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.gitattributes

@@ -33,3 +33,4 @@ saved_model/**/* filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
 *.zip filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
 *.zst filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
 *tfevents* filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text
+deployment/model.data filter=lfs diff=lfs merge=lfs -text

chainlit.md

@@ -0,0 +1,14 @@
+# Welcome to Chainlit! 🚀🤖
+
+Hi there, Developer! 👋 We're excited to have you on board. Chainlit is a powerful tool designed to help you prototype, debug and share applications built on top of LLMs.
+
+## Useful Links 🔗
+
+- **Documentation:** Get started with our comprehensive [Chainlit Documentation](https://docs.chainlit.io) 📚
+- **Discord Community:** Join our friendly [Chainlit Discord](https://discord.gg/k73SQ3FyUh) to ask questions, share your projects, and connect with other developers! 💬
+
+We can't wait to see what you create with Chainlit! Happy coding! 💻😊
+
+## Welcome screen
+
+To modify the welcome screen, edit the `chainlit.md` file at the root of your project. If you do not want a welcome screen, just leave this file empty.

deployment/config.json

@@ -0,0 +1,52 @@
+{
+  "architectures": [
+    "MPTForCausalLM"
+  ],
+  "attn_config": {
+    "alibi": true,
+    "alibi_bias_max": 8,
+    "attn_impl": "torch",
+    "attn_pdrop": 0,
+    "attn_type": "multihead_attention",
+    "attn_uses_sequence_id": false,
+    "clip_qkv": null,
+    "prefix_lm": false,
+    "qk_ln": false,
+    "softmax_scale": null
+  },
+  "auto_map": {
+    "AutoConfig": "configuration_mpt.MPTConfig",
+    "AutoModelForCausalLM": "modeling_mpt.MPTForCausalLM"
+  },
+  "d_model": 4096,
+  "emb_pdrop": 0,
+  "embedding_fraction": 1.0,
+  "expansion_ratio": 4,
+  "init_config": {
+    "emb_init_std": null,
+    "emb_init_uniform_lim": null,
+    "fan_mode": "fan_in",
+    "init_div_is_residual": true,
+    "init_gain": 0,
+    "init_nonlinearity": "relu",
+    "init_std": 0.02,
+    "name": "kaiming_normal_",
+    "verbose": 0
+  },
+  "init_device": "cpu",
+  "learned_pos_emb": true,
+  "logit_scale": null,
+  "max_seq_len": 2048,
+  "model_type": "mpt",
+  "n_heads": 32,
+  "n_layers": 32,
+  "no_bias": true,
+  "norm_type": "low_precision_layernorm",
+  "resid_pdrop": 0,
+  "tokenizer_name": "sam-mosaic/gpt-neox-20b-chatml",
+  "torch_dtype": "float32",
+  "transformers_version": "4.28.1",
+  "use_cache": false,
+  "verbose": 0,
+  "vocab_size": 50432
+}

deployment/configuration_mpt.py

@@ -0,0 +1,118 @@
+"""A HuggingFace-style model configuration."""
+from typing import Dict, Optional, Union
+from transformers import PretrainedConfig
+attn_config_defaults: Dict = {'attn_type': 'multihead_attention', 'attn_pdrop': 0.0, 'attn_impl': 'triton', 'qk_ln': False, 'clip_qkv': None, 'softmax_scale': None, 'prefix_lm': False, 'attn_uses_sequence_id': False, 'alibi': False, 'alibi_bias_max': 8}
+init_config_defaults: Dict = {'name': 'kaiming_normal_', 'fan_mode': 'fan_in', 'init_nonlinearity': 'relu', 'init_div_is_residual': True, 'emb_init_std': None, 'emb_init_uniform_lim': None, 'init_std': None, 'init_gain': 0.0}
+
+class MPTConfig(PretrainedConfig):
+    model_type = 'mpt'
+
+    def __init__(self, d_model: int=2048, n_heads: int=16, n_layers: int=24, expansion_ratio: int=4, max_seq_len: int=2048, vocab_size: int=50368, resid_pdrop: float=0.0, emb_pdrop: float=0.0, learned_pos_emb: bool=True, attn_config: Dict=attn_config_defaults, init_device: str='cpu', logit_scale: Optional[Union[float, str]]=None, no_bias: bool=False, verbose: int=0, embedding_fraction: float=1.0, norm_type: str='low_precision_layernorm', use_cache: bool=False, init_config: Dict=init_config_defaults, **kwargs):
+        """The MPT configuration class.
+
+        Args:
+            d_model (int): The size of the embedding dimension of the model.
+            n_heads (int): The number of attention heads.
+            n_layers (int): The number of layers in the model.
+            expansion_ratio (int): The ratio of the up/down scale in the MLP.
+            max_seq_len (int): The maximum sequence length of the model.
+            vocab_size (int): The size of the vocabulary.
+            resid_pdrop (float): The dropout probability applied to the attention output before combining with residual.
+            emb_pdrop (float): The dropout probability for the embedding layer.
+            learned_pos_emb (bool): Whether to use learned positional embeddings
+            attn_config (Dict):  A dictionary used to configure the model's attention module:
+                attn_type (str): type of attention to use. Options: multihead_attention, multiquery_attention
+                attn_pdrop (float): The dropout probability for the attention layers.
+                attn_impl (str): The attention implementation to use. One of 'torch', 'flash', or 'triton'.
+                qk_ln (bool): Whether to apply layer normalization to the queries and keys in the attention layer.
+                clip_qkv (Optional[float]): If not None, clip the queries, keys, and values in the attention layer to
+                    this value.
+                softmax_scale (Optional[float]): If not None, scale the softmax in the attention layer by this value. If None,
+                    use the default scale of ``1/sqrt(d_keys)``.
+                prefix_lm (Optional[bool]): Whether the model should operate as a Prefix LM. This requires passing an
+                    extra `prefix_mask` argument which indicates which tokens belong to the prefix. Tokens in the prefix
+                    can attend to one another bi-directionally. Tokens outside the prefix use causal attention.
+                attn_uses_sequence_id (Optional[bool]): Whether to restrict attention to tokens that have the same sequence_id.
+                    When the model is in `train` mode, this requires passing an extra `sequence_id` argument which indicates
+                    which sub-sequence each token belongs to.
+                    Defaults to ``False`` meaning any provided `sequence_id` will be ignored.
+                alibi (bool): Whether to use the alibi bias instead of position embeddings.
+                alibi_bias_max (int): The maximum value of the alibi bias.
+            init_device (str): The device to use for parameter initialization.
+            logit_scale (Optional[Union[float, str]]): If not None, scale the logits by this value.
+            no_bias (bool): Whether to use bias in all layers.
+            verbose (int): The verbosity level. 0 is silent.
+            embedding_fraction (float): The fraction to scale the gradients of the embedding layer by.
+            norm_type (str): choose type of norm to use
+            multiquery_attention (bool): Whether to use multiquery attention implementation.
+            use_cache (bool): Whether or not the model should return the last key/values attentions
+            init_config (Dict): A dictionary used to configure the model initialization:
+                init_config.name: The parameter initialization scheme to use. Options: 'default_', 'baseline_',
+                    'kaiming_uniform_', 'kaiming_normal_', 'neox_init_', 'small_init_', 'xavier_uniform_', or
+                    'xavier_normal_'. These mimic the parameter initialization methods in PyTorch.
+                init_div_is_residual (Union[int, float, str, bool]): Value to divide initial weights by if ``module._is_residual`` is True.
+                emb_init_std (Optional[float]): The standard deviation of the normal distribution used to initialize the embedding layer.
+                emb_init_uniform_lim (Optional[Union[Tuple[float, float], float]]): The lower and upper limits of the uniform distribution
+                    used to initialize the embedding layer. Mutually exclusive with ``emb_init_std``.
+                init_std (float): The standard deviation of the normal distribution used to initialize the model,
+                    if using the baseline_ parameter initialization scheme.
+                init_gain (float): The gain to use for parameter initialization with kaiming or xavier initialization schemes.
+                fan_mode (str): The fan mode to use for parameter initialization with kaiming initialization schemes.
+                init_nonlinearity (str): The nonlinearity to use for parameter initialization with kaiming initialization schemes.
+                ---
+                See llmfoundry.models.utils.param_init_fns.py for info on other param init config options
+        """
+        self.d_model = d_model
+        self.n_heads = n_heads
+        self.n_layers = n_layers
+        self.expansion_ratio = expansion_ratio
+        self.max_seq_len = max_seq_len
+        self.vocab_size = vocab_size
+        self.resid_pdrop = resid_pdrop
+        self.emb_pdrop = emb_pdrop
+        self.learned_pos_emb = learned_pos_emb
+        self.attn_config = attn_config
+        self.init_device = init_device
+        self.logit_scale = logit_scale
+        self.no_bias = no_bias
+        self.verbose = verbose
+        self.embedding_fraction = embedding_fraction
+        self.norm_type = norm_type
+        self.use_cache = use_cache
+        self.init_config = init_config
+        if 'name' in kwargs:
+            del kwargs['name']
+        if 'loss_fn' in kwargs:
+            del kwargs['loss_fn']
+        super().__init__(**kwargs)
+        self._validate_config()
+
+    def _set_config_defaults(self, config, config_defaults):
+        for (k, v) in config_defaults.items():
+            if k not in config:
+                config[k] = v
+        return config
+
+    def _validate_config(self):
+        self.attn_config = self._set_config_defaults(self.attn_config, attn_config_defaults)
+        self.init_config = self._set_config_defaults(self.init_config, init_config_defaults)
+        if self.d_model % self.n_heads != 0:
+            raise ValueError('d_model must be divisible by n_heads')
+        if any((prob < 0 or prob > 1 for prob in [self.attn_config['attn_pdrop'], self.resid_pdrop, self.emb_pdrop])):
+            raise ValueError("self.attn_config['attn_pdrop'], resid_pdrop, emb_pdrop are probabilities and must be between 0 and 1")
+        if self.attn_config['attn_impl'] not in ['torch', 'flash', 'triton']:
+            raise ValueError(f"Unknown attn_impl={self.attn_config['attn_impl']}")
+        if self.attn_config['prefix_lm'] and self.attn_config['attn_impl'] not in ['torch', 'triton']:
+            raise NotImplementedError('prefix_lm only implemented with torch and triton attention.')
+        if self.attn_config['alibi'] and self.attn_config['attn_impl'] not in ['torch', 'triton']:
+            raise NotImplementedError('alibi only implemented with torch and triton attention.')
+        if self.attn_config['attn_uses_sequence_id'] and self.attn_config['attn_impl'] not in ['torch', 'triton']:
+            raise NotImplementedError('attn_uses_sequence_id only implemented with torch and triton attention.')
+        if self.embedding_fraction > 1 or self.embedding_fraction <= 0:
+            raise ValueError('model.embedding_fraction must be between 0 (exclusive) and 1 (inclusive)!')
+        if isinstance(self.logit_scale, str) and self.logit_scale != 'inv_sqrt_d_model':
+            raise ValueError(f"self.logit_scale={self.logit_scale!r} is not recognized as an option; use numeric value or 'inv_sqrt_d_model'.")
+        if self.init_config.get('name', None) is None:
+            raise ValueError(f"self.init_config={self.init_config!r} 'name' needs to be set.")
+        if not self.learned_pos_emb and (not self.attn_config['alibi']):
+            raise ValueError(f'Positional information must be provided to the model using either learned_pos_emb or alibi.')

deployment/model-orig.onnx

@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+version https://git-lfs.github.com/spec/v1
+oid sha256:4bbbb7112401c8d934bc96590c8ca4f81633fa8e38a710e6659adf4931ea3fa9
+size 1478969

deployment/model.data

@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+version https://git-lfs.github.com/spec/v1
+oid sha256:57e3745d339330238eb47a66c89572f3bdb2708d7e17768bec62ee87e684c822
+size 6856916992

deployment/model.onnx

@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+version https://git-lfs.github.com/spec/v1
+oid sha256:05bbff599fb824569617a225f8d57164eb6f9957b45e553f44945e9b9f349b6c
+size 1316651

deployment/special_tokens_map.json

@@ -0,0 +1,10 @@
+{
+  "additional_special_tokens": [
+    "<|im_start|>",
+    "<|im_end|>"
+  ],
+  "bos_token": "<|endoftext|>",
+  "eos_token": "<|endoftext|>",
+  "pad_token": "<|endoftext|>",
+  "unk_token": "<|endoftext|>"
+}

deployment/tokenizer_config.json

@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+{
+  "add_prefix_space": false,
+  "bos_token": "<|endoftext|>",
+  "clean_up_tokenization_spaces": true,
+  "eos_token": "<|endoftext|>",
+  "model_max_length": 2048,
+  "tokenizer_class": "GPTNeoXTokenizer",
+  "unk_token": "<|endoftext|>"
+}

