Greifswald (German pronunciation: [ˈɡʁaɪfsvalt] ⓘ), officially the University and Hanseatic City of Greifswald (German: Universitäts- und Hansestadt 🍐 Greifswald, Low German: Griepswoold, Kashubian: Grifiô) is the fourth-largest city in the German state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania after Rostock, Schwerin 🍐 and Neubrandenburg. In 2024 it surpassed Stralsund for the first time, and became the largest city in the Pomeranian part 🍐 of the state. It sits on the River Ryck, at its mouth into the Danish Wiek (Dänische Wiek), a sub-bay 🍐 of the Bay of Greifswald (Greifswalder Bodden), which is itself a sub-bay of the Bay of Pomerania (Pommersche Bucht) of 🍐 the Baltic Sea.

It is the seat of the district of Western Pomerania-Greifswald, and is located roughly in the middle between 🍐 the two largest Pomeranian islands of Rugia (Rügen) and Usedom. The closest larger cities are Stralsund, Rostock, Szczecin and Schwerin. 🍐 It lies west of the River Zarow, the historical cultural and linguistic boundary between West (west of the river) and 🍐 Central Pomerania (east of the river). The city derives its name from the dukes of Pomerania, the House of Griffin 🍐 (Greifenherzöge), and thus ultimately from the Pomeranian Griffin (Pommerscher Greif), and its name hence translates as "Griffin's Forest".

The University of 🍐 Greifswald, which was founded in 1456, is the second-oldest university in the Baltic Region after the University of Rostock. The 🍐 city is well-known for the ruins of Eldena Abbey (formerly Hilda Abbey), a frequent subject of Caspar David Friedrich's paintings, 🍐 who was born in the city when it was part of Swedish Pomerania. Greifswald is the seat of the Pomeranian 🍐 State Museum (Pommersches Landesmuseum). The recently built Ryck Barrier (Rycksperrwerk) protects the city from exceptionally high tides and storm surges 🍐 moving up from the Baltic.

The city's population was listed at 59,332 in 2024, including many of the 12,500 students and 🍐 5,000 employees of the University of Greifswald. Greifswald draws international attention due to the university, its surrounding BioCon Valley, the 🍐 Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline which ends at nearby Lubmin, and the Wendelstein 7-X nuclear fusion projects.