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48-779: The Ermstal valley is one of the largest valley systems that have cut into the layer of the Swabian Alb from the northwest. The nearby large waters of the river system of the Rhine lie much deeper than the Danube on the south-eastern side of the Alb, so that regressive erosion of the Rhenish waters is gradually shifting back the European watershed at the expense of the Danube basin. Due to

96-551: A Swabian Alb Biosphere Reserve of 852.69 km (330 sq. mi.). The geology of the Swabian Jura is mostly limestone , which formed the seabed during the Jurassic period. The sea receded 50 million years ago. Three layers of different limestones are stacked over each other to form the range: Black Jurassic , Brown Jurassic , and White Jurassic . White Jurassic may be as pure as 99% calcium carbonate . Since limestone

144-487: A "luxury outlet town", with people from all over Europe coming to buy expensive clothes cheaper). From this, machine building and advanced engineering developed. With the invention of cars and the founding of Daimler-Benz nearby, the car industry and later also electronics and computer industries developed. The " Neckar-Alb " region is the third largest industrial zone in Germany, and the most stable. The best known company

192-400: A bed, a flow, is a discrete extrusive volcanic stratum or body distinguishable by texture, composition, or other objective criteria. As in case of a bed, a flow should only be designated and named as a formal lithostratigraphic unit when it is distinctive, widespread, and useful for stratigraphic correlation. A band is a thin stratum that is distinguishable by a distinctive lithology or color and

240-401: A few kilometers apart, some of the oldest signs of human artifacts were found. Best known are: a mammoth, a horse head, a water bird, and two statues of a lion man all of surprising quality and all more than 30,000 years old. The oldest known musical instruments have been found here, too: flutes made from the bones of swans and griffon vultures, some 35,000 years old, and in 2004

288-632: A flute carved from the tusk of a mammoth dating from the Ice Age, around 37,000 years ago, and the oldest representation of the human body, the Venus of Schelklingen . This region, located south of the limes , was part of the Roman Empire from around the first to third century A.D. A Roman road ran along the Neckar river and over the plateau. In Hechingen-Stein a Roman outpost along this road

336-603: A proper noun referring more or less exclusively to the Swabian and the Franconian Jura ( German : Fränkische Alb ) areas however, and as such has no direct translation into most other languages. It is perhaps for this reason that Schwäbische Alb has sometimes been translated into English as 'Swabian Alps', thus avoiding the lesser-known name Jura . However, the area is not part of the Alps (despite its proximity), nor

384-449: A small private museum, called Urwelt-Museum Hauff, provides visitors with the opportunity to "dig" for fossils in their shale deposits. The Urwelt-Museum Hauff houses the world's largest petrified crinoid (sea-lily) colony with a size of 18 m × 6 m (59 ft × 20 ft) and an age of about 180 million years. In a number of caves (including Vogelherd, Hohlenstein-Stadel , Geißenklösterle and Hohle Fels ), all just

432-541: A stratum underlying another stratum. Typically, a stratum is generally one of a number of parallel layers that lie one upon another to form enormous thicknesses of strata. The bedding surfaces (bedding planes) that separate strata represent episodic breaks in deposition associated either with periodic erosion , cessation of deposition, or some combination of the two. Stacked together with other strata, individual stratum can form composite stratigraphic units that can extend over hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of

480-476: A stronger Fasnet tradition. A Swabian Fasnet celebration in any case has little or nothing in common with the simultaneous celebrations along the Middle Rhein, which are well known across Germany because they are televised every year. Swabians generally are expected to go to work as normal on Rose Monday and Fat Tuesday, unlike their neighbors to the northwest. Since raising crops was not easy, raising sheep

528-523: A tectonically active region) sometimes causes mild earthquakes. The Nördlinger Ries is a large meteorite crater (15 million years old). Tertiary relicts can be found in the southern part of Swabian Jura. Famous locations are known in the Ulm area (e.g., Turritellenplatte of Ermingen). Constant rain and other weather influences are slowly dissolving the entire range. Each year, it recedes approximately 2 mm (0.08 in). Some millions of years ago,

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576-446: A tributary to the Rhine . The soil is not very fertile, the humus is often as thin as 10 cm (4 in). Many small limestone pebbles are found on the surface. Much of the Swabian Jura consists of gentle to moderate hills often covered with forest or cleared for small-scale agriculture . The traditional landscape was grass fields with juniper bushes . Today this has become a comparatively rare sight. However, in certain places it

