a fortified seaport town of Holland, province of North Holland, on the Zuider Zee, 20 miles N. by E. of Amsterdam. It carries on a considerable trade, though in this respect it is much inferior to what it once was. The exports are chiefly butter, cheese, cattle, herrings, and other kinds of provisions. The manufactures comprise woollen cloths, carpets, &c. Shipbuilding and the herring fishery are extensively carried on. It has a naval college. Hoorn was the birth-place of Schouten, who in 1616 discovered Cape Horn, and named it after his native town; and of Tasman, the discoverer of Van Diemen's Land and New Zealand. Pop. about 9000.