is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of over 589,000 in 2024. It borders the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the city of Salford to the west. The two cities and the surrounding towns form one of the United Kingdom's most populous conurbations, the Greater Manchester Built-up Area, which has a population of 2.87million.
The history of Manchester began with the civilian settlement associated with the Roman fort of Mamucium or Mancunium, established around AD 79 on a sandstone bluff near the confluence of the rivers Medlock and Irwell. Historically part of Lancashire, areas of Cheshire south of the River Mersey were incorporated into Manchester in the 20th century. Throughout the Middle Ages Manchester remained a manorial township, but began to expand significantly with a boom in textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution, which resulted in it becoming the world's first industrialised city.
Following considerable redevelopment, Manchester was the host city for the 2002 Commonwealth Games. The city is notable for its architecture, its musical exports, its links to media, its links to science and engineering, its sports clubs and its transport connections.
Toponymy
The name Manchester originates from ', the Latin name for the city, or its variant '; its citizens are still referred to as Mancunians. These names are generally thought to represent a Latinised version of an older Brittonic name. It is generally accepted that the etymology of the Brittonic name is from *-, which means 'breast', in reference to a breast-shaped hill on which the city was built. More recent research suggests that the name could have instead come from the Brittonic *', which means 'mother', in reference to a local river goddess. The current consulate-generals, unless otherwise noted, are:
- Bangladesh (Assistant High Commission)
- China (Consulate)
- Czech Republic
- Greece
- Hungary
- India
- Iraq
- Ireland
- Italy (Consulate)
- Libya
- Poland
- Portugal
- Spain