Loading AI tools
Oberallgäu is a Landkreis (district) in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is bounded by (from the north and clockwise) the districts of Unterallgäu and Ostallgäu, the Austrian states Tyrol and Vorarlberg, the district of Lindau, and the state of Baden-Württemberg (district Ravensburg). The city of Kempten is enclosed by but does not belong to the district.
Oberallgäu | |
|---|---|
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 | |
| Country | Germany |
| State | Bavaria |
| Adm. region | Swabia |
| Capital | Sonthofen |
| Government | |
| • District admin. | Indra Baier-Müller (FW) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 1,528 km2 (590 sq mi) |
| Population (31 December 2023)[1] | |
| • Total | 159,576 |
| • Density | 100/km2 (270/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| Vehicle registration | OA |
| Website | www |
Human settlement dates back to the Bronze Age, when Celtic peoples inhabited the region. The Romans established a military camp which grew to become the city of Cambodunum, the present Kempten. It is consequently sometimes claimed that Kempten is the oldest town in Germany.
In medieval times Kempten was a free imperial city, and the surrounding lands became subordinate to the lords of Staufen and the counts of Rothenfels. Both ceased to exist in the beginning of the 19th century, when Napoleon handed these territories over to Bavaria.
The district of Oberallgäu was established in 1972 by merging the former districts of Sonthofen and Kempten.
Oberallgäu is the southernmost district of Germany. "Oberallgäu" literally means "Upper Allgäu". The term Allgäu is applied to the part of the Alps located in Swabia and their northern foothills.
In the very south of the district are some of the highest mountains of the Allgäu, culminating in the Hochfrottspitze (2,649 m). Blender, which rises to 1,072 m, is located between the municipalities of Buchenberg and Wiggensbach. The Iller River (a tributary of the Danube) runs through the district from south to north.
The coat of arms displays a mountain symbolising the Allgäu, and three lions from the arms of the Staufen dynasty.
| Towns | Municipalities | |
|---|---|---|
Wikiwand in your browser!
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.
