Zeeburg
Encyclopedia
Borough
A borough is an administrative division in various countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing township although, in practice, official use of the term varies widely....
s of Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
. It has 52,701 residents (January 2009) and is 19.31 km². The construction of new islands to the east called IJburg
IJburg
IJburg is a residential neighbourhood currently under construction in the east of Amsterdam. It is situated in the IJ Lake and is being built on artificial islands which have been raised from the lake...
makes it the most rapidly growing borough of Amsterdam.
History
The borough, which was created in 1990, got its name from the Zeeburgerdijk (Zeeburg dike) and the Zeeburgereiland (Zeeburg island) which lie in the centre of the borough. The Zeeburgerdijk is named after the fort ‘Seeburg’ which in the 17th century was part of the dike that protected land from the Zuider ZeeZuider Zee
The Zuiderzee was a shallow bay of the North Sea in the northwest of the Netherlands, extending about 100 km inland and at most 50 km wide, with an overall depth of about 4 to 5 metres and a coastline of about 300 km . It covered...
. This dike connected Amsterdam and Muiden
Muiden
Muiden is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. It lies at the mouth of the Vecht and is in an area called the Vechtstreek.-Population centres :...
and was the only land route to Naarden before the Watergraafsmeer
Watergraafsmeer
The Watergraafsmeer is a polder in The Netherlands. It was reclaimed in 1629. In the 17th and 18th centuries, there were many buitenplaatsen in the Watergraafsmeer, though nowadays only one, Frankendael, remains....
was drained. From the end of the 19th century, with the construction of the Oostelijk Havengebied (Eastern Harbour) and the residential Indische Buurt, the area has slowly become part of the city. For the 1928 Summer Olympics
1928 Summer Olympics
The 1928 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the IX Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1928 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Amsterdam had bid for the 1920 and 1924 Olympic Games, but had to give way to war-victim Antwerp, Belgium, and Pierre de...
, its shooting range
Shooting range
A shooting range or firing range is a specialized facility designed for firearms practice. Each facility is typically overseen by one or more supervisory personnel, called variously a range master or "RSO – Range Safety Officer" in the United States or a range conducting officer or "RCO" in the UK...
was used for the shooting
Shooting sports
A shooting sport is a competitive sport involving tests of proficiency using various types of guns such as firearms and airguns . Hunting is also a shooting sport, and indeed shooting live pigeons was an Olympic event...
part of the modern pentathlon
Modern pentathlon at the 1928 Summer Olympics
At the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, a single modern pentathlon event was contested.-Medalists:...
events.
Character
IJburg
IJburg is a residential neighbourhood currently under construction in the east of Amsterdam. It is situated in the IJ Lake and is being built on artificial islands which have been raised from the lake...
, Oostelijk Havengebied
Eastern Docklands
The Eastern Docklands is a neighborhood of Amsterdam, Netherlands, located between the IJ and the Amsterdam–Rhine Canal. The harbor area was constructed in the late nineteenth century to allow for increasing trade with the Dutch East Indies; a new location was necessitated by the construction of...
and the Indische Buurt
Indische Buurt (Amsterdam)
' is a neighborhood in the eastern portion of the city of Amsterdam, in the Dutch province of Noord-Holland. The name dates from the early 20th century, and is derived from the fact that the neighborhood's streets are named after islands and other geographical concepts in the former Dutch colony...
) have different characters. IJburg is still under construction and generally contains middle-class housing. IJburg is also far from the city center. The Oostelijk Havengebied is an upper class area and has an urban character with some of the highest densities in the country. The Indische Buurt, on the other hand, is more working-class and has a large immigrant population. Attempts are currently being made to upgrade the housing in this neighbourhood.