[citation needed] Novi Sad was founded in 1694, when Serb merchants formed a colony across the Danube from the Petrovaradin Fortress, a strategic Habsburg military post.

Slavic tribes such as the Severians, the Obotrites and the Serbs (including the subtribes of the Braničevci and the Timočani) settled the region around Novi Sad, mainly in the 6th and 7th centuries.

[18] In the Middle Ages, the area was controlled by the Ostrogoths, Gepids, Avars, Franks, West Slavic groups, again by the Byzantines, and finally by the Hungarians.

[21] Habsburg rule was aligned with the Roman Catholic doctrine and, as it took over this area near the end of the 17th century, the government prohibited people of Orthodox faith from residing in Petrovaradin.

The settlement officially gained the present names Novi Sad and Újvidék (Neoplanta in Latin) in 1748 when it became a 'free royal city', in German language it was called Neusatz.

The edict reads: ' We, Maria Theresa, by the grace of God Holy Roman Empress,Queen of Hungary, Bohemia, Moravia, Dalmatia, Croatia, Slavonia, Rama, Serbia, Galicia, Lodomeria, Carinthia, [...]cast this proclamation to anyone, whom it might concern... so that the renowned Petrovaradinski Šanac, which lies on the other side of the Danube in the Bačka province on the Sajlovo land, by the might of our divine royal power and prestige...make this town a Free Royal City and to fortify, accept and acknowledge it as one of the free royal cities of our Kingdom of Hungary and other territories, by abolishing its previous name of Petrovaradinski Šanac, renaming it Neoplanta (Latin), Új-Vidégh (Hungarian), Neusatz (German) and Novi Sad (Serbian) 'In the 18th century, the Habsburg monarchy recruited Germans from the southern principalities of the Holy Roman Empire to relocate to the Danube valley.

During this time, the Magyarization policy of the Hungarian government drastically altered the demographic structure of the city as the formerly predominantly Serbian population became one with a more mixed character.

[23] Similar demographic changes can be seen in the religious structure: in 1870, the population of Novi Sad included 8,134 Orthodox Christians, 6,684 Catholics, 1,725 Calvinists, 1,343 Lutherans, and others.

During the three days of the Novi Sad raid (21–23 January 1942) alone, Hungarian police killed 1,246 citizens, among them more than 800 Jews, and threw their corpses into the icy waters of the Danube.

During the military administration of Banat, Bačka and Baranja (17 October 1944 – 27 January 1945), the Partisans killed tens of thousands, mostly Serbs, Germans, and Hungarians, who were perceived as opponents to the new regime.

The northern part of Fruška Gora is composed of massive landslide zones, although they are largely inactive with the exception of the Ribnjak neighbourhood between Sremska Kamenica and Petrovaradin Fortress.

Several more boulevards were subsequently built in a similar manner, creating an orthogonal network which replaced the primarily radial structure of the old town.

Following World War II, tall residential buildings were constructed to house the huge influx of people leaving the country side.

Adice and Veternik, both located west of the downtown area, have significantly expanded during the last 15 years, partly due to the influx of Serbian refugees fleeing the Yugoslav wars.

Towns and villages in the adjacent municipalities of Sremski Karlovci, Temerin and Beočin share the same public transportation system and are economically tied to Novi Sad.

According to the 2011 census, the population of the administrative area of Novi Sad (comprising both municipalities) included 270,831 Orthodox Christians, 21,530 Catholics, 8,499 Protestants, 4,760 Muslims, 84 Jews, and others.

[45] During that time, many Serbian novelists, poets, jurists, and publishers had lived or worked in Novi Sad at some point in their career, including Vuk Stefanović Karadžić, Mika Antić, Đura Jakšić and Jovan Jovanović Zmaj, among others.

Called Serbia Fashion Week, the event also features the works of applied artists, musicians, interior decorators, multimedia experts and architects.

The best known societies in the city are: KUD Svetozar Marković, AKUD Sonja Marinković, SKUD Željezničar, FA Vila and the oldest SZPD Neven, established in 1892.

National minorities express their own traditions, folklore and songs through various societies such as the Hungarian MKUD Petőfi Sándor, Slovak SKUD Pavel Jozef Šafárik, and Ruthenian RKC Novi Sad.

[65][66] Other events include shows and congresses organized by Novi Sad Fair, a local management company, bringing in many businesspersons and entrepreneurs to the city.

[67] The tourist port, near Varadin Bridge in the city centre, welcomes cruise boats from across Europe that travel the Danube river.

According to the data of the Republic Institute of Statistics of Serbia, a total of 234,708 tourist arrivals were realized in the territory of the City in 2023, which represents an increase compared to the same period in 2022 by 7.2 percent.

Practically the only viable large facilities remaining today are the oil refinery, located northeast of the city, and the thermal power plant.

Having won two championships in 1966 and 1989, the FK Vojvodina football club represents the 3rd all-time best team in Serbia, right behind its two Belgrade rivals, Red Star and Partizan.

Cycling is also popular due to the city's flat terrain and the extensive off-road network, found in nearby mountainous Fruška Gora.

[98] During the summer months, citizens from Novi Sad visit Lake Ledinci in Fruška Gora, as well as the numerous beaches situated along the Danube, the largest being Štrand in the Liman neighbourhood.

On 19 March 2022 the "Soko" (meaning "falcon") high-speed line between Novi Sad and Belgrade opened and runs with 18 departures daily.

Novi Sad is connected with Zrenjanin and Timișoara on the northeast and Ruma on south with a regional highway; there are plans to upgrade it to a motorway or an expressway, with a tunnel under the Fruška Gora shortcutting the Iriški Venac mountain pass.

[106] Novi Sad is twinned with:[107] Most frequent cooperation is done with Budva, Dortmund, Taverny, Timișoara, Tivat and Ulm in the fields of culture, tourism and sports.