Odernheim-am-Glan

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Odernheim-am-Glan [1] is a tiny village of 1,900 people located in landkreis Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate in southwestern Germany. Odernheim first appears in the historical record around AD 976. Thus, the village can rightly claim to be over 1,000 years old. The physical setting of Odernheim is quite picturesque. It is situated on the river Glan amid rolling hills and vineyards. Nearby towns include Staudernheim (1.4 miles), Bad Sobernheim (2.5 miles), and Meisenheim (3.8 miles). The nearest city is Mainz (18.6 miles), which is also the capital (landhaupstadt) of Rhineland-Palatinate.

Most notably, Odernheim is home to the medieval monastery Disibodenberg. The site is named after St. Disibod, who resided there in the 7th century. From 1106 to 1147, Disibodenberg was home to the famous nun Hildegard von Bingen. It was at Disibodenberg that Hildegard composed her most famous theological work, Scivias, or "Know the Ways of the Lord." Hildegard left Disibodenberg in 1147 to establish two new convents in the vicinity of Bingen on the Rhine.

Politics: Odernheim falls within Wahlkreis (electoral district) 203. In the 2005 Bundestagswahl (Bundestag elections), the voters of district 203 elected Julia Klöckner [2] (CDU/CSU) as their direct representative. And they elected a member of the SPD as their party-list representative. In German politics, there are exactly 299 electoral districts, and each selects two candidates, putting the total number of Bundestag seats at 598. However, sometimes there are overhang seats, which increase the total number of seats to over 598. Currently, there are 614 seats in the Bundestag.

Economy: One of the main industries in Odernheim is wine production. There are five wineries within the village limits: Weingut + Straußwirtschaft H.Grossarth, Weingut Kloster Disibodenberg, Weingut Klostermühle, Weingut Schick, and Weingut Willi Hofmann.

The current mayor of Odernheim is Thomas Langgut.