Minsk | |
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State | |
Country | |
Capital | |
Population | 1982444 |
Minsk (Belarusian: Мінск/Менск [mʲinsk], Russian: Минск) is the capital and the largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislač and the Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administrative centre of Minsk Region (voblasć) and Minsk District (rajon). As of January 2018, its population was 1,982,444, (not including suburbs), making Minsk the 11th most populous city in Europe. Minsk is the administrative capital of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) and seat of its Executive Secretary.
The earliest historical references to Minsk date to the 11th century (1067), when it was noted as a provincial city within the Principality of Polotsk.
Bydgoszcz | |
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State | Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship |
Country | Poland |
Capital | |
Population | 359428 |
Bydgoszcz (UK: BID-goshtch, US: -gawsh(tch), Polish: [ˈbɨdɡɔʂtʂ] (listen); German: Bromberg [ˈbʁɔmbɛɐ̯k]; Latin: Bidgostia, Brombergum) is a city in northern Poland, on the Brda and Vistula rivers.
With a city population of 348,190 (December 2019), and an urban agglomeration with more than 470,000 inhabitants, Bydgoszcz is the eighth-largest city in Poland. It has been the seat of Bydgoszcz County and the co-capital, with Toruń, of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999. Prior to this, between 1947 and 1998, it was the capital of the Bydgoszcz Voivodeship, and before that, of the Pomeranian Voivodeship between 1945 and 1947. Located in the historical region of Kuyavia, it is its largest city.
The city is part of the Bydgoszcz–Toruń metropolitan area, which totals over 850,000 inhabitants.