Nordstad
Encyclopedia
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
, and a colloquial term to refer to the combined urban area
Urban area
An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...
s in the region. The name is Luxembourgish
Luxembourgish language
Luxembourgish is a High German language spoken mainly in Luxembourg. About 320,000 people worldwide speak Luxembourgish.-Language family:...
for 'northern city', but it remains the title, both formal and informal, of the region in any language.
The idea was coined by Luxembourgian economist Adrien Ries
Adrien Ries
Adrien Ries was a Luxembourgian economist. Much of his work revolved around transport economics, particularly the automobile, and the spatial implications of economic activity...
on 2 June 1973. The idea of a unified urban area in the north of the country was put forward to decentralise and diversify the economy, and develop a third major urban area, along with Luxembourg City and the southern Red Lands
Red Lands
The Red Lands form a geographic region in southern and south-western Luxembourg. They are called this way for their red iron-laden earth.The Red Lands roughly correspond with the southern part of the canton of Esch-sur-Alzette, along the border with France...
.
Extent
Nordstad includes a total of fifteen communesCommunes of Luxembourg
The communes of Luxembourg are the lowest nation-wide administrative division in Luxembourg. They conform to LAU level 2.Within the hierarchy of administrative subdivisions, communes come directly below cantons, which are directly below districts. Communes are often re-arranged, being merged or...
, predominantly in the canton
Cantons of Luxembourg
||The districts of Luxembourg are divided into 12 cantons. These cantons are subdivided into 116 communes. The cantons, listed by district, include:Diekirch District*Clervaux *Diekirch *Redange *Vianden *Wiltz Grevenmacher District...
of Diekirch
Diekirch (canton)
Diekirch is a canton in Luxembourg in Diekirch District, consisting of 12 communes:*Bettendorf*Bourscheid*Diekirch*Ermsdorf*Erpeldange*Ettelbruck*Feulen*Hoscheid*Medernach*Mertzig*Reisdorf*Schieren...
, but also including communes in Mersch
Mersch (canton)
Mersch is a canton in the centre of Luxembourg, in Luxembourg District. The capital is Mersch.The canton consists of the following 11 communes:*Bissen*Boevange-sur-Attert*Colmar-Berg*Fischbach*Heffingen*Larochette*Lintgen*Lorentzweiler*Mersch...
and Vianden
Vianden (canton)
Vianden is a canton in the north of Luxembourg, in the Diekirch District. The capital is Vianden.The canton consists of the following 3 communes:*Putscheid*Tandel*ViandenThe canton's land area is currently 78.52 km²...
.
The fifteen communes are:
- Diekirch canton: BettendorfBettendorf, LuxembourgBettendorf is a commune and town in eastern Luxembourg. It lies along the river Sauer. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch....
, BourscheidBourscheidBourscheid is a commune and small town in north-eastern Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch., the town of Bourscheid, which lies in the centre of the commune, has a population of 266...
, DiekirchDiekirchDiekirch is a commune with city status in north-eastern Luxembourg, capital city of the canton Diekirch and the district of Diekirch. The city is situated on the banks of the Sauer river....
, ErmsdorfErmsdorfErmsdorf is a commune and village in eastern Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch., the village of Ermsdorf, which lies in the south of the commune, has a population of 221. Other towns within the commune include Eppeldorf and Stegen....
, ErpeldangeErpeldangeErpeldange is a commune and small town in north-eastern Luxembourg. It lies along the river Sauer, between Ettelbruck and Diekirch. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch....
, EttelbruckEttelbruckEttelbruck is a commune with city status in central Luxembourg, with a population of approximately 7,500. As of 2005, the town of Ettelbruck itself, which lies in the east of the commune, has a population of 6,191. The town of Warken and Grentzingen are also within the commune...
, FeulenFeulenFeulen is a commune in central Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch. The commune's administrative centre is Niederfeulen.Towns within the commune include Niederfeulen and Oberfeulen....
, MedernachMedernachMedernach is a commune and small town in eastern Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch.Medernach is home to an aerodrome., the township Medernach has a population of 1107....
, MertzigMertzigMertzig is a commune and town in central Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch., the town of Mertzig, which lies in the centre of the commune, has a population of 1,439....
