Alkmaar

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Alkmaar
Coordinates: 52.63° N 4.75° E
Country	Netherlands
Province	North Holland
Area (2006)
- Municipality	31.22 km²  (12.1 sq mi)
- Land	29.51 km² (11.4 sq mi)
- Water	1.71 km² (0.7 sq mi)
Population (1 January 2007)
- Municipality	94,216
- Density	3,193/km² (8,269.8/sq mi)
	Source: CBS, Statline.
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Website: www.alkmaar.nl

Alkmaar (West Frisian: Alkmare) is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of Noord Holland. Besides the city of Alkmaar, the municipality also comprises the villages of Koedijk and Oudorp; these once separate villages are now all linked together by the suburban sprawl of buildings that arose between the late 1970s and early 1990s. During this time, the population of Alkmaar almost doubled.

Alkmaar's cheese market is one of the country's most popular tourist attractions. The cheese market traditionally takes place every Friday morning between April and October. It is one of only four traditional Dutch cheese markets still in existence. The traditional fare of this cheese market are those cheeses made in the local area, as opposed to the well-known brands of Dutch cheeses, i.e. Edam cheese and Gouda cheese. It is not actually possible to buy cheese at the market itself, which is really only a demonstration of how this merchants' market operated in times gone by. However, the show, which takes place in front of the medieval weighing house, is surrounded by many specialized stalls where it is possible to buy all kinds of cheese (and non-cheese) related products.

The weighing house is home to the local tourist office and a cheese museum. Alkmaar also has a beer museum and a museum dedicated to The Beatles, as John Lennon's first guitar was made in Alkmaar.

A red light district is situated at the Achterdam.

A village in the Commewijne district of Surinam is also called Alkmaar. It is situated in the area where Plantage Alkmaar, a former sugar plantation, used to be.

Contents 1 History 2 Population centres 3 Local government 4 Transport 5 Sports 6 Born in Alkmaar 7 References 8 Notes 9 External links

[edit] History

The earliest mention of the name Alkmaar is in a 10th century document. As the village grew into a town, it was granted city rights in 1254. The oldest part of Alkmaar lies on an ancient sand bank that afforded some protection from the sea during medieval times. Even so, it is only a couple of metres above the surrounding region, which consists of some of the oldest polders in existence.

In 1573 the city successfully withstood a siege by Spanish forces under the leadership of Fernando Álvarez de Toledo, 3rd Duke of Alba. Alkmaar was the first city in the Netherlands to be freed from the Spanish occupation. It was a turning point in the Eighty Years War and gave rise to the expression Bij Alkmaar begint de victorie ("Victory begins in Alkmaar"). The event is still celebrated every year in Alkmaar on October 8, the day the siege ended.

In 1799, during the French revolutionary wars, an Anglo-Russian expeditionary force captured the city but was ultimately defeated in the Battle of Castricum. The French victory was commemorated on the Arc de Triomphe in Paris as "Alcmaer".

[edit] Population centres

The municipality of Alkmaar consists of the following cities, towns, villages and/or districts: Alkmaar, Koedijk (partly), Oudorp and Omval.

[edit] Local government

The municipal council of Alkmaar consists of 37 seats, which are divided as follows:

• PvdA - 11 seats
• OPA - 5 seats
• SP - 5 seats
• CDA - 4 seats
• VVD - 4 seats
• GroenLinks - 3 seats
• Leefbaar Alkmaar - 2 seats
• ChristenUnie - 1 seat
• D66 - 1 seat
• OMA - 1 seat

[edit] Transport

Highway A9 runs from Amsterdam to Alkmaar, then continues on to Den Helder as the N9.

Trains run from Station Alkmaar to Amsterdam, Haarlem and Den Helder. The city also has a second station, Station Alkmaar Noord.

The Noordhollandsch Kanaal canal, which opened in 1824, runs right through Alkmaar.

[edit] Sports

Alkmaar is home to the professional football team AZ (Alkmaar Zaanstreek). In 2006, the club moved to a new 17,000 capacity stadium, the DSB Stadion.

The city also has a velodrome where the Dutch national track cycling championships are held every year.

[edit] Born in Alkmaar

• Willem Blaeu (1571), cartographer (his birthplace may also have been Uitgeest)
• Cornelis Drebbel (1572), inventor of the first navigable submarine
• Caesar van Everdingen (ca. 1617), painter
• Reinier Jansen (17th century), operated the first Quaker press in the United States.^[1]
• Willem de Fesch (1687), composer
• Rudi Carrell (1934), entertainer
• Sybilla Dekker (1942), cabinet minister
• Harm Ottenbros (1943), cyclist, 1969 world champion
• Jos Punt (1946), bishop
• Patrick Cammaert (1950), army general, UN peacekeeping mission commander
• Marco Borsato (1966), singer
• Jakko Jan Leeuwangh (1972), speed skater

[edit] References

• Statistics are taken from the SDU Staatscourant

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Alkmaar's official Web site
• Alkmaar travel guide from Wikitravel
• Photos of Alkmaar