documents/List_of_national_capitals_by_population.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,249 @@
+Table
+* indicates "Cities of COUNTRY or TERRITORY" links.
+Country (or territory)	Capital	Population	% of country	Source
+ China *	Beijing	21,542,000	1.5%	[1] 2018
+ Japan *	Tokyo	14,094,034	11.3%	[2] 2023
+ Russia *	Moscow	13,104,177	9.0%	[3] 2023
+ DR Congo *	Kinshasa	12,691,000	13.2%	[4] 2017
+ Indonesia *	Jakarta	10,562,088	3.9%	[5] 2020
+ Egypt *	Cairo	10,107,125	9.3%	[6] 2022
+ South Korea *	Seoul	9,508,451	18.3%	[7] 2022
+ Mexico	Mexico City	9,209,944	7.3%	[8] 2020
+ United Kingdom *	London	9,002,488	13.4%	[9] 2020
+ Bangladesh *	Dhaka	8,906,039	5.3%	[10] 2011
+ Peru *	Lima	8,852,000	26.3%	[11] 2012
+ Iran *	Tehran	8,693,706	9.9%	2016
+ Thailand	Bangkok	8,305,218	11.6%	[12] 2010
+ Vietnam	Hanoi	8,053,663	8.3%	[13] 2019
+ Iraq *	Baghdad	7,682,136	17.6%	[14] 2021
+ Saudi Arabia	Riyadh	7,676,654	21.4%	2018
+ Hong Kong (China)	Hong Kong	7,291,600	100%	[15] 2022
+ Colombia *	Bogotá	7,181,469	13.9%	[16] 2011
+ Chile *	Santiago	6,310,000	32.4%	[17] 2012
+ Turkey *	Ankara	5,747,325	6.8%	[18] 2021
+ Singapore	Singapore	5,453,600	91.8%	[19] 2021
+ Afghanistan *	Kabul	4,601,789	11.5%	2021
+ Kenya	Nairobi	4,397,073	8.3%	2019
+ Jordan	Amman	4,061,150	36.4%	[20] 2021
+ Algeria *	Algiers	3,915,811	8.9%	2011
+ Germany *	Berlin	3,677,472	4.4%	[21] 2021
+ Spain *	Madrid	3,305,408	7.0%	[22] 2021
+ Ethiopia *	Addis Ababa	3,040,740	2.5%	[23] 2012
+ Kuwait	Kuwait City	2,989,000	70.3%	2018
+ Guatemala	Guatemala City	2,934,841	16.7%	2020
+ South Africa	Pretoria	2,921,488	4.9%	[24] 2011
+ Ukraine *	Kyiv	2,920,873	6.7%	[25] 2021
+ Argentina *	Buenos Aires	2,891,082	6.4%	[26] 2010
+ North Korea *	Pyongyang	2,870,000	11.1%	2016
+ Uzbekistan *	Tashkent	2,860,600	8.4%	[27] 2022
+ Italy *	Rome	2,761,632	4.7%	[28] 2022
+ Ecuador	Quito	2,800,388	15.7%	2020
+ Cameroon	Yaoundé	2,765,568	10.2%	[29] 2015
+ Zambia	Lusaka	2,731,696	14.0%	2020
+ Sudan *	Khartoum	2,682,431	5.9%	2012
+ Brazil *	Brasília	2,648,532	1.2%	[30] 2012
+ Taiwan *	Taipei (de facto)	2,608,332	10.9%	[31] 2020
+ Yemen	Sanaa	2,575,347	7.8%	2012
+ Angola	Luanda	2,571,861	7.5%	2020
+ Burkina Faso	Ouagadougou	2,453,496	11.1%	2019
+ Ghana	Accra	2,388,000	7.3%	2017
+ Somalia	Mogadishu	2,388,000	14.0%	2021
+ Azerbaijan	Baku	2,303,100	22.3%	[32] 2022
+ Cambodia	Phnom Penh	2,281,951	13.8%	2019
+ Venezuela	Caracas	2,245,744	8.0%	2016
+ France *	Paris	2,139,907	3.3%	[33] 2022
+ Cuba	Havana	2,132,183	18.9%	[34] 2020
+ Zimbabwe	Harare	2,123,132	13.3%	2012
+ Syria	Damascus	2,079,000	9.7%	2019
+ Belarus	Minsk	1,996,553	20.8%	[35] 2022
+ Austria	Vienna	1,962,779	22.0%	[36] 2022
+ Poland	Warsaw	1,863,056	4.9%	[37] 2021
+ Philippines *	Manila	1,846,513	1.6%	[38] 2020
+ Mali	Bamako	1,809,106	8.3%	2009
+ Malaysia *	Kuala Lumpur	1,782,500	5.3%	2019
+ Romania *	Bucharest	1,716,983	8.9%	[39] 2021
+ Hungary *	Budapest	1,706,851	17.6%	[40] 2022
+ Congo	Brazzaville	1,696,392	29.1%	2015
+ Serbia *	Belgrade	1,688,667	23.1%	[41] 2021
+ Uganda	Kampala	1,680,600	3.7%	2019
+ Guinea	Conakry	1,660,973	12.3%	2014
+ Mongolia	Ulaanbaatar	1,466,125	43.8%	2020
+ Honduras	Tegucigalpa	1,444,085	14.0%	2021
+ Senegal	Dakar	1,438,725	8.5%	2021
+ Czech Republic *	Prague	1,357,326	12.9%	[42] 2023
+ Niger *	Niamey	1,334,984	5.3%	2020
+ Uruguay	Montevideo	1,319,108	38.5%	2011
+ Bulgaria *	Sofia	1,307,439	19.0%	[43] 2021
+ Oman	Muscat	1,294,101	28.6%	[44] 2021
+ Madagascar	Antananarivo	1,275,207	4.4%	2018
+ Kazakhstan *	Astana	1,239,900	6.5%	[45] 2022
+ Nigeria	Abuja	1,235,880	0.6%	2011
+ Georgia	Tbilisi	1,201,769	32.0%	[46] 2022
+ Mauritania *	Nouakchott	1,195,600	25.9%	2019
+ Qatar *	Doha	1,186,023	44.1%	[47] 2020
+ Libya	Tripoli	1,170,000	17.4%	2019
+ Myanmar	Naypyidaw	1,160,242	2.2%	2014
+ Rwanda	Kigali	1,132,686	8.4%	2012
+ Mozambique	Maputo	1,124,988	3.5%	2020
+ Dominican Republic	Santo Domingo	1,111,838	10.0%	[48] 2010
+ Armenia *	Yerevan	1,096,100	39.3%	[49] 2021
+ Kyrgyzstan	Bishkek	1,074,075	16.5%	2021
+ Sierra Leone	Freetown	1,055,964	12.5%	2015
+ Nicaragua	Managua	1,055,247	15.4%	2020
+ Canada *	Ottawa	1,017,449	2.7%	[50] 2021
+ Pakistan *	Islamabad	1,014,825	0.4%	[51] 2017
+ Liberia	Monrovia	1,010,970	19.5%	2008
+ United Arab Emirates	Abu Dhabi	1,010,092	10.8%	2020
+ Malawi	Lilongwe	989,318	5.0%	2018
+ Haiti	Port-au-Prince	987,310	8.6%	2015
+ Sweden *	Stockholm	978,770	9.4%	[52] 2021
+ Eritrea	Asmara	963,000	26.6%	2020
+ Israel *	Jerusalem[a]	936,425	10.5%	[53] 2019
+ Laos	Vientiane	927,724	12.5%	[54] 2019
+ Chad	N'Djamena	916,000	5.3%	2009
+ Netherlands *	Amsterdam	905,234	5.2%	[55] 2022
+ Central African Republic	Bangui	889,231	16.3%	2020
+ Panama	Panama City	880,691	20.2%	2013
+ Tajikistan *	Dushanbe	863,400	8.9%	2020
+ Nepal *	Kathmandu	845,767	2.8%	[56] 2021
+ Togo	Lomé	837,437	9.7%	2010
+ Turkmenistan	Ashgabat	791,000	12.5%	2017
+ Moldova	Chişinău	779,300	25.5%	[57] 2019
+ Croatia *	Zagreb	769,944	19.0%	[58] 2021
+ Gabon *	Libreville	703,904	30.1%	2013
+ Norway *	Oslo	697,010	12.9%	[59] 2021
+ Macau (China)	Macau	671,900	97.9%	[60] 2022
+ United States *	Washington, D.C.	670,050	0.2%	[61] 2021
+ Jamaica	Kingston	662,491	23.4%	[62] 2019
+ Finland *	Helsinki	658,864	11.9%	[63] 2021
+ Tunisia	Tunis	638,845	5.2%	2014
+ Denmark *	Copenhagen	638,117	10.9%	[64] 2021
+ Greece *	Athens	637,798	6.1%	[65] 2021
+ Latvia *	Riga	605,802	32.3%	[66] 2021
+ Djibouti	Djibouti (city)	604,013	54.6%	2012
+ Ireland *	Dublin	588,233	11.8%	[67] 2022
+ Morocco	Rabat	577,827	1.6%	2014
+ Lithuania	Vilnius	576,195	20.7%	[68] 2022
+ El Salvador	San Salvador	570,459	9.0%	2019
+ Albania	Tirana	557,422	19.5%	2011
+ North Macedonia	Skopje	544,086	25.9%	[69] 2015
+ South Sudan *	Juba	525,953	4.9%	2017
+ Paraguay	Asunción	521,559	7.8%	2020
+ Portugal *	Lisbon	509,614	5.0%	[70] 2020
+ Guinea-Bissau	Bissau	492,004	23.9%	2015
+ Slovakia	Bratislava	440,948	8.1%	[71] 2020
+ Estonia *	Tallinn	438,341	33.0%	[72] 2021
+ Australia *	Canberra	431,380	1.7%	[73] 2020
+ Namibia	Windhoek	431,000	17.0%	2020
+ Tanzania	Dodoma	410,956	0.6%	2012
+ Papua New Guinea	Port Moresby	364,145	3.7%	2011
+ Ivory Coast	Yamoussoukro	361,893	1.3%	2020
+ Lebanon	Beirut	361,366	6.5%	2014
+ Bolivia	Sucre	360,544	3.0%	[74] 2022
+ Puerto Rico (US)	San Juan	342,259	10.5%	2020
+ Costa Rica	San José	342,188	6.6%	2018
+ Lesotho	Maseru	330,760	14.5%	2016
+ Cyprus	Nicosia	326,739	26.3%	2016
+ Equatorial Guinea *	Malabo	297,000	18.2%	2018
+ Slovenia *	Ljubljana	285,604	13.5%	[75] 2021
+ East Timor	Dili	277,279	21.0%	[76] 2015
+ Bosnia and Herzegovina	Sarajevo	275,524	8.4%	2013
+ Bahamas	Nassau	274,400	67.3%	2016
+ Botswana	Gaborone	273,602	10.6%	2020
+ Benin	Porto-Novo	264,320	2.0%	2013
+ India *	New Delhi	249,998	0.0%	2011
+ Suriname	Paramaribo	240,924	39.3%	2012
+ Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic	Laayoune (claimed)
+Tifariti (de facto)	217,732
+3,000	—	2014
+ New Zealand *	Wellington	217,000	4.2%	[77] 2021
+ Bahrain	Manama	200,000	13.7%	2020
+ Kosovo *	Pristina	198,897	12.0%	2011
+ Montenegro *	Podgorica	190,488	30.3%	[78] 2020
+ Belgium	Brussels	187,686	1.6%	[79] 2022
+ Cape Verde	Praia	159,050	27.1%	2017
+ Mauritius	Port Louis	147,066	11.3%	2018
+ Curaçao (Netherlands)	Willemstad	136,660	71.8%	2011
+ Burundi	Gitega	135,467	1.1%	2020
+ Switzerland *	Bern (de facto)	134,591	1.5%	[80] 2020
+ Transnistria	Tiraspol	133,807	38.5%	2015
+ Maldives	Malé	133,412	25.6%	2014
+ Iceland *	Reykjavík	133,262	36.0%	[81] 2021
+ Luxembourg *	Luxembourg City	124,509	19.5%	[82] 2021
+ Guyana	Georgetown	118,363	14.7%	2012
+ Bhutan	Thimphu	114,551	14.7%	2017
+ Comoros	Moroni	111,326	13.5%	2016
+ Barbados	Bridgetown	110,000	39.1%	2014
+ Sri Lanka	Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte	107,925	0.5%	2012
+ Brunei	Bandar Seri Begawan	100,700	22.6%	2007
+ Eswatini	Mbabane	94,874	8.0%	2010
+ New Caledonia (France)	Nouméa	94,285	32.8%	2019
+ Fiji	Suva	93,970	10.2%	2017
+ Solomon Islands	Honiara	92,344	13.0%	2021
+ Republic of Artsakh	Stepanakert	75,000	62.5%	2021
+ Gambia	Banjul	73,000	2.8%	2013
+ São Tomé and Príncipe	São Tomé	71,868	32.2%	2015
+ Kiribati	Tarawa	70,480	54.7%	2020
+ Vanuatu	Port Vila	51,437	16.1%	2016
+ Northern Mariana Islands (USA)	Saipan	47,565	96.1%	2017
+ Samoa	Apia	41,611	19.0%	2021
+ Palestine	Ramallah (de facto)	38,998	0.8%	2017
+ Monaco	Monaco	38,350	104.5%	[83] 2020
+ Jersey (UK)	Saint Helier	37,540	34.2%	2018
+ Trinidad and Tobago	Port of Spain	37,074	2.4%	2011
+ Cayman Islands (UK)	George Town	34,399	50.5%	2021
+ Gibraltar (UK)	Gibraltar	34,003	104.1%	2020
+ Grenada	St. George's	33,734	27.1%	2012
+ Aruba (Netherlands)	Oranjestad	28,294	26.6%	2010
+ Isle of Man (UK)	Douglas	27,938	33.2%	2011
+ Marshall Islands	Majuro	27,797	66.1%	2011
+ Tonga	Nukuʻalofa	27,600	26.0%	2022
+ Seychelles	Victoria	26,450	24.8%	2010
+ French Polynesia (France)	Papeete	26,926	8.9%	2017
+ Andorra	Andorra la Vella	22,873	28.9%	[84] 2022
+ Faroe Islands * (Denmark)	Tórshavn	22,738	43.0%	[85] 2022
+ Antigua and Barbuda *	St. John's	22,219	23.8%	2011
+ Belize	Belmopan	20,621	5.2%	2016
+ Saint Lucia	Castries	20,000	11.1%	2013
+ Guernsey (UK)	Saint Peter Port	18,958	30.1%	2019
+ Greenland (Denmark)	Nuuk	18,800	33.4%	2021
+ Dominica	Roseau	14,725	20.3%	2011
+ Saint Kitts and Nevis	Basseterre	14,000	29.4%	2018
+ Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	Kingstown	12,909	12.4%	2012
+ British Virgin Islands (UK)	Road Town	12,603	40.5%	2012
+ Åland (Finland)	Mariehamn	11,736	39.0%	[63] 2021
+ U.S. Virgin Islands (US)	Charlotte Amalie	14,477	14.5%	2020
+ Micronesia	Palikir	6,647	5.9%	2010
+ Tuvalu	Funafuti	6,320	56.4%	2017
+ Malta	Valletta	5,827	1.1%	2019
+ Liechtenstein	Vaduz	5,774	14.8%	[86] 2021
+ Saint Pierre and Miquelon (France)	Saint-Pierre	5,394	91.7%	2019
+ Cook Islands (NZ)	Avarua	4,906	28.9%	2016
+ San Marino	City of San Marino	4,061	12.0%	[87] 2021
+ Turks and Caicos Islands (UK)	Cockburn Town	3,720	8.2%	2016
+ American Samoa (USA)	Pago Pago	3,656	8.1%	2010
+ Saint Martin (France)	Marigot	3,229	10.1%	2017
+ Saint Barthélemy (France)	Gustavia	2,615	24.1%	2010
+ Falkland Islands (UK)	Stanley	2,460	65.4%	2016
+ Svalbard (Norway)	Longyearbyen	2,417	82.2%	2020
+ Sint Maarten (Netherlands)	Philipsburg	1,894	4.3%	2011
+ Christmas Island (Australia)	Flying Fish Cove	1,599	86.8%	2016
+ Anguilla (UK)	The Valley	1,067	6.8%	2011
+ Guam (US)	Hagåtña	1,051	0.6%	2010
+ Wallis and Futuna (France)	Mata Utu	1,029	8.9%	2018
+ Bermuda (UK)	Hamilton	854	1.3%	[88] 2016
+ Nauru	Yaren (de facto)	747	6.0%	2011
+ Saint Helena (UK)	Jamestown	629	11.6%	2016
+ Niue (NZ)	Alofi	597	30.8%	2017
+ Tokelau (NZ)	Atafu	541	29.3%	2016
+ Vatican City	Vatican City (city-state)	453	100%	[89] 2019
+ Montserrat (UK)	Brades (de facto)
+Plymouth (de jure)	449
+0	—	2011
+ Norfolk Island (Australia)	Kingston	341		2015
+ Cocos (Keeling) Islands (Australia)	West Island	134	24.6%	2011
+ Pitcairn Islands (UK)	Adamstown	40	100.0%	2021
+ South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (UK)	King Edward Point	22	73.3%	2018
+ Palau	Ngerulmud	0	0.0%	2010
+
+

