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 100px|alt=|Athens   1986   Florence   100px|alt=|Florence   1987   Amsterdam  100px|alt=|Amsterdam   1988   West Berlin  100px|alt=|Berlin   1989   Paris Lyon  100px|alt=|Paris   1990   Glasgow 100px|alt=|Glasgow   1991   Dublin    100px|alt=|Dublin  1992   Madrid  100px|alt=|Madrid   1993   Antwerp 100px|alt=|Antwerp   1994   Lisbon  100px|alt=|Lisbon   1995   Luxembourg  100px|alt=|Luxembourg   1996   Copenhagen  100px|alt=|Copenhagen   1997   Thessaloniki  100px|alt=|Thessaloniki   1998   Stockholm  100px|alt=|Stockholm   1999   Weimar  100px|alt=|Weimar   2000   Avignon Bergen Bologna Brussels Helsinki Krakow Prague Reykjavík Zaragoza  100px|alt=|Krakow   2001   Porto Rotterdam  100px|alt=|Rotterdam   2002   Bruges Salamanca  100px|alt=|Salamanca   2003   Graz  100px|alt=|Graz   2004   Genoa Lille  100px|alt=|Genoa   2005   Cork, Limerick  100px|alt=|Cork   2006   Patras  100px|alt=|Patras   2007   Sibiu LuxembourgGreater Region  100px|alt=|Sibiu  Sibiu 2007  2008   Liverpool Stavanger Sandnes  100px|alt=|Liverpool  Liverpool 2008 Stavanger 2008  2009   Linz Vilnius  100px|alt=|Vilnius  Vilnius 2009Linz 2009 2010   Essen Sarajevo  Pécs  100px|alt=|Istanbul  Essen 2010 Pecs 2010  2011   Turku Tallinn  100px|alt=|Tallinn  Turku 2011 Tallinn 2011 2012   Guimarães Maribor  100px|alt=|Guimaraes  Guimarães 2012 Maribor 2012 2013   Marseille Košice  Marseille Provence 2013 Košice 2013  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  

 References 

 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

Category:European Union
Category:Cultural geography