Euskirchen

Submitted by editor on Sun, 03/06/2011 - 23:38

Euskirchen

Location of the town of Euskirchen within Euskirchen district
Euskirchen


Euskirchen
Coordinates	50°39′35″N 6°47′30″E / 50.65972°N 6.79167°E / 50.65972; 6.79167
Administration
Country	Germany
State	North Rhine-Westphalia
Admin. region	Cologne
District	Euskirchen
Mayor	Uwe Friedl (CDU)

Basic statistics
Area	139.63 km² (53.91 sq mi)
Elevation	137 m (449 ft)
Population	55,620 (31 December 2010)
- Density	398 /km² (1,032 /sq mi)
Other information
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Licence plate	EU
Postal codes	53879–53881
Area codes	02251, 02255
Website	www.euskirchen.de

Euskirchen is a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, capital of the district Euskirchen. While Euskirchen resembles a modern shopping town, it also has a history dating back over 700 years, having been granted town-status in 1302. As of December 2007, it had a population of 55,446.

Euskirchen, old market (Alter Markt).

1 Culture
2 Twinnings

Culture

Parts of the ancient town wall, and three of its defensive towers, are still standing. Tourists are also attracted by Euskirchen due to the proximity of two large cities, Cologne and Bonn, to the North-East, and the hills of the Eifel region to the South. It is also the birthplace of Emil Fischer, born 1852, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1902. German pop singer Jamie Stevens (who has achieved international fame in the late 1990s) was also born in Euskirchen but does not reside there anymore. The local theatre in The Emil Fischer Gymnasium offers a wide variety of cultural events. In addition to that The City Forum and the Parkhotel Euskirchen *[1] contribute to the cultural offerings.

The etymology of the word Euskirchen: Euskirchen means Kirche auf der Aue, Church on riverside lowland. The Martinskirche is the oldest church in Euskirchen.