documents/amsterdam_data.txt

@@ -0,0 +1,145 @@
+
+ Amsterdam (/ˈæmstərdæm/ AM-stər-dam, UK also /ˌæmstərˈdæm/ AM-stər-DAM,[9][10] Dutch: [ˌɑmstərˈdɑm] i; literally, "The Dam on the River Amstel") is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 921,402[11] within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the urban area[6] and 2,480,394 in the metropolitan area.[12] Located in the Dutch province of North Holland,[13][14] Amsterdam is colloquially referred to as the "Venice of the North", for its large number of canals, now designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site.[15]
+ Amsterdam was founded at the mouth of the Amstel River that was dammed to control flooding; the city's name derives from a local linguistic variation of the word dam.[16] Originally a small fishing village in the late 12th century, Amsterdam became a major world port during the Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century, when the Netherlands was an economic powerhouse. Amsterdam was the leading centre for finance and trade, as well as a hub of production of secular art.[17] In the 19th and 20th centuries, the city expanded and many new neighborhoods and suburbs were planned and built. The canals of Amsterdam and the 19-20th century Defence Line of Amsterdam are both on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Sloten, annexed in 1921 by the municipality of Amsterdam, is the oldest part of the city, dating to the 9th century. The city has a long tradition of openness, liberalism, and tolerance.[18] Cycling is key to the city's modern character, and there are numerous biking paths and lanes spread throughout the entire city.[19][20]
+ Amsterdam's main attractions include its historic canals; the Rijksmuseum, the state museum with a vast collection of Dutch Golden Age art; the Van Gogh Museum; the Dam Square, where the Royal Palace of Amsterdam and former city hall (stadhuis) are located; the Amsterdam Museum; Stedelijk Museum, with modern art; Hermitage Amsterdam, the Concertgebouw concert hall; the Anne Frank House; the Het Scheepvaartmuseum, the Heineken Experience, the Natura Artis Magistra; Hortus Botanicus, NEMO, the red-light district and many cannabis coffee shops. The city is also well known for its nightlife and festival activity; with several of its nightclubs (Melkweg, Paradiso) among the world's most famous. Primarily known for its artistic heritage, elaborate canal system and narrow canal houses with gabled façades; well-preserved legacies of the city's 17th-century Golden Age, and the establishment of the Van Gogh Museum, displaying the work of the famous Dutch modern artist, have attracted millions of visitors to Amsterdam annually.
+ The Amsterdam Stock Exchange, founded in 1602, is considered the oldest "modern" securities market stock exchange in the world. As the commercial capital of the Netherlands and one of the top financial centres in Europe, Amsterdam is considered an alpha world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network. The city is also the cultural capital of the Netherlands.[21] Many large Dutch institutions have their headquarters in the city, including: the Philips conglomerate, AkzoNobel, Booking.com, TomTom, and ING.[22] Many of the world's largest companies are based in Amsterdam or have established their European headquarters in the city, such as leading technology companies Uber, Netflix and Tesla.[23] In 2022, Amsterdam was ranked the ninth-best city in the world to live in by the Economist Intelligence Unit[24] and 12th globally on quality of living for environment and infrastructure by Mercer.[25] The city was ranked 4th place globally as top tech hub in the Savills Tech Cities 2019 report (2nd in Europe),[26] and 3rd in innovation by Australian innovation agency 2thinknow in their Innovation Cities Index 2009.[27] The Port of Amsterdam is the fifth largest in Europe.[28] The KLM hub and Amsterdam's main airport, Schiphol, is the busiest airport in the Netherlands, the third busiest in Europe, and the 11th busiest airport in the world.[29] The Dutch capital is considered one of the most multicultural cities in the world, with at least 177 nationalities represented.[30] Immigration and ethnic segregation in Amsterdam is a current issue.[31]
+ A few of Amsterdam's notable residents throughout its history include painters Rembrandt and Vincent van Gogh, seventeenth-century philosophers Baruch Spinoza, John Locke, René Descartes, and the Holocaust victim and diarist Anne Frank.
+ Due to its geographical location in what used to be wet peatland, the founding of Amsterdam is later than other urban centres in the Low Countries. However, around the area of what later became Amsterdam, farmers settled as early as three millennia ago. They lived along the prehistoric IJ river and upstream of its tributary Amstel. The prehistoric IJ was a shallow and quiet stream in peatland behind beach ridges. This secluded area was able to grow into an important local settlement centre, especially in the late Bronze Age, the Iron Age and the Roman Age. Neolithic and Roman artefacts have also been found in the prehistoric Amstel bedding under Amsterdam's Damrak and Rokin, such as shards of Bell Beaker culture pottery (2200-2000 BC) and a granite grinding stone (2700-2750 BC),[32][33] but the location of these artefacts around the river banks of the Amstel probably point to a presence of a modest semi-permanent or seasonal settlement. Until water issues were controlled, a permanent settlement would not have been possible, since the river mouth and the banks of the Amstel in this period in time were too wet for permanent habitation.[34][35]
+ The origins of Amsterdam are linked to the development of the peatland called Amestelle, meaning 'watery area', from Aa(m) 'river' + stelle 'site at a shoreline', 'river bank'.[36] In this area, land reclamation started as early as the late 10th century.[37] Amestelle was located along a side arm of the IJ. This side arm took the name from the eponymous land: Amstel. Amestelle was inhabited by farmers, who lived more inland and more upstream, where the land was not as wet as at the banks of the downstream river mouth. These farmers were starting the reclamation around upstream Ouderkerk aan de Amstel, and later at the other side of the river at Amstelveen. The Van Amstel family, known in documents by this name since 1019,[36] held the stewardship in this northwestern nook of the ecclesiastical district of the bishop of Utrecht. The family later served also under the count of Holland.
+ A major turning point in the development of the Amstel river mouth was the All Saint's Flood of 1170. In an extremely short period of time, the shallow river IJ turned into a wide estuary, which from then on offered the Amstel an open connection to the Zuiderzee, IJssel and waterways further afield. This made the water flow of the Amstel more active, so excess water could be drained better. With drier banks, the downstream Amstel mouth became attractive for permanent habitation. Moreover, the river had grown from an insignificant peat stream into a junction of international waterways.[38] A settlement was built here immediately after the landscape change of 1170. Right from the start of its foundation it focused on traffic, production and trade; not on farming, as opposed to how communities had lived further upstream for the past 200 years and northward for thousands of years.[39] The construction of a dam at the mouth of the Amstel, eponymously named Dam, is historically estimated to have occurred between 1264 and 1275. The settlement first appeared in a document from 1275, concerning a road toll granted by the count of Holland Floris V to the residents apud Amestelledamme 'at the dam in the Amstel' or 'at the dam of Amstelland'.[40] This allowed the inhabitants of the village to travel freely through the County of Holland, paying no tolls at bridges, locks and dams.[41] This was a move in a years-long struggle for power in the area between the count of Holland and the Amstel family who governed the area on behalf of the bishop of Utrecht.[42] By 1327, the name had developed into Aemsterdam.[43][44]
+ The bishop of Utrecht granted Amsterdam city rights in either 1300 or 1306.[45] Het Mirakel van Amsterdam in 1345, rendered the city an important place of pilgrimage. During the heydays of the Stille Omgang, which became the expression of the pilgrimage after the Protestant Reformation,[46][47] up to 90,000 pilgrims came to Amsterdam.
+ From the 14th century on, Amsterdam flourished, largely from trade with the Hanseatic League. From the 15th century on the city established an independent trade route with the Baltic Sea in grain and timber, cutting out the Hanseatic League as middlemen. The city became the staple market of Europe for bulk cargo. This was made possible due to innovations in the herring fishery, from which Amsterdam reaped great wealth.[10] Herring had demand in markets all around Europe. Inventions of on-board gibbing and the haringbuis in 1415, made longer voyages feasible, and hence enabled Dutch fishermen to follow the herring shoals far from the coasts, giving them a monopoly in the industry.
+ The herring industry relied on international trade cooperation and large initial investments in ships, which needed many highly skilled and unskilled workers cooperating, which required the import of the necessary raw materials to turn an unfinished product into a marketable one, which required merchants to then sell it throughout the continent and book-keepers and accountants to divide the profit. In short, the herring industry was setting up the foundations for what would later become the transcontinental trade system and the Dutch Golden Age, with Amsterdam at its centre,[11] hence the saying "Amsterdam is built on Herring bones".[16]
+ The Low Countries were part of the Hapsburg inheritance and came under the Spanish monarchy in the early sixteenth century. The Dutch rebelled against Philip II of Spain, who led a defense of Catholicism during the Protestant Reformation. The main reasons for the uprising were the imposition of new taxes, the tenth penny, and the religious persecution of Protestants by the newly introduced Inquisition. The revolt escalated into the Eighty Years' War, which ultimately led to Dutch independence.[48] Strongly pushed by Dutch Revolt leader William the Silent, the Dutch Republic became known for its relative religious tolerance. Jews from the Iberian Peninsula, Protestant Huguenots from France, prosperous merchants and printers from Flanders, and economic and religious refugees from the Spanish-controlled parts of the Low Countries found safety in Amsterdam. The influx of Flemish printers and the city's intellectual tolerance made Amsterdam a centre for the European free press.[49]
+ During the 17th century, Amsterdam experienced what is considered its Golden Age, during which it became the wealthiest city in the Western world.[51] Ships sailed from Amsterdam to the Baltic Sea, the Caribbean, North America, and Africa, as well as present-day Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, and Brazil, forming the basis of a worldwide trading network. Amsterdam's merchants had the largest share in both the Dutch East India Company (VOC) and the Dutch West India Company. These companies acquired overseas possessions that later became Dutch colonies.
+ Amsterdam was Europe's most important hub for the shipment of goods and was the leading financial centre of the Western world.[52] In 1602, the Amsterdam office of the Dutch East India Company became the world's first stock exchange by trading in its own shares.[53] The Bank of Amsterdam started operations in 1609, acting as a full-service bank for Dutch merchant bankers and as a reserve bank.
+ Beginning during this period, Amsterdam also became involved in the trade in African slaves. The city was a major destination port for Dutch slave ships beginning in the 17th century, which lasted until the United Netherlands abolished the Dutch involvement in the trade in 1814 under pressure by the British government. Amsterdam was also a member of the Society of Suriname, an organization founded to oversee the management of Surinam, a Dutch slave colony. On 1 July 2021, the mayor of Amsterdam, Femke Halsema, apologized for the city's involvement in the African slave trade, which had contributed to the city's wealth.[54][55]
+ Amsterdam's prosperity declined during the 18th and early 19th centuries. The wars of the Dutch Republic with England (latterly, Great Britain) and France took their toll on the city. During the Napoleonic Wars, Amsterdam's significance reached its lowest point, with Holland being absorbed into the French Empire. However, the later establishment of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in 1815 marked a turning point.
+ The end of the 19th century is sometimes called Amsterdam's second Golden Age.[56] New museums, a railway station, and the Concertgebouw were built; in this same time, the Industrial Revolution reached the city. The Amsterdam–Rhine Canal was dug to give Amsterdam a direct connection to the Rhine, and the North Sea Canal was dug to give the port a shorter connection to the North Sea. Both projects dramatically improved commerce with the rest of Europe and the world. In 1906, Joseph Conrad gave a brief description of Amsterdam as seen from the seaside, in The Mirror of the Sea.
+ Shortly before the First World War, the city started to expand again, and new suburbs were built. Even though the Netherlands remained neutral in this war, Amsterdam suffered a food shortage, and heating fuel became scarce. The shortages sparked riots in which several people were killed. These riots are known as the Aardappeloproer (Potato rebellion). People started looting stores and warehouses in order to get supplies, mainly food.[57]
+ On 1 January 1921, after a flood in 1916, the depleted municipalities of Durgerdam, Holysloot, Zunderdorp and Schellingwoude, all lying north of Amsterdam, were, at their own request, annexed to the city.[58][59] Between the wars, the city continued to expand, most notably to the west of the Jordaan district in the Frederik Hendrikbuurt and surrounding neighbourhoods.
+ Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands on 10 May 1940 and took control of the country. Some Amsterdam citizens sheltered Jews, thereby exposing themselves and their families to a high risk of being imprisoned or sent to concentration camps. More than 100,000 Dutch Jews were deported to Nazi concentration camps, of whom some 60,000 lived in Amsterdam. In response, the Dutch Communist Party organized the February strike attended by 300,000 people to protest against the raids. The most famous deportee was the young Jewish girl Anne Frank, who died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.[60] At the end of the Second World War, communication with the rest of the country broke down, and food and fuel became scarce. Many citizens traveled to the countryside to forage. Dogs, cats, raw sugar beets, and tulip bulbs—cooked to a pulp—were consumed to stay alive.[61] Many trees in Amsterdam were cut down for fuel, and wood was taken from the houses, apartments and other buildings of deported Jews. The city was finally liberated by Canadian forces on 5 May 1945, shortly before the end of the war in Europe.
+ Many new suburbs, such as Osdorp, Slotervaart, Slotermeer and Geuzenveld, were built in the years after the Second World War.[62] These suburbs contained many public parks and wide-open spaces, and the new buildings provided improved housing conditions with larger and brighter rooms, gardens, and balconies. Because of the war and other events of the 20th century, almost the entire city centre had fallen into disrepair. As society was changing,[clarification needed] politicians and other influential figures made plans to redesign large parts of it. There was an increasing demand for office buildings, and also for new roads, as the automobile became available to most people.[63] A metro started operating in 1977 between the new suburb of Bijlmermeer in the city's Zuidoost (southeast) exclave and the centre of Amsterdam. Further plans were to build a new highway above the metro to connect Amsterdam Centraal and the city centre with other parts of the city.
+ The required large-scale demolitions began in Amsterdam's former Jewish neighborhood. Smaller streets, such as the Jodenbreestraat and Weesperstraat, were widened and almost all houses and buildings were demolished. At the peak of the demolition, the Nieuwmarktrellen (Nieuwmarkt Riots) broke out;[64] the rioters expressed their fury about the demolition caused by the restructuring of the city.
+ As a result, the demolition was stopped and the highway into the city's centre was never fully built; only the metro was completed. Only a few streets remained widened. The new city hall was built on the almost completely demolished Waterlooplein. Meanwhile, large private organizations, such as Stadsherstel Amsterdam, were founded to restore the entire city centre. Although the success of this struggle is visible today, efforts for further restoration are still ongoing.[63] The entire city centre has reattained its former splendour and, as a whole, is now a protected area. Many of its buildings have become monuments, and in July 2010 the Grachtengordel (the three concentric canals: Herengracht, Keizersgracht, and Prinsengracht) was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.[65]
+ In the 21st century, the Amsterdam city centre has attracted large numbers of tourists: between 2012 and 2015, the annual number of visitors rose from 10 to 17 million. Real estate prices have surged, and local shops are making way for tourist-oriented ones, making the centre unaffordable for the city's inhabitants.[69] These developments have evoked comparisons with Venice, a city thought to be overwhelmed by the tourist influx.[70]
+ Construction of a new metro line connecting the part of the city north of the IJ to its southern part was started in 2003. The project was controversial because its cost had exceeded its budget by a factor of three by 2008,[71] because of fears of damage to buildings in the centre, and because construction had to be halted and restarted multiple times.[72] The new metro line was completed in 2018.[73]
+ Since 2014, renewed focus has been given to urban regeneration and renewal, especially in areas directly bordering the city centre, such as Frederik Hendrikbuurt. This urban renewal and expansion of the traditional centre of the city—with the construction on artificial islands of the new eastern IJburg neighbourhood—is part of the Structural Vision Amsterdam 2040 initiative.[74][75]
+ Amsterdam is located in the Western Netherlands, in the province of North Holland, the capital of which is not Amsterdam, but rather Haarlem. The river Amstel ends in the city centre and connects to a large number of canals that eventually terminate in the IJ. Amsterdam is about 2 m (6.6 ft) below sea level.[76] The surrounding land is flat as it is formed of large polders. An artificial forest, Amsterdamse Bos, is in the southwest. Amsterdam is connected to the North Sea through the long North Sea Canal.
+ Amsterdam is intensely urbanised, as is the Amsterdam metropolitan area surrounding the city. Comprising 219.4 km2 (84.7 sq mi) of land, the city proper has 4,457 inhabitants per km2 and 2,275 houses per km2.[77] Parks and nature reserves make up 12% of Amsterdam's land area.[78]
+ Topographic map of Amsterdam
+ Large-scale map of the city centre of Amsterdam, including sightseeing markers, as of April 2017[update].
+ Amsterdam has more than 100 km (60 mi) of canals, most of which are navigable by boat. The city's three main canals are the Prinsengracht, Herengracht and Keizersgracht.
+ In the Middle Ages, Amsterdam was surrounded by a moat, called the Singel, which now forms the innermost ring in the city, and gives the city centre a horseshoe shape. The city is also served by a seaport. It has been compared with Venice, due to its division into about 90 islands, which are linked by more than 1,200 bridges.[79]
+ Amsterdam has an oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfb)[80] strongly influenced by its proximity to the North Sea to the west, with prevailing westerly winds.
