Dortmund

Dortmund(German:[ˈdɔʁtmʊnt];Westphalian:Düörpm[ˈdyːœɐ̯pm̩];Latin:Tremonia) is the third-largest city inNorth Rhine-Westphalia,afterCologneandDüsseldorf,and theninth-largest cityinGermany.With a population of 612,065 inhabitants,it is the largest city (by area and population) of theRuhras well as the largest city ofWestphalia.It lies on theEmscherandRuhrrivers (tributariesof theRhine) in theRhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Region,thesecond biggest metropolitan region by GDPin the European Union, and is considered the administrative, commercial, and cultural centre of the eastern Ruhr. Dortmund is the second-largest city in theLow Germandialect area, afterHamburg.

Dortmund Düörpm(Westphalian)
City
Clockwise from top left:Bodelschwingh Castle;Opera House;Altes Stadthaus;old market square withSt. Reinold's Church;Zollern II/IV Colliery;Dortmund U-Tower;and city centre
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Dortmund within North Rhine-Westphalia
Dortmund Dortmund
Coordinates:51°30′50″N7°27′55″E
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Arnsberg
District	Urban district
Founded	882(882)
Government
•Lord mayor(2020–25)	Thomas Westphal(SPD)
• Governing parties	SPD
Area
•City	280.71 km2(108.38 sq mi)
• Metro	7,268 km2(2,806 sq mi)
Elevation	86 m (282 ft)
Population (2023-12-31)
•City	595,471
• Density	2,100/km2(5,500/sq mi)
•Urban	5,302,179 (Ruhr)
•Metro	11,300,000 (Rhine-Ruhr)
Time zone	UTC+01:00(CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00(CEST)
Postal codes	44001-44388
Dialling codes	0231, 02304
Vehicle registration	DO
Website	www.dortmund.de

Founded around 882,Dortmund became anImperial Free City.Throughout the 13th to 14th centuries, it was the "chief city" of the Rhine, Westphalia, and the Netherlands Circle of theHanseatic League.During theThirty Years' War,the city was destroyed and decreased in significance until the onset of industrialization. The city then became one of Germany's most important coal, steel, and beer centres; as a consequence, it was one of the most heavily bombed cities in Germany duringWorld War II.The devastating bombing raids of 12 March 1945 destroyed 98% of buildings in the inner city centre. The raids, with more than 1,110 aircraft, were the largest for a single target in World War II.Today around 30 % of the city consists of buildings from before World War II.

Since the collapse of its century-long steel and coal industries, the region has adapted and shifted to high-technologybiomedical technology,micro systems technology,and alsoservices.Other key sectors includeretail,leisureand the visitor economy,creative industries,andlogistics.Dortmund was classified as a "Node city" in the Innovation Cities Index,ranked among the twelve innovation cities inEuropean Union,and is the most sustainableand digital cityinGermany.With itscentral stationandairport,the third-busiest inNorth Rhine-Westphalia,Dortmund is an important transport junction for the surrounding Ruhr area as well as theBeneluxcountries, and with the largest canalportin Europe it has a connection to important seaports on theNorth Sea.

Dortmund is home to manyculturalandeducationalinstitutions. It is the location of theTechnical University of Dortmund,Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts,theInternational School of Management,and other educational, cultural and administrative facilities, with over 49,000 students. It has many museums, such asMuseum Ostwall,Museum of Art and Cultural History,andGerman Football Museum,as well as theatres and music venues like theKonzerthausor theOpera House of Dortmund.Nearly half the municipal territory consists of waterways, woodland, agriculture, and green spaces with spacious parks such asWestfalenparkandRombergpark.This stands in a stark contrast with nearly a hundred years of extensivecoal miningandsteel millingin the past, which created a richGründerzeitarchitectural heritage.Borussia Dortmundis one of the most successful German football clubs.

History

For a chronological guide, seeTimeline of Dortmund.

Etymology

"Seal of Dortmund, the city of Westphalia" [SIGILLVM TREMONIE CIVITATIS WESTFALIE]

Dortmund was first mentioned in theWerden Abbey,which was built between 880 and 884. The Latin entry reads:In Throtmanni liber homo Arnold viii den nob solvit(German:In Throtmanni zahlt uns der freie Mann Arnold 8 Pfennige,and English:In Throtmanni the free man Arnold pays us 8 pfennigs). According to this, there are a large number of different names, but they all go back to the same phoneme stem. Their respective use in the sources appears arbitrary and random.

In the course of time the name changed many times:trut munia899,Thortmanni, Trutmania, Trotmunni939,Tremonia1152. From the 13th century on, theDortmundeappeared for the first time, but it was not until a few centuries later that it became generally accepted.

In theMiddle Ages1389, when the city had withstood the siege of 1,200 knights under the leadership of the Archbishop ofCologne,it chose as its motto a saying that is still upheld today by traditional societies:So fast as Düörpm(High German:"as firm as Dortmund" ).

In the past, the city was called "Dortmond"inDutch,"Tremonia"inSpanish,and "Trémoigne"inOld French.However, these exonyms have fallen into disuse and the city is now internationally known by its German name ofDortmund.The commonabbreviationfor the name of the city is "DTM", theIATA codeforDortmund Airport.

Early history

Historical view of Dortmund by Georg Braun and Franz Hogenberg (between 1572 and 1618)

TheSigiburgwas ahillfortin the south of present-day Dortmund, overlooking the RiverRuhrnear its confluence with the RiverLenne.The ruins of the laterHohensyburgcastle now stand on the site of the Sigiburg. The hillfort is presumably ofSaxonorigin, but there is no archeological or documentary proof of this. During theSaxon Wars,it was taken by theFranksunderCharlemagnein 772, retaken by the Saxons (possibly underWidukind) in 774, and taken again and refortified by Charlemagne in 775.Archaeologicalevidence suggests the Sigiburg site was also occupied in theNeolithicera.

The first time Dortmund was mentioned in official documents was around 882 asThrotmanni– In throtmanni liber homo arnold[us] viii den[arios] nob[is] soluit [solvit].In 1005 the "Ecclesiastical council" and in 1016 the "Imperial diet" met in Dortmund.

Middle Ages and early modern period

St. Marys and St. Reinolds in 1470

After it was destroyed by a fire, theHoly Roman EmperorFrederick I (Barbarossa)had the town rebuilt in 1152 and resided there (among other places) for two years. In 1267 St. Mary's Church, Dortmund, and three years later in 1270St. Reinold's Churchfirst mentioned. The combination of crossroad, market place, administrative centre – town hall, made Dortmund an important centre in Westphalia. It became anImperial Free Cityand one of the first cities in Europe with an officialBrewing rightin 1293.Throughout the 13th to 14th centuries, it was the "chief city" of the Rhine, Westphalia, the Netherlands Circle of theHanseatic League.

Old marketSt. Reinolds

After 1320, the city appeared in writing as "Dorpmunde". In the years leading up to 1344, the English King,Edward III,even borrowed money from well-heeled Dortmund merchant families Berswordt and Klepping, offering the regal crown as security. In 1388, theCount of Markjoined forces with the Archbishop ofCologneand issued declarations of a feud against the town. Following a major siege lasting 18 months, peace negotiations took place and Dortmund emerged victorious. In 1400 the seat of the first Vehmic court (German:Freistuhl) was in Dortmund, in a square between twolinden trees,one of which was known as theFemelinde.With the growing influence ofCologneduring the 15th century, the seat was moved toArnsbergin 1437. After Cologne was excluded after theAnglo-Hanseatic War(1470–74), Dortmund was made capital of the Rhine-Westphalian and Netherlands Circle. This favors the founding of one of the oldest schools in Europe in 1543 –Stadtgymnasium Dortmund.In1661 an earthquakemade theReinoldikirchecollapse.

18th, 19th and early 20th centuries

Pre-industrial Dortmund in 1804

With theReichsdeputationshauptschlussresolution in 1803, Dortmund was added to thePrincipality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda,with as a result that it was no longer afree imperial city.William V, Prince of Orange-Nassaudid not want stolen areas and therefore let his sonPrince Willem Frederik(the later King William I of the Netherlands) take possession of the city and the principality. This prince held its entry on 30 June 1806, and as such theCounty of Dortmundthen became part of the principality. On 12 July 1806, most of the Nassau principalities were deprived of their sovereign rights by means of theRhine treaty.In October of the same year, the County of Dortmund was occupied by French troops and was added to theGrand Duchy of Bergon 1 March 1808. It is the capital of the Ruhr department. In 1808 Dortmund becomes capital of French satelliteRuhr (department).At theCongress of Viennain 1815, the entire Grand Duchy of Berg, including Dortmund, was added to theKingdom of Prussia.The state mining authority of theRuhr areawas founded in 1815 and moved from Bochum to Dortmund. Within thePrussianProvince of Westphalia,Dortmund was a district seat withinRegierungsbezirk Arnsberguntil 1875, when it became an urban district within the region.

