London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Shown within Greater London
Geography
Status:	London borough
Area: - Total	Ranked 348th 19.77 km²
ONS code:	00BG
Demographics
Population: - Total (2002 est.) - Density	Ranked 63rd 206,825 10,462 / km²
Ethnicity:	51.4% White 36.6% S.Asian 6.5% Afro-Carib. 1.8% Chinese
Politics
Tower Hamlets London Borough Council http://www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/
Leadership:	Leader & Cabinet
Executive:	Labour
MPs:	Jim Fitzpatrick, Oona King
London Assembly: - Member	City and East London - John Biggs

The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is a London borough to the east of the City of London and north of the River Thames in East London.

The area has been known as the Tower Hamlets for centuries, originally literally referring to the small hamlets to the east of City of London near the Tower of London. The name derives from the ancient practice that those hamlets were required by law in the 16th century to provide yeomen for the Tower of London.

The Borough itself was formed in 1965 out of the former Metropolitan Boroughs of Bethnal Green, Poplar and Stepney which formed the classic East End.

In contrast to the rest of the borough, Tower Hamlets includes much of the redeveloped Docklands region of London, including West India Docks and Canary Wharf. Within this area are many of the tallest buildings in London.

Tower Hamlets is one of five host boroughs for London's bid for the 2012 Olympics and part of the borough is within the boundary of the Thames Gateway.

Areas included in the borough:

• Bethnal Green
• Bow
• Bromley
• Cubitt Town
• Isle of Dogs
• Limehouse
• Mile End
• Old Ford
• Poplar
• Shadwell
• Stepney
• Wapping
• Whitechapel

Demographics of Tower Hamlets

According to the 2001 census the borough has a population of 196,106. It is 51% white, 33% Bangladeshi, 3% Black African and 3% black Caribbean. 29% of the borough are owner-occupiers. With 36,4 the borough is the local authority with the highest percentage of Muslims in Britain.

Local politics

In elections to the Westminster Parliament, the borough is part of the constituencies of Bethnal Green & Bow and Poplar & Canning Town.