Erlangen
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Erlangen | |
| Coat of arms | Location |
 |
  |
| Administration | |
| Country |  Germany |
|---|---|
| State | Bavaria |
| Admin. region | Middle Franconia |
| District | Urban district |
| City subdivisions | 20 Ortsteile |
| Lord Mayor | Siegfried Balleis (CSU) |
| Basic statistics | |
| Area | 76.90 km² (29.7 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 280 m (919 ft) |
| Population | 104,600 (31/10/2007) |
| - Density | 1,360 /km² (3,523 /sq mi) |
| Other information | |
| Time zone | CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) |
| Licence plate | ER |
| Postal codes | 91001–91058 |
| Area codes | 09131, 0911 (OT Hüttendorf), 09132 (OT Neuses), 09135 (OT Dechsendorf) |
| Website | www.erlangen.de |
Erlangen is a German city in Middle Franconia. It is located at the confluence of the river Regnitz and its large tributary, the Untere Schwabach. Erlangen has more than 100,000 inhabitants.
Erlangen is today dominated by its university and the numerous branch offices of the Siemens AG, as well as a large Institute of the Fraunhofer Society. An event that still influences the city was the settlement of Huguenots after the withdrawal of the Edict of Nantes in 1685.
Contents |
[edit] History
Erlangen was first mentioned officially in 1002 under the name of "villa erlangon". In 1361, the village was sold to Emperor Karl IV. Three years later, a city was built close to the village, which in 1374 got its own coining station (mint). In 1398, the municipal rights were confirmed. In 1402, the city was vested to the Hohenzollern as part of the principality of Brandenburg-Kulmbach (from 1603 on Bayreuth), staying under their rule until 1806. During the four year Napoleonic occupation Erlangen was the capital of the so-called "Low County" (Unterland) of the principality, encompassing the area until Neustadt an der Aisch and separated from the "High County" (Oberland) by a land corridor. In 1810 it finally became part of the Kingdom of Bavaria, together with the Bayreuth principality.
While being part of the Bayreuth county, the first French Huguenot refugees arrived in Erlangen in 1686. The Bayreuth count Christian Ernst built a "new town" (Neustadt) for them. In 1706, the old town (just below the site of the annual Bergkirchweih) was almost completely destroyed by a fire, but soon rebuilt. In 1812, the old and new towns were finally merged into one.
In 1742, Count Friedrich of Bayreuth founded a university for the residency town Bayreuth, but due to the rebelliousness of the local students, the university was transferred to Erlangen. Only later did it obtain the name of "Friedrich-Alexander-University" and become a Prussian state university. Famous students of these times were Johann Ludwig Tieck and Wilhelm Heinrich Wackenroder.
Already during the Bavarian municipal reform of 1818, the city was endowed with its own administration. In 1862, the canton administration Erlangen was founded, from which later arose the administrative district of Erlangen. In 1972, this district was merged with the administrative district of Höchstadt. Erlangen became the capital of this newly founded district Erlangen-Höchstadt. During this municipal reform, Erlangen was effectively enlarged considerably, so that by 1974, it had more than 100,000 inhabitants.
[edit] University
The University of Erlangen (Friedrich-Alexander-Universität, [1]) was founded in 1742 by Margrave Friedrich of Brandenburg-Bayreuth in the city of Bayreuth, but was relocated to Erlangen the next year. Today, it features 11 departments (German "Fakultäten"), 2 of which (Economics and Education) are located in Nuremberg. About 24,000 students study at this university, of which about 20,000 are located in Erlangen.
[edit] Bergkirchweih
The Bergkirchweih is an annual beer festival, similar to the Oktoberfest in Munich but smaller in scope, and therefore more intimate. It takes place during the twelve days before and after Pentecost, under the spring trees of the "Berg" and draws more than one million visitors each year.
It is commonly known by local residents as the "Berchkärwa" (pronounced "bairch'-care-va") or simply the "Berch", as in "Gehma auf'm Berch?" ("Let's go to the mountain?").Also it is annual tradition when leaving the Berch of an evening to go to the world famous Wheelers Pub and sample more traditional Beer.
[edit] Districts
- Am Anger
- Alterlangen
- Bruck, pop. 20,000
- Büchenbach
- Burgberg
- Dechsendorf
- Eltersdorf, pop. around 3,200
- Frauenaurach
- Häusling
- Hetzles
- Hüttendorf
- Innenstadt
- Kosbach
- Kriegenbrunn
- Neusses
- Röthelheim
- Schallershof
- Siedlung Sonnenblick
- Sieglitzhof/Buckenhofer Siedlung
- Steudach
- Tennenlohe [2]
[edit] Historical population
| Year | Population |
|---|---|
| 1495 | 292 |
| 1630 | 550 |
| 1752 | 7,939 |
| 1830 | 9,800 |
| December 1, 1871¹ | 12,500 |
| December 1, 1890¹ | 17,559 |
| December 1, 1900¹ | 22,953 |
| December 1, 1910¹ | 24,877 |
| June 16, 1925¹ | 29,597 |
| June 16, 1933¹ | 32,348 |
| May 17, 1939¹ | 35,964 |
| September 13, 1950¹ | 50,690 |
| June 16, 1961¹ | 69,552 |
| May 27, 1970¹ | 84,110 |
| June 20, 1975 | 100,700 |
| June 30, 1980 | 100,900 |
| June 30, 1985 | 100,000 |
| May 27, 1987¹ | 99,808 |
| June 30, 1997 | 100,700 |
| December 31, 1997 | 100,330 |
| December 31, 1998 | 100,775 |
| December 31, 1999 | 100,750 |
| December 31, 2000 | 100,778 |
| December 31, 2001 | 101,912 |
| December 31, 2002 | 102,198 |
| December 31, 2003 | 102,449 |
| December 31, 2004 | 102,627 |
| December 31, 2005 | 103,425 |
[edit] Historical mayors of Erlangen
- 1818 - 1827: Johann Sigmund Lindner
- 1828 - 1855: Johann Wolfgang Ferdinand Lammers
- 1855 - 1865: Carl Wolfgang Knoch
- 1866 - 1872: Heinrich August Papellier
- 1872 - 1877: Johann Edmund Reichold
- 1878 - 1880: Friedrich Scharf
- 1881 - 1892: Georg Ritter von Schuh
- 1892 - 1929: Theodor Klippel
- 1929 - 1934: Hans Flierl
- 1934 - 1944: Alfred Groß (NSDAP)
- 1944 - 1945: Herbert Ohly (NSDAP)
- 1945 - 1946: Anton Hammerbacher (SPD)
- 1946 - 1959: Michael Poeschke (SPD)
- 1959 - 1972: Heinrich Lades (CSU)
- 1972 - 1996: Dietmar Hahlweg (SPD)
- 1996 - : Siegfried Balleis (CSU)
[edit] International relations
[edit] Sister cities
Erlangen is twinned with several cities:
Eskilstuna, Sweden, since 1961.
Rennes, France, since 1964.
Vladimir, Russia, since 1983.- Jena, Thuringia, Germany, since 1987.
Stoke-on-Trent, England, since 1989.
San Carlos, Nicaragua, since 1989.
Beşiktaş, Turkey, since 2004.
[edit] Further partnerships
[edit] External links
- www.erlangen.de
- The biggest comic convention in Germany is in Erlangen
- www.erlangeninfo.de Erlangen City Guide
- University of Erlangen
- Fraunhofer Institut für Integrierte Schaltungen (Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuits) mp3 was developed here
- Der-Berg-Ruft.De Homepage of the Bergkirchweih (German only)
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