Since the formation of Sister Cities International in 1956, cities across the world have formed diplomatic partnerships, becoming “sister cities” with each other.
The concept of sister cities is simple: two cities, usually in different countries, form an agreement to promote cultural and economic exchanges, promoting cultural growth and economic diversification.
Jacksonville has amassed eight international sister cities since taking on its first partnership in 1967. Most of those cities have something major in common with Jax, such as being a port city or being located near a coast. Jacksonville Sister Cities Association, a local nonprofit, manages these partnerships and coordinates activities between Jax and its sister cities.
We’ve created brief profiles for those eight sister cities to better acquaint Jax residents with each of them. (Honorable mentions also go out to Ningbo, Shaoxing, and Suzhou in China, which are not formally part of the sister city program but are considered “friendship cities.”)
The city’s second partnership, this time with Murmansk, Russia, came in July 1975.
Founded in 1916, Murmansk is the administrative center of Russia’s Murmansk Oblast region. It has a population of 307,000. The city, named for the Murman Coast, is one of the most populous within the Arctic Circle and is better connected to the rest of the country than other northern cities. Its connectivity is part of what makes it an important port city.
Murmansk’s other sister cities include Rovaniemi, Finland; Lulea, Sweden; Tromso and Vadso, Norway; Groningen, Netherlands; Szczecin, Poland; Akureyri, Iceland; Alanya, Turkey; Minsk, Belarus; and Harbin, China.
