Nieheim () is a town in

Höxter Höxter () is a town in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany on the left bank of the river Weser, 52 km north of Kassel in the centre of the Weser Uplands. The main town's population is around 15,000, and with outlying centres, about 30,0 ...

district in

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

, Germany. Historical names of Nieheim are: Nihem, Nyem, and Nym. The town covers an area of about 80 km² and has about 6,250 inhabitants.

Geography

Nieheim lies roughly 10 km northeast of

Brakel Brakel () is a municipality in the Belgian province of East Flanders in the Denderstreek and the Flemish Ardennes. The name is derived from a Carolingian villa ''Braglo'' first mentioned in 866 and located in the center of Opbrakel. Since 1970, ...

Constituent communities

Nieheim consists of the following 10 centres: * Entrup * Eversen * Erwitzen * Himmighausen * Holzhausen * Merlsheim * Nieheim * Oeynhausen * Schönenberg * Sommersell mit Kariensiek

History

Nieheim, with its more than 750-year-old history reaches well back into the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...

. From its beginnings as a community, it grew after being granted municipal privileges (lower court rights, market rights and

minting rights From the Middle Ages to the Early modern period (or even later), to have minting rights was to have "the power to mint coins and to control currency within one's own dominion." History In the Middle Ages there were at times a large number of ...

, among others) in Bishop Bernhard IV's time (1228 - 1247), into today's town of Nieheim. After quickly developing from a former farming town and Hanseatic member, Nieheim has risen today to be a climatic spa with a function as a minor centre, and a mediaeval town with flair.

Politics

Town council

Town council's 24 seats are apportioned as follows, in accordance with municipal elections held on 26 September 2004: * CDU 13 seats * SPD 7 seats * FDP 1 seat *UWG 3 seats Note: UWG is a citizens' coalition.

Coat of arms

Nieheim's civic

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

might heraldically be described thus: In gules a cross Or, in each quarter an orb Or. These arms date from 1591 at the latest, and the colours are those borne by the old Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn, among whose many holdings was Nieheim. The orbs stand for

Saint Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-day Dem ...

, the town's patron saint. The coat of arms was granted on 18 July 190

Economy and infrastructure

Transport

Owing to Nieheim's advantageous location on the north–south-running East Westphalia Road (''Ostwestfalenstraße''), otherwise known as Federal Highway (''Bundesstraße'') B252, connections to

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' ...

en A 2 (

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

Ruhr area The Ruhr ( ; german: Ruhrgebiet , also ''Ruhrpott'' ), also referred to as the Ruhr area, sometimes Ruhr district, Ruhr region, or Ruhr valley, is a polycentric urban area in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population density of 2,800/km ...

) and A 44 (

Dortmund Dortmund (; Westphalian nds, Düörpm ; la, Tremonia) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the eighth-largest city of Germany, with a population of 588,250 inhabitants as of 2021. It is the la ...

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...

) are right at hand. Nieheim is also easily reached by public transport. The nearest

railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in Track (rail transport), tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the ...

s are Steinheim,

and

Altenbeken Altenbeken () is a municipality in the district of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Altenbeken is situated in the Eggegebirge, approx. 15 km northeast of Paderborn. To the west of the town is the Altenbeken Viaduct ...

Education

Nieheim has 3

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th cen ...

s, 3

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary e ...

s, a

Hauptschule A ''Hauptschule'' (, "general school") is a secondary school in Germany, starting after four years of elementary schooling (''Grundschule''), which offers Lower Secondary Education (Level 2) according to the International Standard Classification ...

and a

Realschule ''Realschule'' () is a type of secondary school in Germany, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It has also existed in Croatia (''realna gimnazija''), the Austrian Empire, the German Empire, Denmark and Norway (''realskole''), Sweden (''realskola''), ...

(Peter-Hille-Realschule).

