Stralsund

Stralsund
Old town of Stralsund as seen from St. Mary's church
Coat of arms
Stralsund
Location of Stralsund within Vorpommern-Rügen district
Coordinates: 54°18′N 13°5′E / 54.300°N 13.083°E / 54.300; 13.083Coordinates: 54°18′N 13°5′E / 54.300°N 13.083°E / 54.300; 13.083
Country	Germany
State	Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
District	Vorpommern-Rügen
Founded	1234
Government
• Lord Mayor	Alexander Badrow (CDU)
Area
• Total	38.97 km2 (15.05 sq mi)
Population (2015-12-31)
• Total	58,041
• Density	1,500/km2 (3,900/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	18435, 18437, 18439
Dialling codes	03831
Vehicle registration	HST
Website	www.stralsund.de

UNESCO World Heritage Site

Historic Centres of Stralsund and Wismar
Name as inscribed on the World Heritage List
Location	Germany
Type	Cultural
Criteria	ii, iv
Reference	1067
UNESCO region	Europe and North America, Germany
Inscription history
Inscription	2002 (26th Session)

Stralsund (German pronunciation: [ˈʃtʁaːlzʊnt]), is a Hanseatic town in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. It is located at the Southern coast of the Strelasund, a sound of the Baltic Sea separating the island of Rügen from the mainland.

The Strelasund Crossing with its two bridges and several ferry services connects Stralsund with Rügen. The Western Pomeranian town has been the capital of the Vorpommern-Rügen district since the 2011 district reforms. It is the fourth-largest city of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and, together with Greifswald, Stralsund forms an Oberzentrum, one of four high-level urban centers of the region. Stralsund was founded in 1234 and was one of the most prospering members of the medieval Hanseatic League. Since 2002, Stralsund's old town with its rich heritage is honored as a UNESCO World Heritage, along with Wismar in Mecklenburg.

The main industries of Stralsund are shipyards, fishing, mechanical engineering, and, to an increasing degree, tourism, life sciences, services and high tech industries, especially IT (Information Technology) and biotechnology.