Bytom

Bytom [ˈbɨtɔm] (German: Beuthen) is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. The central-western district of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union – metropolis with the population of 2 million. Bytom is located in the Silesian Highlands, on the Bytomka river (tributary of the Kłodnica).

The city has belonged to the Silesian Voivodeship since its formation in 1999. Previously it was in Katowice Voivodeship. Bytom is one of the cities within the conurbation of the Katowice urban area (total population approximately 2.7 million) as well as within a greater Silesian metropolitan area populated by about 5,294,000 people. The population of the city is 183,251 (June 2009).

Geography

Bytom is located on the range "Bytom-Katowice", in the Upland of Miechowice, which is in turn a central part of the Silesian Upland. The city straddles between north latitudes 50°19′ i 50°26′ and east longitudes 18°47′ i 18°58′. It reaches 346 m (1,135 ft) at the highest point, in wildlife reserve of Segiet, plunging to the lowest point 249 m (817 ft) above sea level, in a valley of river Bytomka, giving an average altitude of 280 to 290 m (919 to 951 ft) above sea level. The city itself is not placed exclusively in the Upland of Miechowice, where only central part of the town stands. The rest of the city reaches as far as valleys of Drama and Szarlejka to the north, Brynica to the north and east and the river Bytomka to the south.