, ReisdorfReisdorfReisdorf is a commune and small town in eastern Luxembourg, on the river Sauer. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch....
, and SchierenSchierenSchieren is a commune and town in central Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch., the town of Schieren, which lies in the west of the commune, has a population of 1,358....
. - Mersch canton: BissenBissenBissen is a commune and town in central Luxembourg, in the canton of Mersch. It is situated on the river Attert., the town of Bissen, which lies in the east of the commune, has a population of 2,871. Bissen is home to a steel factory, operated by Arcelor, the world's second-largest steel...
, Colmar-BergColmar-BergColmar-Berg is a commune and town in central Luxembourg, in the canton of Mersch. It is situated at the confluence of the rivers Attert and Alzette....
, and NommernNommernNommern is a commune and small town in central Luxembourg, in the canton of Mersch., the town of Nommern, which lies in the east of the commune, has a population of 262. Other towns within the commune include Cruchten and Schrondweiler....
. - Vianden canton: TandelTandelTandel is a commune and village in eastern Luxembourg, in the canton of Vianden. It lies close to the border with Germany., the village of Tandel, which lies in the centre of the commune, has a population of 87...
.
Altogether, the fifteen communes have a population of 33,233, or approximately 7% of Luxembourg's total population. This is over an area of 301.8 km², which is 12% of Luxembourg's territory. Thus, the whole Nordstad region is more sparsely populated than Luxembourg as a whole, despite Nordstad's name.
Core communes
Development activity in Nordstad is concentrated on the centre, and most urbanised area, formed by the six core communes of BettendorfBettendorf, Luxembourg
Bettendorf is a commune and town in eastern Luxembourg. It lies along the river Sauer. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch....
, Colmar-Berg
Colmar-Berg
Colmar-Berg is a commune and town in central Luxembourg, in the canton of Mersch. It is situated at the confluence of the rivers Attert and Alzette....
, Diekirch
Diekirch
Diekirch is a commune with city status in north-eastern Luxembourg, capital city of the canton Diekirch and the district of Diekirch. The city is situated on the banks of the Sauer river....
, Erpeldange
Erpeldange
Erpeldange is a commune and small town in north-eastern Luxembourg. It lies along the river Sauer, between Ettelbruck and Diekirch. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch....
, Ettelbruck
Ettelbruck
Ettelbruck is a commune with city status in central Luxembourg, with a population of approximately 7,500. As of 2005, the town of Ettelbruck itself, which lies in the east of the commune, has a population of 6,191. The town of Warken and Grentzingen are also within the commune...
, and Schieren
Schieren
Schieren is a commune and town in central Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Diekirch, which is part of the district of Diekirch., the town of Schieren, which lies in the west of the commune, has a population of 1,358....
. Except Colmar-Berg, all of them are in Diekirch canton, and lie in the valley of the middle Sauer
Sauer
The Sauer or Sûre is a river in Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany. A left tributary of the river Moselle, its total length is 173 km....
. Of the six, Diekirch and Ettelbruck have city status and rank within the top twenty most-populated communes in the Grand Duchy.
As of 2005, the six communes within the core of Nordstad have a combined population of 21,223; this would rank Nordstad as third amongst Luxembourg's cities (after Luxembourg City and Esch-sur-Alzette
Esch-sur-Alzette
Esch-sur-Alzette is a commune with city status, in south-western Luxembourg. It is the country's second city, and its second-most populous commune, with a population of 29,853 people...
, but larger than Differdange
Differdange
Differdange is a commune with city status in south-western Luxembourg. Differdange is an industrial city that was home to much of Luxembourg's steel production, and lies near the borders with Belgium and France...
and Dudelange
Dudelange
Dudelange is a commune with city status in southern Luxembourg. It is the fourth-most populous commune, with over 18,300 inhabitants. Dudelange is situated close to the border to France....
). However, this population is spread over an area of 68.29 km², almost five times the size of Esch. As the government development agency, the IVL, recognises, for Nordstad to develop into a coherent urban area in actuality and in the public imagination, Nordstad must grow and its existing towns and cities must become more integrated with one another.