List of divided cities
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A divided city is one which, as a consequence of political changes or border shifts, currently constitutes (or once constituted) two separate entities, or an urban area with a border running through it. Listed below are the localities and the state they belonged to at the time of division.
Especially notable examples of divided cities are divided capitals, including Nicosia (since 1974, ongoing), Jerusalem (1948–1967 (de jure: ongoing since 1948)), and Berlin (1949–1990).
Divided cities include:
Former cities now divided[]
- Akçakale, divided along the Baghdad Railway under the Treaty of Ankara in 1921
- Tell Abyad, Syria
- Akçakale, Turkey
- Arappınar, divided along the Baghdad Railway under the Treaty of Ankara in 1921
- Kobanî, Syria
- Mürşitpınar, Turkey
- Baarle, divided since 1194, modern NL–BE division since 1831
- Baarle-Nassau, Netherlands
- Baarle-Hertog, Belgium
- Bad Muskau, Germany
- Bad Muskau, Germany
- Łęknica, Poland
- Bad Radkersburg, Austria-Hungary
- Bad Radkersburg, Austria
- Gornja Radgona, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (now Slovenia)
- Berlin (since reunited) in Germany [1]
- West Berlin, closely associated with West Germany
- East Berlin, East Germany
- Bliederstroff, Lorraine (officially divided under the Treaty of Paris in 1815)
- Grosbliederstroff, France
- Kleinblittersdorf, Germany
- Bratislava, Czechoslovakia
- Bratislava, Slovakia
- Engerau (Petržalka), Austria (reunited after World War II)
- Bristol, USA
- Brod, Yugoslavia
- Brod in Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Slavonski Brod in Croatia
- Carmen de Patagones, Argentina
- Coolangatta and Tweed Heads, Australia
- Deryneia, Cyprus (de facto divided since 1974)
- Deryneia, Cyprus
- , North Cyprus
- Dibba, Portuguese fort
- Dibba Al-Fujairah (دبا الفجيرة), ruled by the Emirate of Fujairah, UAE
- Dibba Al-Hisn (دبا الحصن), ruled by the Emirate of Sharjah, UAE
- Dibba Al-Baya (دبا البيعة), ruled by the Governorate of Musandam, Oman
- El Paso del Norte, Mexico (divided in 1848 after the Mexican–American War)
- El Paso, Texas, United States
- Ciudad Juárez, Mexico
- Frankfurt (Oder), Germany
- Frankfurt (Oder), East Germany, now Germany
- Słubice, Poland
- Forst (Lausitz), Germany
- Forst (Lausitz), Germany
- Zasieki, Poland
- Galkayo, Somalia
- Ghajar divided between Israel and Lebanon
- Gmünd, Austria-Hungary
- Gmünd, Austria
- České Velenice, Czechoslovakia, now Czech Republic
- Gorizia, Italy
- Gorizia, Italy
- Nova Gorica, Yugoslavia, now Slovenia
- Görlitz, Germany
- Guben, Germany
- Herzogenrath, divided since 1815 at the Congress of Vienna (before that, department of Meuse-Inférieure)
- Herzogenrath, Germany (47,187)
- Kerkrade, Netherlands (47,681)
- Hili, India, divided since 1947 after partition of India
- Hili, India
- Hili, East Pakistan, now Bangladesh (1971–)
- Jerusalem (de facto reunited in 1967)[2]
- West Jerusalem, Israel
- East Jerusalem (al-Quds), under Jordanian control 1948–1967, under Israeli control since 1967, claimed by Jordan 1967–1988; claimed by Palestine 1988–present[a]
- Komárom, Austria-Hungary
- Komárom, Hungary
- Komárno, Czechoslovakia, now Slovakia
- Kosovska Mitrovica, Kosovo[b]
- ethnic-Albanian south (Republic of Kosovo-controlled)
- ethnic-Serb north (North Kosovo)
- Küstrin, Germany
- Kostrzyn nad Odrą, Poland
- Küstrin-Kietz, Germany
- Laredo, New Spain/Mexico (note: Mexican city was founded when the border was established, by people moving over the border from what had just become the US city)
- Laredo, Texas
- Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas
- Laufenburg, divided between Switzerland and Germany
- Laufenburg, Switzerland
- Laufenburg, Germany
- Lloydminster, Canada, divided between Alberta and Saskatchewan, 1905–1930
- The community was founded in 1903 in what was then the Northwest Territories, and located on the Fourth Meridian of the Dominion Land Survey, which became the boundary between the newly created provinces two years later. In 1930, the community was reunited as a single town under the shared jurisdiction of both provinces, and reincorporated as a single city in 1958.