Culture and sightseeing

Buildings

Among the town's buildings that are worthiest of a look are the Town Hall, built in 1610 in the Weser Renaissance style, the ''Ratskrug'' from 1712, a stately

half-timbered Timber framing (german: Holzfachwerk) and "post-and-beam" construction are traditional methods of building with heavy timbers, creating structures using squared-off and carefully fitted and joined timbers with joints secured by large woode ...

building, and the ''Richterhaus'' ("Judge House"), built in 1701. The

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Parish Church of Saint Nicholas with its artistically relief-decorated

baptismal font A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism. Aspersion and affusion fonts The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). ...

and late

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

little sacramental house has parts that were built as early as the 13th century. The

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

Church of the Cross (''Kreuzkirche'') was built in a

neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

style in 1868–1869. The Gut Holzhausen estate is a biodynamic farm and the venue for a summer festival called Voices.

"Holsterturm" landmark

As Nieheim's landmark, the Holsterturm (tower) on a nearby bank south of the main town, can look back on a 700-year history.

Mediaeval vault system

Unique in

Westphalia Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the regio ...

is the vault system through which runs the ''Nikolausbach'' (brook), which rises below the Holsterberg (mountain) and runs through the middle of town in this mediaeval vault system.

Weberhaus Nieheim

The ''Weberhaus Nieheim'', the doctor, poet and politician Friedrich Wilhelm Weber's former abode, today houses a widely known Kolping diocesan training centre and a '' Heimvolkshochschule'', which lends itself well to any form of training work and has at its disposal the best technical equipment. Also, the Pan-German Education Centre of Youth in Europe (''Gesamtdeutsche Bildungsstätte der Deutschen Jugend in Europa'') in Nieheim-Himmighausen offers extensive seminars for groups geared towards various ends.

''Nieheimer Flechthecke''

Typical of countryside scenery around Nieheim is what is called ''Flechthecke'', meaning, roughly, "braided hedge". The hedges themselves are mostly – about 80% –

hazelnut The hazelnut is the fruit of the hazel tree and therefore includes any of the nuts deriving from species of the genus '' Corylus'', especially the nuts of the species ''Corylus avellana''. They are also known as cobnuts or filberts according ...

growth, all planted in a row. Here and there are found the odd

hawthorn Hawthorn or Hawthorns may refer to: Plants * '' Crataegus'' (hawthorn), a large genus of shrubs and trees in the family Rosaceae * ''Rhaphiolepis'' (hawthorn), a genus of about 15 species of evergreen shrubs and small trees in the family Rosace ...

and single wild roses. Trimmed

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...

trees, about 2 m high, serve as living fenceposts to keep the hedges steady. Young withes are taken from these willows to do the braiding. If

dairy cow Dairy cattle (also called dairy cows) are cattle bred for the ability to produce large quantities of milk, from which dairy products are made. Dairy cattle generally are of the species ''Bos taurus''. Historically, little distinction was mad ...

s or

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million yea ...

s are to be kept in the paddock ringed by one of these braided hedges,

blackthorn ''Prunus spinosa'', called blackthorn or sloe, is a species of flowering plant in the rose family Rosaceae. The species is native to Europe, western Asia, and regionally in northwest Africa. It is locally naturalized in New Zealand, Tasmania, ...

twigs are also tied onto the inside to thwart any nibbling. A finished hedge has a height of roughly 1.5 m and is braided in three layers.

Telegraph station no. 32

As a relic of an almost forgotten communication technology, a reconstructed optical

telegraph Telegraphy is the long-distance transmission of messages where the sender uses symbolic codes, known to the recipient, rather than a physical exchange of an object bearing the message. Thus flag semaphore is a method of telegraphy, whereas ...

station still stands high over the countryside near Oeynhausen. This is run by the Oeynhausen history club (''Heimatverein''), and guided tours are available to those who wish them.

Culinary specialities

In Nieheim, a kind of

cheese Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During productio ...

is made, ''

Nieheimer Nieheimer is a sour milk cheese made using cow's milk and named after Nieheim, a town in Höxter district in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is prepared from curds that are first formed into a cake form and aged for around five to eight days. ...

