Kortrijk

Kortrijk Kortryk / Kortrik (West Flemish) Courtrai (French)
City and municipality
Clockwise from top: Theatre Square (Schouwburgplein) during Summer Carnival, Beguinage and Saint Martin's Church, Broeltowers, Kortrijk City Hall as seen from the Grote Markt
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Kortrijk
Kortrijk Location in Belgium Location of Kortrijk in West Flanders
Coordinates: 50°49′39″N 03°15′57″E / 50.82750°N 3.26583°E / 50.82750; 3.26583
Country	Belgium
Community	Flemish Community
Region	Flemish Region
Province	West Flanders
Arrondissement	Kortrijk
Government
• Mayor	Vincent Van Quickenborne (Open VLD)
• Governing party/ies	Team Burgemeester, Vooruit, N-VA
Area
• Total	80.69 km2 (31.15 sq mi)
Population  (2022-01-01)[1]
• Total	77,741
• Density	960/km2 (2,500/sq mi)
Postal codes	85xx (8500, 8501, 8510, 8511)
NIS code	34022
Area codes	056
Website	www.kortrijk.be

Kortrijk (/ˈkɔːrtraɪk/ KORT-ryke,^[2] Dutch: [ˈkɔrtrɛik] ^ⓘ; West Flemish: Kortryk or Kortrik; French: Courtrai [kuʁtʁɛ]; Latin: Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray^[3][4] (/kʊərˈtreɪ/ koor-TRAY),^[2] is a Belgian city and municipality in the Flemish province of West Flanders.

With its 79,000 inhabitants (2023) Kortrijk is the capital and largest city of the judicial and administrative arrondissement of Kortrijk. The wider municipality comprises the city of Courtrai proper and the villages of Aalbeke, Bellegem, Bissegem, Heule, Kooigem, Marke, and Rollegem. Courtrai is also part of the cross-border Lille-Kortrijk-Tournai metropolitan area.^[5][6]

The city is on the river Leie, 42 km (26 mi) southwest of Ghent and 25 km (16 mi) northeast of Lille. Mouscron in Wallonia is just south of Courtrai.^[7]

Courtrai originated from a Gallo-Roman town, Cortoriacum,^[8] at a crossroads near the Leie river and two Roman roads. In the Middle Ages, Courtrai grew significantly thanks to the flax and wool industry with France and England and became one of the biggest and richest cities in Flanders. The city is often referred to as City of Groeninge or City of the Golden Spurs, referring to the Battle of Courtrai or the Battle of the Golden Spurs which took place on 11 July 1302 on the Fields of Groeninge in Courtrai. In 1820 the Treaty of Kortrijk was signed, laying out the still-current borders between France and Belgium. Throughout the 19th and 20th century, the flax industry flourished and remains important within the Belgian textile industry today.

Courtrai is the largest city in southern West Flanders, with several hospitals, colleges and a university. Courtrai was the first city in Belgium with a pedestrian shopping street, the Korte Steenstraat.