Lower Austria

Lower Austria
Niederösterreich
—  State of Austria  —

Flag
Coat of arms
Country  Austria
Capital Sankt Pölten
Government
 - Governor Erwin Pröll (ÖVP)
Area
 - Total 19,174 km2 (7,403.1 sq mi)
Population
 - Total 1,588,545
 - Density 82.8/km2 (214.6/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 - Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
ISO 3166 code AT-3
NUTS Region AT1
Votes in Bundesrat 12 (of 62)
Website www.noe.gv.at

Lower Austria (German: Niederösterreich, Austro-Bavarian: Niadaöstareich) is the northeast state of the nine states or Bundesländer in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria since 1986 is Sankt Pölten, the most recently designated capital town in Austria. The capital of Lower Austria had formerly been Vienna, even though Vienna is not properly part of Lower Austria. With a land area of 19,174 km² and a population of 1.6 million people, it is the largest state in Austria, and in terms of population second only to the federal state of Vienna.

Contents

Geography

Situated east of Upper Austria, Lower Austria derives its name from its downriver location on the Danube River, which flows from west to east. The state borders on Slovakia, the Czech region of Moravia, and the other Austrian states of Upper Austria, Styria and Burgenland. The state surrounds Vienna.

Lower Austria is the largest state in Austria with an area of 19,177.78 square kilometres. It is divided four regions, known as Viertel (quarters):

These regions have different geographical structures. Whilst the Mostviertel is dominated by the foothills of the Limestone Alps with mountains up to 2,000 m AA high, most of the Waldviertel is a granite plateau. The hilly Weinviertel lies to the northeast, descends to the plains of Marchfeld in the east of the state, and is separated by the Danube from the Vienna Basin to the south, which in turn is separated from the Vienna Woods by a line of thermal springs (the Thermenlinie) running north to south.

Lower Austria has an international border, 414 km long, with the Czech Republic and Slovakia. The state has the second longest external border of all Austrian states.

Mountains

Other mountains in Lower Austria may be found at Category:Mountains of Lower Austria.

Alpine passes

The state border with Styria runs over both passes.

Rivers

Kamp
March

Almost all of Lower Austria is drained by the Danube. The only river that flows into the North Sea via the Moldau and the Elbe is the Lainsitz in northern Waldviertel.

The most important rivers north of the Danube (on its left banks) are the Ysper, Kamp, Krems, Lainsitz, March and Thaya. South of the Danube (on its right banks) are the Enns, Ybbs, Erlauf, Melk, Pielach, Traisen, Schwechat, Fischa, Schwarza, Triesting, Pitten and the Leitha.

Lakes

Land use

Type of land use Area in km² Percent of
total area
Farmland 7,000 42
Woods 6,711 40
Grassland 1,750 11
Alpine pastures 300 1.7
Vineyards 315 1.9

History

Main article: History of Austria

The history of Lower Austria is very similar to the History of Austria. Many castles are located in Lower Austria. Klosterneuburg Abbey, located here, is one of the oldest abbeys in Austria. Before World War II, Lower Austria had the largest number of Jews in Austria.

Administrative divisions

Lower Austria is divided into four regions: Waldviertel, Mostviertel, Industrieviertel, and Weinviertel. The Wachau valley, situated between Melk and Krems in the Mostviertel region, is famous for its landscape, culture, and wine.

Administratively, the state is divided into 21 districts (Bezirke), and four independent towns (Statutarstädte). In total, there are 573 municipalities within Lower Austria.

Map of Lower Austria showing districts and the four quarters (Waldviertel in green, Weinviertel in red, Mostviertel in yellow and Industrieviertel in blue)

Independent towns

Districts

External links