Bergisch Gladbach

Bergisch Gladbach
Forecourt of Schloss Bensberg
Flag Coat of arms
Bergisch Gladbach
Location of Bergisch Gladbach within Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis district
Coordinates:
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Köln
District	Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis
Government
• Mayor	Lutz Urbach (CDU)
Area
• Total	83.12 km2 (32.09 sq mi)
Population (2013-12-31)
• Total	109,425
• Density	1,300/km2 (3,400/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	51401-51469
Dialling codes	02202, 02204, 02207
Vehicle registration	GL
Website	www.bergischgladbach.de

Bergisch Gladbach (German pronunciation: [ˈbɛɐ̯gɪʃ ˈglatbax]), is a town in the Cologne/Bonn Region of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and capital of the Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis (district).

Geography

Bergisch Gladbach is located east of the river Rhine, approx. 10 kilometers east of Cologne.

Neighbouring municipalities

Beginning in the north clockwise the neighbouring municipalities and neighbouring towns are: Odenthal, Kürten, Overath, Rösrath, Cologne and Leverkusen.

History

Early settlements existed in the 13th century, but the town was officially founded in 1856.

Old castle and town hall of Bensberg

The word Bergisch in the name does not originate from its location in the earldom of Berg and was not added to distinguish it from Mönchengladbach as believed by many people, but from the earls who gave their name to the region. At the start of the 12th century the earls of "Berg" settled in the area and it became the grand duchy of Berg. This is where the first part of the name (Bergisch) comes from.

The second part of the name, Gladbach (cognate with English Ladbrooke) originates from Low German (Bergisches Platt) and means canalised stream, referring to the small river (the Strunde) that was artificially canalised (laid) in early medieval times. In Bergisch Platt, the regional dialect, laid is said gelaat, a word which eventually evolved to glad (in this case the 'd' is pronounced as a 't'). The second part of the word, bach is the standard German word for a small stream, referring in this case to the Strunde.

In 1975 the city incorporated the neighbouring Bensberg and when it reached a population of 100,000 in 1977 it was given municipality status.

Largest groups of foreign residents
Nationality	Population (2014)
Turkey	2,123
Italy	882
Poland	878
Greece	679
Romania	300
Kosovo	288
Croatia	260
Austria	257
Russia	241
Bosnia & Herzegovina	208

Economy

Paper manufacturing, printing, glass wool manufacturing, and high-tech industries make up a large part of Bergisch Gladbach's economy.

International relations

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Germany

Bergisch Gladbach is twinned with:

	Country	Place		County / District / Region / State	Date
	France	Bourgoin-Jallieu	25px	Rhône-Alpes	1956
	United Kingdom	Luton		Bedfordshire	1956
	Netherlands	Velsen		North Holland	1956
	France	Joinville-le-Pont			1960
	United Kingdom	Runnymede			1965
	Lithuania	Marijampolė			1989
	Cyprus	Limassol			1991
	Poland	Pszczyna		Silesian voivodship, pszczyński county, Pszczyna gmina	1993
	Palestine	Beit Jala		West Bank	2010

Ganei Tikva Israel 2012

Born in Bergisch Gladbach

• Astrid Benöhr, German endurance athlete
• Wolfgang Bosbach, German politician
• Fabian Hambüchen, German gymnast
• Volker Goetze, German born, New York based musician composer filmmaker
• Götz Heidelberg, German constructing engineer
• Mats Hummels, German football player for Borussia Dortmund
• Carolin Kebekus, German actress and comedian
• Heidi Klum, German supermodel
• Georg Koch, retired German goalkeeper
• Uwe Ommer, photographer
• Vanessa Fuchs, Germany's Next Topmodel 2015
• Tim Wiese, German football goalkeeper

High Schools in Bergisch Gladbach

• Albertus-Magnus-Gymnasium Bensberg/Bergisch Gladbach, High School
• Gymnasium Herkenrath/Bergisch Gladbach, High School
• Nicolaus-Cusanus-Gymnasium Bergisch Gladbach, High School
• Otto-Hahn-Gymnasium Bensberg/Bergisch Gladbach, High School
• Dietrich-Bonhoeffer-Gymnasium Bergisch Gladbach, High School

External links

• Bergisch Gladbach Official site (German)
• Fire Department Bergisch Gladbach (German)