+ Amsterdam, as well as most of the North Holland province, lies in USDA Hardiness zone 8b. Frosts mainly occur during spells of easterly or northeasterly winds from the inner European continent. Even then, because Amsterdam is surrounded on three sides by large bodies of water, as well as having a significant heat-island effect, nights rarely fall below −5 °C (23 °F), while it could easily be −12 °C (10 °F) in Hilversum, 25 km (16 mi) southeast.
+ Summers are moderately warm with a number of hot and humid days with occasional rain every month. The average daily high in August is 22.1 °C (72 °F), and 30 °C (86 °F) or higher is only measured on average on 2.5 days, placing Amsterdam in AHS Heat Zone 2. The record extremes range from −19.7 °C (−3.5 °F) to 36.3 °C (97.3 °F).[84][85][unreliable source?] 
+Days with more than 1 mm (0.04 in) of precipitation are common, on average 133 days per year.
+ 
+ Amsterdam's average annual precipitation is 838 mm (33 in).[86] A large part of this precipitation falls as light rain or brief showers. Cloudy and damp days are common during the cooler months of October through March.
+ In 1300, Amsterdam's population was around 1,000 people.[91] While many towns in Holland experienced population decline during the 15th and 16th centuries, Amsterdam's population grew,[92] mainly due to the rise of the profitable Baltic maritime trade especially in grain after the Burgundian victory in the Dutch–Hanseatic War in 1441.[93] The population of Amsterdam was only modest compared to the towns and cities of Flanders and Brabant, which comprised the most urbanized area of the Low Countries.[94]
+ This changed when, during the Dutch Revolt, many people from the Southern Netherlands fled to the North, especially after Antwerp fell to Spanish forces in 1585. Jews from Spain, Portugal and Eastern Europe similarly settled in Amsterdam, as did Germans and Scandinavians.[92] In thirty years, Amsterdam's population more than doubled between 1585 and 1610.[95] By 1600, its population was around 50,000.[91] During the 1660s, Amsterdam's population reached 200,000.[96] The city's growth levelled off and the population stabilized around 240,000 for most of the 18th century.[97]
+ In 1750, Amsterdam was the fourth largest city in Western Europe, behind London (676,000), Paris (560,000) and Naples (324,000).[98] This was all the more remarkable as Amsterdam was neither the capital city nor the seat of government of the Dutch Republic, which itself was a much smaller state than Great Britain, France or the Ottoman Empire. In contrast to those other metropolises, Amsterdam was also surrounded by large towns such as Leiden (about 67,000), Rotterdam (45,000), Haarlem (38,000) and Utrecht (30,000).[99]
+ The city's population declined in the early 19th century,[100] dipping under 200,000 in 1820.[101] By the second half of the 19th century, industrialization spurred renewed growth.[102] Amsterdam's population hit an all-time high of 872,000 in 1959,[103] before declining in the following decades due to government-sponsored suburbanisation to so-called groeikernen (growth centres) such as Purmerend and Almere.[104][105][106] Between 1970 and 1980, Amsterdam experienced its sharp population decline, peaking at a net loss of 25,000 people in 1973.[106] By 1985 the city had only 675,570 residents.[107] This was soon followed by reurbanization and gentrification,[108][106] leading to renewed population growth in the 2010s. Also in the 2010s, much of Amsterdam's population growth was due to immigration to the city.[109]
+ In the 16th and 17th century, non-Dutch immigrants to Amsterdam were mostly Protestant Huguenots and Flemings, Sephardic Jews, and Westphalians. Huguenots came after the Edict of Fontainebleau in 1685, while the Flemish Protestants came during the Eighty Years' War against Catholic Spain. The Westphalians came to Amsterdam mostly for economic reasons; their influx continued through the 18th and 19th centuries.[citation needed] Before the Second World War, 10% of the city population was Jewish. Just twenty percent of them survived the Holocaust.[110]
+ The first mass immigration in the 20th century was by people from Indonesia, who came to Amsterdam after the independence of the Dutch East Indies in the 1940s and 1950s. In the 1960s guest workers from Turkey, Morocco, Italy, and Spain emigrated to Amsterdam. After the independence of Suriname in 1975, a large wave of Surinamese settled in Amsterdam, mostly in the Bijlmer area. Other immigrants, including refugees asylum seekers and undocumented immigrants, came from Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa. In the 1970s and 1980s, many 'old' Amsterdammers moved to 'new' cities like Almere and Purmerend, prompted by the third Land-use planning bill of the Dutch Government. This bill promoted suburbanization and arranged for new developments in so-called "groeikernen", literally cores of growth. Young professionals and artists moved into neighborhoods De Pijp and the Jordaan abandoned by these Amsterdammers. The non-Western immigrants settled mostly in the social housing projects in Amsterdam-West and the Bijlmer. Today, people of non-Western origin make up approximately one-fifth of the population of Amsterdam, and more than 30% of the city's children.[111][112][113] A slight majority of the residents of Amsterdam have at least one parent who was born outside the country. However, a much larger majority has at least one parent who was born inside the country (intercultural marriages are common in the city). Thus, while the demographics are changing, the city still has an 'ethnic Dutch' majority. Only one in three inhabitants under 15 is an autochthon, or a person who has two parents of Dutch origin.[114] Segregation along ethnic lines is clearly visible, with people of non-Western origin, considered a separate group by Statistics Netherlands, concentrating in specific neighborhoods especially in Nieuw-West, Zeeburg, Bijlmer and in certain areas of Amsterdam-Noord.[115][116]
+ In 2000, Christians formed the largest religious group in the city (28% of the population). The next largest religion was Islam (8%), most of whose followers were Sunni.[118][119] In 2015, Christians formed the largest religious group in the city (28% of the population). The next largest religion was Islam (7.1%), most of whose followers were Sunni.[117]
+ Religion in Amsterdam (2015)[120]
+ In 1578, the largely Catholic city of Amsterdam joined the revolt against Spanish rule,[121] late in comparison to other major northern Dutch cities.[122] Catholic priests were driven out of the city.[121] Following the Dutch takeover, all churches were converted to Protestant worship.[123] Calvinism was declared the main religion.[122] It was forbidden to openly profess Roman Catholicism and the Catholic hierarchy was prohibited until mid-19th century. This led to the establishment of clandestine churches, covert religious buildings hidden in pre-existing buildings. Catholics, some Jews and dissenting Protestants worshipped in such buildings.[124] A large influx of foreigners of many religions came to 17th-century Amsterdam, in particular Sefardic Jews from Spain and Portugal,[125][126] Huguenots from France,[127] Lutherans, Mennonites, as well as Protestants from across the Netherlands.[128] This led to the establishment of many non-Dutch-speaking churches.[citation needed] In 1603, the Jewish received permission to practice their religion in the city. In 1639, the first synagogue was consecrated.[129] The Jews came to call the town 'Jerusalem of the West'.[130]
+ As they became established in the city, other Christian denominations used converted Catholic chapels to conduct their own services. The oldest English-language church congregation in the world outside the United Kingdom is found at the Begijnhof.[citation needed][131] Regular services there are still offered in English under the auspices of the Church of Scotland.[132] Being Calvinists, the Huguenots soon integrated into the Dutch Reformed Church, though often retaining their own congregations. Some, commonly referred by the moniker 'Walloon', are recognizable today as they offer occasional services in French.[citation needed]
+ In the second half of the 17th century, Amsterdam experienced an influx of Ashkenazim, Jews from Central and Eastern Europe. Jews often fled the pogroms in those areas. The first Ashkenazis who arrived in Amsterdam were refugees from the Khmelnytsky Uprising occurring in Ukraine and the Thirty Years' War, which devastated much of Central Europe. They not only founded their own synagogues, but had a strong influence on the 'Amsterdam dialect' adding a large Yiddish local vocabulary.[133] Despite an absence of an official Jewish ghetto, most Jews preferred to live in the eastern part, which used to be the centre of medieval Amsterdam. The main street of this Jewish neighbourhood was Jodenbreestraat. The neighbourhood comprised the Waterlooplein and the Nieuwmarkt.[133][134] Buildings in this neighbourhood fell into disrepair after the Second World War[135] a large section of the neighbourhood was demolished during the construction of the metro system. This led to riots, and as a result the original plans for large-scale reconstruction were abandoned by the government.[136][137] The neighbourhood was rebuilt with smaller-scale residence buildings on the basis of its original layout.[138]
+ Catholic churches in Amsterdam have been constructed since the restoration of the episcopal hierarchy in 1853.[139] One of the principal architects behind the city's Catholic churches, Cuypers, was also responsible for the Amsterdam Centraal station and the Rijksmuseum.[140][141]
+ In 1924, the Catholic Church hosted the International Eucharistic Congress in Amsterdam;[142] numerous Catholic prelates visited the city, where festivities were held in churches and stadiums.[143] Catholic processions on the public streets, however, were still forbidden under law at the time.[144] Only in the 20th century was Amsterdam's relation to Catholicism normalised,[145] but despite its far larger population size, the episcopal see of the city was placed in the provincial town of Haarlem.[146]
+ Historically, Amsterdam has been predominantly Christian, in 1900 Christians formed the largest religious group in the city (70% of the population), Dutch Reformed Church formed 45% of the city population, while the Catholic Church formed 25% of the city population.[147] In recent times, religious demographics in Amsterdam have been changed by immigration from former colonies. Hinduism has been introduced from the Hindu diaspora from Suriname[148] and several distinct branches of Islam have been brought from various parts of the world.[149] Islam is now the largest non-Christian religion in Amsterdam.[120] The large community of Ghanaian immigrants have established African churches,[150] often in parking garages in the Bijlmer area.[151]
+ Amsterdam experienced an influx of religions and cultures after the Second World War. With 180 different nationalities,[152] Amsterdam is home to one of the widest varieties of nationalities of any city in the world.[153] The proportion of the population of immigrant origin in the city proper is about 50%[154] and 88% of the population are Dutch citizens.[155]
+ Amsterdam has been one of the municipalities in the Netherlands which provided immigrants with extensive and free Dutch-language courses, which have benefited many immigrants.[156]
+ Inhabitants by origin
+ Amsterdam fans out south from the Amsterdam Centraal station and Damrak, the main street off the station. The oldest area of the town is known as De Wallen (English: "The Quays"). It lies to the east of Damrak and contains the city's famous red-light district. To the south of De Wallen is the old Jewish quarter of Waterlooplein.
+ The medieval and colonial age canals of Amsterdam, known as grachten, embraces the heart of the city where homes have interesting gables. Beyond the Grachtengordel are the former working-class areas of Jordaan and de Pijp. The Museumplein with the city's major museums, the Vondelpark, a 19th-century park named after the Dutch writer Joost van den Vondel, as well as the Plantage neighbourhood, with the zoo, are also located outside the Grachtengordel.
+ Several parts of the city and the surrounding urban area are polders. This can be recognised by the suffix -meer which means lake, as in Aalsmeer, Bijlmermeer, Haarlemmermeer and Watergraafsmeer.
+ The Amsterdam canal system is the result of conscious city planning.[158] In the early 17th century, when immigration was at a peak, a comprehensive plan was developed that was based on four concentric half-circles of canals with their ends emerging at the IJ bay. Known as the Grachtengordel, three of the canals were mostly for residential development: the Herengracht (where "Heren" refers to Heren Regeerders van de stad Amsterdam, ruling lords of Amsterdam, whilst gracht means canal, so that the name can be roughly translated as "Canal of the Lords"), Keizersgracht (Emperor's Canal) and Prinsengracht (Prince's Canal).[159] The fourth and outermost canal is the Singelgracht, which is often not mentioned on maps because it is a collective name for all canals in the outer ring. The Singelgracht should not be confused with the oldest and innermost canal, the Singel.
+ The canals served for defense, water management and transport. The defenses took the form of a moat and earthen dikes, with gates at transit points, but otherwise no masonry superstructures.[160] The original plans have been lost, so historians, such as Ed Taverne, need to speculate on the original intentions: it is thought that the considerations of the layout were purely practical and defensive rather than ornamental.[161]
+ Construction started in 1613 and proceeded from west to east, across the breadth of the layout, like a gigantic windshield wiper as the historian Geert Mak calls it – and not from the centre outwards, as a popular myth has it. The canal construction in the southern sector was completed by 1656. Subsequently, the construction of residential buildings proceeded slowly. The eastern part of the concentric canal plan, covering the area between the Amstel river and the IJ bay, has never been implemented. In the following centuries, the land was used for parks, senior citizens' homes, theatres, other public facilities, and waterways without much planning.[162] Over the years, several canals have been filled in, becoming streets or squares, such as the Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal and the Spui.[163]
+ After the development of Amsterdam's canals in the 17th century, the city did not grow beyond its borders for two centuries. During the 19th century, Samuel Sarphati devised a plan based on the grandeur of Paris and London at that time. The plan envisaged the construction of new houses, public buildings and streets just outside the Grachtengordel. The main aim of the plan, however, was to improve public health. Although the plan did not expand the city, it did produce some of the largest public buildings to date, like the Paleis voor Volksvlijt.[164][165][166]
+ Following Sarphati, civil engineers Jacobus van Niftrik and Jan Kalff designed an entire ring of 19th-century neighbourhoods surrounding the city's centre, with the city preserving the ownership of all land outside the 17th-century limit, thus firmly controlling development.[167] Most of these neighbourhoods became home to the working class.[168]
+ In response to overcrowding, two plans were designed at the beginning of the 20th century which were very different from anything Amsterdam had ever seen before: Plan Zuid (designed by the architect Berlage) and West. These plans involved the development of new neighbourhoods consisting of housing blocks for all social classes.[169][170]
+ After the Second World War, large new neighbourhoods were built in the western, southeastern, and northern parts of the city. These new neighbourhoods were built to relieve the city's shortage of living space and give people affordable houses with modern conveniences. The neighbourhoods consisted mainly of large housing blocks located among green spaces, connected to wide roads, making the neighbourhoods easily accessible by motor car. The western suburbs which were built in that period are collectively called the Westelijke Tuinsteden. The area to the southeast of the city built during the same period is known as the Bijlmer.[171][172]
+ Amsterdam has a rich architectural history. The oldest building in Amsterdam is the Oude Kerk (English: Old Church), at the heart of the Wallen, consecrated in 1306.[173] The oldest wooden building is Het Houten Huys[174] at the Begijnhof. It was constructed around 1425 and is one of only two existing wooden buildings. It is also one of the few examples of Gothic architecture in Amsterdam. The oldest stone building of the Netherlands, The Moriaan is built in 's-Hertogenbosch.
+ In the 16th century, wooden buildings were razed and replaced with brick ones. During this period, many buildings were constructed in the architectural style of the Renaissance. Buildings of this period are very recognisable with their stepped gable façades, which is the common Dutch Renaissance style. Amsterdam quickly developed its own Renaissance architecture. These buildings were built according to the principles of the architect Hendrick de Keyser.[175] One of the most striking buildings designed by Hendrick de Keyser is the Westerkerk. In the 17th century baroque architecture became very popular, as it was elsewhere in Europe. This roughly coincided with Amsterdam's Golden Age. The leading architects of this style in Amsterdam were Jacob van Campen, Philips Vingboons and Daniel Stalpaert.[176]
+ Philip Vingboons designed splendid merchants' houses throughout the city. A famous building in baroque style in Amsterdam is the Royal Palace on Dam Square. Throughout the 18th century, Amsterdam was heavily influenced by French culture. This is reflected in the architecture of that period. Around 1815, architects broke with the baroque style and started building in different neo-styles.[177] Most Gothic style buildings date from that era and are therefore said to be built in a neo-gothic style. At the end of the 19th century, the Jugendstil or Art Nouveau style became popular and many new buildings were constructed in this architectural style. Since Amsterdam expanded rapidly during this period, new buildings adjacent to the city centre were also built in this style. The houses in the vicinity of the Museum Square in Amsterdam Oud-Zuid are an example of Jugendstil. The last style that was popular in Amsterdam before the modern era was Art Deco. Amsterdam had its own version of the style, which was called the Amsterdamse School. Whole districts were built this style, such as the Rivierenbuurt.[178] A notable feature of the façades of buildings designed in Amsterdamse School is that they are highly decorated and ornate, with oddly shaped windows and doors.
+ The old city centre is the focal point of all the architectural styles before the end of the 19th century. Jugendstil and Georgian are mostly found outside the city's centre in the neighbourhoods built in the early 20th century, although there are also some striking examples of these styles in the city centre. Most historic buildings in the city centre and nearby are houses, such as the famous merchants' houses lining the canals.
+ Amsterdam has many parks, open spaces, and squares throughout the city. The Vondelpark, the largest park in the city, is located in the Oud-Zuid neighbourhood and is named after the 17th-century Amsterdam author Joost van den Vondel. Yearly, the park has around 10 million visitors. In the park is an open-air theatre, a playground and several horeca facilities. In the Zuid borough, is the Beatrixpark, named after Queen Beatrix. Between Amsterdam and Amstelveen is the Amsterdamse Bos ("Amsterdam Forest"), the largest recreational area in Amsterdam. Annually, almost 4.5 million people visit the park, which has a size of 1.000 hectares and is approximately three times the size of Central Park.[179] The Amstelpark in the Zuid borough houses the Rieker windmill, which dates to 1636. Other parks include the Sarphatipark in the De Pijp neighbourhood, the Oosterpark in the Oost borough and the Westerpark in the Westerpark neighbourhood. The city has three beaches: Nemo Beach, Citybeach "Het stenen hoofd" (Silodam) and Blijburg, all located in the Centrum borough.
