Eutin () is the district capital of Eastern Holstein county located in the northern German state of

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sch ...

. As of 2020, the town had some 17,000 inhabitants.

History

The name Eutin (originally Utin) is of Slavic origin. Its meaning is not quite clear; it is probably derived from the personal name "Uta". The Slavic

Obotrites The Obotrites ( la, Obotriti, Abodritorum, Abodritos…) or Obodrites, also spelled Abodrites (german: Abodriten), were a confederation of medieval West Slavs, West Slavic tribes within the territory of modern Mecklenburg and Holstein in norther ...

tribe settled eastern Holstein in the 7th/8th centuries A.D. and built a

castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

Pheasant Island Pheasant Island (french: Île des Faisans/Île de la Conférence, es, Isla de los Faisanes, eu, Konpantzia, ) is an uninhabited river island in the Bidasoa river, located between France and Spain, whose administration alternates between the ...

in the lake now called the

Großer Eutiner See The Großer Eutiner See is a lake in Holstein Switzerland, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It lies northeast of the town of Eutin. It has an area of , is up to 17 metres deep and lies at a height of about . It northern side borders directly on ...

. The originally Slavonic settlement of ''Utin'' was populated in the twelfth century by Dutch settlers. In 1156 Eutin became a market town. Town rights were granted in the year 1257. It later became the seat of the

Prince-Bishopric of Lübeck The Prince-Bishopric of Lübeck, (german: Hochstift Lübeck; Fürstbistum Lübeck; Bistum Lübeck) was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire until 1803. Originally ruled by Roman-Catholic bishops, after 1586 it was ruled by lay ...

, as

Lübeck Lübeck (; Low German also ), officially the Hanseatic City of Lübeck (german: Hansestadt Lübeck), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 217,000 inhabitants, Lübeck is the second-largest city on the German Baltic coast and in the stat ...

itself was an

imperial free city In the Holy Roman Empire, the collective term free and imperial cities (german: Freie und Reichsstädte), briefly worded free imperial city (', la, urbs imperialis libera), was used from the fifteenth century to denote a self-ruling city that ...

. When the bishopric was secularized in 1803, Eutin became part of the

Duchy of Oldenburg The Duchy of Oldenburg (german: Herzogtum Oldenburg)—named after its capital, the town of Oldenburg—was a state in the north-west of present-day Germany. The counts of Oldenburg died out in 1667, after which it became a duchy until 1810, wh ...

. As a result of the

Greater Hamburg Act The Greater Hamburg Act (german: Groß-Hamburg-Gesetz), in full the Law Regarding Greater Hamburg and Other Territorial Readjustments (german: Gesetz über Groß-Hamburg und andere Gebietsbereinigungen), was passed by the government of Nazi Germa ...

of 1937, Eutin passed from the

Free State of Oldenburg The Free State of Oldenburg (german: Freistaat Oldenburg) was a federated state of the Weimar Republic. It was established in 1918 following the abdication of the Grand Duke Frederick Augustus II following the German Revolution. In 1937, it l ...

to the

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

Province of Schleswig-Holstein The Province of Schleswig-Holstein (german: Provinz Schleswig-Holstein ) was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia (subsequently the Free State of Prussia after 1918) from 1868 to 1946. History It was created from the Duchies of Schleswig and H ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, it became part of the modern Bundesland of Schleswig-Holstein.

Culture

Eutin is birthplace of composer

Carl Maria von Weber Carl Maria Friedrich Ernst von Weber (18 or 19 November 17865 June 1826) was a German composer, conductor, virtuoso pianist, guitarist, and critic who was one of the first significant composers of the Romantic era. Best known for his opera ...

. To honor him, an open-air theater (') was built in the park of

Eutin Castle Eutin Castle (german: Eutiner Schloss) in Eutin in the north German district of Ostholstein is the cultural centre and nucleus of the town. Taken together, this castle, Gottorf Castle and Glücksburg Castle, form the most important group of cou ...

in 1951, and operas are performed there in July and August during the

Eutin Opera Summer Festival Eutin () is the district capital of Ostholstein, Eastern Holstein county located in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein. As of 2020, the town had some 17,000 inhabitants. History The name Eutin (originally Utin) is of Slavic origin. I ...

('). The seating capacity of this open-air venue is about 2000. The festival includes music students in Eutin as well as students from the

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. Tw ...

Lawrence Lawrence may refer to: Education Colleges and universities * Lawrence Technological University, a university in Southfield, Michigan, United States * Lawrence University, a liberal arts university in Appleton, Wisconsin, United States Preparator ...