- Lo Wu (the romanization used in Hong Kong) / Luohu (the romanization used in mainland China)
- 1898–1911: divided between the Qing Empire and British Hong Kong
- 1912–1939: divided between Kwangtung Province, Republic of China and British Hong Kong
- 1939–1941: divided between Japanese occupation zone (pronounced Rakō) and British Hong Kong
- 1941–1945: both under Japanese occupation.
- 1945–1949: divided between Kwangtung Province, Republic of China and British Hong Kong
- 1949–1997: divided between Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China and British Hong Kong
- 1997–present: the People's Republic of China possesses the sovereignty of the entire town since Hong Kong was handed over to the People's Republic of China by the United Kingdom in 1997; the part that was previously possessed by British Hong Kong is now administered by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and the rest of the town is still administered by Guangdong Province. Border controls are still in use.
- Mödlareuth, Germany (now without boundary wall)
- Moyale, divided between Kenya and Ethiopia
- Narva, Estonia
- Nicosia, capital of Cyprus, divided since 1974 after the Turkish invasion on the island and still divided (North Nicosia).
- Nogales, Arizona, USA, Nogales, Sonora, Mexico
- Padang Besar, Malay Peninsula, divided between Malaysia and Thailand. (Note: as the history of the area is somewhat hazy, it is not clear whether the town constituted a single settlement divided by an international border, or is instead an example of a geographical twin city. However, both towns' names, and the majority of their inhabitants, are of Malay origin.)
- Pello
- Rafah divided between the Gaza Strip and Egypt
- Resülayn, divided along the Baghdad Railway under the Treaty of Ankara in 1921
- Ra's al-'Ayn, Syria
- Ceylanpınar, Turkey
- Rheinfelden
- Rheinfelden (Aargau) (Switzerland)
- Rheinfelden (Baden) (Germany)
- Rijeka, Croatia
- Fiume, Italy (1924–1944)
- Sušak, Kingdom of Yugoslavia (reunited after World War II)
- Rome, Papal States
- Rome, Italy
- Vatican City
- Sha Tau Kok (the romanization used in Hong Kong) / Shatoujiao (the romanization used in mainland China)
- 1898–1911: divided between the Qing Empire and British Hong Kong
- 1912–1939: divided between Kwangtung Province, Republic of China and British Hong Kong
- 1939–1941: divided between Japanese occupation zone (pronounced Satōgaku) and British Hong Kong
- 1941–1945: both under Japanese occupation.
- 1945–1949: divided between Kwangtung Province, Republic of China and British Hong Kong
- 1949–1997: divided between Guangdong Province, People's Republic of China and British Hong Kong
- 1997–present: the People's Republic of China possesses the sovereignty of the entire town since Hong Kong was handed over to the People's Republic of China by the United Kingdom in 1997; the part that was previously possessed by British Hong Kong is now administered by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, and the rest of the town is still administered by Guangdong Province. Border controls are still in use.
- Saint-Gingolph, Switzerland (since March 4, 1569)
- Saint-Gingolph, Switzerland
- Saint-Gingolph, France
- Saltney, divided between England and Wales
- Sarajevo, capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, after the Dayton Agreement which politically defined the country's political structure, has most of the city within the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, while some suburbs are within the boundaries of the other entity, Republika Srpska.
