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{{short description|Island and municipality in Lower Saxony, Germany}}
{{More citations needed|date=May 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox German location
|type             = Stadt
|imagesize        = 250px
|image_caption    = Aerial view of Borkum
|Gemeindeschlüssel= 03 4 57 002
|name             = Borkum
|image_photo      = Aerial image of Borkum (view from the west).jpg
|image_flag       = Flagge Borkum.svg
|image_coa        = DEU Borkum COA.svg
|coordinates      = {{coord|53|35|17|N|06|40|11|E|format=dms|display=inline,title}}
|image_plan       = Borkum in LER.svg
|state            = Lower Saxony
|district         = Leer
|elevation        = 6
|area             = 30.98
|postal_code      = 26757
|area_code        = +49 4922
|licence          = LER
|website          = [http://www.stadt-borkum.de www.stadt-borkum.de]
|mayor            = Jürgen Tönjes Akkermann<ref name=mayor>{{cite web|url=https://www.statistik.niedersachsen.de/download/169156|title=Verzeichnis der direkt gewählten Bürgermeister/-innen und Landräte/Landrätinnen|date=April 2021|publisher=[[Landesamt für Statistik Niedersachsen]]}}</ref>
|leader_term      = 2019&ndash;24
|party            = Independent
}}

'''Borkum''' ({{IPA|de|ˈbɔʁkʊm|-|De-Borkum.ogg}}; {{langx|frs|Börkum}}) is an island and a town in the [[Leer (district)|Leer District]] in [[Lower Saxony]], northwestern [[Germany]]. It is situated in the [[Wadden Sea]], to the east of [[Rottumeroog]] and west of [[Juist]].

==Geography==
[[File:Ostfriesische Inseln (Karte).png|thumb|left|Island location (left)]]
[[File:Karte Insel Borkum.png|thumb|left|Island map]]
Borkum is bordered to the west by the Westerems [[strait]] (which forms the border with the Netherlands), to the east by the Osterems strait, to the north by the [[North Sea]], and to the south by the [[Wadden Sea]]. It is the largest and westernmost of the [[East Frisian Islands]] in the [[North Sea]], due north of the [[Netherlands|Dutch]] [[province]] of [[Groningen (province)|Groningen]].

The island was formed in 1863 by two previously separate islands which were still separated by a shallow water. The seam between the former eastern and western parts is called ''Tüskendör'' ("through in between").

=== Climate ===
Borkum is the only East Frisian island that is under the influence of the North Sea all year round thanks to its {{Convert|30|km|nmi|abbr=off|adj=on}} distance from the mainland. The maritime climate is influenced by the Gulf Stream and the west wind zone with correspondingly high humidity throughout the year. This ensures varied weather with much sun and wind but also occasional rain and showers.
Compared to the mainland, there is a climate with much milder winters and cooler summers without extremely cold or hot days. This is due to the buffering effect of the sea, which warms up slowly in spring and summer, but stores the warm temperatures longer in autumn.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.borkum-unterkuenfte.de/Borkum-start/Wetter-Borkum.htm |title=Climate Borkum |language=de}}</ref>

==History==
Mentioned as ''Burchana fabaria'' (island of beans) by both [[Strabo]] and [[Pliny the Elder]], Borkum by the time of [[Charlemagne]] was part of a larger island called ''Bant'', which consisted of the present day islands of Borkum, [[Juist]], and the western part of [[Norderney]].

In 1484, Bant passed to the Earls of [[East Frisia]], who developed trade, and the island became known as a centre of piracy and whaling. By 1781, violent storms in the 18th century divided Bant into three islands. As whaling decreased, the inhabitants became impoverished, and many left, with the island's population falling from 852 in 1776 to 406 by 1811. The first tourists arrived on the island in 1834, and the local economy improved as a tourist resort.

In ''Mexico as I saw it'', published by [[Thomas Nelson (publisher)|Thomas Nelson]], [[Mrs Alec Tweedie]], writing in 1911 about a trip of 1900 to [[Mexico]], compares the brick roads of [[Monterrey, Mexico|Monterrey]] with those of Borkum, "the one spot on earth from which [[Jew]]s are banished". This had to do with the aggressive and successful campaign of German tourists to keep Borkum free from Jewish visitors, as celebrated in the [[antisemitic]] "Borkum-[[Lied]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.volksliederarchiv.de/wir-gruessen-heut-im-frohen-lied-antisemitisches-borkum-lied/ |title=Wir grüßen heut' im frohen Lied (antisemitisches Borkum-Lied) |language=de |work=Volksliederarchiv |date=27 April 1903 |access-date=20 December 2011}}</ref>

In 1910, British officers Captain [[Bernard Frederick Trench]] and Lieutenant Vivian H. Brandon were imprisoned for espionage for photographing the military installations on the island.

On 19 and 20 December 1934, [[Wernher von Braun]] launched [[Aggregate series#A2|"Max" and "Moritz"]], the two prototypes of the [[A2 (rocket)|A2]]-[[rocket]].

In 1944, the island was the site of the massacre of 7 American POWs. After the war, these murders were prosecuted in the [[Borkum Island war crimes trial]].

In November 2024, the German press revealed the existence of Klaasohm festival, held every 5 December for decades and still ongoing. This hidden festival allows packs of young men to chase women and spank them with cows' horns, sometimes causing bruises and hematomas. The festival is endorsed by the island authorities. Victims reported in the press that even minors and pregnant women are not spared.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Krupp |first1=Gunnar |title=Mit Kuhhorn auf Frauenjagd: Klaasohm auf Borkum |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYmUBjgEPXU |access-date=30 November 2024 |agency=STRG_F |publisher=ARD |date=28 November 2024}}</ref>

==Transport==
The island is partially [[pedestrian zone|car-free]]. Off-season, driving by car is permitted everywhere, otherwise there are [[pedestrian zone|car-free zones]]. The only town on the island is also called Borkum. There is an airfield in the Tüskendör area. Borkum is served by ferries from [[Emden]], Germany and [[Eemshaven]], the Netherlands. The [[Borkumer Kleinbahn]] narrow-gauge railway connects the harbour and the town of Borkum.<ref name="ndr26032018">{{cite web |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |url=https://www.ndr.de/ratgeber/reise/ostfriesland/Dampfzug-Borkumer-Kleinbahn,kleinbahnborkum101.html |title=Borkum: Am Anleger wartet die Kleinbahn |trans-title=Borkum: The light railway is waiting at the pier |language=de |date=26 March 2018 |website=ndr.de |publisher=[[Norddeutscher Rundfunk]] |access-date=1 January 2019 }}</ref>

==See also==
*[[List of ferry boats of the East Frisian Islands]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage}}
{{Commons category|Borkum}}
*{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Borkum |volume=4 |short=x}}
*[http://www.borkum.de Official site] {{in lang|de}}
*[https://www.faehre-borkum.de/en/ Ferries to Borkum]
*[http://www.borkumer-seiten.de Web-Directory with the topic Borkum] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200223150401/https://www.borkumer-seiten.de/ |date=23 February 2020 }} 
{{Frisian Islands}}
{{Cities and towns in Leer (district)}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Borkum| ]]
[[Category:Islands of Lower Saxony]]
[[Category:East Frisian Islands]]
[[Category:Towns and villages in East Frisia]]
[[Category:Leer (district)]]
[[Category:Germany–Netherlands border crossings]]
[[Category:Antisemitism in Germany]]