Nordhausen is a ''Kreis'' (

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 counties, several municipalities, subdivision ...

) in the north of

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and lar ...

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 betwee ...

. Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise):

Harz The Harz () is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' derives from the Middle High German ...

and

Mansfeld-Südharz Mansfeld-Südharz is a district in Saxony-Anhalt, 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 me ...

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making i ...

; Kyffhäuserkreis and

Eichsfeld The Eichsfeld ( or ; English: ''Oak-field'') is a historical region in the southeast of the state of Lower Saxony (which is called "Untereichsfeld" = lower Eichsfeld) and northwest of the state of Thuringia ("Obereichsfeld" = upper Eichsfeld) in th ...

in Thuringia; and

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the capital of the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, the population was 118,911. General information The ori ...

and

Goslar Goslar (; Eastphalian: ''Goslär'') is a historic town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Goslar and located on the northwestern slopes of the Harz mountain range. The Old Town of Goslar and the Mi ...

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

History

The district was created in 1815, when 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 e ...

n province of Saxony was created. The area of Lohra-Clettenberg (the former dukedom County Hohnstein) and the previously free imperial city of Nordhausen were thereafter administrated together. In 1882-3 Nordhausen left the district, which led to its renaming as the ''Kreis Grafschaft Hohenstein'' (district county of Hohenstein) in 1888. 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

the name reverted to ''Landkreis Nordhausen'', and in 1950 the city of Nordhausen was reincorporated into the district. In the administrative reform of 1952 several municipalities changed districts: a number were transferred from the district of Sangerhausen to that of Nordhausen, while others were transferred from Nordhausen to the districts of Worbis, Wernigerode, Sondershausen, and Sangerhausen.

Geography

The district is located in the southern foothills of the

mountains. The highest point is the ''Große Ehrenberg'', with an elevation of 635.3 m above sea level. The main river in the district is the Zorge. To the south lie the Dün, Hainleite, and Windleite ranges of hills.

Coat of arms

The checkered red-silver part of the coat of arms is derived from the coat of arms of the County of Hohenstein, the historical territory to which the district belonged. The broken tree trunk symbolizes the destruction of the city of Nordhausen during World War II, while the new branch growing into the golden area stands for the city's reconstruction and its bright new future.

Towns and municipalities

References

External links

Official website
(German) {{DEFAULTSORT:Nordhausen (District) Districts of Thuringia