French troops in Dortmundc. 1923–1925

During theindustrialisationof Prussia, Dortmund became a major centre forcoalandsteel.The town expanded into a city, with the population rising from 57,742 in 1875 to 379,950 in 1905. Sprawling residential areas like the North, East, Union and Kreuz district sprang up in less than 10 years. In 1920, Dortmund was one of the centres for resistance to theKapp Putsch– a right-wing military coup launched against theSocial Democratic-led government. In theRuhr uprising,radical workers formed the 50,000-manRuhr Red Armyin hopes of setting up a soviet-style government. They were defeated with considerable loss of life by government andFreikorpsunits.On 11 January 1923, French and Belgian troopsoccupied the Ruhr.French Prime MinisterRaymond Poincaréwas responding to Germany's failure to comply with thereparations demandsof theTreaty of Versailles.The occupation lasted until August 1925.

World War II

Photo of part of the city center area around Liebfrauen church in 1945

UnderNazi Germany,theOld Synagogue,which had opened in 1900, was destroyed in 1938. With a capacity of 1,300 seats, it was one of the largest Jewish houses of worship in Germany. Also, theAplerbeck Hospitalin Dortmund transferred mentally and/or physically disabled patients to theHadamar Killing Facilityas part ofAktion T4,where they were murdered. An additional 229 children were murdered in the "Children's Specialist Department", which was transferred from Marburg in 1941.

Dortmund was the location of the Stalag VI-Dprisoner-of-war campfor Polish,French,Belgian, British, Serbian, Soviet and Italian POWs with some 300forced labourunits in the city alone,a camp forSintiandRomani people(seeRomani Holocaust),and asubcampof theBuchenwald concentration campfor 800 predominantly Polish women.In September 1943, the localGestapocarried out a mass execution of 17Polish POWs,who escaped theOflag VI-BPOW camp, but were soon captured.

Bombing targets of theOil Campaign of World War IIin Dortmund includedHoesch-Westfalenhütte AG,the "Hoesch-Benzin GmbH "synthetic oil plant, and theZeche Hansa.The bombings destroyed about 66% of Dortmund homes.The devastating bombing raids of 12 March 1945 with 1,108 aircraft (748Lancasters,292Halifaxes,68Mosquitos) destroyed 98% of buildings in the inner city centre, and 4,851 tonnes of bombs were dropped on Dortmund city centre and the south of the city; this was a record for a single target in the whole of World War II.

The Allied ground advance into Germany reached Dortmund in April 1945. The US95th Infantry Divisionattacked the city on 12 April 1945 against a stubborn German defense. The division, assisted by close air support, advanced through the ruins in urban combat and completed its capture on 13 April 1945.

Postwar period

Rebuilt and modern reconstruction around St. Reynolds

Post-war, most of the historic buildings in the city centre were not restored, and large parts of the inner city area were completely rebuilt in the style of the 1950s.A few historic buildings such as the main churchesReinoldikircheandMarienkirchewere restored or rebuilt, and extensive parks and gardens were laid out. The simple but successful postwar rebuilding has resulted in a very mixed and unique inner cityscape. Today nearly 30 % of the city consists of buildings from before World War II.Dortmund was in the British zone of occupation of Germany, and became part of the new state (Land) ofNorth Rhine-Westphaliain 1946. TheLWL-Industriemuseumwas founded in 1969.In 1987 the pit Minister Stein closed, marking the end of more than 150 years of coal mining. Dortmundhas since adapted, with its century-long steel and coal industries having been replaced by high-technology areas, includingbiomedical technology,micro systems technology,andservices.This has led Dortmund to become a regional centre for hi-tech industry.

In 2001 a new era began for the districtHördein Dortmund, 160 years of industrial history ended with the beginning of the Phoenix See. The development of the Phoenix See area was carried out by a subsidiary of the Stadtwerke AG. In 2005 the first cornerstone was laid on the Phoenix area. The work started with full speed to manage the work with over 2.5 million meters of ground motion and 420.000 cubic meters of ferroconcrete. On 1 October 2010, the largest and most highly anticipated milestone could be celebrated: the launch of the flooding of the Phoenix See. Since 9 May 2011, the fences disappeared and the Phoenix See has been completed.In 2009, Dortmund was classified as aNode cityin the Innovation Cities Index published by 2thinknowand is the most sustainable city inGermany.

On 3 November 2013, more than 20,000 people were evacuated after a4,000-pound bombfromWorld War IIwas found. German authorities safely defused the bomb. The bomb was found after analysing oldaerial photographswhile searching for unexploded bombs dropped byAlliedaircraft over Germany's industrialRuhrregion.

Geography

Location

Emscher River in Dortmund

Dortmund is an independent city located in the east of theRuhrarea, one of the largesturban areasin Europe (see also:megalopolis), comprising elevenindependent citiesand fourdistrictswith some 5.3million inhabitants. The city limits of Dortmund itself are 87 km (54 mi) long and border twelve cities, two independent and tenkreisangehörig(i.e., belonging to a district), with a total population of approximately 2.4million. The following cities border Dortmund (clockwise starting from west):Bochum,Castrop-Rauxel,Waltrop,Lünen,Kamen,Unna,Holzwickede,Schwerte,Hagen,Herdecke,andWitten.Historically speaking, Dortmund is a part ofWestphaliawhich is situated in the Bundesland North Rhine-Westphalia. Moreover, Dortmund is part ofWestphalian Lowlandand adjoins with theArdey Hills,in the south of the city, to theSauerland.

TheRuhrforms thereservoiron theHengsteyseenext to the borough ofSyburgin the south of Dortmund between the cities ofHagenandHerdecke,North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. TheKlusenberg,a hill that is part of theArdeyrange, is located just north of the Hengsteysee and the highest point of Dortmund 254.3 m (834 ft). There is also apumped-storage planton this reservoir, named Koepchenwerk. The lowest point can be found in the northern borough of Brechten at 48.9 m (160 ft).

TheEmscheris a small river and has its wellspring inHolzwickede,east of the city of Dortmund, and flows west through Dortmund. Towns along the Emscher take in Dortmund,Castrop-Rauxel,Herne,Recklinghausen,Gelsenkirchen,Essen,Bottrop,Oberhausen,andDinslaken,where it flows into the Rhine.

Boroughs

Municipalities and neighbouring communities

Aerial view of urbanKreuzviertel

Dortmund comprises 62 neighbourhoods which in turn are grouped into twelve boroughs (called "Stadtbezirke"), often named after the most important neighbourhood. Three boroughs cover the area of the inner city (Innenstadt-West (City centre West), Innenstadt-Nord (City centre North), Innenstadt-Ost (City centre East)) and the remaining nine boroughs make up the surrounding area (Eving,Scharnhorst,Brackel,Aplerbeck,Hörde,Hombruch,Lütgendortmund,Huckarde,Mengede). Each "Stadtbezirk"is assigned a Roman numeral and has a local governing body of nineteen members with limited authority. Most of the boroughs were originally independent municipalities but were gradually annexed from 1905 to 1975. This long-lasting process of annexation has led to a strong identification of the population with" their "boroughs or districts and to a rare peculiarity: The borough of Hörde, located in the south of Dortmund and independent until 1928, has its own coat of arms.

The centre can be subdivided into historically evolved city districts, whose borders are not always strictly defined, such as:

• Stadtzentrum(City centre)
• Hafenviertel(Harbour Quarter)
• Nordmarkt(Northern market)
• Borsigplatz
• Kaiserviertel(Emperor Quarter)
• Kronenviertel(Crown Quarter)
• Kreuzviertel(Cross Quarter)
• Klinikviertel(Clinical Quarter)
• Saarlandstraßenviertel(Saarland street Quarter)
• Unionviertel(Union Quarter)
• Gartenstadt(Garden Town)

Climate

Dortmund is situated in thetemperate climate zonewithoceanic climate(Köppen:Cfb). Winters are cool; summers are warm. The average annual temperature lies at approximately 9 to 10 °C (48 to 50 °F), the total average annual amount of precipitation lies at approximately 800 mm (31 in). Precipitation evenly falls throughout the year; steady rain (with some snow), prevails in the wintertime, isolated showers dominate the summer season. Dortmund features characteristics of densely populated areas as for example the occurrence ofurban heat islandsis typical.

Climate data for Dortmund
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	14.6 (58.3)	18.5 (65.3)	23.5 (74.3)	30.2 (86.4)	34.4 (93.9)	34.9 (94.8)	36.8 (98.2)	37.6 (99.7)	33.4 (92.1)	28.6 (83.5)	20.1 (68.2)	16.1 (61.0)	37.6 (99.7)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	4 (39)	5 (41)	9 (48)	13 (55)	18 (64)	21 (70)	22 (72)	22 (72)	19 (66)	15 (59)	9 (48)	5 (41)	14 (56)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	−1 (30)	−1 (30)	2 (36)	4 (39)	8 (46)	11 (52)	13 (55)	13 (55)	10 (50)	7 (45)	3 (37)	1 (34)	6 (42)
Averageprecipitationmm (inches)	77.1 (3.04)	68.1 (2.68)	61.4 (2.42)	48.4 (1.91)	61.8 (2.43)	72.7 (2.86)	90.6 (3.57)	85.2 (3.35)	72.8 (2.87)	72.1 (2.84)	73.3 (2.89)	81.5 (3.21)	865 (34.07)
Average rainy days	19	17	14	16	14	14	17	16	15	17	19	19	197
Mean monthlysunshine hours	50.2	71.7	121.2	172.6	199.4	199.2	206.5	194.3	143.7	103.8	53.9	39.8	1,556.3
Source 1:DWD(precipitation and sun)
Source 2: Wetter Kontor

Demographics

Dortmund's population grew rapidly in the time of the 19th century industrialisation, when coal mining and steel processing in the city began. 1904 marks the year when Dortmund saw a population of more than 100,000 for the first time in its history. During the 19th century the area around Dortmund, calledRuhr,attracted up to 500,000 ethnicPoles,Masurians,andSilesiansfromEast PrussiaandSilesia,in a migration known asOstflucht(flight from the east). Most of the new inhabitants came from Eastern Europe, but immigrants also came from France, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. Almost all their descendants today speak German as a mother tongue, and for various reasons, they do not identify with their Polish roots and traditions; often only their Polish family names remaining as a sign of their past. Not taking the fluctuation of war years into account, the population figures rose constantly to 657,804 in 1965. As a result of the city's post-industrial decline, the population fell to just under 580,000 in 2011. Today, with a population of 601.402 (2017), the City of Dortmund isthe eighth largest city in GermanyafterBerlin,Hamburg,Munich,Cologne,Frankfurt,Stuttgart,andDüsseldorf.It is also the largest city in theRuhragglomeration.