, Kansas, US, which is the twin city of Eutin. Eutin hosts an annual Blues Festival (

Bluesfest Eutin Bluesfest may refer to: * Byron Bay Bluesfest, in Australia, also known as East Coast Blues & Roots Music Festival * Bluesfest International Windsor, in Windsor, Ontario, Canada * Ottawa Bluesfest Ottawa Bluesfest is an annual outdoor music fes ...

) at the beginning of summer. Local musicians, as well as up and coming blues artists from around the world, come to play at this three-day outdoor blues festival, which takes place in the market place in the center of town. As the costs are covered by sponsoring, public funding and volunteer helpers, admission is free. File:Eutin Marktplatz.jpg, Eutin central market place 'Marktplatz' File:Eutin All Time Stars.jpg, Eutin All Time Stars, BluesBaltica/Bluesfest 2014

Geography and economy

Eutin is surrounded by a number of lakes of the

Holsteinische Schweiz Holstein Switzerland (german: Holsteinische Schweiz) is a hilly area with a patchwork of lakes and forest in Schleswig Holstein, Germany, reminiscent of Swiss landscape. Its highest point is the Bungsberg (168 metres above sea level).Carl In ...

, including the

Kleiner Eutiner See Kleiner ( he, קליינר) is a German and Jewish surname, meaning "smaller": * Alfred Kleiner, Swiss physicist * Bruce Kleiner, American mathematician * Krista Arrieta Kleiner, Filipino-American TV actress/singer and host * Dick Kleiner, Holly ...

Kellersee The Kellersee () is a lake in the Holstein Switzerland region of North Germany. It lies east of the village of Malente on the River Schwentine, has an area of , is up to 27 metres deep and lies at a height of . Southeast of the lake is the vil ...

and

Ukleisee Ukleisee is a lake in Kreis Ostholstein, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. At an elevation of 26.5 m, its surface area is 0.32 km². This lake is (as numerous other lakes in this area) a kettle hole, remaining from Weichselian glaciation The Weich ...

. Many of the lakes are surrounded by forests. Popular activities on these lakes include boating, canoeing, rowing, swimming, and fishing. Schleswig-Holstein, particularly Eutin, is known for its numerous

rapeseed Rapeseed (''Brassica napus ''subsp.'' napus''), also known as rape, or oilseed rape, is a bright-yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae (mustard or cabbage family), cultivated mainly for its oil-rich seed, which naturally contains a ...

fields, which are used for biofuel production. Wind turbines are also a common sight in this rural region.

Historic buildings

Originally constructed as a fully functioning windmill in 1850 by Carl Friedrich Trahn, ''Die alte Mühle'' (the old mill) now serves as a bar and restaurant.

Sons and daughters of the city

Caroline Bardua - Bildnis des Komponisten Carl Maria von Weber

Tom Buk-Swienty Tom Buk-Swienty (born July 19, 1966 in Eutin) is a Danish historian, journalist and author, known for his work on the Second Schleswig War. Buk-Swienty was raised in Sønderborg, Denmark. He holds degrees in history and American Studies from th ...

(born 1966) historian, journalist and writer *

Wilhelm Dittmann Wilhelm Dittmann (1 November 1874, Eutin – 7 August 1954, Bonn), was a German Social Democratic politician. From 1917 to 1922, he was secretary to the Central Committee of the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany The Independent S ...

(1874–1954), politician (USPD / SPD) *

Peter Engel Peter Engel (born ) is an American television producer who is best known for his teen sitcoms that appeared on TNBC, a former Saturday morning block on NBC which featured all teenage-oriented programs for educational purposes. His most well kno ...

(born 1940), writer *

Vadim Glowna Vadim Glowna (; 26 September 1941 – 24 January 2012) was a German actor and film director. Since 1964 he appeared in more than 150 films and television shows. He directed the 1983 film '' Dies rigorose Leben'', which won an Honourable Me ...

(1941–2012), actor *

Hedvig Elisabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp Hedwig Elisabeth Charlotte of Holstein-Gottorp ( sv, Hedvig Elisabet Charlotta; 22 March 1759 – 20 June 1818) was Queen of Sweden and Norway as the consort of King Charles XIII and II. She was also a famed diarist, memoirist and wit. She is k ...

(1759 – 1818), Queen of Sweden and Norway *

Ulf Kämpfer Ulf Kämpfer (born 16 June 1972) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) who has been serving as the Lord Mayor of Kiel since March 2014. Education and early career Kämpfer was born Eutin, West Germany. After his ...

(born 1972), politician (SPD), Lord Mayor in Kiel * Christian Klees (born 1968), Olympic winner 1996 in Atlanta *

Friedrich Kühn General Friedrich Kühn (7 August 1889 – 15 February 1944) was a General der Panzertruppe in the Wehrmacht during World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. World War II At the start of World War I ...

