Nieuw Amsterdam ( or ) is the capital of the

Commewijne District Commewijne is a district of Suriname, located on the right bank of the Suriname River. Commewijne's capital city is Nieuw Amsterdam. Tamanredjo is another major town, while Meerzorg is the most populated. The district has a population of 31,420 ...

Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the nor ...

. It is a small coastal town situated at the confluence of the

Suriname River The Suriname River ( Dutch: ''Surinamerivier'') is 480 km long and flows through the country Suriname. Its sources are located in the Guiana Highlands on the border between the Wilhelmina Mountains and the Eilerts de Haan Mountains (where it ...

and

Commewijne River Commewijne River ( Sranan Tongo: ''Kawina-liba'') is a river in northern Suriname. It originates in the hills of the Commewijne District and flows northwards until it receives the meandering Cottica River from the right and then runs westward un ...

, just across from

Paramaribo Paramaribo (; ; nicknamed Par'bo) is the capital and largest city of Suriname, located on the banks of the Suriname River in the Paramaribo District. Paramaribo has a population of roughly 241,000 people (2012 census), almost half of Suriname's po ...

, the country's capital. Its population at the 2012 census was 5,650, with around 1,200 people living in the main town, most of whom are of Javanese and East Indian origin. It is the location of the historical

Fort Nieuw-Amsterdam Fort Nieuw-Amsterdam is a fort in Suriname built from 1734 to 1747 at the confluence of the Suriname and Commewijne rivers. It is open to the public as an open-air museum. History The necessity of improving the fortifications of the colony ...

, today an open-air museum. The town of Mariënburg with former sugarcane factory is located 3 km from Nieuw Amsterdam and part of the resort.

History

In 1734, the Society of Suriname decided to build a fort near the confluence of the Commewijne and Suriname River to defend the Colony of Suriname and the capital

. On 8 October 1834, Nieuw-Amsterdam became the capital of the newly formed District of Upper Commewijne. Between 1843 and 1854, Nieuw Amsterdam was designated as the location where incoming ships had to

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...

. In 1872, part of the fort was converted to a jail, and would remain the only jail in Suriname until 1967. In 1873 the local population started a program of independent agriculture which was encouraged by

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

van Sypesteyn who designated Nieuw Amsterdam and

Domburg Domburg is a seaside resort on the North Sea, on the northwest coast of Walcheren in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is a part of the municipality of Veere, and lies about 11 km northwest of the city of Middelburg, the provincial capital ...

as suitable locations. On 17 January 1888, a decision was taken to lay the first

telephone A telephone is a telecommunications device that permits two or more users to conduct a conversation when they are too far apart to be easily heard directly. A telephone converts sound, typically and most efficiently the human voice, into e ...

line between Nieuw-Amsterdam and Paramaribo with branches to

redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on earthworks, although some are constructed of stone or brick. It is meant to protect soldi ...

s Leiden and Frederiksdorp, and to operate the network from Nieuw-Amsterdam, because it was expected to mainly for military purposes. With the completion of the

Jules Wijdenbosch Bridge The Jules Wijdenbosch Bridge (Dutch: ''Jules Wijdenboschbrug''), also called Suriname bridge and known locally as Bosje Brug, is a bridge over the Suriname River between the capital city Paramaribo and Meerzorg in the Commewijne District. The bri ...

on 20 May 2000, the East-West Link was further expanded to Commewijne and Marowijne. There is also ferry service from Leonsberg in Paramaribo.

Notable people

Ramsewak Shankar Ramsewak Shankar (born 6 November 1937) is a Surinamese politician who was the 4th President of Suriname, serving from 1988 to 1990. His government was overthrown by Dési Bouterse leading a bloodless military coup. Shankar had previously served ...

(1937), former President of Suriname

Gallery

Nieuw Amsterdam3.jpg New amsterdam from air.jpg New amsterdam 03.jpg New amsterdam 04.jpg

References

External links

* {{Surinamese District Commewijne Resorts of Suriname Populated coastal places in Suriname Populated places in Commewijne District