Contrary to earlier projections, population figures have been on the rise in recent years due to net migration gains. Dortmund has seen a moderate influx of younger people (18 to 25 years of age) mainly because of its universities.Data of theEU-wide 2011 censusrevealed massive inaccuracies with regard to German population figures. Consequently, respective figures have been corrected, which resulted in a statistical "loss" of 9,000 inhabitants in Dortmund.In 2016 it was announced that the population was back above 600,000.

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1300	10,000	—
1480	8,000	−20.0%
1600	4,000	−50.0%
1700	3,000	−25.0%
1812	4,828	+60.9%
1871	44,420	+820.0%
1900	142,733	+221.3%
1910	214,226	+50.1%
1925	321,743	+50.2%
1939	542,261	+68.5%
1946	436,491	−19.5%
1950	507,349	+16.2%
1956	607,885	+19.8%
1961	641,480	+5.5%
1965	657,804	+2.5%
1970	642,680	−2.3%
1975	630,609	−1.9%
1980	608,297	−3.5%
1985	572,094	−6.0%
1990	599,055	+4.7%
1995	598,840	−0.0%
2001	589,240	−1.6%
2011	571,143	−3.1%
2022	598,246	+4.7%
Population size may be affected by changes in administrative divisions. Source for 2001-2022:

Largest groups of foreign residents

Nationality	Population (31 December 2022)
Turkey	22,154
Poland	11,388
Syria	7,791
Ukraine	7,368
Romania	4,561
Greece	4,132
Spain	3,623
Italy	3,569
Morocco	3,421
Bulgaria	3,416
Iraq	2,229
Croatia	2,103
North Macedonia	2,034
Russia	1,902
Portugal	1,851
Bosnia and Herzegovina	1,780
Serbia	1,532
China	1,304
Hungary	1,284
Kosovo	1,225

As of 2012,Dortmund had a population of 571,403, of whom about 177,000 (roughly 30%) were of non-German origin.The table shows the number of first and second generation immigrants in Dortmund by nationality as of 31 December 2014.As with much of the Ruhr area, Dortmund has sizable Turkish and South European communities (particularly Spanish), and had one of Germany's most visible Slavic populations.

Religion

As of 2022,the largest Christian denominations were Protestantism (23,7%) andCatholicism(22,6% of the population).Furthermore, in Dortmund theGreek Orthodox Church,theSerbian Orthodox Church,and theMacedonian Orthodox Churchare represented. The Church of the Holy Apostles (gre. I.N. Αγίων Αποστόλων Ντόρτμουντ – I.N. Agíon Apostólon Dortmund) was the first Greek church in Germany to be founded due to the influx of "guest workers". Also Dortmund is home of theNew Apostolic ChurchinNorth Rhine-Westphalia,with more than 84,944 community members.

The Jewish community has a history dating back to Medieval times and has always ranked among the largest inWestphalia.Dortmund is home to the National Association of Jewish Communities of Westfalen-Lippe. The synagogues operate there in City center, Hörde, and Dorstfeld. Due to the growing immigration of people from Muslim countries beginning in the 1960s, Dortmund has a large Muslim community with more than 30 mosques.

In June 2019 Dortmund hosted the 37th Evangelischer Kirchentag –German Evangelical Church Assembly.

Government and politics

Dortmund coat of arms

Townhall Dortmund

Townhall Aplerbeck, one of twelve district councils

Dortmund is one of nineteenindependent district-free cities(kreisfreie Städte) inNorth Rhine-Westphalia,which means that it does not form part of another general-purpose local government entity, in this case it is not part of aLandkreis.Since 1975, Dortmund is divided into twelve administrative districts. Each district (Bezirk) has its own elected district council (Bezirksvertretung) and its own district mayor (Bezirksbürgermeister). The district councils are advisory only.

Dortmund is often called theHerzkammer derSPD(roughly translated as "heartland of the Social democrats" ), after the politically dominant party in the city. During the Nazi era (1933–1945), mayors were installed by the Nazi Party. After World War II, the military government of the British occupation zone installed a new mayor and a municipal constitution modeled on that of British cities. The first major elected by the population of Dortmund wasFritz Henßler.Since the end of the war, the SPD has held a plurality in the city council, except for the period from 1999 to 2004.

Mayor

Results of the second round of the 2020 mayoral election

The current mayor of Dortmund isThomas Westphalof theSocial Democratic Party(SPD), who was elected in 2020.

The most recent mayoral election was held on 13 September 2020, with a runoff held on 27 September, and the results were as follows:

Candidate		Party	First round		Second round
			Votes	%	Votes	%
	Thomas Westphal	Social Democratic Party	75,565	35.9	75,884	52.1
	Andreas Hollstein	Christian Democratic Union	54,505	25.9	69,876	47.9
	Daniela Schneckenburger	Alliance 90/The Greens	46,015	21.8
	Utz Kowalewski	The Left	9,351	4.4
	Michael Kauch	Free Democratic Party	6,538	3.1
	Bernd Schreyner	The Right	6,274	3.0
	Judith Storb	Die PARTEI	5,019	2.4
	Carl Hendri Draub	Independent	2,552	1.2
	Christian Gebel	Pirate Party Germany	1,897	0.9
	Detlef Münch	Free Citizens' Initiative	1,512	0.7
	Günther Ziethoff	Grassroots Democracy Now	1,016	0.5
	Dave Varghese	German Communist Party	415	0.2
Valid votes			210,659	99.1	145,760	99.0
Invalid votes			1,950	0.9	1,529	1.0
Total			212,609	100.0	147,289	100.0
Electorate/voter turnout			451,925	47.0	451,710	32.6
Source:State Returning OfficerArchived27 June 2021 at theWayback Machine

City council

Results of the 2020 city council election

The Dortmund city council (Dortmunder Stadtrat) governs the city alongside the mayor. The most recent city council election was held on 13 September 2020, and the results were as follows:

Party		Votes	%	+/-	Seats	+/-
	Social Democratic Party(SPD)	63,096	30.0	8.2	27	9
	Alliance 90/The Greens(Grüne)	52,241	24.8	9.4	22	7
	Christian Democratic Union(CDU)	47,405	22.5	4.7	20	6
	The Left(Die Linke)	11,825	5.6	1.2	5	1
	Alternative for Germany(AfD)	11,547	5.5	2.1	5	2
	Free Democratic Party(FDP)	7,345	3.5	1.0	3	1
	Die PARTEI(PARTEI)	5,851	2.8	2.6	3	3
	The Right(Die Rechte)	2,369	1.1	0.1	1	±0
	Human Environment Animal Protection(Tierschutz)	1,995	0.9	New	1	New
	Pirate Party Germany(Piraten)	1,848	0.9	1.5	1	1
	Alliance for Diversity and Tolerance (BVT)	1,737	0.8	New	1	New
	Citizens' List (Bürgerliste)	1,359	0.6	New	1	New
	Free Citizens' Initiative (FBI)	1,087	0.5	New	0	New
	Grassroots Democracy Now	560	0.3	New	0	New
	Digital Ecological Social (DOS)	219	0.1	New	0	New
	Heinz Augat – Together	53	0.0	New	0	New
	We in Dortmund	39	0.0	New	0	New
	German Communist Party(DKP)	16	0.0	0.1	0	±0
Valid votes		210,592	99.0
Invalid votes		2,047	1.0
Total		212,639	100.0		90	4
Electorate/voter turnout		451,925	47.1	2.2
Source:State Returning OfficerArchived27 June 2021 at theWayback Machine

Twin towns – sister cities

See also:List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Dortmund istwinnedwith:

• Leeds,United Kingdom (1949)
• Amiens,France (1960)
• Rostov-on-Don,Russia (1973)
• Buffalo,United States (1977)
• Netanya,Israel (1980)
• Novi Sad,Serbia (1982)
• Zwickau,Germany (1989)
• Xi'an,China (1991)
• Trabzon,Turkey (2014)

Cityscape

City centre

Dortmund with RWE-Tower and churches of Reinoldi, Petri and Marien on the right

Dortmund's city centre offers a picture full of contrasts. Historic buildings likeAltes Stadthausor the Krügerpassage rub shoulders with post-war architecture like Gesundheitshaus and concrete constructions with Romanesque churches like theReinoldikircheand theMarienkirche.The near-complete destruction of Dortmund's city centre during World War II (98%) has resulted in a varied architectural landscape. The reconstruction of the city centre followed the style of the 1950s, while respecting the old layout and naming of the streets. The downtown of Dortmund still retains the outline of the medieval city. A ring road marks the former city wall, and theWesten-/Ostenhellweg,part of a medieval salt trading route, is still the major (pedestrian) street bisecting the city centre.

