Bruges

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Bruges Brugge (Dutch)
City and municipality
Southwestern view from the Belfry, with the Church of Our Lady and St. Salvator's Cathedral in the background Concertgebouw Canal view with Belfry in the background Zeebrugge beach and outer port
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Bruges
Bruges Location in Belgium Location of Bruges in West Flanders
Coordinates: 51°12′32″N 03°13′27″E / 51.20889°N 3.22417°E / 51.20889; 3.22417
Country	Belgium
Community	Flemish Community
Region	Flemish Region
Province	West Flanders
Arrondissement	Bruges
Government
• Mayor	Dirk De fauw (CD&V)
• Governing party/ies	CD&V, Vooruit, Open VLD
Area
• Total	140.99 km2 (54.44 sq mi)
Population  (2022-01-01)[1]
• Total	118,509
• Density	840/km2 (2,200/sq mi)
Postal codes	8000, 8200, 8310, 8380
NIS code	31005
Area codes	050
Website	visitbruges.be
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Historic Centre of Brugge
Criteria	Cultural: (ii)(iv)(vi)
Reference	996
Inscription	2000 (24th Session)
Area	410 ha (1,000 acres)
Buffer zone	168 ha (420 acres)
Logo of Brugge

Bruges (/bruːʒ/ ^ⓘ BROOZH, French: [bʁyʒ] ^ⓘ; Dutch: Brugge [ˈbrʏɣə] ^ⓘ; German: Brügge German pronunciation: [ˈbʁʏɡə] ^ⓘ) is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country. It is the sixth most populous city in the country.

The area of the whole city amounts to more than 14,099 hectares (140.99 km²; 54.44 sq miles), including 1,075 hectares off the coast, at Zeebrugge (from Brugge aan zee,^[2] meaning 'Bruges by the Sea').^[3] The historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO. It is oval and about 430 hectares in size. The city's total population is 117,073 (1 January 2008),^[4] of whom around 20,000 live in the city centre. The metropolitan area, including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 616 km² (238 sq mi) and had a total of 255,844 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008.^[5]

Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam and Saint Petersburg, it is sometimes referred to as the Venice of the North. Bruges has significant economic importance, thanks to its port, and was once one of the world's chief commercial cities.^[6][7] Bruges is a major tourism destination within Belgium and is well known as the seat of the College of Europe, a university institute for European studies.^[8]