Oldenburg (city)

Oldenburg is a city in the state of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is an independent city, which means it is not part of any larger district. It has a special name so people do not confuse it with another place called Oldenburg in Holstein. The city is near two rivers, the Hunte and the Haaren. It lies between bigger cities like Bremen to the east and Groningen in the Netherlands to the west.

During a time long ago, when France controlled the area from 1811 to 1813, the city had a French name, Le Vieux-Bourg. Today, Oldenburg is part of a larger area called the Northwest Metropolitan Region.

The city is important in history because it is where the House of Oldenburg began. Before 1918, Oldenburg was the main city for the rulers of the monarchs of Oldenburg. In 2024, about 176,068 people lived there.

History

People lived in Oldenburg as far back as the 8th century. The first record from 1108 calls it Aldenburg. It was important because it sat at a crossing over the Hunte river.

In the 1600s, Oldenburg was a rich town. But in 1667, a disease came, and a big fire caused damage. For years, the town stayed in poor shape. Buildings were rebuilt in a style called neoclassicist in the late 1700s.

After World War I, the ruler of Oldenburg left, and the town joined a new government area. During World War II, Oldenburg was in the British occupation zone after the war. Many people who had to leave their homes came to Oldenburg, and the city's population grew to over 100,000.

Climate

Oldenburg has a temperate climate, like much of northern Germany. The city enjoys mild summers and cool winters, with rain falling regularly all year. This weather makes it nice to spend time outside and enjoy the area's natural beauty.

City government

People in Oldenburg choose their leaders every five years. The city council is called the Stadtrat and has 50 seats. The leader of the city, called the lord mayor or Oberbürgermeister, is chosen by the people who live there.

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Oldenburg’s city center has freeways (autobahns), like A 28, A 29, and A 293. These roads connect Oldenburg to Germany’s highways and the international E-road network.

Oldenburg Central Station is a big train stop. Trains go to places like Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Frankfurt, and Munich.

You can drive to Bremen Airport from the city. There are also airports in Hamburg and Hannover nearby. There is a small airfield called Hatten for private planes.

Oldenburg has a harbor on the Küstenkanal. This canal links the Ems and Weser rivers. The harbor helps move goods.

Agriculture

Oldenburg is surrounded by farms. Most of the land is grass, and many farms are close to or even inside the city. The area is famous for dairy cows and crops like grains, asparagus, corn, and kale.

Industry

For many years, Oldenburg has made sea salt for the Baltic region. Long ago, people dug up peat, but later they used coal mines instead.

Demographics

As of December 31, 2019, Oldenburg had 169,960 people living there. About 24.8% of the population were first or second generation immigrants.

Cultural life

Oldenburg has many fun cultural events and places to visit. Every summer, there is a series of free music and cultural activities called Kultursommer in the city centre. In June, there is a big parade called CSD Nordwest. In August and September, the Stadtfest festival offers food and music. September brings the Oldenburg International Film Festival, where people can watch independent films. The Kramermarkt fun fair happens in September and October.

Some popular spots in Oldenburg include the city centre with its shops, the Oldenburg State Theatre which opened in 1833, and Schloss Oldenburg, a museum. There are also big halls for sports and events, like the Small and Large EWE Arena. The city has a strong Lutheran community with St Lamberti Church as its main place of worship.

Media

Oldenburg has several newspapers, such as the Nordwest-Zeitung, a daily paper, and free weeklies like the Hunte-Report and Sonntagszeitung. There are also magazines such as Diabolo and Mox for local events and listings.

The city has local radio and television options. Oldenburg Eins offers public-access TV and radio, while Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) has a regional studio there. Radio FFN also broadcasts from the NWZ building. Online, Nordwest-Zeitung TV provides local video news clips.

Education

Oldenburg has two public universities. The Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg began in 1973 and was named after Carl von Ossietzky in 1991. It has many students and teachers. In 2012, it started a new school of medicine and health sciences with the University of Groningen in the Netherlands.