+ The city has many open squares (plein in Dutch). The namesake of the city as the site of the original dam, Dam Square, is the main city square and has the Royal Palace and National Monument. Museumplein hosts various museums, including the Rijksmuseum, Van Gogh Museum, and Stedelijk Museum. Other squares include Rembrandtplein, Muntplein, Nieuwmarkt, Leidseplein, Spui and Waterlooplein. Also, near to Amsterdam is the Nekkeveld estate conservation project.
+ Amsterdam is the financial and business capital of the Netherlands.[180]
+According to the 2007 European Cities Monitor (ECM) – an annual location survey of Europe's leading companies carried out by global real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield – Amsterdam is one of the top European cities in which to locate an international business, ranking fifth in the survey.[181] with the survey determining London, Paris, Frankfurt and Barcelona as the four European cities surpassing Amsterdam in this regard.
+ A substantial number of large corporations and banks' headquarters are located in the Amsterdam area, including: AkzoNobel, Heineken International, ING Group, ABN AMRO, TomTom, Delta Lloyd Group, Booking.com and Philips. Although many small offices remain along the historic canals, centrally based companies have increasingly relocated outside Amsterdam's city centre. Consequently, the Zuidas (English: South Axis) has become the new financial and legal hub of Amsterdam,[182] with the country's five largest law firms and several subsidiaries of large consulting firms, such as Boston Consulting Group and Accenture, as well as the World Trade Centre (Amsterdam) located in the Zuidas district. In addition to the Zuidas, there are three smaller financial districts in Amsterdam:
+ The adjoining municipality of Amstelveen is the location of KPMG International's global headquarters. Other non-Dutch companies have chosen to settle in communities surrounding Amsterdam since they allow freehold property ownership, whereas Amsterdam retains ground rent.
+ The Amsterdam Stock Exchange (AEX), now part of Euronext, is the world's oldest stock exchange and, due to Brexit, has overtaken LSE as the largest bourse in Europe.[186] It is near Dam Square in the city centre.
+ The Port of Amsterdam is the fourth-largest port in Europe, the 38th largest port in the world and the second-largest port in the Netherlands by metric tons of cargo. In 2014, the Port of Amsterdam had a cargo throughput of 97,4 million tons of cargo, which was mostly bulk cargo. Amsterdam has the biggest cruise port in the Netherlands with more than 150 cruise ships every year. In 2019, the new lock in IJmuiden opened; since then, the port has been able to grow to 125 million tonnes in capacity.
+ Amsterdam is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Europe, receiving more than 5.34 million international visitors annually; this is excluding the 16 million day-trippers visiting the city every year.[187] The number of visitors has been growing steadily over the past decade. This can be attributed to an increasing number of European visitors. Two-thirds of the hotels are located in the city's centre.[188] Hotels with 4 or 5 stars contribute 42% of the total beds available and 41% of the overnight stays in Amsterdam. The room occupation rate was 85% in 2017, up from 78% in 2006.[189][190] The majority of tourists (74%) originate from Europe. The largest group of non-European visitors come from the United States, accounting for 14% of the total.[190] Certain years have a theme in Amsterdam to attract extra tourists. For example, the year 2006 was designated "Rembrandt 400", to celebrate the 400th birthday of Rembrandt van Rijn. Some hotels offer special arrangements or activities during these years. The average number of guests per year staying at the four campsites around the city range from 12,000 to 65,000.[190]
+ In 2023, the city began running a campaign to dissuade British men between the ages of 18 and 35 from coming to the city as tourists. The ad shows young men being handcuffed by police and is part of a new campaign to clean up the city's reputation.[191] On May 25, 2023, in a bid to crackdown on wild tourist behaviour, the city banned weed smoking in public areas in and around the red light district.  [192]
+ 
+ De Wallen, also known as Walletjes or Rosse Buurt, is a designated area for legalised prostitution and is Amsterdam's largest and best-known red-light district. This neighbourhood has become a famous attraction for tourists. It consists of a network of canals, streets, and alleys containing several hundred small, one-room apartments rented by sex workers who offer their services from behind a window or glass door, typically illuminated with red lights. In recent years, the city government has been closing and repurposing the famous red-light district windows in an effort to clean up the area and reduce the amount of party and sex tourism.
+ Shops in Amsterdam range from large high-end department stores such as De Bijenkorf founded in 1870 to small speciality shops. Amsterdam's high-end shops are found in the streets P.C. Hooftstraat[194] and Cornelis Schuytstraat, which are located in the vicinity of the Vondelpark. One of Amsterdam's busiest high streets is the narrow, medieval Kalverstraat in the heart of the city. Other shopping areas include the Negen Straatjes and Haarlemmerdijk and Haarlemmerstraat. Negen Straatjes are nine narrow streets within the Grachtengordel, the concentric canal system of Amsterdam. The Negen Straatjes differ from other shopping districts with the presence of a large diversity of privately owned shops. The Haarlemmerstraat and Haarlemmerdijk were voted best shopping street in the Netherlands in 2011. These streets have as the Negen Straatjes a large diversity of privately owned shops. However, as the Negen Straatjes are dominated by fashion stores, the Haarlemmerstraat and Haarlemmerdijk offer a wide variety of stores, just to name some specialities: candy and other food-related stores, lingerie, sneakers, wedding clothing, interior shops, books, Italian deli's, racing and mountain bikes, skatewear, etc.[original research?]
+ The city also features a large number of open-air markets such as the Albert Cuyp Market, Westerstraat-markt, Ten Katemarkt, and Dappermarkt. Some of these markets are held daily, like the Albert Cuypmarkt and the Dappermarkt. Others, like the Westerstraatmarkt, are held every week.[original research?]
+ Several fashion brands and designers are based in Amsterdam. Fashion designers include Iris van Herpen,[195] Mart Visser, Viktor & Rolf, Marlies Dekkers and Frans Molenaar. Fashion models like Yfke Sturm, Doutzen Kroes and Kim Noorda started their careers in Amsterdam. Amsterdam has its garment centre in the World Fashion Center. Fashion photographers Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin were born in Amsterdam.[196]
+ During the later part of the 16th century, Amsterdam's Rederijkerskamer (Chamber of rhetoric) organised contests between different Chambers in the reading of poetry and drama.[197][198] In 1637, Schouwburg, the first theatre in Amsterdam was built, opening on 3 January 1638.[199] The first ballet performances in the Netherlands were given in Schouwburg in 1642 with the Ballet of the Five Senses.[200][201] In the 18th century, French theatre became popular. While Amsterdam was under the influence of German music in the 19th century there were few national opera productions; the Hollandse Opera of Amsterdam was built in 1888 for the specific purpose of promoting Dutch opera.[202] In the 19th century, popular culture was centred on the Nes area in Amsterdam (mainly vaudeville and music-hall).[citation needed] An improved metronome was invented in 1812 by Dietrich Nikolaus Winkel.[203] The Rijksmuseum (1885) and Stedelijk Museum (1895) were built and opened.[204][205] In 1888, the Concertgebouworkest orchestra was established.[206] With the 20th century came cinema, radio and television.[citation needed] Though most studios are located in Hilversum and Aalsmeer, Amsterdam's influence on programming is very strong. Many people who work in the television industry live in Amsterdam. Also, the headquarters of the Dutch SBS Broadcasting Group is located in Amsterdam.[207]
+ The most important museums of Amsterdam are located on the Museumplein (Museum Square), located at the southwestern side of the Rijksmuseum. It was created in the last quarter of the 19th century on the grounds of the former World's fair. The northeastern part of the square is bordered by the large Rijksmuseum. In front of the Rijksmuseum on the square itself is a long, rectangular pond. This is transformed into an ice rink in winter.[208] The northwestern part of the square is bordered by the Van Gogh Museum, House of Bols Cocktail & Genever Experience and Coster Diamonds. The southwestern border of the Museum Square is the Van Baerlestraat, which is a major thoroughfare in this part of Amsterdam. The Concertgebouw is located across this street from the square. To the southeast of the square are several large houses, one of which contains the American consulate. A parking garage can be found underneath the square, as well as a supermarket. The Museumplein is covered almost entirely with a lawn, except for the northeastern part of the square which is covered with gravel. The current appearance of the square was realised in 1999, when the square was remodelled. The square itself is the most prominent site in Amsterdam for festivals and outdoor concerts, especially in the summer. Plans were made in 2008 to remodel the square again because many inhabitants of Amsterdam are not happy with its current appearance.[209]
+ The Rijksmuseum possesses the largest and most important collection of classical Dutch art.[210]
+It opened in 1885. Its collection consists of nearly one million objects.[211] The artist most associated with Amsterdam is Rembrandt, whose work, and the work of his pupils, is displayed in the Rijksmuseum. Rembrandt's masterpiece The Night Watch is one of the top pieces of art of the museum. It also houses paintings from artists like Bartholomeus van der Helst, Johannes Vermeer, Frans Hals, Ferdinand Bol, Albert Cuyp, Jacob van Ruisdael and Paulus Potter. Aside from paintings, the collection consists of a large variety of decorative art. This ranges from Delftware to giant doll-houses from the 17th century. The architect of the gothic revival building was P.J.H. Cuypers. The museum underwent a 10-year, 375 million euro renovation starting in 2003. The full collection was reopened to the public on 13 April 2013 and the Rijksmuseum has remained the most visited museum in Amsterdam with 2.2 million visitors in 2016 and 2.16 million in 2017.[212]
+ Van Gogh lived in Amsterdam for a short while and there is a museum dedicated to his work. The museum is housed in one of the few modern buildings in this area of Amsterdam. The building was designed by Gerrit Rietveld. This building is where the permanent collection is displayed. A new building was added to the museum in 1999. This building, known as the performance wing, was designed by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa. Its purpose is to house temporary exhibitions of the museum.[213][214] Some of Van Gogh's most famous paintings, like The Potato Eaters and Sunflowers, are in the collection.[215] The Van Gogh museum is the second most visited museum in Amsterdam, not far behind the Rijksmuseum in terms of the number of visits, being approximately 2.1 million in 2016,[216] for example.
+ Next to the Van Gogh museum stands the Stedelijk Museum. This is Amsterdam's most important museum of modern art. The museum is as old as the square it borders and was opened in 1895. The permanent collection consists of works of art from artists like Piet Mondrian, Karel Appel, and Kazimir Malevich. After renovations lasting several years, the museum opened in September 2012 with a new composite extension that has been called 'The Bathtub' due to its resemblance to one.
+ Amsterdam contains many other museums throughout the city. They range from small museums such as the Verzetsmuseum (Resistance Museum), the Anne Frank House, and the Rembrandt House Museum, to the very large, like the Tropenmuseum (Museum of the Tropics), Amsterdam Museum (formerly known as Amsterdam Historical Museum), Hermitage Amsterdam (a dependency of the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg) and the Joods Historisch Museum (Jewish Historical Museum). The modern-styled Nemo is dedicated to child-friendly science exhibitions.
+ Amsterdam's musical culture includes a large collection of songs that treat the city nostalgically and lovingly. The 1949 song "Aan de Amsterdamse grachten" ("On the canals of Amsterdam") was performed and recorded by many artists, including John Kraaijkamp Sr.; the best-known version is probably that by Wim Sonneveld (1962). In the 1950s Johnny Jordaan rose to fame with "Geef mij maar Amsterdam" ("I prefer Amsterdam"), which praises the city above all others (explicitly Paris); Jordaan sang especially about his own neighbourhood, the Jordaan ("Bij ons in de Jordaan"). Colleagues and contemporaries of Johnny include Tante Leen and Manke Nelis. Another notable Amsterdam song is "Amsterdam" by Jacques Brel (1964).[217] A 2011 poll by Amsterdam newspaper Het Parool that Trio Bier's "Oude Wolf" was voted "Amsterdams lijflied".[218] Notable Amsterdam bands from the modern era include the Osdorp Posse and The Ex.
+ AFAS Live (formerly known as the Heineken Music Hall) is a concert hall located near the Johan Cruyff Arena (known as the Amsterdam Arena until 2018). Its main purpose is to serve as a podium for pop concerts for big audiences. Many famous international artists have performed there. Two other notable venues, Paradiso and the Melkweg are located near the Leidseplein. Both focus on broad programming, ranging from indie rock to hip hop, R&B, and other popular genres. Other more subcultural music venues are OCCII, OT301, De Nieuwe Anita, Winston Kingdom, and Zaal 100. Jazz has a strong following in Amsterdam, with the Bimhuis being the premier venue. In 2012, Ziggo Dome was opened, also near Amsterdam Arena, a state-of-the-art indoor music arena.
+ AFAS Live is also host to many electronic dance music festivals, alongside many other venues. Armin van Buuren and Tiesto, some of the worlds leading Trance DJ's hail from the Netherlands and frequently perform in Amsterdam. Each year in October, the city hosts the Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) which is one of the leading electronic music conferences and one of the biggest club festivals for electronic music in the world, attracting over 350,000 visitors each year.[219] Another popular dance festival is 5daysoff, which takes place in the venues Paradiso and Melkweg. In the summertime, there are several big outdoor dance parties in or nearby Amsterdam, such as Awakenings, Dance Valley, Mystery Land, Loveland, A Day at the Park, Welcome to the Future, and Valtifest.
+ Amsterdam has a world-class symphony orchestra, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Their home is the Concertgebouw, which is across the Van Baerlestraat from the Museum Square. It is considered by critics to be a concert hall with some of the best acoustics in the world. The building contains three halls, Grote Zaal, Kleine Zaal, and Spiegelzaal. Some nine hundred concerts and other events per year take place in the Concertgebouw, for a public of over 700,000, making it one of the most-visited concert halls in the world.[220] The opera house of Amsterdam is located adjacent to the city hall. Therefore, the two buildings combined are often called the Stopera, (a word originally coined by protesters against it very construction: Stop the Opera[-house]). This huge modern complex, opened in 1986, lies in the former Jewish neighbourhood at Waterlooplein next to the river Amstel. The Stopera is the home base of Dutch National Opera, Dutch National Ballet and the Holland Symfonia. Muziekgebouw aan 't IJ is a concert hall, which is located in the IJ near the central station. Its concerts perform mostly modern classical music. Located adjacent to it, is the Bimhuis, a concert hall for improvised and Jazz music.
+ Amsterdam has three main theatre buildings.
+ The Stadsschouwburg at the Leidseplein is the home base of Toneelgroep Amsterdam. The current building dates from 1894. Most plays are performed in the Grote Zaal (Great Hall). The normal program of events encompasses all sorts of theatrical forms. In 2009, the new hall of the Stadsschouwburg Amsterdam, Toneelgroep Amsterdam and Melkweg opened, and the renovation of the front end of the theatre was ready.
+ The Dutch National Opera and Ballet (formerly known as Het Muziektheater), dating from 1986, is the principal opera house and home to Dutch National Opera and Dutch National Ballet. Royal Theatre Carré was built as a permanent circus theatre in 1887 and is currently mainly used for musicals, cabaret performances, and pop concerts.
+ The recently re-opened DeLaMar Theater houses more commercial plays and musicals. A new theatre has also moved into the Amsterdam scene in 2014, joining other established venues: Theater Amsterdam is located in the west part of Amsterdam, on the Danzigerkade. It is housed in a modern building with a panoramic view over the harbour. The theatre is the first-ever purpose-built venue to showcase a single play entitled ANNE, the play based on Anne Frank's life.
+ On the east side of town, there is a small theatre in a converted bathhouse, the Badhuistheater. The theatre often has English programming.
+ The Netherlands has a tradition of cabaret or kleinkunst, which combines music, storytelling, commentary, theatre and comedy. Cabaret dates back to the 1930s and artists like Wim Kan, Wim Sonneveld and Toon Hermans were pioneers of this form of art in the Netherlands. In Amsterdam is the Kleinkunstacademie (English: Cabaret Academy) and Nederlied Kleinkunstkoor (English: Cabaret Choir). Contemporary popular artists are Youp van 't Hek, Freek de Jonge, Herman Finkers, Hans Teeuwen, Theo Maassen, Herman van Veen, Najib Amhali, Raoul Heertje, Jörgen Raymann, Brigitte Kaandorp and Comedytrain. The English spoken comedy scene was established with the founding of Boom Chicago in 1993. They have their own theatre at Leidseplein.
+ Amsterdam is famous for its vibrant and diverse nightlife. Amsterdam has many cafés (bars). They range from large and modern to small and cosy. The typical Bruine Kroeg (brown café) breathe a more old fashioned atmosphere with dimmed lights, candles, and somewhat older clientele. These brown cafés mostly offer a wide range of local and international artisanal beers. Most cafés have terraces in summertime. A common sight on the Leidseplein during summer is a square full of terraces packed with people drinking beer or wine. Many restaurants can be found in Amsterdam as well. Since Amsterdam is a multicultural city, a lot of different ethnic restaurants can be found. Restaurants range from being rather luxurious and expensive to being ordinary and affordable. Amsterdam also possesses many discothèques. The two main nightlife areas for tourists are the Leidseplein and the Rembrandtplein. The Paradiso, Melkweg and Sugar Factory are cultural centres, which turn into discothèques on some nights. Examples of discothèques near the Rembrandtplein are the Escape, Air, John Doe and Club Abe. Also noteworthy are Panama, Hotel Arena (East), TrouwAmsterdam and Studio 80. In recent years '24-hour' clubs opened their doors, most notably Radion De School, Shelter and Marktkantine. Bimhuis located near the Central Station, with its rich programming hosting the best in the field is considered one of the best jazz clubs in the world. The Reguliersdwarsstraat is the main street for the LGBT community and nightlife.
+ In 2008, there were 140 festivals and events in Amsterdam.[221] During the same year, Amsterdam was designated as the World Book Capital for one year by UNESCO.[222]