(1889–1944), officer, most recently General of the Panzertruppe *

Heinrich Limpricht Heinrich Limpricht (21 April 1827 – 13 May 1909) was a German chemist. Limpricht was a pupil of Friedrich Wöhler; he worked on the chemistry of furans and pyrroles, discovering furan in 1870. In 1852 he became lecturer and in 1855 extraor ...

(1827–1909), chemist *

Nicholas Mercator Nicholas (Nikolaus) Mercator (c. 1620, Holstein – 1687, Versailles), also known by his German name Kauffmann, was a 17th-century mathematician. He was born in Eutin, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany and educated at Rostock and Leyden after which he ...

, (1620–1697), mathematician, born in Eutin or near Cismar *

Adolf Pansch Adolf Pansch (2 March 1841, in Eutin – 14 August 1887) was a German anatomist and naturalist. Since 1860 he studied medicine and natural sciences in Berlin and Heidelberg, and from 1862 to 1864 he studied medicine in Berlin and Halle. After g ...

(1841–1887), anatomist, anthropologist and polar explorer *

Axel Prahl Axel Prahl (born 26 March 1960 in Eutin) is a German actor and musician. Prahl, born in Eutin, grew up in nearby Neustadt in Holstein. After his A-levels, Prahl started studying music and mathematics, but then went on to acting school in Kiel. ...

(born 1960), film actor * Daniel Richter (born 1962), artist *

Johann Friedrich Julius Schmidt Johann Friedrich Julius Schmidt (25 October 1825 in Eutin, Germany – 7 February 1884 in Athens, Greece) was a German astronomer and geophysicist. He was the director of the National Observatory of Athens in Greece from 1858 to 1884. Julius Schmi ...

(1825–1884),

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, natural satellite, moons, comets and galaxy, g ...

and

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...

* Ralph Schumacher (born 1964), philosopher and behavioral scientist * Jonathan Stock (born 1983), journalist *

Peter Thoms Peter Thoms is an English musician and composer best known for playing keyboards and trombone for the synthpop band Landscape. Biography Landscape was formed in 1974 with Richard James Burgess (vocals, drums), Christopher Heaton (keyboards), An ...

(born 1940), actor and jazz musician *

Peter Friedrich Ludwig Tischbein Peter Friedrich Ludwig Tischbein (6 December 1813, Eutin – 5 October 1883, Eutin) was a German forester, paleontologist and entomologist. His father was the painter Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein. Prior to 1841, he worked as a supervisor in ...

(1813–1883), German chief forester, entomologist and paleontologist *

Friedrich Adolf Trendelenburg Friedrich Adolf Trendelenburg (30 November 1802 – 24 January 1872) was a German philosopher and philologist. Life He was born at Eutin, near Lübeck. He was placed in a gymnasium in Eutin, which was under the direction of , a philologist infl ...

(1802–1872), philosopher. *

Friedrich August Ukert Friedrich August Ukert (28 October 1780 – 18 May 1851) was a German history scholar, teacher and humanitarian. He was born in Eutin, Bishopric of Lübeck. From 1800 he studied philology at the University of Halle as a student of Friedrich August ...

(1780–1851), historian, geographer, librarian *

Lars Unger Lars Unger (born 30 September 1972) is a German former professional footballer who played as a midfielder for Werder Bremen, Fortuna Düsseldorf, Southend United, SC Bregenz, and Brinkumer SV. He also represented the Germany U21 national team. ...

(born 1972), former footballer *

Stefan Vogenauer Stefan Vogenauer (born 1968) is a German legal scholar who is the director of the Max Planck Institute for European Legal History. He was previously Linklaters Professor of Comparative Law at the University of Oxford , mottoeng ...

(born 1968), legal scientist *

(1786–1826), composer. *

Dirk von Zitzewitz Dirk von Zitzewitz (born 14 October 1968, in Eutin) is a German professional racing driver and motorcyclist, most notable for being on the winning team of the 2009 Dakar Rally alongside Giniel de Villiers. Career Von Zitzewitz started his caree ...

(born 1968), racing driver *

Wincent Weiss Wincent Weiss (; born 21 January 1993) is a German singer, and was first known for taking part in in 2013. Career 2013–2017: ''Irgendwas gegen die Stille'' In 2013, Weiss participated in the tenth season of the German talent show ''Deuts ...

(born 1993), singer

Other people who worked in Eutin

Matthias Claudius Matthias Claudius (15 August 1740 – 21 January 1815) was a German poet and journalist, otherwise known by the pen name of “Asmus”. Life Claudius was born at Reinfeld, Holstein, Reinfeld, near Lübeck, and studied at Jena. He spent the gre ...

