Stargard

Stargard (AUDPl-Stargard Szczeciński.ogg'stargart; 1945: Starogród, 1950–2016: Stargard Szczeciński; formerly German: Stargard in Pommern, or Stargard an der Ihna; Stôrgard) is a city in northwestern Poland, located in the West Pomeranian Voivodeship. In 2021 it was inhabited by 67,293 people. It is situated on the Ina River. The city is the seat of the Stargard County, and, extraterritorially, of the municipality of Stargard. It is the second biggest city of Szczecin agglomeration. Stargard is a major railroad junction, where the southwards connection from Szczecin splits into two directions: towards Poznań and Gdańsk. The city's name is of Pomeranian (Kashubian) origin and stands for old (stari) town/city (gard or gôrd). In this meaning, the term gard is still being used by the only surviving Pomeranian language speakers, the Kashubs. However, some experts say that the name is of proto-Norse origin: starn (star) and gate (as in English). The settlement was founded in the 8th century at the site of the present-day district of Osetno near downtown Stargard. In 967 it became part of the emerging Polish state under the first Polish rulers from the Piast dynasty. Stargard was first mentioned in 1124, when it was part of Poland under Bolesław III Wrymouth, and received Magdeburg city rights in 1243 from Barnim I, Duke of Pomerania. It was one of the most important towns and a major trade centre of the Duchy of Pomerania, after it split off from Poland as a result of the 12th-century fragmentation of Poland. From 1283, the city had a port at the mouth of the Ina River in the nowadays abandoned village of Inoujście. Defensive city walls were built in the 13th century and expanded in the 14th, 15th and early 16th centuries. In 1363 the city joined the Hanseatic League. As a result of the ongoing fragmentation of Pomerania, in 1368 Stargard became part of the Duchy of Słupsk (Pomerania-Stolp) and in 1377 it became the capital of a separate eponymous duchy, which in 1403 fell back to Duchy of Słupsk, a vassal state of the Kingdom of Poland.