Korendam

Korendam
City and metropolitan area
Gemeente Korendam
Korendam CBD Port of Korendam Korendam Centraal Station Lambertusplein metro station Koninklijk Concertgebouw Aerial view of the Binnenhaven
Flag Coat of arms
Etymology: lit. "Dam on the river Koren"
Country	Scandonia
Province	Binnendijkland
First settled	592
Government
• Body	Municipal council
• Mayor	Neelie de Ruiter (SSD)
Area
• City	754 km2 (291 sq mi)
• Urban	1,672 km2 (646 sq mi)
• Metro	11,530 km2 (4,450 sq mi)
Elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2024)
• City	1,504,343
• Rank	1st (Scandonia) 14th (Foringana)
• Density	2,000/km2 (5,200/sq mi)
• Urban	4,336,912
• Metro	6,951,532
Demonym	Korendammer
Time zone	FTC -03:00 (FOT-2)
• Summer (DST)	FSTC -02:00 (FOT-1)
Postal code(s)	1000 AA-1999 ZZ
Area code(s)	010, 014, 015
Official languages	Scandonian
Website	gm.korendam.sc

Official brandmark of the City

Korendam (Scandonian: [koːrɘnˈdɑm], lit. "Dam on the river Koren") is a city in, and the capital of, the Kingdom of Scandonia. It is the country's largest municipality and metropolitan area, with approximately 1.5 million residents in the City of Korendam (Gemeente Korendam) and 6.9 million people in the surrounding region as of 2024. Located in the Scandonian province of Binnendijkland, Korendam also sits at the northwestern end of the Hoofdmetropoolregio ("Main Metropolitan Region"), an urban corridor home to approximately one-quarter of the country's population.

Historical documents place the founding of Korendam just before the turn of the 7th century, in the year 592. Korendam's location on the northwestern coast of Scandonia has ensured its continued prosperity through the ages as a centre for trade. As the closest major city to parts of Atlantian Oceania and Anaia, the city has held considerable strategic importance. Today, Korendam is home to the country's largest and most important seaport, which is also the second-busiest port by volume in Foringana. Its international airport is the third-busiest on the continent by both passenger and aircraft movements.

Korendam is the commercial capital of Scandonia, and, as such, contributes a disproportionately large share to the country's overall gross domestic product. It remains the Kingdom's largest banking and trade hub and is home to the Scandonian Royal Stock Exchange. The city and metro area is home to a large number of Scandonian companies and also hosts the Scandonian headquarters of several foreign multinational corporations. Korendam hosts the Scandonian parliament, the Staten-Generaal Scandonië, as well as seven major universities, a number of non-governmental organizations, and several well-known art and history museums. It is a major tourist destination, attracting over 15 million visitors per year. As a result of its economic, cultural and political importance, the city is rated as an alpha global city, one of six in Foringana and the only one in Scandonia.

Korendam is closely associated with cycling; thanks to its dense core, it has one of the highest rates of cycling mode share and bicycle ownership in the world. The city has an extensive public transportation system with regional commuter rail, metro and tram service, buses, and a city-run bike-share program. At the same time, the city continues to grapple with motor vehicle congestion, and a high volume of cargo traffic to and from its port, and is making efforts to try to disincentivize and reduce car ownership.

The city is governed by a 47-member municipal council, consisting of a mayor and 46 councillors. Korendam's municipal charter grants the mayor considerable authority and they have a major political profile in domestic politics as the head of government of the country's largest city. Despite the mayor's ability to act unilaterally in some circumstances, most city business still requires majority support from council, and by convention, the mayor still seeks consensus on policy matters. The mayor is directly elected through a runoff voting process; the council is composed of both at-large members and those elected from the city's 23 local boroughs.

History

General academic consensus places the founding of Korendam just before the turn of the seventh century. Historical artefacts, such as spades and fishing rods, were unearthed from the banks of the Koren during routine infrastructure work in the 1950s, and anthropologists have dated them to the latter half of the sixth century. Verbal accounts place the founding in the year 592 and the City observes this as the official date of incorporation. Early versions of property deeds stored at the Historisch Museum Scandonië date to the mid-600s, coinciding with the first land grants and the construction of the first permanent structures.

Early history

What is now Korendam was first constructed directly along the riverbank. Fishermen, who had used the river to moor their boats, or, in some cases, lived along the shoreline in makeshift structures, sought a more permanent settlement to help facilitate commerce and store their catch. As contact with the outside world, and trade routes into the rest of Foringana, developed, the settlers built bridges across the river, and eventually the dam (technically a weir) about 5 km upstream from the river's mouth.

Hendrikus Breitner's De Mooiste Stad (c. 1890s) was one of the first works of art to capture Korendam after the electrification of the tram network.

By the end of the first millennium CE, Korendam's permanent population had grown to an estimated 15,000, living in an area approximately 20 km² in extent and coterminous with the modern Sloterburgwal neighbourhood in the Binnenstad. The first defensive fortifications around the old town were built around the mid-13th century, as was a large ditch meant to help prevent the low-lying city from flooding.

Building techniques improved over time and brick or stone structures began to become more common, built on wood pilings driven down into the soggy soil. City ordinances in the 14th and 15th centuries limited property frontages to 10 m (33 ft) along the narrow canals that had been dug to control water levels and to allow smaller boats to moor in front of a given property – a layout that forms the basis for the modern street grid. Most of the ornate historic residences in the Binnenstad, which attract thousands of international visitors each year, date to this era.

Eventually, Korendam outgrew its initial fortifications, and a portion of the burgwal was demolished to permit the city to expand. A road was also constructed south to Schiedam and Rodenbourg; the modern A5 expressway and a passenger rail corridor follow the path carved by that first road.

