |  Amsterdam |  |  |
| 1988 |  West Berlin |  |  |
| 1989 |  Paris Lyon |  |  |
| 1990 |  Glasgow |  |  |
| 1991 |  Dublin |  |  |
| 1992 |  Madrid |  |  |
| 1993 |  Antwerp |  |  |
| 1994 |  Lisbon |  |  |
| 1995 |  Luxembourg |  |  |
| 1996 |  Copenhagen |  |  |
| 1997 |  Thessaloniki |  |  |
| 1998 |  Stockholm |  |  |
| 1999 |  Weimar |  |  |
| 2000 |  Avignon  Bergen  Bologna  Brussels  Helsinki  Krakow  Prague  Reykjavík  Zaragoza |  |  |
| 2001 |  Porto  Rotterdam |  |  |
| 2002 |  Bruges  Salamanca |  |  |
| 2003 |  Graz |  |  |
| 2004 |  Genoa  Lille |  |  |
| 2005 |  Cork, Limerick |  |  |
| 2006 |  Patras |  |  |
| 2007 |  Sibiu  Luxembourg Greater Region |  | Sibiu 2007 Archived 2004-08-30 at the Wayback Machine |
| 2008 |  Liverpool  Stavanger  Sandnes |  | Liverpool 2008 Archived 2007-04-05 at the Wayback Machine Stavanger 2008 Archived 2009-07-13 at the Portuguese Web Archive |
| 2009 |  Linz  Vilnius |  | Vilnius 2009 Linz 2009 |
| 2010 |  Essen  Sarajevo  Pécs |  |  Essen 2010 Archived 2008-09-23 at the Wayback Machine Pecs 2010 Archived 2018-10-01 at the Wayback Machine |
| 2011 |  Turku  Tallinn |  | Turku 2011 Archived 2010-07-23 at the Wayback Machine Tallinn 2011 |
| 2012 |  Guimarães  Maribor |  | Guimarães 2012 Archived 2008-12-16 at the Wayback Machine Maribor 2012 Archived 2010-03-05 at the Wayback Machine |
| 2013 |  Marseille  Košice | Marseille Provence 2013 Archived 2010-08-26 at the Wayback Machine Košice 2013 Archived 2008-02-16 at the Wayback Machine |
| 2014 |  Riga  Umeå |
| 2015 |  Mons  Plzeň |
| 2016 |  San Sebastián  Wrocław |
| 2017 |  Aarhus  Paphos |
| 2018 |  Leeuwarden  Valletta |
| 2019 |  Matera  Plovdiv |
| 2020-2021 |  Galway  Rijeka |
| 2022 |  Esch-sur-Alzette  Kaunus  Novi Sad |
| 2023 |  Eleusis  Timișoara  Veszprém |
| 2024 |  Bad Ischl  Bodø  Tartu |
| 2025 |  Chemnitz  Nova Gorica with  Gorizia |

### Future years

These are the planned European Capitals of Culture, according to the official EU website.

Future years| Year | City | Details |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2026 |  Oulu  Trenčín |
| 2027 |  Évora  Liepāja |
| 2028 |  Bourges  České Budějovice  Skopje |
| 2029 |  Kiruna  Lublin |
| 2030 |   TBA |
| 2031 |   |
| 2032 |   |

* García, B. (2005) “*De-constructing the City of Culture: The long term cultural legacies of Glasgow 1990*” in: *Review Issue of Urban Studies* (vol 42, n5/6) (pp. 1–28)
* García, B. (2004) “*Cultural Policy in European Cities: Lessons from Experience, Prospects for the Future*” in: *Special edition on Cultural Policy and Regeneration, Local Economy* (vol 19, n4) (pp. 312–326)
* García, B. (2004) “*Urban Regeneration, Arts Programming and Major events: Glasgow 1990, Sydney 2000 and Barcelona 2004*” in: Gibson, L. & Stevenson, D. (Eds) *Special Issue of the International Journal of Cultural Policy: Urban Space and the Uses of Culture* (vol 10, n 1) (pp. 103–118)

## Other websites

* European Cultural Capitals and Months