Thus, the inner city today is characterized by simple and modest post-war buildings, with a few interspersed pre-war buildings which were reconstructed due to their historical importance. Some buildings of the "Wiederaufbauzeit" (era of reconstruction), for example the opera house are nowadays regarded as classics of modern architecture.

Urban districts

Unlike the Dortmund city centre, much of the inner districts around the old medieval centre escaped damage in the second world war and post war redevelopment.

Kreuzviertel

Typical Wilhelminian style houses

TheKreuzviertelis characterised by old buildings, the majority of which come from the turn of the 20th century (1884 to 1908). Over 80% of all housing in this area was constructed before 1948, with the oldest building the Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts still standing being from 1896. In theSecond World War,relatively few buildings were destroyed in comparison to other areas of the city. Today,Kreuzviertelforms a nearly homogeneous historic building area. Over 100 buildings remain protected as historic monuments, like the Kreuzkirche at Kreuzstraße and the first concrete church in Germany St.-Nicolai. Nowadays the Kreuzviertel is a trendy district with pubs, restaurants, cafés, galleries, and little shops. Moreover, local efforts to beautify and invigorate the neighbourhood have reinforced a budding sense of community and artistic expression. The West park is the green lung of the Kreuzviertel and in the months between May and October a centre of the student urban life. The district has the highest real estate prices in Dortmund.

Even today many artists choose Kreuzviertel as their residence:Sascha Schmitz,Christina Hammer,and players ofBorussia Dortmund.

Nordstadt

Dockland – young restaurant and bars scene

The northern downtown part of Dortmund called Nordstadt, situated in a territory of 14.42 km²(5.57 sq mi) is shaped by a colorful variety of cultures. As the largest homogeneous old building area inRuhrthe Nordstadt is a melting pot of different people of different countries and habits just a few steps from the city center. The Nordstadt is an industrialurban areathat was mainly developed in the 19th century to serve theWestfalenhüttesteelworks, port and rail freight depot. All of the residents live in a densely populated 300 hectare area (the most densely populated residential area in the state ofNorth Rhine-Westphaliawith steelworks, port and railway lines acting as physical barriers cutting off the area from the city centre and other residential districts).

The area has been badly affected by the deindustrialisation of these heavy industries, with the target area developing a role as the home for growing numbers of immigrants and socially disadvantaged groups partly because of the availability of cheaper (although poor quality) accommodation.Nevertheless, two parks – Fredenbaumpark and Hoeschpark – are situated there. There is also much equipment for children to spend their free time. For example, the 35 meters high Big Tipi, which was brought in from theExpo 2000in Hanover. All of that should attract families to settle in, but low prices of apartments and a variety of renting offers speak for the contrary. This developed into the youngest population of Dortmund is living and created a district with art house cinemas to ethnic stores, from exotic restaurants to student pubs.

The Borsigplatz is probably one of the best known squares in Germany. BallspielvereinBorussia Dortmundwas founded nearby, north-east of the main railway station. The streets radiating outward to form a star shape, the sycamore in the middle of the square and the tramline running diagonally across the square give Borsigplatz its very own flair.

Kaiserviertel

Cherry Blossom Avenue

The Kaiserstraßen District is located east of the former ramparts of Dortmund and follows the course of theWestenhellweg.In this district numerous magnificent buildings from the 1900s and new buildings from the 1950s are located next to the heritage-protected State Mining Office Dortmund, several Courts, Consulate and the East Cemetery. The district is characterize by the employee of the Amtsgericht, Landgericht (the first and second instances of ordinary jurisdiction) and the Prison.

Today the historical Kaiserbrunnen and the entrance sign for Kaiserstraße are important starting points for a tour to the popular shopping district. The Moltkestreet also known as the Cherry Blossom Avenue, became famous after photographers started posting pictures of blooming trees. Every spring, usually in April, the street in the Kaiserstraßen district is booming with pink blossoms and attracts tourists.

Unionviertel

Rheinische Straße

The Union District is located west of the former ramparts of Dortmund and follows the course of theWestenhellweg.For a long time, the neighbourhood at the Dortmunder U and along the Rheinische Straße was marked by vacancy and social distortion due to structural change. Today it is developing an inspiring young artist scene, with more and more students thanks to cheaper apartments near the university and a vibrant gastronomy. This development benefits strongly from the new, widely visible beacon, the art and creative centre Dortmunder U, opened in 2010. Yet, for a time, it was mainly the Union Gewerbehof activists and other single stakeholders who initiated change.

Hörde on Lake Phoenix

Hörde castle

Hörde is borough in the south of the city of Dortmund. Originally Hörde was a separate town (until 1929) and was founded by the Counts of Mark in opposition to their principal enemy, the town of Dortmund. In 1388, the "Großen Dortmunder Fehde" (great feud of Dortmund) took place, where the city of Dortmund battled against the alliance of surrounding towns. The struggle ended in 1390, with defeat for Hörde and its allies ofHerdecke,Witten,Bochum,Castrop,Lünen,Unna,andSchwerte.Today Hörde is a part of Dortmund with restored old buildings combined with modern architecture. The Hörder Burg (Hörde castle) was built in the 12th century and is located in the east of the town, close to theEmscherand Lake Phoenix.

Lake Phoenix was one of the largest urban redevelopment projects inEurope.On the area of the former blast furnace and steel plant site ofThyssenKruppnewly formed and developed a new urban resident and recreational area 3 kilometers (2 miles) from the city centre of Dortmund. The development of the Phoenix See area cost €;170 million.The lake is 1.2 km long directed to east–west and 320 meters wide in north–south direction. The water surface area of 24 acres is larger than theHamburgAlster.Lake Phoenix is a shallow water lake with a depth of 3 to 4 meters and a capacity of around 600,000 cubic meters. Attractive high priced residential areas were thus created on the southern and northern sides of the Lake. On the western lakeside, the existing district centre of Hörde is enlarged by a city port and a mixed functional urban area.

Companies with agencies and offices on the lakefront include:

• Zalando
• HSBC Trinkaus
• German Handball Association
• Handball-Bundesliga (HBL)
• Sparkassenakademie Nordrhein-Westfalen,a training organization of theSparkassen
• Mircosonic

The finished sole is primarily fed by groundwater and unpolluted rainwater from the new building sites. The RiverEmscherflows through an embanked riverbed without direct link to the Lake. Together with the renatured Emscher, the Lake forms a water landscape of 33 hectares, which, as a linking area, is an important element of the Emscher landscape park. The renaturation of the Emscher River is managed by the publicwater boardEmschergenossenschaft.The financial frame is 4.5 billion Euro and the aim is to finish the main work by 2020.

• 
  Oldtown Hörde
• 
  Lake Phoenix
• 
  Port Promenade
• 
  Kaiser Hill

Churches

Reinoldikirche and Marienkirche

• Reinoldikirche,a Protestant church (built in 1233–1450)
• Petrikirche,a now Protestant church (start of construction 1322). It is famous for the huge carved altar (known as "Golden Miracle of Dortmund" ), from 1521. It consists of 633 gilt carved oak figures depicting 30 scenes about Easter.
• Marienkirche,a now Protestant church originally built in 1170–1200 but rebuilt after World War II. The altar is from 1420.
• Propsteikirche,Monastery of the Dominican Order in the city center (built in 1331–1353)
• St. Georg, Aplerbeck,the only Romanesque cross basilica of Dortmund
• Große Kirche Aplerbeck,a Gothic revival church
• St. Peterin Syburg suburb, the oldest church building in the city limits
• St. Patrokli, Kirchhörde,a 1954 church
• Heilig-Kreuz-Kirche, a Protestant church (start of construction 1911)
• St. Margareta Chapel, a Protestant chapel built in 1348

• 
  Reinoldikirche
• 
  Marienkirche
• 
  St. Johannes Baptist
• 
  St. Peter in Syburg suburb

Castles

• Haus Bodelschwingh (13th century), a moated castle
• Haus Dellwig (13th century), a moated castle partly rebuilt in the 17th century. The façade and the steep tower, and two half-timbered buildings, are original.
• Haus Rodenberg (13th century), a moated castle
• Altes Stadthaus,built in 1899 by Friedrich Kullrich
• Romberg Park Gatehouse (17th century), once a gatehouse to a moated castle. Now it houses an art gallery.
• Husen Castle,the tower house of a former castle, in the borough of Syburg

• 
  Moated castle Bodelschwingh
• 
  Bodelschwingh garden
• 
  Bodelschwingh bridge

Industrial buildings

The most industrial building in Dortmund are part of theIndustrial Heritage Trail(German:Route der Industriekultur). The trail links tourist attractions related to theindustrial heritagein the wholeRuhr areainGermany.It is a part of theEuropean Route of Industrial Heritage.

