Eckbach
Encyclopedia
TheEckbach is a river in the northeastern Palatinate and the southeastern Rhenish Hesse. It is slightly over 39 km long.
into the old name of die Eck shows that it is related to the Upper German
word Ache, which means "river" or "creek" and is derived from the Old High German
aha.
In the Middle Ages
, the river was known as Leinbach. This name refers to the Leinbaum, that is, the Lime tree (Tilia × europaea
L.
, not related to the Citrus aurantifolia, the tree that produces the lime (fruit)
). In those days, both the Norway Maple
(Acer platanoides) and the Large-leaved Linden (Tilia platyphyllos) were called Leinbaum in German. Both species were common on the banks of the Eckbach. One difference between the species is the shape of the leaves: maple leaves are five lobed, lime leaves are undivided. The coat of arms of the House of Leiningen shows a stylized tree with five-lobed leaves and five-pointed flowers clearly point to a maple. The House of Leiningen originated in the area around the upper Eckbach. It is entirely possible that they named their ancestral castle after the river. The family was later named after their castle and the area around the upper Eckbach is now called Leininger Land.
In the early 19th century, the local name of the river was Eck, as it is today. The Kingdom of Bavaria
acquired the Palatinate in 1816. When Bavarian cartographers mapped the area, they were unaware of the meaning of the word Eck and wanted to make it clear that the "Eck" is a brook, so they recorded the name as Eckbach. Linguistically speaking, this name means "brook brook".
in northern Palatinate forest. The spring is framed in sandstone
and is located southeast of A6
(Saarbrücken
- Mannheim) at a height of in the Kleinfrankreich ("Little France") section of the Hertlingshausen district of Carlsberg. The spring is marked by a so-called Knight Stone.
The area surrounding the upper Eckbach is known as the Leininger Land, after the noble family who dominated the area in the High Middle Ages. The Eckbach is the central watercourse in this area. This part of the river is managed by the , a division of the district Bad Dürkheim
. The river initially flows in an easterly direction through Hertlingshausen, then northeast through Altleiningen
, where it receives water from the artificial 20-Röhren-Brunnen ("20 tubes wells"). In the northeastern outskirts of Altleiningen, the Eckbach takes up the 4 km long Rothbach from the left, then the 5 km long Höninger Bach from the right.
After flowing through the Eckbachweiher reservoir at Neuleiningen-Tal, the Eckbach breaks through the eastern edge of the Palatinate Forest, the Haardt, between the village of Battenberg
on the south bank and Neuleiningen
on the north bank. It reaches the Vines-lined hill surrounding the German Wine Route at Kleinkarlbach
. In Kirchheim an der Weinstrasse, the Eckbach, now flowing eastward, passes under the north-south-trending B271, then it flows through Bissersheim
. From there, the Eckbach flows in a northeasterly direction to Großkarlbach
, where it crosses the A 6 before flowing through Laumersheim
.
In Dirmstein
, the Eckbach takes up the 8 km long Floßbach, locally known as the Landgraben, which is the Eckbach's most voluminous tributary. To the left, that is, to the north of the Eckbach, the structure of the hills is clearly defined. There is a long stretch of low ridge with the three hilltops defining the divide between the Eisbach
and the Eckbach: the Wörschberg (163 m) north of the road connecting Obersülzen
and Dirmstein, the Schneckenberg (143 m) between Dirmstein and Offstein
and the Stahlberg (hill) (134 m) between Dirmstein and the Heppenheim district of Worms.
The area south and to the right or the Eckbach is flatter and the Großkarlbach-Laumersheim-Dirmstein-Gerolsheim
area used to be a swampy lowland, which was used as pasture land. Furhter south lies the divide between the Eckbach and its southern neighbour, the Fuchsbach. This was a lift tributary of the Isenach
until the second half of the 20th century, whne most of its water was diverted into Schrakelbach. The area between Laumersheim, Dirmstein, Gerolsheim and Heuchelheim contains a number of irrigation canals: Weihergraben, Altbach, Kühweidegraben, Altgraben, Bittinggraben and Lerchengraben. These ditches begin as distributaries of the Eckbach and return to the Eckbach 4 to 8 km downstream, some of them directly into Eckbach, some flow into Schrakelbach. East of Heuchelheim and to the north of the Frankenthal Interchange, the A61
crosses the Eckbach.
The Eckbach then flows past Beindersheim
. Just north of Beindersheim, it accepts from the right the Schrakelbach, which contains water from the Fuchsbach and from some of the irrigation canals mentioned earlier. The Eckbach the flows through the western part of the Upper Rhine Plain
, flowing northnortheast past the villages Großniedesheim
and Kleinniedesheim
. It continues northeast through Bobenheim, which is the northern part of Bobenheim-Roxheim
. The next section is called Neugraben ("New Ditch") and flows stright north. To the southeast of Worms Airport, the Eckbach turns east.
