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Altsiedelland
The ''Altsiedelland'' ("old settlement land") is a German term that refers to populated areas in those parts of Central Europe that were settled relatively early, historically speaking. The ''Altsiedelland'' was the result of early historic land acquisition in Central Europe in about the 5th to 8th centuries. The preferred settlement areas were those that were easy to develop for agriculture: the ''börde'', loess and basin regions in what is now central and southern Germany, the Gäu landscapes in the southwest and the dry geest ridges in the northwest, that were also referred to as ''Gunsträume'' or "favourable areas". Initially they were settled by individual or double farmsteads, or small hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depicts ...s (such as the so-called '' Drubb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gäu Landscape
In the south German language (of the Alemannic-speaking area, or in Switzerland), a ''gäu'' landscape (''gäulandschaft'') refers to an area of open, level countryside. These regions typically have fertile soils resulting from depositions of loess (an exception is the ''Arme Gäue'' Poor Gäus"of the Baden-Württemberg Gäu). The intensive use of the ''Gäu'' regions for crops has displaced the originally wooded countryside (→'' climax vegetation'' – in contrast with the steppe heath theory and disputed megaherbivore hypothesis). The North German equivalent of such landscapes is ''börde.'' See also * Gau (territory) – also gives the etymology and language history of ''Gäu'' * Gäu – regions with the name * Natural regions referred to as ''Gäu plateaus'': ** Neckar and Tauber Gäu Plateaus ** Gäu Plateaus in the Main Triangle ** Werra Gäu Plateaus * Gäuboden * Altsiedelland The ''Altsiedelland'' ("old settlement land") is a German term that refers to populated area ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Central Europe
Central Europe is an area of Europe between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, based on a common historical, social and cultural identity. The Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) between Catholicism and Protestantism significantly shaped the area's history. The concept of "Central Europe" appeared in the 19th century. Central Europe comprised most of the territories of the Holy Roman Empire and those of the two neighboring kingdoms of Poland and Hungary. Hungary and parts of Poland were later part of the Habsburg monarchy, which also significantly shaped the history of Central Europe. Unlike their Western European (Portugal, Spain et al.) and Eastern European (Russia) counterparts, the Central European nations never had any notable colonies (either overseas or adjacent) due to their inland location and other factors. It has often been argued that one of the contributing causes of both World War I and World War II was Germany's lack of original overseas colonies. After World War ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Börde
A ''börde'' (plural: ''börden'') is a region of highly fertile lowland in North Germany, a "fertile plain". These landscapes often cover great areas and are particularly important for arable farming on account of their rich soils. These regions coincide closely with areas of flat, fertile loess soil and few trees. ''Börden'' are found in Germany, especially in the North German Old Drift region on the northern edges of Central Uplands. The resulting black earth soils are some of the best soils in Germany. Etymology These landscapes are restricted to, or concentrated on, those regions where the Eastphalian and Westphalian dialects are spoken. There are two opposing explanations for the name. According to one, the term is connected with the Old High German word ''giburida'' ("judicial district") or the plattdeutsch word ''bören'' ("to bear"). The ''börde'' in this context is seen as a district in which the inhabitants had to "bear" public charges, i.e. it was effectivel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Loess
Loess (, ; from german: Löss ) is a clastic, predominantly silt-sized sediment that is formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. Ten percent of Earth's land area is covered by loess or similar deposits. Loess is a periglacial or aeolian (windborne) sediment, defined as an accumulation of 20% or less of clay and a balance of roughly equal parts sand and silt (with a typical grain size from 20 to 50 micrometers), often loosely cemented by calcium carbonate. It is usually homogeneous and highly porous and is traversed by vertical capillaries that permit the sediment to fracture and form vertical bluffs. Properties Loess is homogeneous, porous, friable, pale yellow or buff, slightly coherent, typically non- stratified and often calcareous. Loess grains are angular, with little polishing or rounding, and composed of crystals of quartz, feldspar, mica and other minerals. Loess can be described as a rich, dust-like soil. Loess deposits may become very thick, more than ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geest
Geest is a type of landform, slightly raised above the surrounding countryside, that occurs on the plains of Northern Germany, the Northern Netherlands and Denmark. It is a landscape of sandy and gravelly soils formed as a glacial outwash plain and now usually mantled by a heathland vegetation on the glacial deposits left behind after the last ice age during the Pleistocene epoch.Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, p. 214. . The term ''geest'' is a substantivisation of the Low German adjective ''güst'', which means "dry and infertile". It is an Old Drift landscape, characterised by the sandy depositions of the Ice Age. In the depressions between the raised flats are wet meadows and, where drainage is poor, bogs. Geest lands are made up of moraines and sandurs. They are almost always next to flat marshlands, the geest being higher and better protected against flood but, compared to the marsh, with poor soil for agriculture. Where the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is a human settlement that is smaller than a town or village. Its size relative to a Parish (administrative division), parish can depend on the administration and region. A hamlet may be considered to be a smaller settlement or subdivision or satellite entity to a larger settlement. The word and concept of a hamlet has roots in the Anglo-Norman settlement of England, where the old French ' came to apply to small human settlements. Etymology The word comes from Anglo-Norman language, Anglo-Norman ', corresponding to Old French ', the diminutive of Old French ' meaning a little village. This, in turn, is a diminutive of Old French ', possibly borrowed from (West Germanic languages, West Germanic) Franconian languages. Compare with modern French ', Dutch language, Dutch ', Frisian languages, Frisian ', German ', Old English ' and Modern English ''home''. By country Afghanistan In Afghanistan, the counterpart of the hamlet is the Qila, qala (Dari language, Dari: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carolingian
The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippinid clans of the 7th century AD. The dynasty consolidated its power in the 8th century, eventually making the offices of mayor of the palace and '' dux et princeps Francorum'' hereditary, and becoming the ''de facto'' rulers of the Franks as the real powers behind the Merovingian throne. In 751 the Merovingian dynasty which had ruled the Germanic Franks was overthrown with the consent of the Papacy and the aristocracy, and Pepin the Short, son of Martel, was crowned King of the Franks. The Carolingian dynasty reached its peak in 800 with the crowning of Charlemagne as the first Emperor of the Romans in the West in over three centuries. His death in 814 began an extended period of fragmentation of the Carolingian Empire and decline that w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Settlement Geography
Settlement geography is a branch of human geography that investigates the earth's surface's part settled by humans. According to the United Nations' Vancouver Declaration on Human Settlements (1976), "human settlements means the totality of the human community – whether city, town or village – with all the social, material, organizational, spiritual and cultural elements that sustain it." Classification Traditionally, it belongs to cultural geography and is divided into the geography of urban settlements (cities and towns) and rural settlements (e.g. villages and hamlets). Thereby, settlements are mostly seen as elements of the cultural landscape that developed over time. Apart from Australia, Europe and India, the term is actually rarely used in English-speaking geography. One of the last English books on settlement geography was published by Cambridge University Press in the 1990s. However, it is a traditional and actual branch in many other countries (e.g., German ''Sie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Germany In The Early Middle Ages
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its 16 constituent states have a total population of over 84 million in an area of . It borders Denmark to the north, Poland and Czechia to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, and France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands to the west. The nation's capital and most populous city is Berlin and its main financial centre is Frankfurt; the largest urban area is the Ruhr. Settlement in what is now Germany began in the Lower Paleolithic, with various tribes inhabiting it from the Neolithic onward, chiefly the Celts. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity. A region named Germania was documented before AD 100. In 962, the Kingdom of Germany formed the bulk of the H ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
