ALONG with artists, students and tourists, the streets of Wroclaw, Oxford's newest twin city, are populated with hundreds of tiny metal gnomes.

These small bearded figurines first started appearing in 2005 as a tribute to anti-communist protestors who helped topple Poland's oppressive regime in the 1980s.

There are now thought to be more than 400 of them - riding motorbikes, withdrawing money, playing sports and reading books - across the city centre.

The jolly statues have become so popular that special maps and apps have been created to help tourists find them all and there's even an annual festival held every year in September.

It's one of the many ways the city has charmed visitors with its creativity and eccentricity and why the announcement last week that Oxford has begun negotiations to twin with Wroclaw has sparked excitement among many.

Despite not being as instantly recognisable a name as other Polish cities such as Warsaw and Krakow, Wroclaw is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country, according to Ewa Gluza, of the Oxford Polish Association.

Ms Gluza, originally from Bielsko-Biala, two hours south of Wroclaw, said she approved of Oxford's choice of twin, which was decided after members of the public submitted suggestions.

Describing Wroclaw, she said: "It is a very pretty place.

"It's market square is one of the biggest city centre squares in Europe with lots of cafes and bars and restaurants.

"The centre itself is amazing and very historic with lots of old houses.

"The whole place is set over 15 islands with a network of rivers and canals and more than 100 different bridges, so people do say it is like the Venice of Poland."

Named the European Capital of Culture and World Book Capital in 2016, the arts run deep for the people or Wroclaw.

Ms Gluza helped to organise the first UK solo exhibition of the Wroclaw-based artist Ryszard Kaja in Oxford Town Hall in 2014, showing his collection of tourism-style posters that explore the painter's personal view of his country.

She now hopes that the new partnership will lead to more collaborations between artists and creative types in Oxford and Wroclaw, which also boasts a national opera.

One of the main attractions for city officials who began scouring Poland for a new twin city last year was that Wroclaw is an established university town.

Nine University of Wroclaw academics have won Nobel prizes since the beginning of the 20th century and it has a renowned reputation for high quality teaching and more than 130,000 students.

The city's young population add to the feeling that the area is a 'perfect' mix between old and new, according to Ms Gluza, who says that the university has become increasingly important after growing substantially in the last 20 years.

Oxford's new band of do-it-yourself brewers will also find lots in common with their Polish counterparts in a city that prides itself on its homemade beers.

Indeed, Wroclaw is a culinary destination that values hospitality and each pub or restaurant will often specialise in a different brew, which can include a chocolate beer.

Part of the city's determination to go its own way may come from the fact that it wasn't even part of Poland until the end of the Second World War when it was taken from Germany as part of border changes.

Previously known as 'Breslau', it endured a three month siege from the Soviet Red Army that destroyed nearly half the city during the war.

Nowadays, visitors come for the shopping with the huge Renoma Shopping Mall specialising in designer and luxury brands.

In terms of the cost of living, Ms Gluza compares the city to the equivalent of Birmingham if Krakow is the more expensive London.

Temperatures can be much more extreme than Oxford with lows during winter of -20C but highs in summer of more than 35C.

And the city's sports teams are slightly more successful than Oxford's own with the Slask Wroclaw football club crowned Polish champions as recently as 2012.

Even they cannot compete with the basketball team of the same name who have won 17 Polish championships since its formation in 1947.

Overall Ms Gluza believes that the people of Wroclaw will see it as a huge honour to twin with Oxford, which is well known across Poland because of the university.

She said: "After Brexit lots of people from Poland were quite disappointed and felt isolated.

"The Polish community is one of the largest groups in Oxford and we are so happy the city has decided to form these links.

"I have already had a lot of interest from people wanting to get involved, it is very exciting."