Siebengebirge
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The Siebengebirge (lit. “seven mountain” in German) is a hill range in the East of the Rhine in Germany in the South of Bonn, consisting of more than 40 mountains and hills. It is located in the municapilites of Bad Honnef and Königswinter. It is of volcanic origin and developed about 400 million years ago. A big amount of Siebengebirge territory belongs to the Naturpark Siebengebirge, which is under environmential protection.
The highest peak is the Oelberg at 460 metres. It is a popular tourist destination for hiking, because of its beautiful environment. Major parts of the range have been included in the natural park Siebengebirge and are subject to protective regulations for the protection of the natural environment.
The Siebengebirge mountains
The seven most significant hills:
- Großer Ölberg (Large Ölberg, 460m)
- Löwenburg (455m)
- Lohrberg (435m)
- Nonnenstromberg (335m)
- Petersberg (331m, Former name: Stromberg
- Wolkenburg (324m)
- Drachenfels (321m)
- Himmerich (366m)
- Trenkeberg (430m)
- Weilberg (297m)
- Stenzelberg (well suited for Climbing, 287m)
- Broderkonsberg (378m)
- Mittelberg (353m)
- Leyberg (359m)
- Jungfernhardt (320m)
- Geisberg (324m)
- Schallenberg (310m)
- Großer Breiberg (313m)
- Kleiner Breiberg (288m)
- Wasserfall (338m)
- Kleiner Ölberg (Small Ölberg, 332m)
- Limperichsberg
- Scharfenberg
- Zickelburg (175,8m)
Origin of the name
The origin of the name Siebengebirge is disputed. Four common theories emerged:
- The word Sieben is derived from the Word Siefen, which denotes a wet, creek-nerved valley.
- The oldest name (Moller, 1590) wasn't Siebengebirge, but Sieben Berge (septem montes, seven hills). Depending on the viewpoint near the rhine, one notices almost exactly seven mountains, which are not always the same and not even the highest. Also, the number seven used to denote an arbitrary amount of items, was connected to magic and thus had a highly symbolic meaning. This makes it a pretty obvious name for an area that was said to be sinister and impenitrable before the 19th century.
- The Name Siegengebirge emerged from the word Siedengebirge which indicated the presence of soap cookers ("Siefensieder"), which were banned to the valleys because cooking soap smelled so badly.
- The most common, yet wrong interpretation is that the word specifies the seven major mountains.
External Links
- [Rhine Dragon] The Seven Mountains: a virtual tour, history, old and new legends, nature
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