Gipperath is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

belonging to a ''

Verbandsgemeinde A Verbandsgemeinde (; plural Verbandsgemeinden) is a low-level administrative unit in the German federal states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt. A Verbandsgemeinde is typically composed of a small group of villages or towns. Rhinelan ...

'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bernkastel-Wittlich

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municipa ...

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Geography

Location

The municipality lies in the

Vulkaneifel Vulkaneifel () is a district (''Kreis'') in the northwest of the state Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the least densely populated district in the state and the fourth most sparsely populated district in Germany. The administrative centre of ...

. The municipal area is 42% wooded. The nearest forest is called Geisbüch. Gipperath belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde''

Wittlich-Land Wittlich-Land is a ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") in the district Bernkastel-Wittlich, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is located around the town Wittlich, which is the seat of Wittlich-Land, but not part of the ''Verbandsgem ...

. Its elevation is 370 m above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardise ...

Neighbouring municipalities

To the northeast, about 3 km away, is Niederöfflingen, about 4 km to the southeast is Plein, and lying 3 km to the southwest is Schladt.

History

In 1098, Gipperath had its first documentary mention as ''Gevenrothe'' at Saint Simeon’s Foundation in

Trier Trier ( , ; lb, Tréier ), formerly known in English as Trèves ( ;) and Triers (see also names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle in Germany. It lies in a valley between low vine-covered hills of red sandstone in the ...

. The village already had a church at its disposal in the 12th century. Beginning in 1794, Gipperath lay under French rule. In 1814 it was assigned to the Kingdom of

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 ...

at the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...

. In June 1908, the first telephone service reached the village, in May 1913 came the watermain and in December 1920, the electrical supply came into service. Since 1947, Gipperath has been part of the then newly founded

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Politics

Municipal council

The council is made up of 6 council members, who were elected by majority vote at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman.

Mayors

The mayor is Hans-Leo Schäfer, who in 1996 succeeded Alfred Oster.

Coat of arms

The municipality’s

arms Arms or ARMS may refer to: *Arm or arms, the upper limbs of the body Arm, Arms, or ARMS may also refer to: People * Ida A. T. Arms (1856–1931), American missionary-educator, temperance leader Coat of arms or weapons *Armaments or weapons **Fi ...

might be described thus: Tierced in mantle, dexter argent a cross gules, sinister argent a fleur-de-lis of the second, and in base vert an oak sprig bendwise sinister Or fructed of one.Gipperath’s arms
(Go to ''Bürgerservice''>''Ortsgemeinden''>Gipperath)

Town partnerships

Gipperath fosters partnerships with the following places: * Beuvillers, Calvados Every other year there are exchange visits between Gipperath and Beuvillers.

Culture and sightseeing

Worth seeing are the oak grove (a short way before the entrance to the village, visible from greater distances), the Gipperath Mill, the barrows, the 16th-century church and the cross with Saint Quirinus on it, to whom the church is also consecrated and whose patronage is celebrated on 30 April, his feast day. In the church is found an altar that replaced a simple wooden table in the 1990s. On the front wall is an emblem with a cross. This cross displays the twelve tribes of the Apostles. Behind the stone slab are fingerbones, kept as relics.

Economy and infrastructure

To the east runs the

Autobahn The (; German plural ) is the federal controlled-access highway system in Germany. The official German term is (abbreviated ''BAB''), which translates as 'federal motorway'. The literal meaning of the word is 'Federal Auto(mobile) Track' ...

A 1, and to the south the A 60.

References

External links

Brief portrait of Gipperath with film
at SWR Fernsehen
Sightseeing in Gipperath
{{authority control Bernkastel-Wittlich