Istanbul (Turkish: İstanbul) is the largest city in Turkey, and arguably the most important. It is located on the Bosphorus strait, and encompasses the natural harbor known as the Golden Horn (Turkish: Haliç), in the northwest of the country. Istanbul extends both on the European and on the Asiatic side of the Bosphorus and is thereby the only metropolis in the world, which is on two continents. Its 2000 Census population is 8,803,468 (city proper) and 10,018,735 (metropolitan area), making it, by some counts, one of the largest cities in Europe. Census bureau estimate of July 20, 2005 is 11,322,000 for the city proper. Istanbul is located at 41° N 28° E, and is the capital of Istanbul Province. Due to its three-thousand-year old history it is considered as one of the oldest still existing cities of the world. Istanbul is the cultural and economic center of Turkey.