624-486: Is soluble in water, rain seeps through cracks everywhere, forming a karst landscape, featuring subterranean rivers which flow through a large system of caves before they emerge. As a result there are hardly any rivers, lakes or other forms of surface water on the plateau. In some places, former volcanic activity has left traces, such as maars and hills. In the west, the Zollerngraben (a geological depression in

672-534: Is a mountain range in Baden-Württemberg , Germany , extending 220 km (140 mi) from southwest to northeast and 40 to 70 km (25 to 43 mi) in width. It is named after the region of Swabia . It is part of the Table Jura ( Tafeljura ). The Swabian Jura occupies the region bounded by the Danube in the southeast and the upper Neckar in the northwest. In the southwest it rises to

720-784: Is easy to extract, the lakes gradually disappeared. In the area of the old town of Urach lies the centre of another valley spider. Here, from the east, the multi-branched valley system of the Elsach , whose sources lie in the Falkensteiner Höhle and in the Elsachbröller , flows out. From the southwest, from the Maisental, where the Uracher Wasserfall and the Gütersteiner Wasserfall lie,

768-623: Is protected by the government of Baden-Württemberg. The highest elevations reach just over 1,000 metres (3,300 ft). They are all in the southwestern part of the Jura, in the region of the Großer Heuberg . There are many other peaks in the Alb, such as the Hornau , Ochsenberg , and Achalm . Fossils can be found everywhere in the Swabian Jura. Many large and important fossils were found here. At Holzmaden, outside of Weilheim unter Teck,

816-574: Is separated by visible surfaces known as either bedding surfaces or bedding planes . Prior to the publication of the International Stratigraphic Guide, older publications have defined a stratum as being either equivalent to a single bed or composed of a number of beds; as a layer greater than 1 cm in thickness and constituting a part of a bed; or a general term that includes both bed and lamina . Related terms are substrate and substratum (pl. substrata ),

864-498: Is still Daimler-Benz, today known simply as Daimler AG , followed by Robert Bosch . The region has one of the highest patents-to-population ratios in the world. Many products fall into the high-tech category. The small and medium enterprise sector (100-5,000 employees) predominates. Perhaps as a result, the unemployment rate is low. In general, products are expensive but compete through high quality. Several districts are recognised as especially attractive to business, e.g. Reutlingen as

912-605: Is useful in correlating strata. Finally, a key bed, also called a marker bed , is a well-defined, easily identifiable stratum or body of strata that has sufficiently distinctive characteristics, such as lithology or fossil content, to be recognized and correlated during geologic field or subsurface mapping. Swabian Alb The Swabian Jura ( German : Schwäbische Alb [ˈʃvɛːbɪʃə ˈʔalp] , more rarely Schwäbischer Jura [ˈʃvɛːbɪʃɐ ˈjuːʁa] ), sometimes also named Swabian Alps in English,

960-636: The Brühlbach flows into the Elsachbröller . Below Urach, the Stufenrandtal valley, eroded by the Erms river, widens. Down the valley there are more and more traces of the early use of the Erms' water power during industrialisation . In Dettingen there is still a paper mill . The Glemsbach flows into Neuhausen . Here as in Metzingen , vineyards accompany the course of the river. The Erms leaves

1008-499: The Earth 's surface. Individual stratum can cover similarly large areas. Strata are typically seen as bands of different colored or differently structured material exposed in cliffs , road cuts, quarries , and river banks. Individual bands may vary in thickness from a few millimeters to several meters or more. A band may represent a specific mode of deposition : river silt , beach sand , coal swamp , sand dune , lava bed, etc. In

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1056-685: The Jura mountains , of which the Swabian and Franconian plateaux are geographically part. In German, at least outside geological circles, the word Alb is used almost universally in place of Jura . The origin of the word is uncertain. One theory is that it derives form the Latin albus ("white"). Another is that it is from a pre-Indo-European word albhros ("hill"). It is related to the German words Alpe , Alm or Alp (from Old High German alpâ ), meaning an " upland pasture ". The word Alb functions as

1104-686: The Mittleren Kuppenalb , the lower part almost entirely to the foothills of the central Swabian Alb , where it passes successively through the Neuffen-Vorberge and the Erms-Steinach-Albvorland . Finally, a gusset close to the mouth of the river counts towards the subspace Nürtinger-Esslinger Neckartal of the Fildern . The highest point in the area reaches about 870 metres (2,850 ft) above sea level in

1152-529: The 16th century all communities situated along the river Erms were reformed . Within Württemberg the settlements belonged to Oberamt Urach , only Neckartenzlingen was part of the Oberamt Nürtingen . The towns of Urach were mainly transferred to the district of Reutlingen in 1938 when the district of Urach was dissolved. Bempflingen went with Neckartenzlingen to the district of Nürtingen to

