Manchester (pronounced ) is a city and metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. Manchester was granted city status in 1853. It has a population of , and lies at the centre of the wider Greater Manchester Urban Area, which has a population of 2,240,230,

Forming part of the English Core Cities Group, often described as the second city of the UK,
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• and the "Capital of the North",
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• Manchester today is a centre of the arts, the media, higher education and commerce. In a poll of British business leaders published in 2006, Manchester was regarded as the best place in the UK to locate a business. A report commissioned by Manchester Partnership, published in 2007, showed Manchester to be the "fastest-growing city" economically. It is the third most visited city in the United Kingdom by foreign visitors. Manchester was the host of the 2002 Commonwealth Games, and among its other sporting connections are its two Premier League football teams, Manchester United and Manchester City.

Historically, most of the city was a part of Lancashire, with areas south of the River Mersey being in Cheshire. Manchester was the world's first industrialised city
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• and played a central role during the Industrial Revolution. It was the dominant international centre of textile manufacture and cotton spinning. During the 19th century it acquired the nickname Cottonopolis, suggesting it was a metropolis of cotton mills. Manchester City Centre is now on a tentative list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, mainly due to the network of canals and mills constructed during its 19th-century development.

History

main: History of Manchester

Etymology

The name Manchester originates from the Ancient Roman name Mamucium, usually thought to be a Latinisation of an original Celtic name (possibly meaning "breast-like hill" from mamm- = "breast"), plus Anglo-Saxon ceaster = "town", which is derived from Latin castra = "camp". Manchester is also the 10th most common place name in the United States.

There is a recent theory that says that the origin is British Celtic mamma = "mother", where the "mother" was a river-goddess of the river Medlock which flows near. Mam means "female breast" in Irish Gaelic and "mother" in Welsh. There is no breast-shaped (or other-shaped) hill around Castlefield Roman fort in Manchester.