  duisburg () is a german city in the western part of the ruhr area (ruhrgebiet) in north rhine-westphalia. it is an independent metropolitan borough within regierungsbezirk dÃ¼sseldorf. with the world's biggest inland harborthe rhine: an eco-biography, 1815-2000. mark coic. pg 22 and its proximity to dÃ¼sseldorf international airport, duisburg has become an important venue for commerce and steel production. today's city is a result of numerous incorporations of surrounding towns and smaller cities. it is the fifteenth-largest city in germany and the fifth-largest city in north rhine-westphalia with 488,218 residents at the end of 2010. the city is renowned for its steel industry. the last remaining coal mine closed down in the summer of 2009, but duisburg has never been a coal-mining center to the same extent as other places in the ruhr region. all blast furnaces in the ruhr are now located in duisburg. in 2000 49% of all hot metal and 34.4% of all pig iron in germany was produced here. it also has a large brewery, the kÃ¶nig brauerei, located in duisburg-beeck, which makes the kÃ¶nig pilsener brand. the university of duisburg-essen, with 39,000 students, ranks among the 10 largest german universities. == geography == duisburg is located in the lowland rhine area at the confluence of the rhine and ruhr and near the outskirts of the bergisches land. the city spreads along both sides of these rivers. === adjacent cities === the following cities border duisburg (clockwise starting from north-east): oberhausen, mÃ¼lheim an der ruhr, ratingen, dÃ¼sseldorf, meerbusch, krefeld, moers, rheinberg, and dinslaken. === districts === since 1 january 1975, duisburg has been divided into seven districts or boroughs (stadtbezirk) from the north to the south:{{cite web |url=http://www.
Cities_in_North_Rhine-Westphalia Duisburg Imperial_free_cities Members_of_the_Hanseatic_League Municipalities_in_North_Rhine-Westphalia Populated_places_on_the_Rhine Port_cities_and_towns_in_Germany Rhine_Province World_War_II_strategic_bombing