The river then flows into the Wormser Ried nature reserve. It crosses the municipal border into Worms, where it is known as Leininger Graben. The last bridge across the Eckbach carries the B9. It flows past the recreational area Bürgerweide on the southern side, then into the Upper Rhine
at .
Name
Linguistic ResearchLinguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
into the old name of die Eck shows that it is related to the Upper German
Upper German
Upper German is a family of High German dialects spoken primarily in southern Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Northern Italy.-Family tree:Upper German can be generally classified as Alemannic or Austro-Bavarian...
word Ache, which means "river" or "creek" and is derived from the Old High German
Old High German
The term Old High German refers to the earliest stage of the German language and it conventionally covers the period from around 500 to 1050. Coherent written texts do not appear until the second half of the 8th century, and some treat the period before 750 as 'prehistoric' and date the start of...
aha.
In the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, the river was known as Leinbach. This name refers to the Leinbaum, that is, the Lime tree (Tilia × europaea
Tilia × europaea
Tilia × europaea L., generally known as the Common Lime, is a naturally occurring hybrid between Tilia cordata and Tilia platyphyllos...
L.
Carolus Linnaeus
Carl Linnaeus , also known after his ennoblement as , was a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, who laid the foundations for the modern scheme of binomial nomenclature. He is known as the father of modern taxonomy, and is also considered one of the fathers of modern ecology...
, not related to the Citrus aurantifolia, the tree that produces the lime (fruit)
Lime (fruit)
Lime is a term referring to a number of different citrus fruits, both species and hybrids, which are typically round, green to yellow in color, 3–6 cm in diameter, and containing sour and acidic pulp. Limes are a good source of vitamin C. Limes are often used to accent the flavors of foods and...
). In those days, both the Norway Maple
Norway Maple
Acer platanoides is a species of maple native to eastern and central Europe and southwest Asia, from France east to Russia, north to southern Scandinavia and southeast to northern Iran....
(Acer platanoides) and the Large-leaved Linden (Tilia platyphyllos) were called Leinbaum in German. Both species were common on the banks of the Eckbach. One difference between the species is the shape of the leaves: maple leaves are five lobed, lime leaves are undivided. The coat of arms of the House of Leiningen shows a stylized tree with five-lobed leaves and five-pointed flowers clearly point to a maple. The House of Leiningen originated in the area around the upper Eckbach. It is entirely possible that they named their ancestral castle after the river. The family was later named after their castle and the area around the upper Eckbach is now called Leininger Land.
In the early 19th century, the local name of the river was Eck, as it is today. The Kingdom of Bavaria
Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Bavarian Elector Maximilian IV Joseph of the House of Wittelsbach became the first King of Bavaria in 1806 as Maximilian I Joseph. The monarchy would remain held by the Wittelsbachs until the kingdom's dissolution in 1918...
acquired the Palatinate in 1816. When Bavarian cartographers mapped the area, they were unaware of the meaning of the word Eck and wanted to make it clear that the "Eck" is a brook, so they recorded the name as Eckbach. Linguistically speaking, this name means "brook brook".
Course
The Eckbach rises near CarlsbergCarlsberg, Germany
Carlsberg is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
in northern Palatinate forest. The spring is framed in sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
and is located southeast of A6
Bundesautobahn 6
, also known as Via Carolina is a 477 km long German autobahn. It starts at the French border near Saarbrücken in the west and end at the Czech border near Waidhaus in the east....
(Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken
Saarbrücken is the capital of the state of Saarland in Germany. The city is situated at the heart of a metropolitan area that borders on the west on Dillingen and to the north-east on Neunkirchen, where most of the people of the Saarland live....
- Mannheim) at a height of in the Kleinfrankreich ("Little France") section of the Hertlingshausen district of Carlsberg. The spring is marked by a so-called Knight Stone.
The area surrounding the upper Eckbach is known as the Leininger Land, after the noble family who dominated the area in the High Middle Ages. The Eckbach is the central watercourse in this area. This part of the river is managed by the , a division of the district Bad Dürkheim
Bad Dürkheim (district)
Bad Dürkheim is a district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Kaiserslautern, Donnersbergkreis and Alzey-Worms, the city of Worms, the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, the city of Neustadt/Weinstraße, the districts of Südliche Weinstraße, the city of Landau , the district...
. The river initially flows in an easterly direction through Hertlingshausen, then northeast through Altleiningen
Altleiningen
Altleiningen is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, where it receives water from the artificial 20-Röhren-Brunnen ("20 tubes wells"). In the northeastern outskirts of Altleiningen, the Eckbach takes up the 4 km long Rothbach from the left, then the 5 km long Höninger Bach from the right.
