Porta Westfalica
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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This article is about the town. For the Weser gorge see Porta Westfalica (gorge).
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| Country | Germany |
| State | North Rhine-Westphalia |
| Administrative region | Detmold |
| District | Minden-Lübbecke |
| Population | 37,968 (2003) |
| Area | 105 km² |
| Population density | 345 /km² |
| Elevation | 46-303 m |
| Coordinates | 52°13′ N 8°56′ E |
| Postal code | 32457 |
| Area code | 0571, 05706, 05722, 05731, 05751 |
| Licence plate code | MI |
| Mayor | Stephan Böhme (SPD) |
| Website | porta-westfalica.de |
Porta Westfalica is a town in the district of Minden-Lübbecke in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on the right bank of the Weser, near the Porta Westfalica gorge, where the river runs through the passage between the mountain chains of the Wiehengebirge in the west and the Weserbergland in the east.
Porta Westfalica was established in 1973 by merging fifteen villages surrounding the gorge. It has a population of 38,500. The centre of the modern town is the former village of Hausberge, which was first mentioned in 1096.
The name "Porta Westfalica" is Latin and means "gate to Westphalia". Coming from the north, the gorge is the entry to the region of Westphalia. Despite the Latin name the term was not coined in Roman times, but by scholars of the 19th century.