+ Famous festivals and events in Amsterdam include: Koningsdag (which was named Koninginnedag until the crowning of King Willem-Alexander in 2013) (King's Day ��� Queen's Day); the Holland Festival for the performing arts; the yearly Prinsengrachtconcert (classical concerto on the Prinsen canal) in August; the 'Stille Omgang' (a silent Roman Catholic evening procession held every March); Amsterdam Gay Pride; The Cannabis Cup; and the Uitmarkt. On Koningsdag—that is held each year on 27 April—hundreds of thousands of people travel to Amsterdam to celebrate with the city's residents. The entire city becomes overcrowded with people buying products from the freemarket, or visiting one of the many music concerts.
+ The yearly Holland Festival attracts international artists and visitors from all over Europe. Amsterdam Gay Pride is a yearly local LGBT parade of boats in Amsterdam's canals, held on the first Saturday in August.[223] The annual Uitmarkt is a three-day cultural event at the start of the cultural season in late August. It offers previews of many different artists, such as musicians and poets, who perform on podia.[224]
+ Amsterdam is home of the Eredivisie football club AFC Ajax. The stadium Johan Cruyff Arena is the home of Ajax. It is located in the south-east of the city next to the new Amsterdam Bijlmer ArenA railway station. Before moving to their current location in 1996, Ajax played their regular matches in the now demolished De Meer Stadion in the eastern part of the city[225] or in the Olympic Stadium.
+In 1928, Amsterdam hosted the Summer Olympics. The Olympic Stadium built for the occasion has been completely restored and is now used for cultural and sporting events, such as the Amsterdam Marathon.[226] In 1920, Amsterdam assisted in hosting some of the sailing events for the Summer Olympics held in neighbouring Antwerp, Belgium by hosting events at Buiten IJ.
+ The city holds the Dam to Dam Run, a 16 km (10 mi) race from Amsterdam to Zaandam, as well as the Amsterdam Marathon. The ice hockey team Amstel Tijgers play in the Jaap Eden ice rink. The team competes in the Dutch ice hockey premier league. Speed skating championships have been held on the 400-meter lane of this ice rink.
+ Amsterdam holds two American football franchises: the Amsterdam Crusaders and the Amsterdam Panthers. The Amsterdam Pirates baseball team competes in the Dutch Major League. There are three field hockey teams: Amsterdam, Pinoké and Hurley, who play their matches around the Wagener Stadium in the nearby city of Amstelveen. The basketball team MyGuide Amsterdam competes in the Dutch premier division and play their games in the Sporthallen Zuid.[227]
+ There is one rugby club in Amsterdam, which also hosts sports training classes such as RTC (Rugby Talenten Centrum or Rugby Talent Centre) and the National Rugby stadium.
+ Since 1999, the city of Amsterdam honours the best sportsmen and women at the Amsterdam Sports Awards. Boxer Raymond Joval and field hockey midfielder Carole Thate were the first to receive the awards, in 1999.
+ Amsterdam hosted the World Gymnaestrada in 1991 and will do so again in 2023.[228]
+ The city of Amsterdam is a municipality under the Dutch Municipalities Act. It is governed by a directly elected municipal council, a municipal executive board and a mayor. Since 1981, the municipality of Amsterdam has gradually been divided into semi-autonomous boroughs, called stadsdelen or 'districts'. Over time, a total of 15 boroughs were created. In May 2010, under a major reform, the number of Amsterdam boroughs was reduced to eight: Amsterdam-Centrum covering the city centre including the canal belt, Amsterdam-Noord consisting of the neighbourhoods north of the IJ lake, Amsterdam-Oost in the east, Amsterdam-Zuid in the south, Amsterdam-West in the west, Amsterdam Nieuw-West in the far west, Amsterdam Zuidoost in the southeast, and Westpoort covering the Port of Amsterdam area.[229]
+ As with all Dutch municipalities, Amsterdam is governed by a directly elected municipal council, a municipal executive board and a government appointed[230] mayor (burgemeester). The mayor is a member of the municipal executive board, but also has individual responsibilities in maintaining public order. On 27 June 2018, Femke Halsema (former member of House of Representatives for GroenLinks from 1998 to 2011) was appointed as the first woman to be Mayor of Amsterdam by the King's Commissioner of North Holland for a six-year term after being nominated by the Amsterdam municipal council and began serving a six-year term on 12 July 2018. She replaces Eberhard van der Laan (Labour Party) who was the Mayor of Amsterdam from 2010 until his death in October 2017. After the 2014 municipal council elections, a governing majority of D66, VVD and SP was formed – the first coalition without the Labour Party since World War II.[231] Next to the Mayor, the municipal executive board consists of eight wethouders ('alderpersons') appointed by the municipal council: four D66 alderpersons, two VVD alderpersons and two SP alderpersons.[232]
+ On 18 September 2017, it was announced by Eberhard van der Laan in an open letter to Amsterdam citizens that Kajsa Ollongren would take up his office as acting Mayor of Amsterdam with immediate effect due to ill health.[233] Ollongren was succeeded as acting Mayor by Eric van der Burg on 26 October 2017 and by Jozias van Aartsen on 4 December 2017.
+ Unlike most other Dutch municipalities, Amsterdam is subdivided into eight boroughs, called stadsdelen or 'districts', and the urban area of Weesp, a system that was implemented gradually in the 1980s to improve local governance. The boroughs are responsible for many activities that had previously been run by the central city. In 2010, the number of Amsterdam boroughs reached fifteen. Fourteen of those had their own district council (deelraad), elected by a popular vote. The fifteenth, Westpoort, covers the harbour of Amsterdam and had very few residents. Therefore, it was governed by the central municipal council.
+ Under the borough system, municipal decisions are made at borough level, except for those affairs pertaining to the whole city such as major infrastructure projects, which are the jurisdiction of the central municipal authorities. In 2010, the borough system was restructured, in which many smaller boroughs merged into larger boroughs. In 2014, under a reform of the Dutch Municipalities Act, the Amsterdam boroughs lost much of their autonomous status, as their district councils were abolished.
+ The municipal council of Amsterdam voted to maintain the borough system by replacing the district councils with smaller, but still directly elected district committees (bestuurscommissies). Under a municipal ordinance, the new district committees were granted responsibilities through delegation of regulatory and executive powers by the central municipal council.
+ "Amsterdam" is usually understood to refer to the municipality of Amsterdam. Colloquially, some areas within the municipality, such as the town of Durgerdam, may not be considered part of Amsterdam.
+ Statistics Netherlands uses three other definitions of Amsterdam: metropolitan agglomeration Amsterdam (Grootstedelijke Agglomeratie Amsterdam, not to be confused with Grootstedelijk Gebied Amsterdam, a synonym of Groot Amsterdam), Greater Amsterdam (Groot Amsterdam, a COROP region) and the urban region Amsterdam (Stadsgewest Amsterdam).[117] The Amsterdam Department for Research and Statistics uses a fourth conurbation, namely the Stadsregio Amsterdam ('City Region of Amsterdam'). The city region is similar to Greater Amsterdam but includes the municipalities of Zaanstad and Wormerland. It excludes Graft-De Rijp.
+ The smallest of these areas is the municipality of Amsterdam with a population of about 870,000 in 2021.[234] The larger conurbation had a population of over 1 million. It includes the municipalities of Zaanstad, Wormerland, Oostzaan, Diemen and Amstelveen only, as well as the municipality of Amsterdam. Greater Amsterdam includes 15 municipalities, and had a population of 1,400,000 in 2021.[234] Though much larger in area, the population of this area is only slightly larger, because the definition excludes the relatively populous municipality of Zaanstad. The largest area by population, the Amsterdam Metropolitan Area (Dutch: Metropoolregio Amsterdam), has a population of 2,33 million.[235] It includes for instance Zaanstad, Wormerland, Muiden, Abcoude, Haarlem, Almere and Lelystad but excludes Graft-De Rijp. Amsterdam is part of the conglomerate metropolitan area Randstad, with a total population of 6,659,300 inhabitants.[236]
+ Of these various metropolitan area configurations, only the Stadsregio Amsterdam (City Region of Amsterdam) has a formal governmental status. Its responsibilities include regional spatial planning and the metropolitan public transport concessions.[237]
+ Under the Dutch Constitution, Amsterdam is the capital of the Netherlands. Since the 1983 constitutional revision, the constitution mentions "Amsterdam" and "capital" in chapter 2, article 32: The king's confirmation by oath and his coronation take place in "the capital Amsterdam" ("de hoofdstad Amsterdam").[238] Previous versions of the constitution only mentioned "the city of Amsterdam" ("de stad Amsterdam").[239] For a royal investiture, therefore, the States General of the Netherlands (the Dutch Parliament) meets for a ceremonial joint session in Amsterdam. The ceremony traditionally takes place at the Nieuwe Kerk on Dam Square, immediately after the former monarch has signed the act of abdication at the nearby Royal Palace of Amsterdam. Normally, however, the Parliament sits in The Hague, the city which has historically been the seat of the Dutch government, the Dutch monarchy, and the Dutch supreme court. Foreign embassies are also located in The Hague.
+ The coat of arms of Amsterdam is composed of several historical elements. First and centre are three St Andrew's crosses, aligned in a vertical band on the city's shield (although Amsterdam's patron saint was Saint Nicholas). These St Andrew's crosses can also be found on the city shields of neighbours Amstelveen and Ouder-Amstel. This part of the coat of arms is the basis of the flag of Amsterdam, flown by the city government, but also as civil ensign for ships registered in Amsterdam. Second is the Imperial Crown of Austria. In 1489, out of gratitude for services and loans, Maximilian I awarded Amsterdam the right to adorn its coat of arms with the king's crown. Then, in 1508, this was replaced with Maximilian's imperial crown when he was crowned Holy Roman Emperor. In the early years of the 17th century, Maximilian's crown in Amsterdam's coat of arms was again replaced, this time with the crown of Emperor Rudolph II, a crown that became the Imperial Crown of Austria. The lions date from the late 16th century, when city and province became part of the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. Last came the city's official motto: Heldhaftig, Vastberaden, Barmhartig ("Heroic, Determined, Merciful"), bestowed on the city in 1947 by Queen Wilhelmina, in recognition of the city's bravery during the Second World War.
+ Currently, there are sixteen tram routes and five metro routes. All are operated by municipal public transport operator Gemeentelijk Vervoerbedrijf (GVB), which also runs the city bus network.
+ Four fare-free GVB ferries carry pedestrians and cyclists across the IJ lake to the borough of Amsterdam-Noord, and two fare-charging ferries run east and west along the harbour. There are also privately operated water taxis, a water bus, a boat sharing operation, electric rental boats and canal cruises, that transport people along Amsterdam's waterways.
+ Regional buses, and some suburban buses, are operated by Connexxion and EBS. International coach services are provided by Eurolines from Amsterdam Amstel railway station, IDBUS from Amsterdam Sloterdijk railway station, and Megabus from the Zuiderzeeweg in the east of the city.
+ In order to facilitate easier transport to the centre of Amsterdam, the city has various P+R Locations where people can park their car at an affordable price and transfer to one of the numerous public transport lines.[240]
+ Amsterdam was intended in 1932 to be the hub, a kind of Kilometre Zero, of the highway system of the Netherlands,[241] with freeways numbered One to Eight planned to originate from the city.[241] The outbreak of the Second World War and shifting priorities led to the current situation, where only roads A1, A2, and A4 originate from Amsterdam according to the original plan. The A3 to Rotterdam was cancelled in 1970 in order to conserve the Groene Hart. Road A8, leading north to Zaandam and the A10 Ringroad were opened between 1968 and 1974.[242] Besides the A1, A2, A4 and A8, several freeways, such as the A7 and A6, carry traffic mainly bound for Amsterdam.
+ The A10 ringroad surrounding the city connects Amsterdam with the Dutch national network of freeways. Interchanges on the A10 allow cars to enter the city by transferring to one of the 18 city roads, numbered S101 through to S118. These city roads are regional roads without grade separation, and sometimes without a central reservation. Most are accessible by cyclists. The S100 Centrumring is a smaller ringroad circumnavigating the city's centre.
+ In the city centre, driving a car is discouraged. Parking fees are expensive, and many streets are closed to cars or are one-way.[243] The local government sponsors carsharing and carpooling initiatives such as Autodelen and Meerijden.nu.[244] The local government has also started removing parking spaces in the city, with the goal of removing 10,000 spaces (roughly 1,500 per year) by 2025.[245]
+ Amsterdam is served by ten stations of the Nederlandse Spoorwegen (Dutch Railways).[246] Five are intercity stops: Sloterdijk, Zuid, Amstel, Bijlmer ArenA and Amsterdam Centraal. The stations for local services are: Lelylaan, RAI, Holendrecht, Muiderpoort and Science Park. Amsterdam Centraal is also an international railway station. From the station there are regular services to destinations such as Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Russia, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Among these trains are international trains of the Nederlandse Spoorwegen (Amsterdam-Berlin), the Eurostar (Amsterdam-Brussels-London), Thalys (Amsterdam-Brussels-Paris/Lille), and Intercity-Express (Amsterdam–Cologne–Frankfurt).[247][248][249]
+ Amsterdam Airport Schiphol is less than 20 minutes by train from Amsterdam Centraal station and is served by domestic and international intercity trains, such as Thalys, Eurostar and Intercity Brussel. Schiphol is the largest airport in the Netherlands, the third-largest in Europe, and the 14th-largest in the world in terms of passengers. It handles over 68 million passengers per year and is the home base of four airlines, KLM, Transavia, Martinair and Arkefly.[250] As of 2014[update], Schiphol was the fifth busiest airport in the world measured by international passenger numbers.[251] This airport is 4 meters below sea level.[252] Although Schiphol is internationally known as Amsterdam Schiphol Airport it actually lies in the neighbouring municipality of Haarlemmermeer, southwest of the city.
+ Amsterdam is one of the most bicycle-friendly large cities in the world and is a centre of bicycle culture with good facilities for cyclists such as bike paths and bike racks, and several guarded bike storage garages (fietsenstalling) which can be used.
+ According to the most recent figures published by Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), in 2015 the 442.693 households (850.000 residents) in Amsterdam together owned 847.000 bicycles – 1.91 bicycle per household.[253] Theft is widespread—in 2011, about 83,000 bicycles were stolen in Amsterdam.[254] Bicycles are used by all socio-economic groups because of their convenience, Amsterdam's small size, the 400 km (249 mi) of bike paths,[255] the flat terrain, and the inconvenience of driving an automobile.[256]
+ Amsterdam has two universities: the University of Amsterdam (Universiteit van Amsterdam, UvA), and the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU). Other institutions for higher education include an art school – Gerrit Rietveld Academie, a university of applied sciences – the Hogeschool van Amsterdam, and the Amsterdamse Hogeschool voor de Kunsten. Amsterdam's International Institute of Social History is one of the world's largest documentary and research institutions concerning social history, and especially the history of the labour movement. Amsterdam's Hortus Botanicus, founded in the early 17th century, is one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world,[257] with many old and rare specimens, among them the coffee plant that served as the parent for the entire coffee culture in Central and South America.[258]
+ There are over 200 primary schools in Amsterdam.[259] Some of these primary schools base their teachings on particular pedagogic theories like the various Montessori schools. The biggest Montessori high school in Amsterdam is the Montessori Lyceum Amsterdam. Many schools, however, are based on religion. This used to be primarily Roman Catholicism and various Protestant denominations, but with the influx of Muslim immigrants, there has been a rise in the number of Islamic schools. Jewish schools can be found in the southern suburbs of Amsterdam.
+ Amsterdam is noted for having five independent grammar schools (Dutch: gymnasia), the Vossius Gymnasium, Barlaeus Gymnasium, St. Ignatius Gymnasium, Het 4e Gymnasium and the Cygnus Gymnasium where a classical curriculum including Latin and classical Greek is taught. Though believed until recently by many to be an anachronistic and elitist concept that would soon die out, the gymnasia have recently experienced a revival, leading to the formation of a fourth and fifth grammar school in which the three aforementioned schools participate. Most secondary schools in Amsterdam offer a variety of different levels of education in the same school. The city also has various colleges ranging from art and design to politics and economics which are mostly also available for students coming from other countries.
+ Schools for foreign nationals in Amsterdam include the Amsterdam International Community School, British School of Amsterdam, Albert Einstein International School Amsterdam, Lycée Vincent van Gogh La Haye-Amsterdam primary campus (French school), International School of Amsterdam, and the Japanese School of Amsterdam.
+ Amsterdam is a prominent centre for national and international media. Some locally based newspapers include Het Parool, a national daily paper; De Telegraaf, the largest Dutch daily newspaper; the daily newspapers Trouw, de Volkskrant and NRC; De Groene Amsterdammer, a weekly newspaper; the free newspapers Metro and The Holland Times (printed in English).
+ Amsterdam is home to the second-largest Dutch commercial TV group SBS Broadcasting Group, consisting of TV-stations SBS 6, Net 5 and Veronica. However, Amsterdam is not considered 'the media city of the Netherlands'. The town of Hilversum, 30 km (19 mi) south-east of Amsterdam, has been crowned with this unofficial title. Hilversum is the principal centre for radio and television broadcasting in the Netherlands. Radio Netherlands, heard worldwide via shortwave radio since the 1920s, is also based there. Hilversum is home to an extensive complex of audio and television studios belonging to the national broadcast production company NOS, as well as to the studios and offices of all the Dutch public broadcasting organisations and many commercial TV production companies.
+ In 2012, the music video of Far East Movement, 'Live My Life', was filmed in various parts of Amsterdam.
+ Also, several movies were filmed in Amsterdam, such as James Bond's Diamonds Are Forever, Ocean's Twelve, Girl with a Pearl Earring and The Hitman's Bodyguard. Amsterdam is also featured in John Green's book The Fault in Our Stars, which has been made into a film as well that partly takes place in Amsterdam.
+ From the late 1960s onwards many buildings in Amsterdam have been squatted both for housing and for using as social centres.[260] A number of these squats have legalised and become well known, such as OCCII, OT301, Paradiso and Vrankrijk.

