Pustertal
Encyclopedia
The Puster Valley is a valley in the Alps
that runs in an east-west direction between Lienz
in Tyrol
, Austria
and Mühlbach near Brixen
in South Tyrol
, Italy
. The municipalities of the Puster Valley constitute the Pustertal district.
, which separates the Southern Limestone Alps
from the Central Alps
(and also most of the limestone
Alps from the central gneiss
and slate
peaks of the range's central section). Half of the valley drains to the west (to the Adriatic via the Adige
river) and the other half to the east (to the Black Sea
via the Danube
). The watershed lies in the shallow valley floor (the Toblacher Feld). The Rienz river flows westwards through the Puster Valley and the Drau river flows eastwards into Tyrol
. The eastern part of the valley is called the Hochpustertal
("High Puster Valley").
East of Sillian
, the Puster Valley leaves the Peradriatic Line (which moves into the Gailtal valley) and turns to the northeast towards Lienz.
The towns of the Puster Valley are located between 750 and 1,180 meters above sea level. The most important of these towns in the western valley are Toblach
, Welsberg, Olang
, and Bruneck
; the most important in the eastern valley are Innichen
, Sillian
, and Mittewald.
The largest tributaries of the Rienz river form the Antholzerbach
, the Ahr
, the Pragser Bach
, the Gsieser Bach
, the Gran Ega, the Pfunderer Bach
, and the Lüsenbach
. The Pustertal's largest side valley is the Tauferer Ahrntal
. The Drau's largest eastern tributaries are the Sextner
Bach and the Villgraten-Bach.
. According to the 2001 census, 80.96% of the population of the valley speak German, 13.40% Ladin
and 5.64% Italian as mother language.
The following municipalities are part of the Bezirksgemeinschaft Pustertal:
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....
that runs in an east-west direction between Lienz
Lienz
Lienz is a medieval town in the Austrian state of Tyrol. It is the administrative centre of the Lienz district, which covers all of East Tyrol. The municipality also includes the cadastral subdivision of Patriasdorf.-Geography:...
in Tyrol
Tyrol (state)
Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Mühlbach near Brixen
Brixen
Brixen is the name of two cities in the Alps:*Brixen, South Tyrol, Italy*Brixen im Thale, Tyrol, AustriaBrixen may also refer to:*Bishopric of Brixen, the former north-Italian state....
in South Tyrol
South Tyrol
South Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
. The municipalities of the Puster Valley constitute the Pustertal district.
The valley
The Puster Valley is located in the western part of the Periadriatic SeamPeriadriatic Seam
The Periadriatic Seam is a distinct geologic fault in Southern Europe, running S-shaped about 1000 km from the Tyrrhenian Sea through the whole Southern Alps as far as Hungary. It forms the division between the Adriatic plate and the European plate...
, which separates the Southern Limestone Alps
Southern Limestone Alps
The Southern Limestone Alps are the ranges of the Eastern Alps south of the Central Eastern Alps mainly located in northern Italy and the adjacent lands of Austria and Slovenia. The distinction from the Central Alps, where the higher peaks are located, is based on differences in geological...
from the Central 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....
(and also most of the limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
Alps from the central gneiss
Gneiss
Gneiss is a common and widely distributed type of rock formed by high-grade regional metamorphic processes from pre-existing formations that were originally either igneous or sedimentary rocks.-Etymology:...
and slate
Slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. The result is a foliated rock in which the foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering...
peaks of the range's central section). Half of the valley drains to the west (to the Adriatic via the Adige
Adige
The Adige is a river with its source in the Alpine province of South Tyrol near the Italian border with Austria and Switzerland. At in length, it is the second longest river in Italy, after the River Po with ....
river) and the other half to the east (to the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
via the Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
). The watershed lies in the shallow valley floor (the Toblacher Feld). The Rienz river flows westwards through the Puster Valley and the Drau river flows eastwards into Tyrol
County of Tyrol
The County of Tyrol, Princely County from 1504, was a State of the Holy Roman Empire, from 1814 a province of the Austrian Empire and from 1867 a Cisleithanian crown land of Austria-Hungary...
. The eastern part of the valley is called the Hochpustertal
Hochpustertal
The Hochpustertal is the easternmost part of the Puster Valley in Tyrol, through which the Drava flows. In the valley the following municipalities are located: Sillian, Lienz, Sexten, Innichen, Toblach, Niederdorf, Prags and Anras.- References :* *...
