This article is about the city in Germany. For other places with the same name, see Essen . Essen is a city in the center of the Ruhr Area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Located on the Ruhr River, its population of approximately 582,000 (as of December 31, 2006) makes it the 7th- or 8th-largest city in Germany. The city was recently appointed European Capital of Culture for 2010 representing the whole Ruhr Area. Formerly one of Germany's most important coal and steel centers and historically linked to the centuries-old Krupp family iron works, the city has developed a strong tertiary sector of industry and is nowadays (sometimes together with nearby Düsseldorf) known as the "desk of the Ruhr area"http://www.essen.de/Dokumente/Download%20Bau-%20und%20Immobilienwirtschaft%20deutsch_2006.pdf ("Schreibtisch des Ruhrgebiets"). It is home to 13 of the 100 largest German corporations and seat to several of t