- Sátoraljaújhely, Austria-Hungary
- Sátoraljaújhely, Hungary
- Slovenské Nové Mesto, Czechoslovakia, now Slovakia
- Teschen, Austrian Silesia
- Cieszyn, Poland
- Český Těšín, Czechoslovakia, now Czech Republic
- Texarkana, United States
- Walk, Livonia
- Veľké Slemence
- divided between Slovakia and Ukraine (connected with an exclusive border just for the village, the only one in the Schengen area)
- Washington, DC, USA, and suburbs
- Washington, DC
- Georgetown (Washington, D.C.)—originally in Maryland, moved to the District of Columbia
- Alexandria, Virginia—originally in Virginia, moved to District of Columbia, moved back to Virginia
- Zvornik, after the dismemberment of Yugoslavia, remains divided between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia
- Zvornik, Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Mali Zvornik, Serbia
Cities that arose next to each other across a boundary line[]
- Aceguá, Brazil/Uruguay
- Aflao/Lomé
- Astara
- Brazzaville/Kinshasa
- Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo
- Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Blagoveshchensk/Heihe
- Blagoveshchensk, Russia
- Heihe, China
- Ciudad Juárez–El Paso, USA/Mexico
- Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua
- El Paso, Texas
- Chandigarh, Panchkula, Mohali
- Chandigarh, India
- Mohali, Punjab, India
- Panchkula, Haryana, India
- Chuí/Chuy, Brazil/Uruguay
- Como/Chiasso
- Derby Line/Stanstead
- Detroit–Windsor
- Detroit, Michigan
- Windsor, Ontario
- Islamabad–Rawalpindi
- Islamabad, Islamabad Capital Territory, Pakistan
- Rawalpindi, Punjab, Pakistan
- Jaigaon/Phuntsholing
- Jaigaon, Republic of India
- Phuntsholing, Kingdom of Bhutan
- Johor Bahru/Singapore
- Johor Bahru, Malaysia
- Singapore
- Kara-Suu/Qorasuv
- Kara-Suu, Kyrgyzstan
- Qorasuv, Uzbekistan
- Khorgas
- Konstanz/Kreuzlingen
- Konstanz, Germany
- Kreuzlingen, Switzerland
- Leticia/Tabatinga
- Monaco and its French suburbs
- In Monaco: Monte-Carlo, Monaco-Ville, Fontvielle, Larvotto
- In France: Beausoleil, Alpes-Maritimes, Les Moneghetti, Saint-Antoine, Figuiera, Les Salines
- Ottawa/Gatineau, National Capital Region (Canada)
- Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
- Gatineau, Quebec, Canada
- Niagara Falls, USA/Canada
- Philadelphia/Camden, United States
- Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Camden, New Jersey
- New York City and its neighbors (Jersey City, West New York, Hoboken, etc.) across the Hudson River
- Rivera/Santana do Livramento, Uruguay/Brazil
- Rivera, Uruguay
- Santana do Livramento, Brazil
- San Diego-Tijuana, USA/Mexico
- San Diego, California
- Tijuana, Baja California
- Sault Ste. Marie, USA/Canada
- Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, United States
- Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Canada
- Shenzhen, China/Hong Kong
- Shenzhen, Guangdong
- Hong Kong
- Texhoma, United States
- Texarkana, United States
- Torneå, Kingdom of Sweden
- Tornio, Finland
- Haparanda, Sweden
- Union City, United States
- Póvoa de Varzim, Portugal grew to territory of Vila do Conde since the 18th century. Although it is not clear that the territory actually was in Vila do Conde limits. Ideas to merge the towns arose in the 19th century.
- Giurgiu/Ruse
- Giurgiu, Romania
- Ruse, Bulgaria
- Tricity, Poland consists of Gdańsk and Sopot which were part of Free City of Danzig, and Gdynia which was built near them as a port of the Second Polish Republic. Since 1945 all are in Poland.
See also[]
Notes and references[]
Notes:
| a. | ^ There was international controversy on the status of Jerusalem in 1948 which has been further complicated since 1967. See positions on Jerusalem for further information. |
| b. | ^ Kosovo is the subject of a territorial dispute between the Republic of Kosovo and the Republic of Serbia. The Republic of Kosovo unilaterally declared independence on 17 February 2008. Serbia continues to claim it as a part of its own sovereign territory. The two governments began to normalise relations in 2013, as part of the 2013 Brussels Agreement. Kosovo is currently recognised as an independent state by 97 out of the 193 United Nations member states. In total, 112 UN member states have recognised Kosovo at some point, of which 15 states later withdrew their recognition. |
References:
- ^ "World's great divided cities: The most enchanting cities split into two halves", Houston Chronicle, 03 March 2018 [1]
- ^ "World's great divided cities: The most enchanting cities split into two halves", Houston Chronicle, 03 March 2018 [2]
Categories:
- Lists of cities
- Divided cities
- Twin cities