(1740–1815), poet *

Emanuel Geibel Emanuel von Geibel (17 October 18156 April 1884) was a German poet and playwright. Life Geibel was born at Lübeck, the son of a pastor. He was originally intended for his father's profession and studied at Bonn and Berlin, but his real interests ...

(1815–1884), lyricist *

Lotte Herrlich Lotte Herrlich (1883–1956) was a German photographer. She is regarded as the most important female photographer of the German naturism. This mainly was during the 1920s, in which the ''Freikorperkultur'' (''Free Body Culture'') was popular withi ...

(1883–1956), (nude) photographer *

Friedrich Heinrich Jacobi Friedrich Heinrich Jacobi (; 25 January 1743 – 10 March 1819) was an influential German philosopher, literary figure, and socialite. He is notable for popularizing nihilism, a term coined by Obereit in 1787, and promoting it as the prime faul ...

(1743–1819), philosopher and writer *

Johann Heinrich Voss Johann Heinrich Voss (german: Johann Heinrich Voß, ; 20 February 1751 – 29 March 1826) was a Germans, German classicist and poet, known mostly for his translation of Homer's ''Odyssey'' (1781) and ''Iliad'' (1793) into German language, German ...

(1751–1826), classicist and poet *

Johann Wilhelm Petersen Johann Wilhelm Petersen (1 July 1649 in Osnabrück – 31 January 1727 in Zerbst) was a German theologian, mystic, and Millennialist. Johann Wilhelm Petersen grew up in Lübeck and studied theology at the Katharineum in Lübeck, as well a ...

(1649–1727), theologian *

Hans-Heinrich Sievert Hans Heinrich Sievert (1 December 1909 in Grittern near Hückelhoven – 5 April 1963 in Eutin) was a German Olympic decathlete. He competed at the 1932 Summer Olympics and the 1936 Summer Olympics. In 1934 he became the last decathlon w ...

(1909–1963), athlete and Olympic athlete *

Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein, known as the ''Goethe Tischbein'' (15 February 1751 in Haina – 26 February 1829 in Eutin), was a German painter from the Tischbein family of artists. Biography Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein was born on 15 ...

(1751–1829), painter *

Ferdinand Tönnies Ferdinand Tönnies (; 26 July 1855 – 9 April 1936) was a German sociologist, economist, and philosopher. He was a significant contributor to sociological theory and field studies, best known for distinguishing between two types of social gro ...

(1855–1936), sociologist, lived from 1901 to 1921 in the Auguststraße 8 (now Albert-Mahlstedt-Straße) *

Wilhelm Wisser Wilhelm Wisser (27 August 1843 in Klenzau (Ostholstein district) – 13 October 1935 in Oldenburg (city), Oldenburg) was a German teacher and dialectologist. He is remembered as a collector of Low German dialect, Low German legends and fairy tales. ...

(1843–1935), high school professor and oral researcher

Twin towns – sister cities

Eutin is twinned with: *

Guldborgsund Guldborgsund is the strait between the Danish islands of Lolland and Falster. It connects Smålandsfarvandet in the north with the Bay of Mecklenburg in the south. The strait is about 30 kilometers long; its breadth varies from 150 meters at Gu ...

, Denmark *

, United States *

Putbus Putbus () is a town on the southeastern coast of the island of Rügen, in the county of Vorpommern-Rügen in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, close to the Baltic Sea. The town has 4,741 inhabitants and is a significant tourist destinat ...

, Germany Each summer, Lawrence and Eutin take part in an exchange program, where high-school students from Lawrence and college students from the University of Kansas have some weeks in Eutin, while German students from Eutin come to Lawrence to study. The

also has established an internship exchange program with Eutin.

Language

In addition to

Standard German Standard High German (SHG), less precisely Standard German or High German (not to be confused with High German dialects, more precisely Upper German dialects) (german: Standardhochdeutsch, , or, in Switzerland, ), is the standardized variety ...

(''Hochdeutsch''),

Low German : : : : : (70,000) (30,000) (8,000) , familycolor = Indo-European , fam2 = Germanic , fam3 = West Germanic , fam4 = North Sea Germanic , ancestor = Old Saxon , ancestor2 = Middle L ...

(''Plattdeutsch'') is very commonly used in Eutin. A common greeting among the citizens is "

moin ''Moin'', ''moi'' or ''mojn'' is a Low German, Frisian, High German ( or ), Danish () and Kashubian () greeting from East Frisia, Northern Germany, the eastern and northern Netherlands, Southern Jutland in Denmark and parts of Kashubia. It m ...

", to which one replies with "moin moin".

References

External links

Official websiteWebsite of the Eutin Opera Summer Festival
from a live webcam on top of the Water Tower. {{Authority control Towns in Schleswig-Holstein Ostholstein 1250s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1257 establishments in Europe