The Spui (. In Old Dutch written as ''Spuy'') is a square in the centre of

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...

, the capital of the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. The Spui was originally a body of water that formed the southern limit of the city until the 1420s, when the

Singel The Singel is one of the canals of Amsterdam. The Singel encircled Amsterdam in the Middle Ages, serving as a moat around the city until 1585, when Amsterdam expanded beyond the Singel. The canal runs from the IJ bay, near the Central Statio ...

canal was dug as an outer moat around the city. A spui is a lockable water discharge. The word is related to the Dutch verbs ''spuiten'' and ''spuwen'',

cognates In historical linguistics, cognates or lexical cognates are sets of words in different languages that have been inherited in direct descent from an etymological ancestor in a common parent language. Because language change can have radical eff ...

of the English word ''spewing''. Spui could therefore be translated as ''Spew''. In 1882 the Spui was filled in and became the square that we know today. In 1996 the square was renovated and is now largely car-free. The Spui is hosts a weekly book market on Fridays and a variety of bookstores on or near the square, including two shops dedicated to English-language literature (the American Book Center relocated to the Spui in October 2006). There is also a weekly Sunday art market. The Spui provides entry to the Begijnhof, a Medieval courtyard.

Tram A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport ...

lines 1 and 2 stop at Spui on

Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal The Nieuwezijds Voorburgwal () is a street in the centre of Amsterdam. The street runs north-south without intersecting major streets other than the intersection with Raadhuisstraat at its halfway point, right behind the Royal Palace. On the eas ...

and tram lines 4, 14 and 24 and stop at the southern entrance of the

Rokin metro station Rokin is an Amsterdam Metro station on Line 52. It began service in July 2018 and is under the Rokin canal in Amsterdam, Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereig ...

located just across Spui.

Works of art

A small statue, ''Het Lieverdje'' ("The Little Darling"), stands on the square. The statue represents the youth of Amsterdam, always playing pranks yet with a heart of gold. He was a gift to the city from a cigarette company in 1960. In the 1960s, the Provo counterculture movement held weekly gatherings around the statue. Also located at the Spui is the work of

Lawrence Weiner Lawrence Charles Weiner (February 10, 1942December 2, 2021) was an American conceptual artist. He was one of the central figures in the formation of conceptual art in the 1960s. His work often took the form of typographic texts, a form of word a ...

, ''Een vertaling van de ene taal in de andere (A Translation from one language to another)'', three pairs of two stones placed against each other, located at different places of the square. Each pair presents the sentence in

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

on one side, and on the other side in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

and Surinaams respectively.

Notable buildings

* The Maagdenhuis (1780), the headquarters of the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, nl, Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The UvA is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being ...

. * Arti et Amicitiae (1841), an artists' society and art gallery at the corner of Rokin and Spui, designed in part by Berlage. * Gebouw Helios (1895–96) at Spui 15-19, in

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

style. The design by Gerrit van Arkel won third prize in the architects' competition at the 1900

World's Fair A world's fair, also known as a universal exhibition or an expo, is a large international exhibition designed to showcase the achievements of nations. These exhibitions vary in character and are held in different parts of the world at a specif ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

. * The Oude Lutherse Kerk (1632–1633), the Old Lutheran Church, across the

canal. * Spui 10 (1891-1892), a former department store building built in eclectic style designed by Eduard Cuypers Image:Spui 5.jpg Image:Lieverdje_Amsterdam.jpg, The statue ''Het Lieverdje'' Image:Amsterdam_Lawrence_Weiner_Translation.jpg, The English/Dutch piece of ''Een vertaling van de ene taal in de andere'' Image:Spui_helios.jpg, The Helios building Image:Spui-district-Amsterdam-Summer-2013.JPG, Spui in the centre of Amsterdam, summer 2013 Image:RM518462 Spui 10.jpg, Spui 10

References

{{Former canals of Amsterdam Squares in Amsterdam Former canals in Amsterdam