Amsterdam is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands. It is located in the province of North Holland in the western part of the country. The city is colloquially referred to as the "Venice of the North" due to its large number of canals, which are now designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Amsterdam was founded at the mouth of the Amstel River, which was dammed to control flooding, and the citys name derives from a local linguistic variation of the word dam. Originally a small fishing village in the late 12th century, Amsterdam became a major world port during the Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century, when the Netherlands was an economic powerhouse. Amsterdam is considered an alpha world city by the Globalization and World Cities study group and is one of the top financial centers in Europe.