• U-Tower,former Dortmunder Union brewery, now a museum
• Zollern II/IV Colliery,now part of the Westphalian Industrial Museum and an Anchor Point of theEuropean Route of Industrial Heritage(ERIH)
• Hansa Coking Plant

• 
  Zollern II/IV Colliery
• 
  U-Tower
• 
  Phoenix-West coking plant
• 
  Port Authority

Cultural buildings

• Konzerthaus Dortmund
• Opernhaus Dortmund,opera house built in 1966 on the site of theold synagoguewhich was destroyed by the Nazis in 1938.
• The major art museums include theMuseum für Kunst und Kulturgeschichteand the more recentMuseum Ostwall.
• DASA, Germany Occupational Health and Safety Exhibition (German: Deutsche Arbeitsschutzausstellung)
• Brewery Museum Dortmund
• Museum of Art and Cultural History
• German Football Museum

• 
  Opernhaus Dortmund
• 
  Museum für Kunst und Kulturgeschichte
• 
  German Football Museum
• 
  DASA, Germany Occupational Health and Safety Exhibition

Other important buildings

• Florianturm(television tower Florian)
• Westfalenstadion:football ground ofBorussia Dortmund,licensed until 2021 under the name Signal Iduna Park
• Close to Westfalenstadion are theWestfalenhallen,a large convention centre, the site of several major conventions, trade fairs, ice-skating competitions, concerts and other major events since the 1950s.
• Steinwache memorial

High-rise structures

Dortmund tallest structure is theFlorianturmtelecommunication tower at 266 m or 873 ft. Other tall buildings are the churches around the city centre. A selection of the tallest office buildings in Dortmund is listed below.

• RWE Tower (100 metre-high skyscraper)
• Westnetz Hochhaus Dortmund (100 metre-high skyscraper)
• Westfalentower (88 metre-high skyscraper)
• Harenberg City-Center (86 metre-high skyscraper)
• Sparkassen-Hochhaus (70 metre-high skyscraper)
• IWO-Hochhaus(70 metre-high skyscraper)
• Ellipson (66 metre-high skyscraper)
• Volkswohl Bund Hochhaus (60 metre-high skyscraper)

• 
  RWE Tower
• 
  HCC
• 
  IWO Tower
• 
  Ellipson

Transportation

Road transport

The Ruhrschnellweg Section East Dortmund

Dortmund also serves as a major European and German crossroads for the Autobahnsystem. TheRuhrschnellwegfollows old Hanseatic trade routes to connect the city with the other metropolises of theRuhr Area.It crosses theDutch-German border as a continuation of the DutchA67and crosses theRhine,leads through theRuhr valleytowardBochum,becoming B 1 (Bundesstraße 1) at the Kreuz Dortmund West and eventually merging into the A 44 nearHolzwickede.It has officially been named Ruhrschnellweg (Ruhr Fast Way), but locals usually call it Ruhrschleichweg (Ruhr Crawling Way) or "the Ruhr area's longest parking lot". According toDer Spiegel,it is the most congested motorway in Germany.

Connections to more distant parts of Germany are maintained by Autobahn routesA1andA2,which traverse the north and east city limits and meet at theKamener Kreuzinterchange north-east of Dortmund. In combination with the AutobahnA45to the west these form theDortmund Beltway(Dortmunder Autobahnring).

Cycling

Cycling in Dortmund is supported by urban planners – an extensive network of cycle paths exists which had its beginnings in the 1980s. Dortmund was admitted to the German "Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle-Friendly Cities and Municipalities in NRW" (AGFS) on August 8, 2007. Dortmund is connected to a number of long-distance cycle paths and aBike freewaycalled theRadschnellweg Ruhr(Ruhr Area Fast Cycle Path).

Rail transport

Dortmund central railway station

As with most communes in the Ruhr area, local transport is carried out by a local, publicly owned company for transport within the city, theDB Regiosubsidiary ofDeutsche Bahnfor regional transport andDeutsche Bahnitself for long-distance journeys. The local carrier,Dortmunder Stadtwerke(DSW21), is a member of theVerkehrsverbund Rhein-Ruhr(VRR) association of public transport companies in the Ruhr area, which provides a uniform fare structure in the whole region. Within the VRR region, tickets are valid on lines of all members as well as DB'srailway lines(except the high-speedInterCityandIntercity-Expressnetworks) and can be bought at ticket machines and service centres of DSW21, all other members of VRR, and DB.

The central train station (Dortmund Hauptbahnhof) is the third largest long-distance traffic junction in Germany. Dortmund has a railway service withDeutsche BahnInterCityandICE-trains stopping atDortmund Hauptbahnhof(Dortmund Main Station). ICE andTGV Thalyshigh-speed trains link Dortmund withAmsterdam,Brussels (in 2h 30) and Paris (in 3h 50). There are frequent ICE trains to other German cities, includingFrankfurt am Main,Berlinand other cities in the Rhein-Ruhr Region.

Public transportation

For public transportation, the city has an extensiveStadtbahnand bus system. The Stadtbahn has eight lines (U41 to U47 and U49) serving Dortmund and the large suburb ofLünenin the north. The trains that run on the line are in fact lightrails as many lines travel along a track in the middle of the street instead of underground further from the city centre. The minimum service interval is 2.5 minutes, although the usual pattern is that each line runs at 5 to 10 minute intervals. On Sundays the trains run at a 15-minute interval. In April 2008, the newly constructed east–west underground light rail line was opened, completing the underground service in the city centre and replacing the lasttramson the surface.

A number of bus lines complete the Dortmund public transport system.Night busesreplace Stadtbahn services between 1:30 am and 7:30 am on weekends and public holidays. The central junction for the night bus service is Reinoldikirche in the city centre, where all night bus lines start and end.

TheH-BahnatTechnical University of Dortmundis a hanging monorail built specifically to shuttle passengers between the university's two campuses,which are now also flanked by research laboratories and other high-tech corporations and startups. A nearly identical monorail system transfers passengers atDüsseldorf Airport.

Air transport

Dortmund Airportis a medium-sized, but fast growing airport 13 km (8.1 mi) east of the city centre at the city limit toHolzwickede.The airport serves the area of theRuhrgebiet,Sauerland,Westphaliaand parts of theNetherlandsand features flights to Munich, London, Vienna, Porto and a lot of eastern European city and leisure destinations. The airport is served by an express bus toDortmund main station,a shuttle bus to the nearby railway stationHolzwickede/Dortmund Flughafen,a bus to the city's metro lineU47,as well as a bus to the city ofUnna.

In 2019, the airport served 2,719,563 passengersmainly used for low-cost and leisure charter flights. The closest intercontinental airport isDüsseldorf Airport.

Water transport

Dortmund Harbour(Hafen) is the largest canal harbour in Europe and the 11th fluvial harbour in Germany.

• Transport in Dortmund
• 
  Interchange station Möllerbrücke
• 
  ICE3 on theDortmund Hauptbahnhof
• 
  Stadtbahnwagen BLight Rail Vehicle
• 
  Bombardier Flexity Classictram
• 
  Metropolrad Ruhr, City Bike
• 
  Hörde Bahnhof– second biggest in Dortmund
• 
  Dortmund Airport– Main Terminal (T2)

Economy

Central business district "Wallring"

Central Business District "Ruhrallee"

Future location Lake Phoenix and Phoenix-East

Dortmund has adapted since the collapse of its century long steel, coal and beer industries. The region has shifted to high technology,robotics,biomedical technology,micro systems technology,engineering, tourism, finance, education, andservices,and is thus one of the most dynamic new-economy cities in Germany. In 2009, Dortmund was classified as aNode cityin theInnovation Cities Indexpublished by 2thinknow.

Hundreds ofSMEsare still based in and around Dortmund (often termedMittelstand). Dortmund is also home to a number of medium-sized information technology companies,many linked to the local universityTU Dortmundat the first technology center inGermanynamed "Technologiepark Dortmund" opened in the 1980s. With around 280 companies, likeBoehringer IngelheimandVerizon Communications,and more than 8,500 employees, TechnologiePark Dortmund is one of the most successful technology parks in Europe. The city works closely with research institutes, private universities, and companies to collaborate on the commercialisation of science initiatives.Furthermore, 680 IT and software companies with 12,000 employees are based in Dortmund, making the city one of Germany's biggest software locations. Two of the top 10 IT service providers in Germany are based in Dortmund –adesso SEand Materna Group.

Dortmund is home to many insurance companies e.g.Signal Iduna,Continentale Krankenversicherung, Bundesinnungskrankenkasse Gesundheit (BIG direkt), and Volkswohl Bund. In recent years a service sector and high-tech industry have grown up. Some of its most prominent companies of these sectors includeAmprionandRWE-Westnetz(Electricity),Rhenus Logistics(Logistics),Wilo,KHS GmbH,Elmos Semiconductor,ABP Induction Systems,Nordwest Handel AG– all of whom have their headquarters here. Companies with operations in or around Dortmund includeZalando,Daimler AG:EvoBus,RapidMiner,Gap Inc.,andThyssenKrupp.

Dortmund is also the headquarter ofCentury Media Records,aheavy metalrecord labelwith offices in the United States andLondon.In August 2015, Century Media was acquired bySony Musicfor US$17 million.

