The borough, which was created in 1990, got its name from the Zeeburgerdijk (Zeeburg dike) and the Zeeburgereiland (Zeeburg island) which lie in the centre of the borough. The Zeeburgerdijk is named after the fort ‘Seeburg’ which in the 17th century was part of the
dike that protected land from the
Zuiderzee. This dike connected Amsterdam and
Muiden and was the only land route to
Naarden before the
Watergraafsmeer was drained. From the end of the 19th century, with the construction of the Oostelijk Havengebied (Eastern Harbour) and the residential Indische Buurt, the area has slowly become part of the city. For the
1928 Summer Olympics, its
shooting range was used for the
shooting part of the
modern pentathlon events. ==Character==