home > Studying in Rotterdam > Living in Rotterdam
Living in rotterdam
Rotterdam is one of the largest ports in the world and the industrial heart of the Netherlands. In addition, Rotterdam is a city of modern architecture, events, leisure and recreation. More than one million people from 162 countries live in the Rotterdam region. Because of its favourable location as the Gateway to Europe, many European cities, such as Paris, Berlin, London and Brussels, are within a few hours from Erasmus University Rotterdam.
Settlement at the lower end of the fen stream Rotte (or Rotta, as it was then known, from rot “muddy” + a “water”, thus “muddy water”) dates from at least 900. Around 1150, large floods in the area ended development, leading to the construction of protective dikes and dams, including Schielands Hoge Zeedijk (“Schieland’s High Sea Dike”) along the northern banks of the present-day Nieuwe Maas. A dam was built in the 1260s or 1270s to prevent high water and storm tides from flooding the land through the Rotte’s course. This dam at the Rotte, or “Rotterdam”, was located at the present-day Hoogstraat (“High Street”). 
On June 7, 1340, Count Willem IV of Holland granted city rights to Rotterdam, which then had an approximate 2,000 inhabitants. Around 1350, the Rotterdamse Schie was completed, a shipping canal which provided Rotterdam access to the larger towns in the north, allowing it to become a local transhipment centre between Holland, England and Germany, and to slowly Urbanize.
The port of Rotterdam slowly but steadily grew into a port of importance, becoming the seat of one of the six chambers of the Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie (VOC), or the Dutch East Indies Company.
Over the centuries Rotterdam grew from a fishing village into an international centre of trade, transport, industry and distribution. At the beginning of the Second World War, on 14 May 1940, virtually the entire city centre was devastated by a bombardment. This explains why scarcely any pre- war buildings have remained in this part of Rotterdam. After the war, reconstruction of what had been destroyed was given the highest priority. Now, many years later, a new, modern city centre has risen from the ashes. The avant-garde architecture is famous at home and abroad.
Rotterdam is a base for worldwide business. Longstanding trading spirit, in combination with the position of the port has made Rotterdam the trading city of the Netherlands. A centre of increasing economic activity where entrepreneurs quickly feel at home in both their business and private lives. About a thousand international companies have already chosen Rotterdam as their base for European and worldwide business activities.
Rotterdam is also called "Manhattan aan de Maas" / "Manhattan at the Meuse" this due to its beautiful skyline. The bridge on the picture is the "Erasmus Bridge". The Erasmus Bridge (1996) is a 2,600-foot cable stayed bridge linking the north and south of Rotterdam. It is held up by a 138-meter tall pylon with a characteristic bend, earning the bridge its nickname "De Zwaan" ("the Swan").
Study in Holland: nl.youtube.com/studyinholland
Studying in Holland gives you high quality education and research in an international study environment. Study in Holland: Open to international minds.