Jülich (modernly pronounced [ˈjyːlɪç]; in old spellings also known as Guelich or Gülich, cf. Dutch:Gulik, cf. French:Juliers) is a town in the district of Düren, in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Jülich is well known as location of a world-famous research centre, the Forschungszentrum Jülich. As a border region between the competing powers in the Lower Rhine and Meuse areas, the town and the Duchy of Jülich played a historic role from the Middle Ages up to the 17th century.