After flowing through the Eckbachweiher reservoir at Neuleiningen-Tal, the Eckbach breaks through the eastern edge of the Palatinate Forest, the Haardt, between the village of Battenberg
Battenberg
-Places:* Battenberg, Hesse, a town in Hesse, Germany* Battenberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany* Battenberg Mausoleum, mausoleum of Prince Alexander of Battenberg in Sofia, Bulgaria...
on the south bank and Neuleiningen
Neuleiningen
Neuleiningen is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
on the north bank. It reaches the Vines-lined hill surrounding the German Wine Route at Kleinkarlbach
Kleinkarlbach
Kleinkarlbach is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
. In Kirchheim an der Weinstrasse, the Eckbach, now flowing eastward, passes under the north-south-trending B271, then it flows through Bissersheim
Bissersheim
Bissersheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
. From there, the Eckbach flows in a northeasterly direction to Großkarlbach
Großkarlbach
Großkarlbach is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
, where it crosses the A 6 before flowing through Laumersheim
Laumersheim
Laumersheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
.
In Dirmstein
Dirmstein
Dirmstein is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
, the Eckbach takes up the 8 km long Floßbach, locally known as the Landgraben, which is the Eckbach's most voluminous tributary. To the left, that is, to the north of the Eckbach, the structure of the hills is clearly defined. There is a long stretch of low ridge with the three hilltops defining the divide between the Eisbach
Eisbach
The Eisbach is a small man-made river in Munich. It flows through the park Englischer Garten and is a tributary of the Isar River. A manmade wave has been created on one section....
and the Eckbach: the Wörschberg (163 m) north of the road connecting Obersülzen
Obersülzen
Obersülzen is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
and Dirmstein, the Schneckenberg (143 m) between Dirmstein and Offstein
Offstein
Offstein in the Wonnegau is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
and the Stahlberg (hill) (134 m) between Dirmstein and the Heppenheim district of Worms.
The area south and to the right or the Eckbach is flatter and the Großkarlbach-Laumersheim-Dirmstein-Gerolsheim
Gerolsheim
Gerolsheim is an Ortsgemeinde – a municipality belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde, a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- Location :...
area used to be a swampy lowland, which was used as pasture land. Furhter south lies the divide between the Eckbach and its southern neighbour, the Fuchsbach. This was a lift tributary of the Isenach
Isenach
TheIsenach is a left tributary of the Rhine in the northeastern Palatine region of Rhineland-Palatinate. It is nearly 36 km long.- Course :The Isenach rises in northern Palatinate forest, 2 km southwest of Carlsberg Hertlingshausen...
until the second half of the 20th century, whne most of its water was diverted into Schrakelbach. The area between Laumersheim, Dirmstein, Gerolsheim and Heuchelheim contains a number of irrigation canals: Weihergraben, Altbach, Kühweidegraben, Altgraben, Bittinggraben and Lerchengraben. These ditches begin as distributaries of the Eckbach and return to the Eckbach 4 to 8 km downstream, some of them directly into Eckbach, some flow into Schrakelbach. East of Heuchelheim and to the north of the Frankenthal Interchange, the A61
Bundesautobahn 61
is an autobahn in Germany that connects the border to the Netherlands near Venlo in the northwest to the interchange with A 6 near Hockenheim. In 1965, this required a re-design of the Hockenheimring....
crosses the Eckbach.
The Eckbach then flows past Beindersheim
Beindersheim
Beindersheim is a municipality in the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany....
. Just north of Beindersheim, it accepts from the right the Schrakelbach, which contains water from the Fuchsbach and from some of the irrigation canals mentioned earlier. The Eckbach the flows through the western part of the Upper Rhine Plain
Upper Rhine Plain
The Upper Rhine Plain, Rhine Rift Valley or Upper Rhine Graben is a major rift, straddling the border between France and Germany. It forms part of the European Cenozoic Rift System, which extends across central Europe...
, flowing northnortheast past the villages Großniedesheim
Großniedesheim
Großniedesheim is a municipality in the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany....
and Kleinniedesheim
Kleinniedesheim
Kleinniedesheim is a municipality in the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany....
. It continues northeast through Bobenheim, which is the northern part of Bobenheim-Roxheim
Bobenheim-Roxheim
Bobenheim-Roxheim is a municipality in the Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.It is situated approx. 5 km south of Worms, and 13 km northwest of Ludwigshafen....
. The next section is called Neugraben ("New Ditch") and flows stright north. To the southeast of Worms Airport, the Eckbach turns east.
The river then flows into the Wormser Ried nature reserve. It crosses the municipal border into Worms, where it is known as Leininger Graben. The last bridge across the Eckbach carries the B9. It flows past the recreational area Bürgerweide on the southern side, then into the Upper Rhine
Upper Rhine
The Upper Rhine is the section of the Rhine in the Upper Rhine Plain between Basel, Switzerland and Bingen, Germany. The river is marked by Rhine-kilometers 170 to 529 ....
at .