Tourism

Cityring Concert, Freedom Square

Tourism in Dortmund is a fast-growing economic factor every year: new overnight records can be announced, new hotels open and new visitor magnets are added.Starting in the mid-1990s, Dortmund, formerly an industrial centre, saw rapid development that expanded its cultural and tourism possibilities, and transformed it into a newly vibrant city. An important strategic step was the start of construction the newKonzerthaus Dortmund,the reuse of vacant old industrial buildings like theZollern II/IV Colliery,Kokerei Hansa,Dortmund U-Tower,and the strategic reorientation of theDortmund Christmas marketwith over 300 stalls packed around a gigantic Christmas tree creation that stands 45 metres tall – reputed to be the biggest in the world. A new Tourist Information centre right next to the U-Tower, gives visitors a quick overview of the tourist attractions in the City and Ruhr Area.Today Dortmund is with more than 1.450.528 (2017) overnight stays one of the most popular destinations inNorth Rhine-Westphalia.

The majority of tourists are domestic visitors, coming from Germany. International travellers arrive from the United Kingdom,Netherlands,Austria,andSwitzerland.Dortmund also drawsbusiness tourism,having been equipped with facilities like WILO, Amprion next toWestfalenhallenand football tourism with Fans ofBorussia Dortmund.The top 5 most visited attractions were the Christmas market, with more than three and a half million visitors,Signal Iduna Park,Deutsches Fußballmuseum,Dortmund U-Tower,Zollern II/IV Colliery,andWestfalenpark.

Shopping

Westenhellweg

TheWestenhellwegis a popular shopping destination and with nearly 13,000 visitors per hour it was Germany's most frequented shopping street in 2013.During the Middle Ages, Dortmund was the only free imperial city in Westphalia, having already been regarded as an important centre of trade. Today some of the most reputed shops, department stores have stores here. It is a pedestrian-only area and is bordered by theReinoldikirchein the east andU-Towerin the west. The Westenhellweg has one of the highest rents for retail and office space inNorth Rhine-Westphalia.

Three more shopping malls occupy the Thier-Galerie;Galeria KaufhofandKarstadt,as well as large fashion retail clothing stores. During the month beforeChristmas,the extended pedestrian-only zone is host toDortmund Christmas Market,one of the largest and oldest Christmas markets in Germany. With more than 3.5 million visitors and 300 stalls around a gigantic Christmas tree that stands 45 metres tall, it is one of the most visited and popular market in the world.

In close proximity to the Dortmund concert hall lies the Brückstraßenviertel – a quarter hub especially for young people. The "Rue de Pommes Frites", which is what the Dortmund citizens have called the Brückstraße, has turned into a modern shopping promenade, geared towards a younger market.

For a long time, the Kampstraße had a shadowy existence as a parallel street to the Westenhellweg and Ostenhellweg, but it has become a grand boulevard containing specialist stores. Right next to the Kampstraße is the Kleppingstraße – a shopping street with a high concentration of gastronomy and expensive, prestigious shops. It is located between the Ostenhellweg and Neutor to Wallring.

Port and logistics

Logistic Hub Harbour

Dortmund is one of the most importantlogistichubs in Germany, more than 900 companies working in logistics, as well as nationally and internationally recognised scientific institutes.Dortmund Port,which terminates theDortmund-Ems Canalconnecting Dortmund to theNorth Sea,is the biggest European canal port with 10 docks and a pier length of 11 km. The variety of different activities taking place at the Fraunhofer Institute Material Flow and Logistics (Fraunhofer Society) has, over the past few years, led to a bundling of skills in the areas of logistics and digitalisation in the city. Industry-based initiatives and pilot projects, such as the Hybrid Services in Logistics innovation lab, the efficiency cluster LogistikRuhr, Industrial Data Space, the Dortmund Mittelstand 4.0 Centre of Excellence, and the enterprise labs. The Digital Hub for Logistics of theFederal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Actionis based in Dortmund and twinned withHamburg.

Companies with big logistic hubs for Germany and Europe in Dortmund include:

• Amazon
• IKEA
• Decathlon
• Rhenus Logistics
• Schenker AG
• TEDi GmbH & Co. KG

Fairs

Dortmund is home to Germany's twelve biggest exhibition centre,Halls of Westphaliawhich lies near the city center next toDortmund Airport.With around 77.000 visitors each year,Jagd & Hundis by far the largest event held there. Other important fairs open to consumers include "Intermodelbau", the world's biggest consumer fair for model making, and one of the leading fairs for youth culture "YOU". Important fairs restricted to professionals include "D.I.M" (Deutsche Immobilienmesse, German property fair), Creativa (Hobby) and InterTabac (Tabaco).

• 
  Messe Dortmund logo
• 
  Main Hall
• 
  Rosenterassen south entrance
• 
  Headquarter

Federal Agency and public organisations

Dortmund is home of theFederal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health,the National Material Testing Office of North Rhine-Westphalia material and the main customs office.

Consulates

As a profoundly international city, Dortmund hosts diplomatic missions (consulatesandconsulates-general) ofItaly,Greece,Bangladesh,Ghana,South Africa,theCzech Republic,andSlovenia.

Courts

Severalcourtsare located in Dortmund, including:

• Landgericht Dortmund(Regional Court Dortmund)
• Amtsgericht Dortmund(Local Court Dortmund)
• Sozialgericht Dortmund(Social Court Dortmund)
• Arbeitsgericht Dortmund(Employment Court Dortmund)

Newspapers

Harenberg City Center

Two important daily newspapers are published in and around Dortmund. The conservativeRuhr Nachrichten,also known asRN,was founded in 1949. The RN has a circulation of over 225,000 copies daily. The other important newspaper, theWestfälische Rundschau,was first published in 1945 and has a daily circulation of over 181,000. The WR is published by Germany's third largest newspaper and magazine publisherFunke Mediengruppe.

Magazines

Several magazines also originate from Dortmund. The RockRock hard (magazine)is ametalandhard rockmagazine, with subsidiaries in various countries worldwide, includingFrance,Spain,Brazil/Portugal,Italy,andGreece.Visionsis a German music magazine with a circulation of approximately 35,000.

Radio and TV

Westfalentower, regional studio of Sat.1

TheWestdeutscher Rundfunk(WDR, West German Broadcasting Cologne has a sizable studio in Dortmund, which is responsible for the eastRuhrarea. Each day, it produces a 30-minute regional evening news magazine (calledLokalzeit Ruhr), a 5-minute afternoon news programme, and several radio news programmes. A local broadcasting station called Radio 91.2 went "on-the-air" in the early 1990s.Sat.1have a regional studio in Dortmund. The City stands alongsideLondonandParisas one of the three head offices of Global Tamil Vision and GTV-Deutschland.

Two big Radio Channels ofWestdeutscher Rundfunkare sending from Dortmund.

• WDR 2,featuring adult-oriented popular music, focuses strongly on national and regional news, current affairs, and sport.
• WDR 4(motto:Meine Lieblingshits,"my favourite hits" ) is a channel aimed chiefly towards an older audience.Its focus is on tuneful music – in particular,oldiesandclassic hits:popular music of the 1960s to the 1980s or later – with more specialized programming (operetta, country, folk) in the evenings. Around 30–40% of WDR 4's musical output is made up ofGerman-languagesongs.

Other radio broadcasters include Radio NRW and eldoradio*.

Film

The filmsTrains'n'Roses,Bang Boom Bang,Oi! Warning,Do Fish Do It?,If It Don't Fit, Use a Bigger Hammer,Guys and Balls,Goldene Zeiten,Marijaand television seriesTatort,Balko,Helden der Kreisklasse,and more German movies likeThe Crocodiles,The Rhino and the Dragonfly,Ein Schnitzel für alle,Young Light,andRadio Heimatwere filmed in the city.

Education

Dortmund has 160 schools and 17 business, technical colleges teach more than 85,000 pupils. The city has a 4-year primary education program. After completing primary school, students continue to the Hauptschule, Realschule, Gesamtschule or Gymnasium (college preparatory school). The Stadtgymnasium Dortmund which was founded in 1543 as Archigymnasium is one of theoldest schoolsin Europe.The Leibniz Gymnasium, a bilingual public school located in the Kreuzviertel district, is particularly popular with children of the English-speaking expatriate community. The school is an International Baccalaureate school.TheGoethe-Gymnasiumwas founded in 1867 as the first school offering higher education to girls in the city. It has been a NRW Sportschule, focused on sports, from 2009.

Higher education

TU Dortmund(Technical University of Dortmund) was founded in 1968 and is located in the southern part of the city. It has about 30,000 students and offers a wide range of subjects in ofphysics,electrical engineering,chemistry,spatial planning,andeconomics.The university has a dedicated railway station at the campus's main gate, the journey from the city centre lasting merely seven minutes. The university is highly ranked in terms of its research performance in the areas ofphysics,electrical engineering,chemistry,andeconomics.The university's most noticeable landmark is theH-Bahn,amonorailtrain which connects the north and south campuses.

Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Artsis aFachhochschulewith 12,300 students, and 669 staff, 232 of which are professors. The Fachhochschule was created by a merger of several institutions of higher learning in 1971. Owing to its history as separate institutions, it consists of three campuses in different parts of Dortmund. The departments of mechanical and electrical engineering are located at Sonnenstraße near the city center. The department of design has its own campus at Max-Ophüls-Platz while the departments of social work, economics, computer science and architecture are housed in several buildings next to theTechnical University of Dortmundcampus in the suburb of Eichlinghofen. Additional offices in the city centre are used for administrative purposes.