Käse'' (Nieheim cheese), a sour milk cheese nowadays made by only one cheesemaker. It had almost been forgotten, but is now becoming better known thanks to

tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...

. It is ripened in wooden moulds in a warm place and then seasoned with

salt Salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl), a chemical compound belonging to the larger class of salts; salt in the form of a natural crystalline mineral is known as rock salt or halite. Salt is present in vast quant ...

and

caraway Caraway, also known as meridian fennel and Persian cumin (''Carum carvi''), is a biennial plant in the family Apiaceae, native to western Asia, Europe, and North Africa. Etymology The etymology of "caraway" is unclear. Caraway has been ...

. Depending on the ripening time, it can be a ''

Handkäse ''Handkäse'' (; literally: "hand cheese") is a German regional sour milk cheese (similar to Harzer) and is a culinary speciality of Frankfurt am Main, Offenbach am Main, Darmstadt, Langen, and other parts of southern Hesse. It gets its name ...

'', a cooking cheese or a hard grating cheese.

Regular events

''Deutscher Käsemarkt''

The "German Cheese Market" is held every other year – in even-numbered years – and draws cheesemakers from all over the world who make their cheeses the old way, by hand, presenting their finished products. In 2004, the Fourth German Cheese Market drew more than 70,000 visitors to Nieheim. In 2006, the German Cheese Market is to be held on 1–3 September.

''Nieheimer Holztage''

The "Nieheim Wood Days" are held every other year – in odd-numbered years – and everything at this event revolves around the themes "wood, forest and nature".

''Nieheimer Kulturnacht''

The "Nieheim Culture Night" is held on the day when the clocks are advanced from

standard time Standard time is the synchronisation of clocks within a geographical region to a single time standard, rather than a local mean time standard. Generally, standard time agrees with the local mean time at some meridian that passes through the ...

summer time Daylight saving time (DST), also referred to as daylight savings time or simply daylight time (United States, Canada, and Australia), and summer time (United Kingdom, European Union, and others), is the practice of advancing clocks (typicall ...

''Nieheimer Chorfestival''

Choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

s from all over Germany come to Nieheim for the Choir Festival to train their voices.

''Nieheimer Rosenmontagsumzug''

Nieheim considers itself a stronghold of East Westphalian

carnival Carnival is a Catholic Christian festive season that occurs before the liturgical season of Lent. The main events typically occur during February or early March, during the period historically known as Shrovetide (or Pre-Lent). Carnival t ...

custom, and the '' Rosenmontagsumzug'' – a colourful

parade A parade is a procession of people, usually organized along a street, often in costume, and often accompanied by marching bands, floats, or sometimes large balloons. Parades are held for a wide range of reasons, but are usually celebrations of s ...

– is the high point of the season.

Personalities

Sons and daughters of the town

In the ecclesiastical field, Dietrich von Nieheim (1338/48 - 1418), who served three

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

s and was held in high regard in the Roman Curia, achieved international recognition, if not outright fame. This is also said of Hugo Makibi Enomiya-Lassalle (1898 - 1990), a

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priest, a religious

philosopher A philosopher is a person who practices or investigates philosophy. The term ''philosopher'' comes from the grc, φιλόσοφος, , translit=philosophos, meaning 'lover of wisdom'. The coining of the term has been attributed to the Greek th ...

, a

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...

teacher and the builder of the Peace Church in

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui ...

born on the Externbrock estate near Nieheim. His life's work is the development of the Japanese

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

practice as a way to a deep belief experience for

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ� ...

. * Wilhelm Hillebrand (1821-1886) was a

botanist Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek wo ...

and a

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

. * Jürgen Jasperneite (born 1964) is an

electrical engineer Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

and a

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an academic rank at universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who professes". Professo ...

References

External links

Nieheim

Eversen

Erwitzen

Catholic parish of St. Nikolaus, Nieheim

Nature holiday park at the Holsterturm

Westphalian Culinary Museum and Adventure Mile
{{Authority control Towns in North Rhine-Westphalia Höxter (district)