1200-419: The Neckar river, which runs here particularly close to the Alb's eaves, and the great difference in altitude between them, the Erms possessed sufficient erosive power to form one of the most striking valleys of the Alb's eaves. The valley is rich in karst phenomena. The longitudinal profile, stepped by limestone sinter deposits, was once more conspicuous than today due to several natural reservoirs and favoured

1248-511: The Swabian Jura includes regions just around the mountain range. It is a popular recreation area. The whole Schwäbische Alb area is a UNESCO global geopark covering 6,688 km (2582 sq mi.); it was designated as a National Geopark in Germany in 2002 and became a member of the European Geoparks Network in 2004; in 2015 it was included in the newly established scheme of UNESCO Global Geoparks. In its central area it comprises

1296-654: The area of the Römerstein on the Alb plateau. Tributaries from the source to the estuary. With length and partial catchment area. Other sources are noted. Selection, usually without side channels. Ermsursprung in Mühltal less than one kilometre before Seeburg . The name of the Erms goes back to the Roman Empire Armissa , which itself possibly has pre-Roman origins. During the Roman period, there

1344-521: The discharge of the water from subterranean rivers can be spectacular, too, e.g. the Blautopf , a source for a tributary of the Danube. Also because of the porous limestone, the Danube nearly disappears near Immendingen (in 1911, 1921, 1928 and 1943 it disappeared completely), only to reappear several kilometers further down. Most of the water lost by the Danube resurfaces in the Aachtopf , a spring for

1392-489: The district of Esslingen ; the villages above Urach, like Seeburg, Wittlingen and Sirchingen, went to the district of Münsingen in 1938, 1973 also to the Landkreis Reutlingen. Stratum In geology and related fields, a stratum ( pl. : strata ) is a layer of rock or sediment characterized by certain lithologic properties or attributes that distinguish it from adjacent layers from which it

1440-690: The exact traditions vary from village to village, creating a fantastic variety of heroes, villains and good and evil creatures. It is also often the case that, while in one town a strong tradition of celebrating Fasnet has survived, the neighboring town will have almost no tradition. This is in many instances linked to the after-effects of the Protestant Reformation and the later influence of the Calvinistic Pietists, who more or less strictly opposed such frivolous - even heathen - behaviour. Catholic regions to this day tend to have

1488-503: The foreland of the Swabian Jura officially don't belong to it. There are many castles, monasteries, churches, ruins and old towns. Here is a small selection. A good way for tourists to get to know the Swabian Jura is to travel on the Schwäbische Albstraße , a "National Scenic Byway", leading from Tuttlingen or Trossingen to Nördlingen or Aalen . The name German : Jura (related to Jurassic ) derives from

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1536-601: The higher mountains of the Black Forest . The highest mountain in the region is the Lemberg (1,015 m (3,330 ft)). The area's profile resembles a high plateau, which slowly falls away to the southeast. The northwestern edge is a steep escarpment (called the Albtrauf or Albanstieg, rising up 400 m (1,300 ft), covered with forests), while the top is flat or gently rolling. In economic and cultural terms,

1584-467: The highest rents in Germany, while land on the plateau itself is considered cheap (by south German standards). Many town names end in -ingen . There were several military training grounds, some also used by NATO troops. On the Münsingen training ground which existed for over 100 years, a biosphere reserve is in the making. The region has several larger and many small nature reserves. The towns in

1632-473: The hills are not steep or high) and numerous small resorts can be found. It is often windy and a bit colder than the rest of Germany. Because of a special micro climate, a small weather station near the town of Stetten am kalten Markt is known as the "coldest spot in Germany". The Swabian Jura are not densely populated by German standards. Most of the larger towns are outside the region, though they are often counted as part of it. These towns often have some of

1680-436: The industrial development along the river because of the easily usable water power . The spring known as "Ermsursprung" is located just under one kilometre (0.62 mi) southeast of the village Seeburg in the Mühltal . The average flow rate of the karst spring is between 335 L/s (11.8 cu ft/s) and 380 L/s (13 cu ft/s) (this corresponds to 20.1 m³ or 22.8 m³ per minute). Depending on

1728-624: The mountains reached as far as Stuttgart . In some places, the limestone was more resistant to decay and thus the recession of the main range has left small mountains (called "Zeugenberge"—"witness mountains" or outliers ; e.g. the Achalm or the Hohenstaufen ) which testify to the former territory of the range. The omnipresent caves are great tourist spots, beautiful and not very crowded. Many different types can be found, from dry dripstone caves to caves that can only be entered by boat. Sometimes

