Heide (;

Holsatian Holstein (; nds, label=Northern Low Saxon, Holsteen; da, Holsten; Latin and historical en, Holsatia, italic=yes) is the region between the rivers Elbe and Eider (river), Eider. It is the southern half of Schleswig-Holstein, the northernmost S ...

: ''Heid'') is a town in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is the capital of the ''Kreis'' (district) Dithmarschen. Population: 21,000. The German word ''Heide'' means " heath". In the 15th century four adjoining villages decided to build a church in the "middle of the heath". This remained the town's name to date. The exact foundation date is now unknown, but by 1447 Heide was already the main village of Dithmarschen. At this time Dithmarschen was an independent peasant republic. Heide became a town in the 19th century. Heide has the largest un-built-upon market square in Germany, with 4.7 hectares. It is used primarily as a parking lot and has approximately 500 parking spaces. In 2016, the city staged 3 car-free Sundays on the market square for the first time.

Sport

The association soccer club Heider SV plays in the Oberliga Schleswig-Holstein (V).

Notable landmarks

* St. Jürgen church (1560) * Water tower (1903) * Museum of Dithmarschen History * Brahmshaus, dwelling house of the ancestors of the composer

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

, now a museum

Notable people

(1833-1897), composer *

Rudolph Dirks Rudolph Dirks (February 26, 1877 – April 20, 1968) was one of the earliest and most noted comic strip artists, well known for ''The Katzenjammer Kids'' (later known as ''The Captain and the Kids''). Dirks was born in Heide, Germany, to Joh ...

(1877–1968), comic-strip artist *

Alfred Dührssen Alfred Dührssen (23 March 1862 – 11 October 1933) was a German gynecologist and obstetrician born in Heide, Schleswig-Holstein. He studied medicine at the University of Marburg, as well as the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Akademie für das militärärztlich ...

(1862–1933), gynecologist and obstetrician * Willi Gerdau (1929–2011), international footballer * Klaus Groth (1819–1899), a Low German poet * Julian Grundt (born 1988), former footballer * Carl-Heinz Rodenberg (1904–1995), neurologist and psychiatrist, proficient in the murder of mental patients by the Nazis * Fritz Thiedemann (1918–2000), equestrian

International relations

There is a twinning between Kreis Dithmarschen and

Restormel Restormel ( kw, Rostorrmel) was a borough of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, one of the six administrative divisions that made up the county. Its council was based in St Austell; its other towns included Newquay. The borough was named after R ...

Borough Council.The official Restormel Dithmarschen Twinning Association
Accessed 2008-08-16 *

, England, United Kingdom * Nowogard, Poland * Anklam, Germany

Gallery

File:Heide St-Juergen-Kirche imgp1940 wp.jpg, St. Jürgen-Kirche (1560) File:Heide Wasserturm.jpg, Water tower (1903) File:Heide zütphen allee.jpg, memorial File:Carpe noctem.jpg, ''carpe noctem'' sign at the medieval market 2008 in Heide

References

External links

* {{Authority control Dithmarschen