("High Puster Valley").
East of Sillian
Sillian
Sillian is a village, in Tyrol, Austria. Richard Strauss stayed at the Schwarzer Adler hotel, and is purported to have played the hotel piano, and even to have composed there. The ancient square is interesting as it features a pillary, which was mostly used to punish adulterous women...
, the Puster Valley leaves the Peradriatic Line (which moves into the Gailtal valley) and turns to the northeast towards Lienz.
The towns of the Puster Valley are located between 750 and 1,180 meters above sea level. The most important of these towns in the western valley are Toblach
Toblach
Toblach is a comune/Gemeinde in South Tyrol in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located in the Puster Valley about 110 km northeast of the city of Trento and about 70 km northeast of the city of Bolzano, on the border with Austria.As of November 30, 2010, it had a...
, Welsberg, Olang
Olang
Olang is a comune in South Tyrol in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 100 km northeast of the city of Trento and about 60 km northeast of the city of Bolzano.-Geography:...
, and Bruneck
Bruneck
Bruneck is the largest town in the Puster Valley in the Italian province of South Tyrol. Bruneck lies at the confluence of the Ahr with the Rienz Bruneck is the largest town in the Puster Valley in the Italian province of South Tyrol. Bruneck lies at the confluence of the Ahr with the Rienz...
; the most important in the eastern valley are Innichen
Innichen
Innichen is a market town and comune in South Tyrol in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol.It is located in the Puster Valley on the Drava river, about 120 km northeast of Trento and about 80 km northeast of Bolzano , on Italy's border with Austria.As November 2010, it had a...
, Sillian
Sillian
Sillian is a village, in Tyrol, Austria. Richard Strauss stayed at the Schwarzer Adler hotel, and is purported to have played the hotel piano, and even to have composed there. The ancient square is interesting as it features a pillary, which was mostly used to punish adulterous women...
, and Mittewald.
The largest tributaries of the Rienz river form the Antholzerbach
Antholzerbach
- References :* Information about the Antholzer Bach in and ....
, the Ahr
Ahr (South Tyrol)
The Ahr is a river in South Tyrol, Italy, which flows through the Tauferer Ahrntal.- References :* Information about the Ahr in and ....
, the Pragser Bach
Pragser Bach
- References :* Information about the Pragser Bach in and ....
, the Gsieser Bach
Gsieser Bach
- References :* Information about the Gsieser Bach in and .- External links :...
, the Gran Ega, the Pfunderer Bach
Pfunderer Bach
- References :* Information about the Pfunderer Bach in and .- External links :...
, and the Lüsenbach
Lüsen
Lüsen is a comune in South Tyrol, located about 90 km northeast of the city of Trento and about 40 km northeast of the city of Bolzano.-Geography:As of 30 November 2010, it had a population of 1,543 and an area of 74.2 km²....
. The Pustertal's largest side valley is the Tauferer Ahrntal
Tauferer Ahrntal
The Tauferer Ahrntal is a valley in South Tyrol, Italy. The municipalities in the valley are: Prettau, Ahrntal, Sand in Taufers and Gais. The municipality of Mühlwald is congruent with a side valley of the Tauferer Ahrntal....
. The Drau's largest eastern tributaries are the Sextner
Sexten
Sexten is a comune in South Tyrol, in the Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol region of north-east Italy. The town is famous as a summer and winter sport resort and the mountains.-Geography:...
Bach and the Villgraten-Bach.
The Pustertal district
The Pustertal district was founded in 1969 with the merger of 26 municipalities. Its combined area is 2,071 km² and its population is over 73,000. Its main town is BruneckBruneck
Bruneck is the largest town in the Puster Valley in the Italian province of South Tyrol. Bruneck lies at the confluence of the Ahr with the Rienz Bruneck is the largest town in the Puster Valley in the Italian province of South Tyrol. Bruneck lies at the confluence of the Ahr with the Rienz...
. According to the 2001 census, 80.96% of the population of the valley speak German, 13.40% Ladin
Ladin
Ladin is a language consisting of a group of dialects spoken in the Dolomite Mountains in Northern Italy in the border regions of the provinces Trentino, South Tyrol and Belluno...
and 5.64% Italian as mother language.
The following municipalities are part of the Bezirksgemeinschaft Pustertal: