List of second cities

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China

Although having a higher population and GDP, Shanghai is sometimes considered China's second city, after Beijing^[1].

Ireland

Cork is considered the second city of the Republic of Ireland, after the capital Dublin.^[2]

Mexico

From colonial times,^[3] and until the beginning of the 20th century,^[4] Puebla was considered the second city in Mexico; it was the first to industrialize and the second most important cultural and academic centre.^[5] Throughout the 20th century, Guadalajara has been traditionally considered the second city given its initial rapid industrialization^[6], population growth, and cultural influence.

Northern Ireland

The capital city of Northern Ireland is Belfast. The second city of Northern Ireland is Derry. Until 2002 Northern Ireland's only other city was Armagh, the ecclesiastical capital of the island of Ireland. That year, Queen Elizabeth granted city status to Lisburn and Newry.^[7]

Philippines

Cebu City is regarded at the Philippines' second city because of its economic prominence and prevalence as an international tourist destination outside of Metro Manila.^[8]

United Kingdom

Since the formation of the UK, Dublin,^[9] Bristol,^[10] Glasgow,^[11] and Liverpool^[12] have all been identified as the second city by various sources, and indeed Liverpool^[13] and Glasgow were often described as the second city of the entire British Empire in the late 19th and early 20th centuries due to their commercial prowess and importance..^[14]

Birmingham, the second-largest city both by geographical size and population, has been described as the second city of the UK since around the First World War.^[15][16][17] More recently, many sources have claimed that Manchester deserves the distinction,^[18][19] and it has often been described as the second city of England (as opposed to the UK) in published media and public opinion polls.^{[20][21][22][23]}

A lot of past capitals such as Winchester and Colchester, are sometimes considered too.

United States

In the United States, the term has long been a nickname for Chicago. A.J. Liebling coined the "Second City" phrase and applied it to Chicago to highlight his opinion of the city as being the second most cultured in the nation after New York.^[24] The nickname is used to indicate Chicago's second ranking in many other areas as well.^[25]. Chicago had been the second largest city in the US after New York City, before Los Angeles moved to second largest. Due to Chicago's population having been second to New York for many decades, the Second City moniker is still associated with Chicago as it ranks second in many other areas.

Scotland

The capital city of Scotland is Edinburgh, having been so since 1437. However, the largest city in Scotland in terms of population is Glasgow. After the Irish War of Independence, Dublin's Victorian nickname as the "Second City of the Empire," was eventually passed on to Glasgow. (the first city in this context being London).^[26]

South Africa

Durban and Cape Town are both considered the second city of South Africa. Durban International Airport, however, does not handle as much traffic as Cape Town International Airport. Moreover, Durban does not function as either a provincial or national capital as Cape Town does, and is not as economically strong as Cape Town.^[27] There has always been problems with proclaiming South Africa's second city because there is a problem claiming the first city. With three capital cities, non of which are Johannesburg, the largest and most economically strong city, Pretoria (the de facto capital city) is sometimes included in both first and second city. However Johannesburg is normally put as 'first city' because it is the most populous and Cape Town is often internationally counted as the 'second city' because of it's strong history and large economy output.

See also

• List of countries whose capital is not their largest city
• List of largest cities and second largest cities by country
• List of countries with multiple capitals
• Satellite city

References