1776-411: The poor quality of the soil made it a backward region. For many villages fetching water required a long journey by horse. Since water often needed to be stored over a long time, it was often stagnant. Thus disinfection via alcohol was very popular: "Most" ( cider ) was mixed with water and even given to babies. A modern water supply system (outstanding for its time) was built in the late 1880s, which eased

1824-515: The river Erms flows through the upper Ermstal, which here forms the Border of the villages Wittlingen and Sirchingen . The valley section is characterized by the closely opposite, wooded slopes of the Albtrauf, crowned by limestone rocks. Until the 19th century, several natural lakes existed, dammed by Kalktuffbarren . Since the limestone tuff (precipitated lime ) is a good building material that

1872-455: The situation. Locals in the areas speak the distinct German dialect known as Swabian German , which varies even throughout the Jura and is difficult to understand for speakers of Standard German. The dialect at the top of the plateau ( German : Albschwäbisch ) is markedly different from, and stronger than, even the broadest Swabian of the lowland areas. Across the whole Swabian region, many phrases and grammar are highly localized, even down to

1920-586: The study of rock and sediment strata, geologists have recognized a number of different types of strata, including bed , flow , band , and key bed . A bed is a single stratum that is lithologically distinguishable from other layers above and below it. In the classification hierarchy of sedimentary lithostratigraphic units, a bed is the smallest formal unit. However, only beds that are distinctive enough to be useful for stratigraphic correlation and geologic mapping are customarily given formal names and considered formal lithostratigraphic units. The volcanic equivalent of

1968-400: The town in Germany where it is simplest to open a new business. Educational resources are at a high level. The schools and universities of the region all enjoy top rankings within Germany. The Swabian Jura and the neighbouring region have developed from one of the poorest regions of Germany to one of its richest within the past 150 years. In winter it often snows. Skiing is popular (though

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2016-642: The valley of the Jura mountains and flows into the Albvorland. Below Riederich the Riederichbach, which was previously called Stetterbach for a long time, flows out. After the river has passed Bempflingen , it flows into the Neckar at Neckartenzlingen , whose waters reach the North Sea via the Rhine . The river Erms drains an area of about 179 km (69 sq mi), mainly in the middle Swabian Alb and its foreland. Its upper part belongs to

2064-426: The village level; however, the Swabian dialect of the highland regions is characterised by a sing-song melody, and some of the verb forms are also distinct, not only from Standard German , but also from those of the rest of Swabia . In former times, Yiddish , Pleißne and Romani was also spoken. The Pleißne was spoken by hawkers selling items such as baskets, brushes, and whips, and belongs to Rotwelsch . It

2112-528: The weather, the source discharge fluctuates between 67 and 1,000 L/s (2.4 and 35.3 cu ft/s). Coming from the Fischburg valley, the much longer Fischbach flows into Seeburg. Its valley is part of the western border of the former Münsingen military training area. Mühltal, Fischburgtal and the Seetal , which flows in from the south, form here a three-part Talspinne . Between Seeburg and Bad Urach

2160-548: Was a more important Roman settlement at the strategically favourable place of the valley exit, at the place of today's Metzingen , which was called Vicus Armissium . At that time the Ermstal was called Swiggerstal , later the name was used as a landscape designation until the 15th century was transferred to a larger area . The villages came to Württemberg in the Middle Ages and have shared its fate ever since. Therefore, in

2208-411: Was discovered in the 1970s and has been turned into an outdoor museum. The limes actually cuts across the plateau at Aalen , which gets its name from the original Roman cavalry post, or ala , on the outskirts of the modern town. Here too, the Roman ruins are being excavated and a museum has been open to the public since the late 1980s. Life was extremely hard in the Swabian Jura. The lack of water and

2256-408: Was popular. This yielded the development of a strong textile industry. In the 1950s, Reutlingen was the German town with the highest number of millionaires, until the decline of the German textile industry hit them as well. Still, many high quality textile companies can be found, such as Hugo Boss , Merz b. Schwanen , Trigema , Reusch, Groz-Beckert and others (the town of Metzingen is widely known as

2304-673: Was used as a code. The " Swabian – Alemannic " carnival is an important tradition in many of the villages, called variously " Fastnacht ", "Fasnacht", "Fasnet", or "Fasching". Of particular cultural importance is the Fasnet celebration in Rottweil. Typical of the Allemannic tradition are the witches and forest- or well-spirits, who typically signify Winter or the forces of nature coming to drive Winter out. The various roles are often claimed to have been defined in pre-Christian times and here

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