The city is the site of several other universities, colleges and academies, which attract about 45,000 students.Among them there are:

• FOM Hochschule für Oekonomie & Management, Standort Dortmund:academy for management, founded in 1993.
• Fachhochschule für öffentliche Verwaltung Nordrhein-Westfalen:academy for public administration.
• International School of Management:private academy focussing on management and economics, founded in 1990.
• IT-Center Dortmund:private college founded in 2000.
• International University of Applied Sciences Bad Honnef – Bonn:is a private, state-recognised university of business and management.

• 
  TU Dortmund
• 
  Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts
• 
  Department of at Design Max-Ophüls-Platz
• 
  Department of Architecture

Research

The city has a high density of internationally renowned research institutions, such as theFraunhofer Society,theLeibniz Association,and theMax Planck Society,which are independent of, or only loosely connected to its universities.

Livability and quality of life

Dortmund is one of the least stressful cities in the world.

In November 2017, according to a study by data of the German National Statistics Office, the National Employment Agency,Mercer,Handelsblatt,Numbeo,and Immowelt, Dortmund was ranked on position seven of themost livable cities in Germany for expats.In September 2017,The New York Timespraised the city of Dortmund, which has been adapting since the collapse of its century-old steel and coal industries and has shifted to high technology biomedical technology, micro systems technology and other services, as thehidden star of structural changeproviding a good quality of life for employees.According tothe 2017 Global Least & Most Stressful Cities Ranking,Dortmund is one of the least stressful cities in the world. It is ranked 27th out of 150, betweenCopenhagenandVancouver,and is highly ranked in the categories traffic & public transport, gender equality and debt per capital.

Like a Phoenix Rising from the Ashesand exemplary for structural transformation – This was the title of an article in the online version onNeue Zürcher Zeitungof the urban livability and new exceptional architecture in Dortmund.

In a 2015/2016 survey centred onstudent life in Germany,Dortmund ranked as seventh-best.

In a 2012 study of themost livable biggest cities in Germany,Dortmund ranked on position ten betweenNurembergandStuttgartand first of all large cities in Germany due to sport, gastronomy, and shopping opportunities.

In 2009, Dortmund was classified as aNode cityin the Innovation Cities Index published by 2thinknow,and in 2014 acclaimed as the most sustainable city inGermany.

Culture

The newopera houseis one of the biggest theaters in Germany.

TheKonzerthaus Dortmundis one of the most outstanding concert halls in Europe.

The city has a long tradition of music and theatre. The orchestra was founded in 1887 and is now calledDortmunder Philharmoniker.The first opera house was built in 1904, destroyed in World War II and opened again in 1966 asOpernhaus Dortmund.It is operated byTheater Dortmundtogether with other locations, including (since 2002) the Konzerthaus Dortmund. The Konzerthaus Dortmund is listed in the ECHO list as one of the 21 most outstanding concert halls in Europe.

The Domicil Jazz Club is one of the "100 best jazz venues world wide" according to the American jazz magazineDownBeat.

The Dortmund U-Tower, which was once a brewery, is now European centre for creative economy and theMuseum am Ostwall.The area around the U-Tower called "Union Viertel" is part of the Creative.Quarters Ruhr and are rooted in the European Capital of CultureRUHR.2010.

Dortmund leading cabaret-stage is the Cabaret Queue, which is located next to Lake phoenix. Some other famous cabaret-stages are theFletch Bizzeland the theatre Olpktetal. The most important cabaret event is the RuhrHOCHdeutsch, which is one of the most successful cabaret festivals in Germany. It features artists from around the world.

Dortmund is also famous for its Christmas market, which draws well over three and a half million visitors to its 300 stalls around a gigantic Christmas tree creation that stands 45 metres tall. The market is famous for its handmade ornaments and delicacies.

Recreation

Botanischer Garten Rombergpark

Florianturm,Westfalenpark

Juicy Beats Festival, Westfalenpark

TheBotanischer Garten Rombergpark,or informally Rombergpark, is an extensive municipalarboretumandbotanical gardenlocated in the south of the city center of Dortmund. With its total area of 65 hectares the Rombergpark is one of the largest botanical gardens in the world. The garden was established in 1822 as the Romberg family's English landscape park. In 1927–1929 it was acquired by the city and under city planning director Richard Nose enhanced by a small herb garden. The park and castle were badly damaged inWorld War II,but starting in 1950 director Gerd Krüssmann rebuilt it as anarboretum,adding some 4,500 species to the park. Today the garden contains a historic English landscape park with monuments; an arboretum containing thousands of species of woody plants, including some of the largest trees inNorth Rhine-Westphalia;a terrace withpalm trees;and fourgreenhouses(1,000 m²total area) forcactusandsucculents,ferns,tropical plants,andcamellias,jasmine,andlemons.

TheDortmund Zoois the zoological garden with 28 hectares next to the Rombergpark and was founded 1953. With 1,800 animals belonging to 250 species, the Dortmund Zoo is the second largest in the Ruhr Valley. It is specialized in the keeping and breeding ofSouth Americanspecies and is leading in the breeding of thegiant anteater,thetamandua,and thegiant otter.

TheWestfalenparkis Dortmunds's most popular inner-city park. The park is 72 hectares in size and is one of the largest urban gardens of Germany. It was first opened in 1959 as the secondBundesgartenschau(abbr.BUGA) inNorth Rhine-Westphalia.With the National Rosarium with 3,000 different rose varieties, theme gardens, an environmental protection centre, the German Cookbook Museum, a geological garden, cafés, and recreation areas, it provides numerous opportunities for a day of diverse activities. Dortmund's Westfalenpark is also a popular location for events in the Ruhr area- with parties, festivals, events, theatre, music, and flea and garden markets. One of the best views across the whole Ruhr valley is offered by the visitors platform and the revolving restaurant in the 209-metre-highFlorian tower.Another summer attraction is the chair lift, which opened in 1959 and runs on Sundays between a "Mountain" and "Valley" station 500 metres apart.

Museums

With more than 20 museums, Dortmund has one of the largest variety of museums in the Ruhr Valley, one of which, theLWL Industrial Museum Zollern II/IV Colliery,is an anchor point on theEuropean Route of Industrial Heritage.

Museum of Art and Cultural History

TheMuseum am Ostwall(known as Museum am Ostwall until 2010) is a museum ofmodernandcontemporary art.It was founded in the late 1940s, and has been located in theDortmund U-Towersince 2010. The collection includespaintings,sculptures,objects, andphotographsfrom the 20th century, plus over 2,500graphics,spanningExpressionismthrough classic modern art to the present day. At the heart of the collection are works byErnst Ludwig Kirchner,Otto Mueller,Emil Nolde,and graphics byPablo Picassofrom the 1940s and '50s, plus others byJoan Miró,Marc Chagall,andSalvador Dalí.

TheGerman Football Museum(German:Deutsches Fußballmuseum), akaDFB-Museum, is the national museum forGerman football.It is located close to theDortmund Hauptbahnhofand is part of an art and culture mile between the creative centerDortmund U-Towerand theTheater Dortmund,founded to preserve, conserve and interpret important collections of football memorabilia. In its permanent exhibition, the museum presents the history ofGermany national football teamand theBundesliga.

DASA Arbeitswelt Ausstellung

TheMuseum für Kunst und Kulturgeschichteor MKK (Museum of Art and Cultural History) is a municipal museum located in anArt Decobuilding which was formerly the Dortmund Savings Bank. The collection includes paintings, sculptures, furniture, and applied art, illustrating the cultural history of Dortmund from early times to the 20th century. There are regular temporary exhibitions of art and culture, as well as a permanent exhibition on the history ofsurveying,with rare geodetic instruments.

TheSteinwacheis a memorial museum of the exhibition Widerstand und Verfolgung in Dortmund 1933–1945 ( "Resistance and Persecution in Dortmund 1933–1945" ), which demonstrates the persecution under National Socialism with many photographs, short texts and sometimes with reports from contemporary witnesses. The museum is located in an old prison and had a reputation as Die Hölle von Westdeutschland ( "The hell of western Germany" ). Between 1933 and 1945 more than 66,000 people were imprisoned in the Steinwache prison.

Other important museums in Dortmund are:

• DASA – Arbeitswelt Ausstellung (Germany Occupational Health and Safety Exhibition)
• Architecture Archive North Rhine-Westphalia
• Borusseum(Museum of Borussia Dortmund)
• LWL Industrial Museum Zollern II/IV Colliery(Germany's first technical building monument of international importance)
• Museum of natural history Dortmund
• Brewery museum
• HOESCH Museum

Not directly located in Dortmund but important for the city history:

• Henrichenburg boat lift(is a popular destination for cyclists along the canals of the northern Ruhr area).

Festivals and nightlife

Mayday 2009 Westfalenhallen

Dortmund offers a variety of restaurants, bars and clubs. Clubs concentrate in and around the city centre (Wallring) and in the Kreuzviertel district. Furthermore, Dortmund is one of the main centres of the Electronic dance music and techno subculture. With theMaydayand Syndicate festivals, the Westfalenhalle Arena has become one of the most important techno strongholds inEurope.

