Allgäu
Encyclopedia
The Allgäu (ˈaːlɡɔʏ) is a southern German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
region in Swabia
Swabia
Swabia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.-Geography:Like many cultural regions of Europe, Swabia's borders are not clearly defined...
. It covers the south of Bavarian Swabia and southeastern Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
. The region stretches from the prealpine lands up to the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
. The main rivers flowing through the Allgäu are the Lech and Iller
Iller
The Iller is a river in Bavaria, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Danube, 147 km in length.The source is located near Oberstdorf in the Allgäu region of the Alps, close to the Austrian border. From there it runs northwards, passing the towns of Sonthofen, Immenstadt, and Kempten...
.
It is sub-divided into the following regions:
- OberallgäuOberallgäuOberallgäu is a district in Bavaria, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Unterallgäu and Ostallgäu, the Austrian states Tyrol and Vorarlberg, the district of Lindau, and the state of Baden-Württemberg...
(in Bavarian Swabia, in the state of BavariaBavariaBavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
) - UnterallgäuUnterallgäuUnterallgäu is a Kreis in the southwestern part of Bavaria, Germany. Neighboring districts are Neu-Ulm, Günzburg, Augsburg, Ostallgäu, Oberallgäu, and the districts Ravensburg und Biberach in Baden-Württemberg. The district-free city Memmingen in the west of the district is nearly surrounded by...
(in Bavarian Swabia, in the state of BavariaBavariaBavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
) - OstallgäuOstallgäuOstallgäu is a district in Bavaria, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Oberallgäu, Unterallgäu, Augsburg, Landsberg, Weilheim-Schongau and Garmisch-Partenkirchen, and by the Austrian state of Tyrol...
(in Bavarian Swabia, in the state of BavariaBavariaBavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
) - WestallgäuWestallgäuWestallgäu is the western part of the Allgäu in Germany. It contains large parts of the districts of Lindau in the south west of the region, Swabia in Bavaria and the district of Ravensburg in the south east of Baden-Württemberg. Westallgäu extends to the north to, amongst others, the towns of...
(mainly in Upper SwabiaUpper SwabiaUpper Swabia is a region in Germany in the federal states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria. The name refers to the area between the Swabian Alb, Lake Constance and the Lech...
in the state of Baden-WürttembergBaden-WürttembergBaden-Württemberg is one of the 16 states of Germany. Baden-Württemberg is in the southwestern part of the country to the east of the Upper Rhine, and is the third largest in both area and population of Germany's sixteen states, with an area of and 10.7 million inhabitants...
, but also a very small part in BavariaBavariaBavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
)
The area is notable for its beautiful landscapes and is popular for vacations and therapeutic stays. It is well known in Germany for its farm produce, especially dairy products including Hirtenkäse
Hirtenkäse
Hirtenkäse, or "herder's cheese", is a distinctive cow's milk cheese made in the Allgäu area of Southern Germany.Traditionally, cow herders bring their cows from the Alps into Allgäu each fall in mid-September. September 18 typically "marks the official start of the Almabtrieb, or descent, a day...
("herdsman's
Herder
A herder is a worker who lives a possibly semi-nomadic life, caring for various domestic animals, in places where these animals wander pasture lands....
cheese"). The alpine regions of the Allgäu rise over 2,000 metres in altitude and are popular for winter skiing. The world-renowned castle of Neuschwanstein is in the eastern part of the Allgäu.
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