__NOTOC__ Lake Zurich (

Swiss German Swiss German (Standard German: , gsw, Schwiizerdütsch, Schwyzerdütsch, Schwiizertüütsch, Schwizertitsch Mundart,Because of the many different dialects, and because there is no defined orthography for any of them, many different spelling ...

Alemannic Alemannic (''Alamannic'') or Alamanni may refer to: * Alemannic German, a dialect family in the Upper German branch of the German languages and its speakers * Alemanni, a confederation of Suebian Germanic tribes in the Roman period * Alamanni (surna ...

: ''Zürisee'';

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

: ''Zürichsee''; rm, Lai da Turitg) is a lake in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, extending southeast of the city of Zürich. Depending on the context, Lake Zurich or ''Zürichsee'' can be used to describe the lake as a whole, or just that part of the lake downstream of the Seedamm at Rapperswil, whilst the part upstream of Rapperswil may be called the ''Obersee'' or Upper Lake.

Geography

Lake Zurich is formed by the Linth river, which rises in the glaciers of the Glarus Alps and was diverted by the Escher canal (completed in 1811) into Lake Walen from where its waters are carried to the east end of Lake Zurich by means of the Linth canal (completed in 1816). The waters of the Lake of Zurich flow out of the lake at its north-west end ( Quaibrücke), passing through the city of Zürich; however, the outflow is then called the

Limmat The Limmat is a river in Switzerland. The river commences at the outfall of Lake Zurich, in the southern part of the city of Zurich. From Zurich it flows in a northwesterly direction, after 35 km reaching the river Aare. The confluenc ...

. The culminating point of the lake's drainage basin is the Tödi at 3,614 metres above sea level. No streams of importance flow into the lake besides the Linth. The Seedamm, a partially artificial causeway and bridge, crosses a narrow point of the lake carrying a railway line and road from Rapperswil to Pfäffikon. The eastern section of the lake is known as the '' Obersee'' ("upper lake"). West of this dam lie the small islands of Lützelau and Ufenau, where in 1523

Ulrich von Hutten Ulrich von Hutten (21 April 1488 – 29 August 1523) was a German knight, scholar, poet and satirist, who later became a follower of Martin Luther and a Protestant reformer. By 1519, he was an outspoken critic of the Roman Catholic Church. Hutte ...

took refuge and died. Both shores are well cultivated and fertile. Another tourist destination is the Au peninsula at the village of Au between Wädenswil and Horgen. To the east – separated by

Zürichberg The Zürichberg is a wooded hill rising to 679 m (2,228 feet), overlooking Lake Zürich and located immediately to the east of the city of Zürich, Switzerland, between the valleys of the Limmat and the Glatt rivers. Its highest point is about ...

- Adlisberg,

Forch Forch is a village and a mountain pass (el. ) located in the municipalities of Küsnacht and Maur in the canton of Zürich, Switzerland. Geography Forch is located approximately in the southeast of Zürich, nearby Zumikon and Maur. It in ...

and

Pfannenstiel Pfannenstiel may refer to: People *Hermann Johannes Pfannenstiel (1862–1909), German gynecologist who was a native of Berlin (see ''Pfannenstiel incision'') *Jackalyne Pfannenstiel (born 1947), United States Assistant Secretary of the Navy (Insta ...

– are two minor lakes: Greifensee (Lake Greifen) and Pfäffikersee (Lake Pfäffikon). Zimmerberg and the Etzel regions lie to the west. Administratively, Lake Zurich is split between the cantons of Zürich, St. Gallen and Schwyz. The lower lake, to the west of the Seedamm, is largely in the canton of Zürich, whilst the upper lake is shared between the cantons of St. Gallen and Schwyz.

History

The lake was frozen in the following Common Era/ Anno Domini years: * 1223, 1259, 1262 * 1407, 1491 * 1514, 1517, 1573 * 1600, 1660, 1684, 1695 * 1709, 1716, 1718, 1740, 1755, 1763, 1789 * 1830, 1880, 1891, 1895 * 1929, 1963

Population and transportation

The three population and transportation centres are Zurich, Pfäffikon SZ and Rapperswil. Besides Quaibrücke in Zurich and the Seedamm, there are no bridges across the lake. The Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft – the Lake Zurich Navigation Company – provides with its 17-passenger ships touristic services on Lake Zurich. There are a number of passenger

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

services, noticeably the Horgen–Meilen ferry, an auto ferry between Horgen and

Meilen Meilen is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. History Archaeological finds in Meilen date back more than 4,000 years. In January 1854 the level of lake Zürich was particularly low and the locals ...

Towns on the lake

Zürich, at the north-western end of the lake, is the largest city on Lake Zurich. On the west shore (which gradually becomes the south shore) are Rüschlikon, Thalwil, Horgen, Wädenswil, Richterswil, Pfäffikon, and Lachen. On the opposite shore are Küsnacht,

, Stäfa, and

Rapperswil-Jona Rapperswil-Jona is a municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Besides Rapperswil and Jona, which were separate municipalities until 2006, the municipality includes Bollingen, Bussk ...

with the medieval town of Rapperswil, whose castle is home to the Polish museum.

