Discover Germany | Special Theme | Discover Northern Germany
Special Theme
Discover Northern Germany
The northern face of Germany While the borders of what we call Northern Germany are not clearly defined, its culture and history are more than distinct. There is a very specific, recognisable feel to the way things work up north and both tourists and residents will testify to its irresistible, inimitable charm.
but in the end a common decision will not be taken. Maybe after all this decision is not even needed, as geography is not the only means to peek behind the curtain that is Northern Germany.
TEXT: THOMAS SCHROERS
A defining history When we discover the northern part of Germany, the first thing we have to acknowledge is that we cannot really locate it geographically. Sure, logically it should just be the north of Germany, but immediately questions arise. How far south does it stretch? What about sub categories? What characteristics give a region or city the right to be called northern? Over the years, there have been various ways of finding the north. One of the 36 | Issue 41 | August 2016
most common methods of decoding it is to only take the regions into concern, that originally spoke so-called Low German. However, the lines are blurred instantly as this language or dialect was also spoken in the Netherlands and is therefore influenced by Dutch words. Of course, one could also focus on the national states that border on the northern seas. But what about Lower Saxony, which is so large that its southern parts may not be qualified to be northern? As you can see, arguments can be made for and against these ideas and many more,
Maybe in order to decipher the north, we have to look into its past. Fortunately, or unfortunately, the history of Northern Germany allows us to not only do that in a small way, but to go way back. Close to the city of Brunswick, historians have found hunting weapons and bone fragments dating back around 400,000 years and belonging to the extinct species of Homo Erectus, who was our prehistoric precursor. However, it took our ancestors until 4,000 BC to really settle in, start