The Jade University of Applied Sciences started in 1971 and has three places: Oldenburg, Elsfleth, and Wilhelmshaven. In Oldenburg, students can study architecture, construction engineering, construction management, geodesy, hearing aid technology, and audiology. About 2,000 students study in Oldenburg.

There are also private colleges, like the IBS IT & Business School Oldenburg, which teaches business informatics and business studies. Students learn in class and work with local companies.

Oldenburg has many primary and secondary schools, including Gymnasium Graf-Anton-Guenther School, Cäcilienschule Oldenburg, and Herbartgymnasium Oldenburg.

Sports

Oldenburg hosted the 2007 Fistball World Championship.

The city has two football teams, VfB Oldenburg and VfL Oldenburg. These teams also have a handball section of the same name.

Oldenburg is also home to the basketball team EWE Baskets Oldenburg.

Twin towns – sister cities

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

Oldenburg has friendly connections with cities in many countries. These partnerships started in different years, the first in 1978 with Høje-Taastrup in Denmark. Other partner cities are Cholet in France, Groningen in the Netherlands, and Makhachkala in Russia, among others. These partnerships help the cities work together and learn from one another.

Notable people

See also: Counts, dukes and grand dukes of Oldenburg

Public servants and public thinking

• Anna of Oldenburg (1501–1575), a countess.
• Princess Cecilia of Sweden (1807–1844), a local princess.
• Amalia of Oldenburg (1818–1875), a Bavarian princess and Queen of Greece.
• Karl von Wedel (1842–1919), a general and diplomat.
• Helene Lange (1848–1930), a politician and teacher.
• Rudolf Heinze (1865–1928), a politician.
• Karl Jaspers (1883–1969), a philosopher.
• Otto Schultze (1884–1966), a naval officer.
• Peter Suhrkamp (1891–1959), a publisher.
• Otto Suhr (1894–1957), a politician.
• Heinz Rökker (1920–2018), a pilot.
• Bernd Althusmann (born 1966), a politician.
• Thyra von Westernhagen (born 1973), a princess.
• Hasnain Kazim (born 1974), a journalist.

Arts

• Sophie Löwe (1815–1866), an opera singer.
• Christian Griepenkerl (1839–1916), a painter.
• August Jerndorff (1846–1906), a Danish painter.
• Ellen Plessow (1891–1967), an actress.
• Friedrich W. Herzog (1902–1976), a writer.
• Erna Schlüter (1904–1969), an opera singer.
• Jürgen Goslar (born 1927), an actor.
• Thomas Schmidt-Kowalski (1949–2013), a composer.
• Klaus Modick (born 1951), an author.
• Rena Niehaus (born 1954), an actress.
• Thomas Schütte (born 1954), a sculptor.
• Heiko Daxl (1957–2012), an artist.
• Andrea Clausen (born 1959), an actress.
• Sarah Nemtsov (born 1980), a composer.
• Klaas Heufer-Umlauf (born 1983), a TV host.

Science & business

• Otto Mencke (1644–1707), a scientist.
• Arp Schnitger (1648–1719), an organ builder.
• Wilhelm Heinrich Schüßler (1821–1898), a doctor.
• Isaac Friedlander (1823–1878), a businessman.
• Lothar Meyer (1830–1895), a chemist.
• Reinhard Schlichting (1835–1897), a manufacturer.
• August Brauer (1863–1917), a zoologist.
• Carl Ramsauer (1879–1955), a physicist.
• Walter Behrmann (1882–1955), a geographer.
• Hans Günther Aach (1919–1999), a botanist.
• Manfred Milinski (born 1950), a biologist.
• Thomas Reiter (born 1958), an astronaut.

Sport

• Uta Frommater (born 1948), a swimmer.
• Karsten Baumann (born 1969), a football player.
• Hans-Jörg Butt (born 1974), a footballer.
• Oliver Köhrmann (born 1976), a handball player.
• Florian Bruns (born 1979), a football coach.
• Johannes Bitter (born 1982), a handball player.
• Thomas Plößel (born 1988), a sailor.

Others

• Diedrich A. W. Rulfs (1848–1926), an architect.