Thuringia

I

Introduction

Thuringia (German, Thüringen), state and historic region of central Germany, bounded on the north by the states of Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, on the east by Saxony, on the south by Bavaria, and on the west by Hesse. Thuringia has an area of 16,172 sq km (6,244 sq mi).

II

Physical Geography

Thuringia is one of Germany’s smaller states. It stretches between the River Pleisse in the east and the Werra in the west, and from the Harz Mountains in the north to the Thuringian Forest and the Frankenwald in the south. The centre of the state is occupied by the fertile Thuringian Basin. The east is mainly plain, extending towards the Erzgebirge range. The Rhön massif is situated in the west. Apart from the Werra, the principal rivers include the Saale, the Ilm, and the Unstrut. The Grosser Beerberg, in the Thuringian Forest, is, at 982 m (3,222 ft), the highest point in the state; the lowest is the Unstrut flood plain (114 m/374 ft). About 38 per cent of Thuringia is forested.

Much of the state’s area is protected. The Hainich National Park, situated in west Thuringia and established in 1997, covers about 7,610 hectares (18,804 acres) of forest. The Rhön Biosphere Reserve, founded in 1991, extends over 48,573 hectares (120,024 acres) of sub-alpine mountain terrain in the state alone; it stretches further into Bavaria and Hesse. In the central Thuringian Forest is the Vesser River Valley Biosphere, designated in 1979 and covering some 17,000 hectares (42,007 acres). Four nature parks are located in the state: the Eichsfeld-Hainich-Werratal in the west; the Kyffhäuser in the north; the Thüringer Schiefergebirge—Upper Saale in the east; and the Thuringian Forest in the south.

III

Population

In 2004 Thuringia had a population of an estimated 2,373,000, with a population density of 147 people per sq km (381 people per sq mi; as of 2004). Foreigners constitute about 2 per cent of the state’s population. About 80 per cent of Thuringia’s inhabitants live in towns with 2,000 or fewer residents.

The capital is Erfurt (population, 2005 estimate, 202,500). Other important towns and cities include: Altenburg (population, 2005 estimate, 38,400); Eisenach (2005 estimate, 43,900); Gera (2005 estimate, 105,200); Gotha (2005 estimate, 47,100); Ilmenau (2005 estimate, 26,800); Jena (2005 estimate, 102,400); Meiningen (2005 estimate, 21,700); Nordhausen (2005 estimate, 43,900); Rudolstadt (2005 estimate, 25,800); Suhl (2005 estimate, 43,700); and Weimar (2005 estimate, 64,500).

IV

Education and Culture

The University of Erfurt, originally founded in 1392 and subsequently dissolved in 1816, was established afresh in 1994. Thuringia has three other universities: the University of Jena (1558); the Bauhaus University in Weimar (1860); and the Technical University in Ilmenau (founded in 1953, it has borne its present name and status since 1992). Other establishments of higher education include the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Weimar and colleges in Erfurt, Jena, Nordhausen, and Schmalkalden. The Goethe Society, established in 1885, is located in Weimar. Jena houses three Max Planck Institutes: for Research in Economic Systems (1993); for Chemical Ecology (1996); and for Biogeochemistry (1997). The state library is located in Erfurt; other eminent libraries include the Princess Anna Amalia Library in Weimar. There are six state archives: in Altenburg, Gotha, Greiz, Meiningen, Rudolstadt, and Weimar.

Thuringia has theatres in Altenburg, Gera, Eisenach, Erfurt, Meiningen, Nordhausen, Rudolstadt, and Weimar, and 11 eminent orchestras. The state boasts numerous historical monuments, including about 3,000 natural monuments and some 60,000 artistic and architectural sites. Notable, well-preserved city centres include those in Erfurt, Mühlhausen, Schmalkalden, and Weimar. Other places of interest are castles and palaces, particularly Wartburg in Eisenach, Castle Hanstein in Rimbach, Kirchburg in Rohr, Wachsenburg in Arnstadt, Friedenstein in Gotha, and Heidecksburg Castle in Rudolstadt, as well as palaces in Altenburg, Gotha, Meiningen, Schmalkalden, and Weimar. Three UNESCO World Heritage Sites are situated in the state: Bauhaus buildings in Weimar (named in 1996 and including Bauhaus sites in Dessau, Saxony-Anhalt); Classical Weimar (established in 1998); and Wartburg Castle (designated in 1999). Noteworthy museums include the Museum of Thuringian Folk Art in Erfurt; the Optics Museum and the Museum of Early Romanticism in Germany, both in Jena; and the Art Collection in Weimar, where the Thuringian State Office for Archaeological Heritage is also located. Festivals in Thuringia include the Weimar Arts Festival; the Jena Culture Arena; the Thuringian Bach Festival; the Country Festival at the Ratscher Mountain Lake; and the Dance and Folk Festival in Rudolstadt.

Many museums and memorial sites in Thuringia are associated with distinguished personalities who were active in the state; for example, Eisenach has Johann Sebastian Bach’s House; Liszt House is situated in Weimar; the birthplace of composer Heinrich Schütz is in Bad Köstritz. Christoph Martin Wieland is commemorated in Weimar and Ossmanstedt; there is a Friedrich von Schiller Memorial in Jena and a Schiller House in Weimar; and Heiligenstadt houses the Theodor Storm Literature Museum. There is a Nietzsche Archive in Weimar; Otto Dix House in Gera; and numerous sites associated with Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, including Goethe House in Weimar and Goethe Memorial in Jena. Eisenach and Erfurt are associated with Martin Luther.