Amsterdam | |
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State | North Holland |
Country | Netherlands |
Capital | |
Population | 841282 |
Amsterdam (, UK also; Dutch: [ɑmstɛrˈdɑm] (listen)) is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands with a population of 872,680 within the city proper, 1,558,755 from the metropolitan region and 2,480,394 from the metropolitan area. Located within the province of North Holland, Amsterdam is colloquially referred to as the"Venice of the North", attributed by the large number of canals that form a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Amsterdam's name derives from Amstelredamme, indicative of the town's origin around a dam in the river Amstel. Originating as a small fishing village in the late 12th century, Amsterdam became one of the most important ports in the world during the Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century, and became the leading centre for trade and finance. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the city expanded and many new neighbourhoods and suburbs were planned and built. The 17th-century canals of Amsterdam and the 19--20th century Defence Line of Amsterdam are on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Sloten, annexed in 1921 from the municipality of Amsterdam, is the oldest part of town, dating to the 9th century.
Amsterdam's main attractions include its historic canals, the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, the Stedelijk Museum, Hermitage Amsterdam, the Concertgebouw, the Anne Frank House, the Scheepvaartmuseum, the Amsterdam Museum, the Heineken Experience, the Royal Palace of Amsterdam, Natura Artis Magistra, Hortus Botanicus Amsterdam, NEMO, the red-light district and Several cannabis coffee shops. It drew over 5 million international visitors in 2014. The city is also well known for its nightlife and festival activity; with several of its clubs (Melkweg, Paradiso) among the world's most famous. Primarily known for its artistic heritage, elaborate canal system and narrow houses with gabled façades; well-preserved legacies of the town's 17th-century Golden Age.
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Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. About 29% of Earth's surface is land consisting of continents and islands. The remaining 71% is covered with water, mostly by oceans but also lakes, rivers and other fresh water, which together constitute the hydrosphere. Much of Earth's polar regions are covered in ice. Earth's outer layer is divided into several rigid tectonic plates that migrate across the surface over many millions of years. Earth's interior remains active with a solid iron inner core, a liquid outer core that generates Earth's magnetic field, and a convecting mantle that drives plate tectonics.
According to radiometric dating estimation and other evidence, Earth formed over 4.5 billion years ago. Within the first billion years of Earth's history, life appeared in the oceans and began to affect Earth's atmosphere and surface, leading to the proliferation of anaerobic and, later, aerobic organisms. Some geological evidence indicates that life may have arisen as early as 4.1 billion years ago. Since then, the combination of Earth's distance from the Sun, physical properties and geological history have allowed life to evolve and thrive. In the history of life on Earth, biodiversity has gone through long periods of expansion, occasionally punctuated by mass extinctions.