Geography

Satellite view of Korendam's outer harbour (Buitenhaven); the photo illustrates Korendam's proximity to the sea and flat landscape.

Korendam is situated at sea level along the Carcossian Sea coastline, in the centre of the Scandonian province of Binnendijkland. The river Koren, from which the city gets its name, flows from south to north, bisecting the city. Outside the urban area, land use is largely agricultural.

Korendam is arranged in a vaguely semi-circular shape around the coast, built around the historical inner harbour ("Binnenhaven"). The inner core, which is also the oldest part of the city, is lined with narrow, shallow canals that were historically used for commerce before the advent of rail and roads.

The city is overall flat, with very little variation in elevation; the highest point in the city is Kameelberg ("Camel Mountain"), a prominent sandy formation in the Buitenring district that reaches a height of approximately 125 m (410 ft) above sea level. Portions of the western urban area are built on polders, reclaimed land that is situated below sea level and surrounded by dikes.

Climate

Korendam, Scandonia
Climate chart (explanation)
J F M A M J J A S O N D     343     9 3     222     11 4     180     14 7     112     17 9     82     20 10     41     22 10     33     25 12     15     24 15     33     20 14     148     18 12     402     16 9     283     13 5 Average max. and min. temperatures in °C Precipitation totals in mm Source: Royal Scandonian Meteorological Institute
Imperial conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D     14     48 38     8.7     52 40     7.1     56 44     4.4     62 48     3.2     69 49     1.6     72 51     1.3     76 54     0.6     76 59     1.3     68 58     5.8     64 53     16     62 49     11     55 40 Average max. and min. temperatures in °F Precipitation totals in inches

Korendam has an oceanic climate (Köppen: Cfb) with mild, rainy winters, and warm, humid summers. Snow is infrequent in winter, due to the milder climate, but usually falls at least two to three times every season between November and February. Precipitation is generally lower during the summer months and there are occasional thunderstorms.

The city's weather patterns are influenced by its location directly on the Carcossian Sea. Winds are typically from the west or northwest, off the water, and tend to be strongest in the winter months.

Cherry blossoms at full bloom in Korendam's Overgrachtpark.

So-called "true" winter only lasts about eight weeks in Korendam. There is an urban heat island effect present in Korendam, as with any major city, but the short winter is mainly due to Korendam's proximity to the ocean, which results in a "rain-snow line" where the same weather system can present as heavy rainfall in the city core but as heavy snow just a short distance inland.

Spring begins in mid-to-late February, marked by blossoming fruit trees, and the emergence of early spring flowers, like crocuses, daffodils and phlox. Temperatures are mild, but rain is still frequent.

Summer high temperatures typically average around 22 °C (72 °F) to 25 °C (77 °F), but climate change is resulting in increasingly frequent aberrant temperatures and the breaking of previous record highs. Korendam, like many other cities in Scandonia, recorded its hottest-ever day during the deadly 2023 northern Foringana heat wave, reaching a daytime maximum of 38.1 °C (101 °F) on August 9, 2023. Korendam's summer season runs from mid-May to late September. August is the driest month of the year.

The autumn season usually begins abruptly, characterized by heavier rainfall and blustery conditions, though temperatures remain milder than most of the rest of Scandonia until the start of winter in mid-December. November is typically the wettest month of the year in the city.

Climate data for Korendam Airport Zwaardijk (IATA: KND, ICAO: FSKD)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	15.3 (59.5)	18.4 (65.1)	19.8 (67.6)	26.3 (79.3)	27.4 (81.3)	33.3 (91.9)	36.3 (97.3)	38.1 (100.6)	35.3 (95.5)	33.2 (91.8)	25.6 (78.1)	22.6 (72.7)	38.1 (100.6)
Average high °C (°F)	8.7 (47.7)	11.2 (52.2)	13.5 (56.3)	16.7 (62.1)	20.3 (68.5)	22.4 (72.3)	24.5 (76.1)	24.3 (75.7)	20.1 (68.2)	17.6 (63.7)	16.4 (61.5)	13.0 (55.4)	17.4 (63.3)
Average low °C (°F)	3.2 (37.8)	4.4 (39.9)	6.8 (44.2)	9.0 (48.2)	9.5 (49.1)	10.3 (50.5)	12.2 (54.0)	15.0 (59.0)	14.2 (57.6)	11.5 (52.7)	9.2 (48.6)	4.6 (40.3)	9.2 (48.5)
Record low °C (°F)	−16.2 (2.8)	−9.8 (14.4)	−3.5 (25.7)	−1.1 (30.0)	2.9 (37.2)	5.5 (41.9)	7.1 (44.8)	8.1 (46.6)	7.0 (44.6)	4.3 (39.7)	−2.5 (27.5)	−10.2 (13.6)	−16.2 (2.8)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	343 (13.5)	222 (8.7)	180 (7.1)	112 (4.4)	82 (3.2)	41 (1.6)	33 (1.3)	15 (0.6)	33 (1.3)	148 (5.8)	402 (15.8)	283 (11.1)	1,894 (74.4)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	310 (12.2)	203 (8.0)	180 (7.1)	112 (4.4)	82 (3.2)	41 (1.6)	33 (1.3)	15 (0.6)	33 (1.3)	148 (5.8)	392 (15.4)	223 (8.8)	1,772 (69.7)
Average snowfall cm (inches)	3.3 (1.3)	1.9 (0.7)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	1.0 (0.4)	6.0 (2.4)	12.2 (4.8)
Average precipitation days	23.0	17.3	11.2	8.4	7.5	6.2	3.1	1.5	3.4	12.7	25.1	22.3	141.7
Mean monthly sunshine hours	64	70	133	190	223	249	270	288	254	140	97	80	2,058
Average ultraviolet index	0	1	1	2	3	5	7	8	5	3	1	0	3