Bruges (Dutch: Brugge, stemming from Bryggja, which
assumedly used to signify "landing stage" or "port")
is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the
Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located in the northwest of the country.
The historic city centre is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO.
It is egg-shaped and about 430 hectares in size. The area of the whole
city amounts to more than 13,840 hectares, including 193.7 hectares off
the coast, at Zeebrugge ("Seabruges" in literal translation).
The city's total population is more than 117,000, of which around 20,000
live in the historic centre.
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