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Kortrijk

For the Dutch village, see Kortrijk, Netherlands.
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 of Kortrijk
Flag
Coat of arms of Kortrijk
Coat of arms
Location of Kortrijk
Map
Kortrijk is located in Belgium
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
CommunityFlemish Community
RegionFlemish Region
ProvinceWest Flanders
ArrondissementKortrijk
Government
 • MayorVincent Van Quickenborne (Open VLD)
 • Governing party/iesTeam Burgemeester, Vooruit, N-VA
Area
 • Total80.69 km2 (31.15 sq mi)
Population
 (2022-01-01)[1]
 • Total77,741
 • Density960/km2 (2,500/sq mi)
Postal codes
85xx (8500, 8501, 8510, 8511)
NIS code
34022
Area codes056
Websitewww.kortrijk.be

Kortrijk (/ˈkɔːrtraɪk/ KORT-ryke,[2] Dutch: [ˈkɔrtrɛik] ; West Flemish: Kortryk or Kortrik; French: Courtrai [kuʁtʁɛ]), 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 80,000 inhabitants (2024) 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]

Belfry of Kortrijk, a UNESCO World Heritage Site

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.

  1. ^ "Bevolking per gemeente op 1 januari 2022". Statbel.
  2. ^ a b "Courtrai". Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary. Merriam-Webster.
  3. ^ "Internet site of the town of Izegem". Archived from the original on 2 October 2008. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
  4. ^ "An inventory of locations suitable for wind energy in Flanders region". Archived from the original on 1 October 2011. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
  5. ^ List of municipalities : http://fr.eurometropolis.eu/qui-sommes-nous/territoire.html Archived 2015-03-21 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ "EUROMETROPOLIS : Eurometropolis Lille-Kortrijk-Tournai, the 1st European cross-bordrer metropolis". Archived from the original on 2014-09-08. Retrieved 2014-09-08.
  7. ^ (in French) Populationdata.net Archived 2008-10-09 at the Wayback Machine, Palmarès des plus grandes villes du monde – page 3
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference princeton was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

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