page_title: Antwerp
section_title: Municipality
hierarchical_section_title: Antwerp / Municipality
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Karte der Distrikte von Antwerpen English: Map of the Districts of Antwerp Deutsch: Plan des districts d'Anvers
context_page_description: Antwerp is a city in Belgium and the capital of Antwerp province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, it is the most populous city proper in Belgium, and with a metropolitan population of around 1,200,000 people, it is the second largest metropolitan region after Brussels.
  Antwerp is on the River Scheldt, linked to the North Sea by the river's Westerschelde estuary. It is about 40 kilometres north of Brussels, and about 15 kilometres south of the Dutch border. The Port of Antwerp is one of the biggest in the world, ranking second in Europe and within the top 20 globally. The city is also known for its diamond industry and trade.
  Both economically and culturally, Antwerp is and has long been an important city in the Low Countries, especially before and during the Spanish Fury and throughout and after the subsequent Dutch Revolt. The Bourse of Antwerp, originally built in 1531 and re-built in 1872, was the world's first purpose-built commodity exchange. It was founded before stocks and shares existed, so was not strictly a stock exchange.
context_section_description: The municipality comprises the city of Antwerp proper and several towns. It is divided into nine entities (districts):
  Antwerp
  Berchem
  Berendrecht-Zandvliet-Lillo
  Borgerhout
  Deurne
  Ekeren
  Hoboken
  Merksem
  Wilrijk
  In 1958, in preparation of the 10-year development plan for the Port of Antwerp, the municipalities of Berendrecht-Zandvliet-Lillo were integrated into the city territory and lost their administrative independence. During the 1983 merger of municipalities, conducted by the Belgian government as an administrative simplification, the municipalities of Berchem, Borgerhout, Deurne, Ekeren, Hoboken, Merksem and Wilrijk were merged into the city. At that time the city was also divided into the districts mentioned above. Simultaneously, districts received an appointed district council; later district councils became elected bodies.
caption: Districts of Antwerp
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