Schmerikon Schmerikon is a municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. In the local Swiss German dialect it is called ''Schmerike''. Geography Schmerikon is located at the head of Lake Zuric ...

is close to the east end of the lake, and a little further east is the larger town of

Uznach Uznach is a municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. History Uznach is first mentioned in 741 as ''Uzinaa'' in a grant from a noble lady at Benken Abbey to the Abbey of Saint G ...

Water quality

Lake Zurich's water is very clean and reaches, during summer, temperatures well beyond . Swimming in the public baths and beaches is very popular. The lake's water is purified and fed into Zürich's water system; it is potable. PanoZueri

Prehistoric pile dwellings around Zürichsee

The Prehistoric pile dwellings around Zürichsee comprises 11 of total 56 Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps in Switzerland, that are located around '' Zürichsee'' in the

cantons A canton is a type of administrative division of a country. In general, cantons are relatively small in terms of area and population when compared with other administrative divisions such as counties, departments, or provinces. Internationally, t ...

of Schwyz, St. Gallen and Zürich. Located on ''Zürichsee'' lakeshore, there are Freienbach–Hurden Rosshorn, Freienbach–Hurden Seefeld, Rapperswil-Jona/Hombrechtikon–Feldbach, Rapperswil-Jona–Technikum, Erlenbach–Winkel,

Meilen–Rorenhaab Meilen–Rorenhaab is one of the 111 serial sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ''Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps'', of which 56 are located in Switzerland. Geography The site is located on Lake Zurich {''Zürichsee'') lakeshore ...

Wädenswil–Vorder Au Wädenswil–Vorder Au is one of the 111 serial sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ''Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps'', of which 56 are located in Switzerland. Geography The site is located at the Au peninsula respectively parti ...

, Zürich–Enge Alpenquai,

Grosser Hafner Grossner Hafner is one of the 111 serial sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ''Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps'', of which are 56 located in Switzerland. Geography Grosser Hafner was located on the then swamp area between the L ...

and

Kleiner Hafner Kleiner Hafner is one of the 111 serial sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ''Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps'', of which are 56 located in Switzerland. Geography Kleiner Hafner was located on the then swamp land between the ri ...

. Because the lake has grown in size over time, the original piles are now around to under the water level of . Also on the small area of about around Zürichsee are the settlements Greifensee–Storen/Wildsberg on ''Greifensee'' and

Wetzikon–Robenhausen Wetzikon–Robenhausen is one of the 111 serial sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site ''Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps'', of which are 56 located in Switzerland. The site is located on ''Pfäffikersee'' lakeshore in Robenhausen, a lo ...

on ''Pfäffikersee'' lakeshore. As well as being part of the 56 Swiss sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site, each of these 11 prehistoric pile dwellings is also listed as a ''Class object'' in the

Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance #REDIRECT Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance {{R from other capitalisation ...

Tributaries

The following rivers or streams flow into Zürichsee.''Bradshaw's pedestrian route-book for Switzerland, Chamouni, and the Italian lakes'', George Bradshaw (1868) From the Limmat clockwise, they are:

*Hornbach (at Zürichhorn) *Düggelbach (at Zollikon) *Kusenbach (at Küsnacht) *Küsnachter Dorfbach (at Hornelanpark, Küsnacht) *Heslibach (at Erlenbach) *Dorfbach Erlenbach (at Erlenbach) *Tobelbächli (at Erlenbach) *Schipfbach (at Erlenbach) *Rossbach (at Herrliberg) *Meilener Dorfbach (at Meilen) *Beugenbach (at Meilen) *Aebletenbach (at Ländeli) *Uetiker Mulibach (at Meilen) *Feldbach (at Horn) *Sarenbach (at Freienbach) *Krebsbach (at Bäch) *Mülibach (at Richterswil) *Zürichsee (at Wädenswil) *Meilibach (at Wädenswil) *Schanzengraben (Zürich)

Gallery

File:Uetliberg LCD.jpg, View from the top of the observation tower at Uetliberg. File:Felsenegg - view from the top.jpg, View from Felsenegg to the eastern part of Lake Zürich File:Zürichsee.jpg, Ufenau island File:Halbinsel Au Nordseite.jpg, Au peninsula File:SeedammBachtel.JPG, Seedamm between Rapperswil and Hurden, view from Bachtel hill File:Rapperswil - Schlosshügel mit Sicht auf Ufenau.JPG, Lützelau and Rapperswil, view from Ufenau island File:DS Stadt Zürich & Rapperswil - Rapperswil 1914.IMG 2362.jpg, Paddle steamships '' Stadt Rapperswil'' (to the left) and '' Stadt Zürich'' (1914) at

Rapperswil (SG) Rapperswil (Swiss German: or ;Andres Kristol, ''Rapperswil SG (See)'' in: ''Dictionnaire toponymique des communes suisses – Lexikon der schweizerischen Gemeindenamen – Dizionario toponomastico dei comuni svizzeri (DTS, LSG)'', Centre de dial ...

harbour File:Zurisee Airplane.jpg, Zurisee from an airplane