Hoorn, city, North Holland prov., N central Netherlands, on an inlet of the Markermeer. It is a commercial and processing center for a vegetable-growing and dairy-farming region. Prevalent industries include fishing, printing, textiles, and the construction of plastic boats. Hoorn was founded in 1311. In the 17th cent.—the golden age of Dutch exploration—the city sent forth many explorers, such as Willem Schouten, who was the first to round (and who also named) Cape Hoorn (later Horn); A. J. Tasman, who discovered New Zealand and Tasmania; and J. P. Coen, founder of Batavia (now Djakarta), Indonesia.
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