After negotiations with several German cities, it was announced that theLove Paradewould move to theRuhr Areafor five years (2007–2012). AfterEssenin 2007 the festival took 2008 place on theBundesstraße 1under the mottoHighway of Love.The event was planned as a "Love Weekend", with parties throughout the region. For the first time the Turkish electronic scene was represented by its own float, called "Turkish Delights".The official estimate is that 1.6 million visitors attended, making it the largest parade to date.

Every year, the Juicy Beats music festival turns the Westfalenpark into a huge festival ground for pop, rap, electro, indie, alternative, reggae, and urban beats – most recently with over 50,000 visitors.

Cuisine

Traditional bakery for Dortmunder Salzkuchen

Dortmunder Export

Panhas

Traditional meals in the region arePfefferpotthast(a form of Goulash, though containing more beef),Balkenbrij,Heaven and Earth(Himmel und Äd;black puddingwith stewed apples mixed withmashed potatoes),Currywurst,andPumpernickelwith Griebenschmalz (German lard with crispy pieces of pork skin).

In summer the people like to eat a Dortmunder Salzkuchen (bread buns with caraway seeds, salt, meat, and onions). Also a special meal in the winter isReibekuchen(fried potato pancake served with apple sauce).

Dortmund had more than 550 years of brewing tradition; some of the oldestbreweriesinWestphaliaare founded around the Old Market in Dortmund. Dortmund is known for its pale lager beer calledDortmunder Exportor Dortmunder; it became popular with industrial workers and was responsible for Dortmunder Union becoming Germany's largest brewery and Dortmund having the highest concentration of breweries in Germany. Popular and traditionally beer brands areDortmunder Actien Brauerei,Bergmann Bier,Kronen,Union,Brinkhoff's,Dortmunder Hansa,Hövels, Ritter, Thier, and Stifts.

"Stösschen" is a beer in a small glass "Stösschen" 0.2 litres and can be drunk in about two draughts. The idea of a Stößchen came about in the 19th century, when people would have to wait at the level crossing to cross the Nordstadt Railway Line that divided the city centre from the Nordstadt district. A local innkeeper realised the potential of serving quick drinks to waiting people, and thus began a Dortmund tradition.

The Dortmunder TropfenSchnapsis a type ofliqueurthat is flavored withherbsorspicesand traditionally drunkneatas adigestif.

Sports

Headquarters of the Borussia Dortmund sports club (BVB)

Headquarter DHB

Dortmund calls itselfSportstadt(City of Sports). The city is the home of the biggest handball association in the world, theGerman Handball Association(German: Deutscher Handballbund) (DHB), and the German professional handball leagueHandball-Bundesliga(HBL). Furthermore, Dortmund is the designated residence of theOlympic Centre of Westphalia.

The city is home to many sports clubs, iconic athletes and annually organises several world-renowned sporting events, such as theRuhrmarathonand theSparkassen Chess-Meeting.

Football

Signal Iduna Park,the home stadium ofBundesligaclubBorussia Dortmund,is the biggest stadium in Germany.

Dortmund is home to the sports clubBorussia Dortmund,one of the most successful clubs in Germanfootballhistory. Borussia Dortmund are formerBundesligachampions, most recently in 2011–12.Borussia Dortmund won theUEFA Champions Leagueand theIntercontinental Cupin 1997, as well as the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1966. 'Die Borussen' are eight-time German Champions and have won fiveGerman Cups.Borussia Dortmund play atWestfalenstadion,currently known as Signal Iduna Park. It was built for the1974 FIFA World Cupand also hosted some matches of the2006 FIFA World Cup.It is Germany's largest football stadium, with a maximum capacity of 81,359 spectators.

Handball

Stadion Rote Erde

Borussia Dortmund has a women's handball team playing in the firstBundesliga.

Table tennis

Borussia Dortmund also has atable tennisteam, playing in the second Bundesliga.

American football

TheDortmund Giants,established on 22 May 1980, is an American football team from Dortmund. The official name of the club is 1. Dortmunder Footballclub Dortmund 1980 "Giants" e.V. The club spent the 1994 season in the 2. Bundesliga before dropping for two seasons to the third tierRegionalliga West.Five more 2. Bundesliga seasons followed from 1997 to 2001, the final one in a combined team with theBochum Cadetsas the Dortmund B1 Giants.After a five-season spell in the Regionalliga, the club finished the 2014 season without a win and had to return to the Oberliga once more.

Ice hockey

Eissportzentrum Westfalenhallen

Eisadler Dortmundis the city's ice hockey club that plays inEissportzentrum Westfalenhallen,anindoor sporting arenaat the Strobelallee. They played in 2016/17 in the Oberliga, the third level of ice hockey in Germany.

Basketball

The city's basketball team is SVD 49 Dortmund, which plays in the respective national second division.

Baseball

The city's baseball club Dortmund Wanderers plays in the firstBundesliga.

Other sports

TheSparkassen Chess-Meetinghas been hosted in Dortmund since 1982.

Besides, Dortmund owns an all-weather racecourse named Galopprennbahn Dortmund.

Twin towns – sister cities

See also:List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Dortmund istwinnedwith:

• Leeds,United Kingdom (1949)
• Amiens,France (1960)
• Rostov-on-Don,Russia (1973)
• Buffalo,United States (1979)
• Netanya,Israel (1980)
• Novi Sad,Serbia (1982)
• Zwickau,Germany (1989)
• Xi'an,China (1991)
• Trabzon,Turkey (2014)

Notable people

Born before 1900

Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus

Wilhelm Canaris, 1940

Marco Reus

• Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus(1772–1823), publisher, founder of the publishing house "F. A. Brockhaus" and editor ofBrockhaus Encyclopedia
• William Middendorf (1793–1853), theologian and educator
• Emil Anneke(1823–1888), revolutionary and American journalist, and lawyer
• Wilhelm Lübke(1826–1893), art historian
• Henry C. Berghoff(1856–1925), lawyer, businessman and politician
• Adolf Schmal(1872–1919), Austrian sportsman
• Wilhelm Canaris(1887–1945), admiral and chief of the military intelligence service
• Richard Drauz(1894–1946), executed as a war criminal. He headed up the NSDAP in the Heilbronn district.
• Friedrich Schubert,(1897–1947), World War II Nazi war criminal; executed

Born 1901–1950

• Walter Haenisch(1905–1938), author and communist, victim of Stalinism
• Walter Blume(1906–1974), lawyer and SS officer
• Fritz Henle(1909–1993), photographer
• Albrecht Brandi(1914–1966), naval officer
• Heinz Stahlschmidt(1919–2010), sergeant and fire fighter
• Dieter Wellershoff(1933–2005), admiral,Inspector General of the Bundeswehr
• Gerhard Cyliax(1934–2008), football player
• Elga Andersen(1935–1994), actress and singer
• Hans Tilkowski(1935–2020), football goalkeeper and coach
• Dieter Fenske(born 1942), inorganic chemist
• Christine Haidegger(1942–2021), Austrian writer
• Annegret Richter(born 1950), sprinter
• Hermann Spieckermann(born 1950), Protestant theologian

Born after 1950

• Klaus Niedzwiedz(born 1951), racing driver and television presenter
• Beate West-Leuer(born 1951), professor, psychotherapist, consultant and coach
• Eve Stratford(born 1953),Playboy Club Bunny,victim of unsolved murder in London in 1975
• Ulla Burchardt(born 1954), politician (SPD)
• Klaus Segbers(born 1954), political scientist and professor

  

  Lina Magull

• Antony Theodore(born 1954), poet, educator and social worker
• Susanne Kippenberger(born 1957), journalist and writer
• Achim Peters(born 1957), obesity specialist
• Barbara Havliza(born 1958), politician (CDU) and judge
• Dietmar Bär(born 1961), actor
• Stefan Heinig(born 1962), director and shareholder
• Martin Zawieja(born 1963), weightlifter
• Ralf Husmann(born 1964), writer, producer and author
• Vincent Mennie(born 1964), Scottish footballer
• Matthias Kohring(born 1965), media and communications scientist
• Torsten Sträter(born 1966), comedian
• Marco Werner(born 1966), racing driver
• André Erkau(born 1968), director and screenwriter
• Florian Schwarthoff(born 1968), hurdler, bronze medallist in 110m hurdles at the 1996 Olympic Games
• Yasemin Şamdereli(born 1973), film director and screenwriter
• Kevin Grosskreutz(born 1988), football player
• Marco Reus(born 1989), football player
• Lina Magull(born 1994), football player

Bibliography

See also:Bibliography of the history of Dortmund

• "Dortmund".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 8 (11th ed.). 1910. p. 437.
• G. Hennings & K.R. Kunzmann (1990). "Priority to local economic development: industrial restructuring and local development responses in the Ruhr area – the case of Dortmund". In Walter B. Stöhr (ed.).Global Challenge and Local Response: Initiatives for Economic Regeneration in Contemporary Europe.United Nations University Press.ISBN978-0-7201-2064-6.
• Trudy Ring, ed. (1995)."Dortmund".Northern Europe.International Dictionary of Historic Places. Fitzroy Dearborn. p. 215+.ISBN978-1-136-63944-9.

External links

• "Dortmund".Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 8 (11th ed.). 1911.
• Dortmundtravel guide from Wikivoyage
• Official website(in German)