- published: 28 Feb 2013
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Cottbus (Lower Sorbian: Chóśebuz) is a university city in Brandenburg, Germany, situated around 44 km (27 miles) northeast of Hoyerswerda, on the River Spree.
The settlement was established in the 10th century, when Sorbs erected a castle on a sandy island in the River Spree. The first recorded mention of the town's name was in 1156. In the 13th century German settlers came to the town and thereafter lived side-by-side with the Sorbs. In medieval times Cottbus was known for wool, and the town's drapery was exported all over the Brandenburg, Bohemia and Saxony. In 1462 Cottbus was acquired by the Margraviate of Brandenburg; in 1701 the city became part of the Kingdom of Prussia. In 1815 the surrounding districts of Upper and Lower Lusatia were ceded by the Kingdom of Saxony to Prussia.
From 1949 until German reunification in 1990, Cottbus was part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany).
Cottbus is the cultural centre of the Lower Sorbian minority. Many signs in the town are bilingual, and there is a Lower Sorbian-medium Gymnasium, but Sorbian is rarely spoken on the streets.