documents/dutch_cuisine.txt

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+Dutch cuisine (Dutch: Nederlandse keuken) is formed from the cooking traditions and practices of the Netherlands. The country's cuisine is shaped by its location in the fertile North Sea river delta of the European Plain, giving rise to fishing, farming (for crops, dairy and meat) and overseas trade. The Burgundian-Habsburg court enriched the cuisine of the Dutch elite in the 15th and 16th century, so did the colonial spice trade in the 17th century.
+ In the 17th and 18th century, Dutch cuisine played a pivotal role in the spread of coffee in the world as the Netherlands pioneered in establishing gardens for coffee cultivation in their colonies and popularising the concept of coffeehouses for the masses.[1] And the development of the Dutch process chocolate in 1828, which was instrumental in the transformation of chocolate to its solid form (which was up till then drunk as a liquid), started the modern era of chocolate.[2]
+ In the late 19th and early 20th century, Dutch food became designed to be economical and filling rather than pleasing,[3] which was the result of the rise of housekeeping schools, where girls learned to cook in such manner. Also, Dutch food production focussed increasingly on efficiency, which became so successful, that despite its size, the small country became the world's second largest exporter of agricultural products by value behind the United States.[4] Due to this focus on efficiency, the Dutch obtained not only a reputation that they were feeding the world, but also that their cuisine had a bland taste.[3]
+ Due to the availability of water and flat grass land, The Dutch diet contains many dairy products such as cheese, and is relatively high in carbohydrates and fat. During the 20th century, Dutch cuisine and diet changed significantly. Initially influenced by the eating culture of its colonies (particularly the Dutch East Indies), and later by globalization, it became cosmopolitan. Most international cuisines are represented in the major cities and there is a renewed interest in pleasing tastes.
+ Little evidence is available about food and drink in the late medieval Low Countries. In the consumption of pottage, the Low Countries were not very different from other Western European countries during the Middle Ages. Half-liquid pottage consisted of milk, beer, water, root vegetable and peas or grain, sometimes enriched with a piece of meat. The content changed throughout the seasons.[5]
+ Beer flavoured with gruit was produced until the 14th century at the monasteries. Gruit was replaced with hop, a tradition introduced from the German city of Bremen, and this started off a beer culture and the Low Counties as a major exporter of beer. Beer was in medieval times the common drink as water was of poor quality, and milk—coming from the low-lying grasslands of Holland and Friesland—was mainly used for the production of butter and cheese. Dutch butter and cheese became famous products at an early stage and continued to be so for centuries.[5]
+ The sea and the rivers provided an abundance of fish. The process of gibbing was invented by Willem Beukelszoon,[6] a 14th-century Zealand fisherman. The invention created an export industry for salt herring (Dutch: maatjesharing) that was monopolized by the Dutch. They began to build ships and eventually moved from trading in herring to colonizing and the Dutch Lowlands (the Netherlands as a country did not exist until 1581), ultimately leading to the Dutch becoming a seafaring power.[7]
+ Herring is still very important to the Dutch who celebrate Vlaggetjesdag (Flag Day) each spring, as a tradition that dates back to the 14th century when fishermen went out to sea in their small boats to capture the annual catch (Hollandse Nieuwe), and to preserve and export their catch abroad.[8]
+ Gardening was initially practiced by monasteries, but castles and country houses began also to develop gardens with herbs and vegetables and hunting grounds. The famous tourist attraction and flower park Keukenhof (literally kitchen garden) is an example of a former 15th-century hunting ground and herbs garden for Jacqueline, Countess of Hainaut's castle kitchen. Orchards for pears and apples connected to castles were later used for export and set off a Dutch horticulture tradition that remains to this day.[5]
+ During the 15th century haute cuisine began to emerge, largely limited to the aristocracy. Cookery books from this period are aimed at the upper class. The first Dutch-language cook book printed in Brussels is called Een notabel boecxken van cokeryen (A notable book of cookery) from ca. 1510.[9] It offers medieval recipes for festivities, such as sauces, game, jellies, fish, meat, pies, eggs, dairy products, candied quinces and ginger and contains one of the oldest known recipes for appeltaerten, apple pie. The recipes come from various sources, 61 of them are translations of the French recipe book Le Viandier.[10]
+ Historically, Dutch cuisine was closely related to northern French cuisine, since the two countries have nearby borders and the Low Countries and Northern France have been historically ruled by the Dukes of Burgundy. This is still visible in traditional Dutch restaurants and the Southern regional cuisine, that is still colloquially referred to as Bourgondisch.[5]
+ As the Dutch Republic entered its Golden Age in the 17th century, dishes of this kind became available to the wealthy middle class as well, often consisting of a rich variety of fruits, cheeses, meat, wine, and nuts.[11][12] The Dutch Empire enabled spices, sugar, and exotic fruits to be imported to the country. The cookbook De Verstandige Kok (or The Reasonable Chef) was published in 1667, which shows the great interest the elite had in what was on the plates.[3]
+ The Dutch East India Company was the first to import coffee on a large scale to Europe and popularised the concept of coffee houses.[13] The Dutch later grew the crop in Java and Ceylon.[14] The first exports of Indonesian coffee from Java to the Netherlands occurred in 1711.[15] By the late 17th century, tea and coffee consumption were increasing and becoming part of everyday life. Tea was served with sweets, candy or marzipan and cookies. The availability of relatively cheaper spices resulted in a tradition of spiced cookies called speculaas, the exact recipes of which were kept secret by bakers.[16]
+ Vegetables, meat, poultry and salted, smoked or fresh fish and eggs were prepared in the Dutch kitchens of the time.[17] The meal started with green salads and cold or warm cooked vegetables with dressing, vegetable dishes with butter, herbs or edible flowers and continued with numerous fish and meat dishes.
+ Exotic ingredients such as dates, rice, cinnamon, ginger and saffron were used. Savoury tarts and pastries followed. The meal ended with jellies, cheese, nuts and sweet pastries, washed down with hippocras, a sweet spiced wine.[18] Of course, even in the Golden Age, not everyone could afford such luxuries and the everyday meal of the ordinary Dutchman was still a humble affair of grain or legume pottage served with rye.[19]
+ Kitchen scene from 1644, with swan pie, game, fish and apples, by David Teniers the Younger
+ Mince pie and Lemon by Pieter Claesz, 1625
+ Clara Peeters (1594–1657) Still Life with Crab, Shrimps and Lobster
+ Clara Peeters (1594–1657) Table with Orange, Olives and Pie
+ Clara Peeters (1594–1657) Still life with Cheeses, Artichoke, and Cherries
+ Still-Life with fruit, nuts and cheese by Floris Claeszoon van Dyck
+ In the late 18th century the potato was introduced from South America and became a staple food by 1800.[20] In the early 19th century, while the rich could eat what they desired, the working population ate bread (rye bread in some areas) and potatoes (often eaten at every meal of the day[20]), pancakes in some areas, occasionally fish (herring) and other seafood, fruit and vegetables, but usually little meat. Throughout the 19th century working class people suffered from some form of malnutrition.[20]
+ During the 19th century, the poor people drank little else but water (of poor quality), sometimes watery coffee (or chicory) or tea. In some areas hot chocolate was consumed, but the most popular drinks (beside water) were beer and jenever. For most of the century beer was drunk in the southern part, where Catholicism dominated, and in Catholic enclaves in the other areas. Jenever consumption early in the 19th century was twice that of the equivalent consumption of distilled spirits in neighbouring countries.[20]
+ The modest and plain look of what is nowadays considered the traditional Dutch cuisine, appears to be the result of a fairly recent development. In the twentieth century, the new availability of mass education meant that a great number of girls could be sent to a new school type, the Huishoudschool (housekeeping school), where young women were trained to become housewives and where lessons in cooking cheap and simple meals were a major part of the curriculum, often based on more traditional Dutch dishes, and leading to increased uniformity in the Dutch diet. Values taught in that school system included frugality, proper table manners, and healthy eating.
+ Dutch agriculture roughly consists of five sectors: tillage-based, greenhouse-based, fruit agriculture, animal husbandry and fishery.
+ Many food origins can be traced back to one of the three general regional forms of Dutch cuisine.[21] Some agricultural products and foodstuffs from these regions are protected by EU law as Protected designation of origin, like jenever, Noord-Hollandse Gouda, and kanterkaas (cumin cheese and clove cheese), Traditional speciality guaranteed, like boerenkaas (farmhouse cheese) and Hollandse nieuwe (soused herring), and the less strict variant of Protected geographical indication, like Edam Holland and Limburgse vlaai.
+ The regions in the north and east of the Netherlands, roughly the provinces of Groningen, Friesland, Drenthe, Overijssel and Gelderland north of the great rivers make up north eastern Dutch cuisine.
+ The region is the least populated area of the Netherlands. The late (18th century) introduction of large scale agriculture means that the cuisine is generally known for its many kinds of meats. The relative lack of farms allowed for an abundance of game and husbandry, though dishes near the coastal regions of Friesland, Groningen and the parts of Overijssel bordering the IJsselmeer also include a large amount of fish.
+ The various dried sausages, belonging to the metworst-family of Dutch sausages, are found throughout the region and are highly prized for their often very strong taste. Most towns and various villages have their own variety of this sausage. The region also produces the traditional smoked sausages, of which (Gelderse) rookworst is the most renowned. These sausages traditionally have been smoked over wood chips, and are served after they have been boiled in water. The sausage contains a lot of fat and is very juicy. The large sausage are often eaten alongside stamppot, like zuurkoolstamppot (mashed potatoes and sauerkraut). Cut in half they are sometimes eaten as a street food. In Gelderland (in and around the Veluwe) and Overijssel (in Salland) kruudmoes is a traditional food with buttermilk, pearl barley, bacon and herbs in which rookworst is processed.
+ The provinces are also home to many kinds of pastries, cookies and (rye) breads. Each of the provinces of Gelderland, Overijssel and Groningen has a long-standing rye bread tradition, but rye bread from Friesland (a kind of Pumpernickel) became well known because of its taste. Notable characteristics of Frisian rye bread is its long baking time (up to 20 hours), resulting in a sweet taste and a deep dark color. In contrast to southern Dutch cuisine, which tends to be soft and moist, the northeastern rye bread and pastries generally are of a hard texture, and the pasties are heavily spiced with ginger or succade or contain small bits of meat. Examples of these that are considered typical for the region are Kruidkoek (such as Groninger koek), Frisian Suikerbrood (with chunks of sugar), Fryske dúmkes (cookies with anais, ginger, and hazelnuts) and spekdik (small pancakes with metworst and bacon).
+ In terms of alcoholic beverages, the region is renowned for its many bitters (such as Beerenburg) and other high-proof liquors rather than beer, which is, apart from Jenever, typical for the rest of the country.
+ As a coastal region, Friesland is home to low-lying grasslands, and thus has a cheese production in common with the Western cuisine. Friese Nagelkaas (Friesian Clove cheese) is a notable example, and the variant made with skimmed milk known as kanterkaas, is a protected designation of origin.
+ The provinces of North Holland, South Holland, Zeeland, Utrecht and the Gelderlandic region of Betuwe are the parts of the Netherlands which make up the region in which western Dutch cuisine is found.
+ Due to the abundance of surface water and grassland, necessary to sustain dairy cattle, the area is known for its many dairy products, which for centuries includes prominent Dutch cheeses such as Gouda, Leyden (spiced cheese with cumin) and Edam (traditionally in small spheres), as well as relatively new trademarked cheese brands such as Leerdammer, and Beemster. Zeeland and South Holland produce a lot of butter, which contains a larger amount of milkfat than most other European butter varieties. A by-product of the butter-making process, buttermilk (karnemelk), is also considered typical for this region.
+ Seafood such as soused herring, mussels (called Zeeuwse Mosselen, since all Dutch mussels for consumption are cleaned in Zeeland's Oosterschelde), eels, oysters and shrimps are widely available and typical for the region. Kibbeling, once a local delicacy consisting of small chunks of battered white fish, has become a national fast food, just as Lekkerbekje.
+ Indirectly a product of the sea is Ossenworst (''ox sausage''), a raw beef sausage originating in Amsterdam, which used to be made of ox meat. This specialty has its origins in the seventeenth century, when oxen were imported large-scale from Denmark and Germany. The spices in the sausage, such as pepper, cloves, mace and nutmeg, came from the Dutch East Indies. Traditionally, aged beef was used for this sausage, that was then smoked at a low temperature such that the meat remained raw. Present-day Amsterdam ossenworst is made with lean beef, and the sausage is now often neither smoked nor aged. It is often eaten with Amsterdamse uitjes, a kind of pickled onion.
+ Pastries in this area tend to be quite doughy, and often contain large amounts of sugar; either caramelised, powdered or crystallised. The oliebol (in its modern form) and Zeeuwse bolus are good examples. A moist doughy white bread from the Zaanstreek in North Holland is duivekater, of which the recipe goes back hundreds of years and is eaten with butter. Cookies of all sorts are produced in great number and tend to contain a lot of butter and sugar, of which the stroopwafel is well known, just as cookies with a filling of some kind, mostly almond, like gevulde koek.
+ The region is also known for its chocolate industry, due to its colonial past, and the development of the Dutch process chocolate in 1828 by Coenraad van Houten, that started the modern era of chocolate as it was instrumental in the transformation of chocolate to its solid form which was up till then drunk as a liquid. Van Houten produced chocolate in Amsterdam, later in Leiden and Weesp, while Droste started in Haarlem. The popular chocomel started the production in Zoetermeer, and is a trademarked chocolate-flavoured milk, often the choice of drink as Koek-en-zopie, the food and drink sold on the ice during periods of ice skating. Verkade has its chocolate production in Zaandam. The same city is home to the headquarters of a new Dutch fair trade chocolate brand that took the market by storm: Tony's Chocoloney. Zaanstreek is since the 16th century also known for its mayonnaise (for the Dutch a popular condiment to eat with French fries), and typical whole-grain mustards (popular to eat with bitterballen).
+ The traditional alcoholic beverages of this region are beer (strong pale lager) and Jenever, a high proof juniper-flavored spirit, that came to be known in England as gin. A noted exception within the traditional Dutch alcoholic landscape, Advocaat, a rich and creamy liqueur made from eggs, sugar and brandy, is also native to this region.
+ Southern Dutch cuisine constitutes the cuisine of the Dutch provinces of North Brabant and Limburg and the Flemish Region in Belgium. It is renowned for its many rich pastries, soups, stews and vegetable dishes and is often called Burgundian which is a Dutch idiom invoking the rich Burgundian court which ruled the Low Countries in the Middle Ages renowned for its splendor and great feasts.
+ It is the only Dutch culinary region which developed an haute cuisine and it forms the base of most traditional Dutch restaurants including typical main courses served such as Biefstuk, Varkenshaas, Ossenhaas, these are premium cuts of meat, generally pork or beef, accompanied by a wide variety of sauces and potatoes which have been double fried in the traditional Dutch (or Belgian) manner.
