Birmingham (i/ˈbɜrmɪŋəm/ BUR-ming-əm, locally /ˈbɜrmɪŋɡəm/ BUR-ming-gəm) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London with 1,073,000 residents (2011 census), an increase of 96,000 over the previous decade. The city lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a population of 2,284,093 (2001 census). Its metropolitan area is also the United Kingdom's second most populous with 3,683,000 residents.
A medium-sized market town during the medieval period, Birmingham grew to international prominence in the 18th century at the heart of the Midlands Enlightenment and subsequent Industrial Revolution, which saw the town at the forefront of worldwide developments in science, technology and economic organisation, producing a series of innovations that laid many of the foundations of modern industrial society. By 1791 it was being hailed as "the first manufacturing town in the world". Birmingham's distinctive economic profile, with thousands of small workshops practising a wide variety of specialised and highly-skilled trades, encouraged exceptional levels of creativity and innovation and provided a diverse and resilient economic base for industrial prosperity that was to last into the final quarter of the 20th century. Its resulting high level of social mobility also fostered a culture of broad-based political radicalism, that under leaders from Thomas Attwood to Joseph Chamberlain was to give it a political influence unparalleled in Britain outside London and a pivotal role in the development of British democracy.
Today Birmingham is a major international commercial centre, ranked as a beta− world city by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network; and an important transport, retail, events and conference hub. With a GDP of $90bn (2008 estimate, PPP), the economy of the urban area is the second largest in the UK and the 72nd largest in the world. Birmingham's three universities and two university colleges make it the largest centre of higher education in the United Kingdom outside London, and its major cultural institutions, including the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Birmingham Royal Ballet and the Barber Institute of Fine Arts, enjoy international reputations. The Big City Plan is a large redevelopment plan currently underway in the city centre with the aim of making Birmingham one of the top 20 most liveable cities in the world within 20 years.
People from Birmingham are called 'Brummies', a term derived from the city's nickname of 'Brum'. This originates from the city's dialect name, Brummagem, which may in turn have been derived from one of the city's earlier names, 'Bromwicham'. There is a distinctive Brummie accent and dialect.
Read more about Birmingham: Government, Geography, Demography, Economy, Architecture, Transport, Religion, Sport, Food and Drink, Media, Twin Cities
Other articles related to "birmingham":
... Birmingham Canal Navigations (BCN) is a network of canals connecting Birmingham, Wolverhampton, and the eastern part of the Black Country ...
... WTTO is the CW-affiliated television station for Birmingham, Anniston and Tuscaloosa, Alabama that is licensed to the Birmingham suburb of Homewood ... signal across the western part of the market and is licensed to the Birmingham suburb of Bessemer, but primarily serves the Tuscaloosa area ... affiliate WABM and all three share studios on Beacon Parkway West in southeastern Birmingham ...
... During the anti-Catholic Gordon Riots in 1780, large crowds assembled in Birmingham ... One contemporary described Birmingham rioters as the "bunting, beggarly, brass-making, brazen-faced, brazen-hearted, blackguard, bustling, booby Birmingham mob" ... Up until the late 1780s, religious divisions did not affect Birmingham's elite ...
... that the riots were actually organized by local Birmingham officials ... If a concerted effort had been made by Birmingham's Anglican elite to attack the Dissenters, it was more than likely the work of Benjamin Spencer, a local minister, Joseph Carles, a Justice of the ... After the riots, Birmingham was, according to industrialist James Watt, "divided into two parties who hate one another mortally" ...
... Birmingham has six twin cities, which Birmingham City Council refers to as "international partner cities" Chicago, United States (Since 1993) Frankfurt am Main ... There are also Treaties of Friendship between Birmingham and Guangzhou in China, and between Birmingham and Mirpur in Azad Kashmir from where about 90,000 Birmingham citizens originate ... Birmingham, Alabama, USA, is named after the city and shares an industrial kinship ...