+ Stews, such as hachee, a stew of onions, beef and a thick gravy, contain a lot of flavour and require hours to prepare. Vegetable soups are made from richly flavored stock or bouillon and typically contain small meatballs alongside a wide variety of different vegetables. Asparagus and witloof are highly prized and traditionally eaten with cheese or ham.
+ Pastries are abundant, often with rich fillings of cream, custard or fruits. Cakes, such as the Vlaai from Limburg and the Moorkop and Bossche Bol from Brabant, are typical pastries. Savoury pastries also occur, with the Brabantian worstenbroodje (a roll with a sausage of ground beef, literally translates into sausage bread) being the most popular.
+ 
+The traditional alcoholic beverage of the region is beer. There are many local brands, ranging from Trappist beer to Kriek lambic. 5 of the 11 International Trappist Association-recognised breweries in the world, are located in the Southern Dutch cultural area. Beer, like wine in French cuisine, is also used in cooking; often in stews. Indonesian and Indo dishes became popular due to the arrival of former Dutch colonials and people of Eurasian descent into the Netherlands, especially after the independence of Indonesia from Dutch colonial rule in 1945. Countess van Limburg Stirum writes in her book The Art of Dutch Cooking (1962): "There exist countless Indonesian dishes, some of which take hours to prepare; but a few easy ones have become so popular that they can be regarded as 'national dishes'". She then provides recipes for nasi goreng (fried rice), pisang goreng (fried bananas), lumpia goreng (fried spring rolls), bami (fried noodles), satay (grilled skewered meat), satay sauce (peanut sauce), and sambal oelek (chilli paste).[22] Of the Dutch-Indonesian fusion dishes the best known is the rijsttafel ("rice table"), which is an elaborate meal consisting of many (up to several dozen) small dishes filling an entire table. While still popular in the Netherlands, rijsttafel is now rare in Indonesia itself.
+ Outside the big cities, Indonesian food is served in Chinese restaurants, and almost every town in the Netherlands has a Chinese-Indonesian (Chinees-Indische) restaurant. This typical Dutch restaurant fusion is now heavily in decline. In February of 2021, this Chinese-Indonesian restaurant culture - where three cultures come together (Chinese, Indonesian and Dutch) - has been acknowledged as Dutch intangible cultural heritage, that needs to be preserved.[23]
+ Popular fusion dishes sold at snackbars are friet saté (French fries with satay), patatje oorlog (French fries with mayonaise, onions and satay sauce) and patatje pinda (French fries with satay sauce).[24]
+ Another staple food with Indonesian roots sold in wide varieties in supermarket across the country are broodje bapao and kroepoek.
+ Surinamese cuisine is also popular in the Netherlands, especially in the bigger cities. Surinamese establishments commonly offer roti, a staple of the Hindustani community in Suriname, various Surinamese interpretations of Chinese Indonesian cuisine, and Surinamese sandwiches (Surinaamse broodjes) such as broodje bakkeljauw (with a type of dried and salted cod)  and broodje pom.
+ Italian and American style pizzerias have become widespread. In recent decades, Arab and Turkish dishes have become increasingly popular as well, especially as a snack food. In larger towns and cities, small restaurants selling kebabs, shawarma, and falafel can be found on virtually any street corner. In the bigger cities foods from all corners of the globe are sold in shops and restaurants.
+ Alongside yoghurt, fruit and muesli, ontbijt (breakfast) consists of bread, usually with butter and sweet toppings, such as hagelslag, vlokken, muisjes, vruchtenhagel, gestampte muisjes, treacle, apple butter, kokosbrood, jam, chocolate spread,  and speculaas.
+ Dutch bread tends to be very airy, as it is made from yeast dough. From the 1970s onward Dutch bread became predominantly whole-grain, with additional seeds such as sunflower or pumpkin seeds often mixed with the dough for taste. Rye bread is one of the few dense breads of the Netherlands. White bread used to be the luxury bread, often made with milk as well as water. Ontbijtkoek may be eaten as a substitute for a full breakfast, or simply as a snack. It is served as a thick slice, usually with butter.
+ Beschuit (Dutch crisp bakes) is also eaten as a breakfast food, with the same variety of sweet toppings, or cheese. A longtime Dutch (romantic) favourite is to serve strawberries on beschuit, which is usually topped with some sugar or whipped cream.
+ A popular breakfast in the weekend are pannenkoeken (large and thin pancakes) with apples, cheese, or raisins. Sometimes pannenkoeken are eaten as dinner in a pannenkoekenhuis (restaurant), and the variety of toppings can include bacon, ragout  and many other things. Wentelteefjes (French toast) is another breakfast treat.
+ A boterham met oude kaas (sandwich with "old" cheese)
+ Hagelslag, muisjes and vlokken on display in a Dutch supermarket.
+ Kruidkoek, peperkoek, and ontbijtkoek are a few of the regional names for a local version of gingerbread.
+ Middageten or lunch is somewhat similar to breakfast, but is usually heavier, less sweet, and more savory. However, lunch is not to be a warm meal, and eating leftovers for lunch is not very common. In bars and restaurants however, uitsmijter is a popular dish: two eggs fried with bacon or Gouda cheese, rosbief (rare roast beef, thinly cut), ham. Popular bread toppings when eating lunch at home include pindakaas (peanut butter), filet americain (a finely ground raw lean beef with the addition of mayonnaise, mustard, paprika and other spices), a wide variety of cold cuts and - where the Dutch are well known for - cheeses. The vast majority of Dutch cheeses are semi-hard or hard cheeses. Famous Dutch cheeses, include Gouda, Edam, and Leyden. A typically Dutch way of making cheese is to blend in herbs or spices during the first stages of the production process. Famous examples of this are cheeses with cloves (usually the Friesian Clove), cumin (most famously Leyden cheese), or nettles.
+ Dutch hard cheeses generally can be divided by maturity:
+ However, the terms 'jong', 'belegen', old, etc. have not been legally established with regard to the period of ripening, and the majority of cheeses sold in supermarkets have been produced with a fast-ripening starter, which, as a drawback, adds a sweeter flavour to the cheese. For example, Old Amsterdam has crystals of an old cheese, but it is ripened - according to the company - only for 8 months.[25]
+ Dutch people invite friends over for koffietijd (coffee time), which consists of coffee and cake or biscuits, served between 10:00 and 11:00 am (before lunch), 4:00 pm (between lunch and dinner) or between 7:00 pm and 8:00 pm (after dinner). Dutch thrift of the 1940's and 1950's, when the country was rebuilding the destruction of World War II, led to the famous standard rule of only one cookie with each cup of coffee. Presumably in the late 1940's even the then Prime Minister, Willem Drees, served coffee and one biscuit to a visiting American diplomat, who then became convinced that the money from the Marshall Plan was being well spent. It has been suggested that the reasons for this can also be found in the Protestant mentality in the northern Netherlands. The Roman Catholic south does not share this tradition as for instance in Limburg, where serving a large vlaai (sweet pie or pastry with filling), cut into eight pieces, is tradition when visitors are expected.
+ Koffie verkeerd (literally "wrong coffee"), or Café au lait, consists of equal parts black coffee and hot milk. The Dutch drink tea without milk and the tea is quite a lot weaker than typical English or Irish types of tea which are stronger and are usually taken with milk. In Dutch bars, tea with freshly chopped ginger (verse gemberthee) or with fresh mint leaves (verse muntthee) or very popular. In the autumn and winter hot chocolate or chocomel is drunk. Two other traditional Dutch drinks, anijsmelk (hot milk with aniseed) and kwast (hot water with lemon juice)[26] are hardly drunk any more.
+ The drinks are served with a wide variety of cakes (gebak), cookies (koekjes) and candies (snoep).
+ 
+Between 5:00 pm and 9:00 pm it is time for an alcoholic beverage (borrel), beer or wine, and a savory snack. This is when the famous bitterballen are served, a miniature variant of the kroket (croquette), deep-fried ragout-filled balls with a crunchy layer of very fine bread crumbs. Bitterballen are served with mustard. Borreltijd traditionally occurs on the weekends. Borrelnootje (peanuts in a spiced crusty coating) and kaasstengels (deep-fried crusty cheese sticks) and vlammetjes (deep-fried mini spring rolls with a very spicy minced meat filling) are other typical borrel snacks.  Wine plays only a modest role, but there are many brands of beer and strong alcoholic liquor. The most famous Dutch beer producers are Heineken in the west, Grolsch in the east, Alfa and Bavaria in the south. Traditionally, North Brabant and Limburg had a strong beer tradition, brewing many different types of beer (not unlike beer in Belgium). Other traditional Dutch lagers that are commonly found in the country are Gulpener (especially in the northern Netherlands), Hertog Jan, and Budels.[28] Jupiler is also a very common beer in the Netherlands, and is produced in Belgium.
+ Dutch cities in the west had a long brewing tradition as well, but in the 20th century, big brewers took over many smaller breweries or offered them a license to sell their beer brand, while stopping their own production.
+ In the 21st century, many new microbreweries were founded, brewing top fermenting beers in many different styles. In September 2013, there were 184 active breweries in the Netherlands. Popular styles include bock, trappist ale, stout, and wheat beer, though in the 2010s IPA variations became very popular throughout the country, especially in Amsterdam, as the craft brewing industry expanded. Some of the most popular craft breweries in the Netherlands are Brouwerij 't IJ, Jopen, and Two Chefs brewing.
+ Of the range of bitters, Beerenburg is the most famous. Strong liquors include Jenever (distilled malt wine and the precursor to Gin), Brandewijn (brandy) and Vieux, which is an imitation Cognac, but also Kandeel (made from white wine), kraamanijs (anisette), oranjebitter (orange-flavored brandy, served on festivities surrounding the royal family), Advocaat, Boerenjongens (raisins in brandy), and Boerenmeisjes (apricots in brandy).
+ Dinner, traditionally served early by international standards, starts around or even before 6 p.m. It is not uncommon for restaurants outside of major cities to be closed by 8 p.m.[citation needed] The old-fashioned Dutch dinner for the lower class consists of one simple course: potatoes, meat and vegetables—known under the acronym "AVG" (aardappelen, vlees, groente). AVG consists traditionally of potatoes with a large portion of vegetables and a small portion of meat with gravy, or a potato and vegetable stew. Vegetable stews served as side dishes are for example rodekool met appeltjes (red cabbage with apples), or rode bieten (beetroot). Regular spices used in stews of this kind may be bay leaves, juniper berries, cloves, and vinegar, although strong spices are generally used sparingly. Stews are often served with pickles, including gherkins or cocktail onions (zilveruitjes). Due to the influx of other countries, traditional meals have lost some popularity. Stamppot, mashed potatoes with different options for vegetables, is traditionally eaten in winter. If there is a starter, it is usually soup.
+ The below-listed meals have historic origins as meals for common labourers. From the 17th to the 19th century workers worked 10 to 16 hours on farms or in factories in unheated rooms, hence these meals are very heavy on calories and fat and were meant to replenish a laborer's energy.
+ Het toetje, or the final course is a sweet dessert, traditionally yogurt with some sugar or vla, a thin milk pudding (cooked milk with custard). Other desserts include:
+ The birth of a child is an occasion for serving  beschuit met muisjes (Dutch rusk covered with sugared aniseed). Traditionally, Dutch funerals are sober, and food provided is a simple piece of cake with a cup of coffee or tea.
+ The Dutch festival of Sinterklaas is held on 5 December. Saint Nicholas leaves gifts in the children's shoes. On this occasion, the Dutch drink hot chocolate milk and eat luxury variants of speculaas: speculaasbrokken (thick speculaas chunks) and gevulde speculaas (almond paste filled speculaas). Spices in speculaas include cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, cardemon and ginger. Also boterletter (a baked pastry crust with an almond paste filling and shaped into a letter S of Sinterklaas), marsepein (marzipan, in the shape of animals or other topical items), borstplaat (discs of fondant); and taaitaai are eaten. And everyone receives a chocoladeletter (chocolate letter), corresponding with the first letter of the name of the receiver. Special treats distributed by Saint Nicholas' aide Zwarte Piet include pepernoten (irregularly shaped small cookies made of rye, honey and anise) and kruidnoten (gingernut-shaped biscuit but made with speculaas spices). The traditional kruidnoot has a specific flavor and texture, but over the years, various variants have also entered the market. Some examples of variants that have appeared in Dutch stores:
+ Christmas (Kerst) in the Netherlands is a typical family holiday. Traditionally there is family brunch with kerststol, a fruited raisin bread, often filled with almond paste and covered in powdered sugar. A popular sweet is kerstkransje. Christmas dinner is also a family occasion where rollade (a kind of roulade but without the filling, consisting of spiced pork), roast pork, game, or other luxury meat may be served. Another popular Christmas dinner tradition is gourmetten, where people cook on the dinner table their own food on a special gourmetset, although this is not limited to Christmas.
+ On New Year's Eve (Oud en Nieuw), Dutch houses smell of the piping hot oil of deep-fat fryers used to prepare oliebollen and appelbeignets (a kind of apple fritter) – not to be mistaken for the appelflap which are made of puff pastry. Also ananasbeignets (pineapple fritter) are considered a treat. Oliebollen are yeast dough balls, either plain or filled with glacé fruits, apple pieces, raisins, and sultanas are served with powdered sugar. They are sold by street vendors and bakeries, and the quality can vary by a land slide and every year an oliebollen contest is held.[30] Freshly made they are the most tasty. In the 17th century, Dutch settlers also took their oliebollen to the American colonies, where they are now known in a different form and recipie as doughnuts.
+ In Limburg, nonnevotten are sometimes served during New Year's Eve, although it is mostly eaten during Carnival. Around New Years knieperties are popular, in particular in the northern provinces.
+ Months before Easter (Pasen) shops are flooded with chocolate eggs. On average, the Dutch eat 47 chocolate easter eggs a year.[31] Another popular dish eaten during Easter is Paasstol, which is the same kind of bread as the Kerststol.
+ The Dutch have their own types of fast food, sold at snackbars that mainly serve deepfried fastfood. French fries (called patat or friet) are served with one or a combination of sauces:
+ Snacks made with meat are usually deep fried. These include:
+ Bread comes in many varieties.
+ Kapsalon is a Dutch fast food dish created in 2003.
+ Krentenbollen are eaten with butter or cheese for breakfast, lunch, or as a snack.
+ A seasonal dish, asparagus is popularly eaten with ham, egg, and potatoes, with a butter sauce.
+ A simple Dutch meal traditionally consists of meat, potatoes, butter, a boiled vegetable, and salad.
+ Satay, originally an Indonesian dish, is commonly served with chips in the Netherlands.
+ Babi panggang speciaal was, although seemingly Indonesian-Chinese in origin, possibly devised in the Netherlands.
+ Broodje bakkeljauw is a Dutch-Surinamese bun containing dried and salted cod, here with a chili dip made from Madame Jeanette chili peppers.
+ Mussels (Mosselen met friet) are usually served with chips and dipping sauces
+ Sudderlapjes is slowly simmered beef, most often served with potatoes.
+ Gebakken sliptong: young sole (also known as "slip") fried in butter.
+ A nasischijf cut open showing the fried rice inside the deep fried snack
+ Hutspot with beef
+ Bitterballen are small snacks similar to the larger kroketten and are usually served with mustard.
+ Slices of kerststol showing the almond paste in the middle.
+ Gebakken mosselen (fried mussels) are cooked mussels fried with butter and onions.
+ Raw oysters, which are "platte zeeuwse oester".
+ Broodje bal, a slice of bread with a meatball and gravy, halved meatball served on slices of Dutch whole wheat bread.
+ Slices of meat with hard-boiled eggs in the middle.
+ Eating "Hollandse Nieuwe" (Dutch brined herring) the Dutch way.
+ A saucijzenbroodje is a popular snack in the Netherlands and is a variant of a sausage roll.
+ Bread with butter and hagelslag.