Girkenroth
Encyclopedia
Girkenroth is an Ortsgemeinde – a community belonging to a Verbandsgemeinde
– in the Westerwaldkreis
in Rhineland-Palatinate
, Germany
.
at the foot of the Watzenhahn woodland. Since 1972 it has belonged to what was then the newly founded Verbandsgemeinde of Westerburg
, a kind of collective municipality.
in a municipal election on 13 June 2004.
formerly borne by the lesser noble family of Ottenstein, whose seat, albeit already forsaken in the 14th century, lay within Girkenroth’s current limits. A field’s name still recalls this seat. In the village itself the von Ottensteins had property in the Late Middle Ages
and early modern times.
The background tincture
green refers to the woodlands growing around the community and the pasture
farming that is important here to this day (there was a communal livestock herd until the 1960s). Agriculture
, as the most important basis for food production into the 20th century, is also symbolized by the golden grain ear. The three basalt
columns on a silver background are said to stand for the Watzenhahn basalt massif at whose foot Girkenroth lies. In this century, local quarry
ing has become an important source of income for the inhabitants.
8 leading from Limburg an der Lahn
to Siegburg
. The nearest Autobahn interchange
is Diez on the A 3 (Cologne
–Frankfurt). The nearest InterCityExpress
stop is the railway station at Montabaur
on the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed rail line.
Verbandsgemeinde
A Verbandsgemeinde is an administrative unit in the German Bundesländer of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saxony-Anhalt.-Rhineland-Palatinate:...
– in the Westerwaldkreis
Westerwaldkreis
The Westerwaldkreis is a district in the east of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany...
in Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate
Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the 16 states of the Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of and about four million inhabitants. The capital is Mainz. English speakers also commonly refer to the state by its German name, Rheinland-Pfalz ....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
.
Location
Girkenroth lies 7 km south of WesterburgWesterburg
Westerburg is a small town of roughly 6,000 inhabitants in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The town is named after the castle built on a hill above the mediaeval town centre -Location:...
at the foot of the Watzenhahn woodland. Since 1972 it has belonged to what was then the newly founded Verbandsgemeinde of Westerburg
Westerburg (Verbandsgemeinde)
Westerburg is a Verbandsgemeinde in the district Westerwaldkreis, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The seat of the Verbandsgemeinde is in Westerburg....
, a kind of collective municipality.
Community council
The council is made up of 13 council members, including the extraofficial mayor (Bürgermeister), who were elected in a majority votePlurality voting system
The plurality voting system is a single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member constituencies...
in a municipal election on 13 June 2004.
Coat of arms
The three blue bends on a golden background come from the armsCoat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
formerly borne by the lesser noble family of Ottenstein, whose seat, albeit already forsaken in the 14th century, lay within Girkenroth’s current limits. A field’s name still recalls this seat. In the village itself the von Ottensteins had property in the Late Middle Ages
Late Middle Ages
The Late Middle Ages was the period of European history generally comprising the 14th to the 16th century . The Late Middle Ages followed the High Middle Ages and preceded the onset of the early modern era ....
and early modern times.
The background tincture
Tincture (heraldry)
In heraldry, tinctures are the colours used to emblazon a coat of arms. These can be divided into several categories including light tinctures called metals, dark tinctures called colours, nonstandard colours called stains, furs, and "proper". A charge tinctured proper is coloured as it would be...
green refers to the woodlands growing around the community and the pasture
Pasture
Pasture is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs...
farming that is important here to this day (there was a communal livestock herd until the 1960s). Agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, as the most important basis for food production into the 20th century, is also symbolized by the golden grain ear. The three basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
columns on a silver background are said to stand for the Watzenhahn basalt massif at whose foot Girkenroth lies. In this century, local quarry
Quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
ing has become an important source of income for the inhabitants.
Transport
South of the community runs BundesstraßeBundesstraße
Bundesstraße , abbreviated B, is the denotation for German and Austrian national highways.-Germany:...
8 leading from Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn
Limburg an der Lahn is the district seat of Limburg-Weilburg in Hesse, Germany.-Location:Limburg lies in western Hesse between the Taunus and the Westerwald on the river Lahn....
to Siegburg
Siegburg
--122.148.78.228 05:06, 14 November 2011 Siegburg is a city in the district of Rhein-Sieg-Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany...
. The nearest Autobahn interchange
Interchange (road)
In the field of road transport, an interchange is a road junction that typically uses grade separation, and one or more ramps, to permit traffic on at least one highway to pass through the junction without directly crossing any other traffic stream. It differs from a standard intersection, at which...
is Diez on the A 3 (Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
–Frankfurt). The nearest InterCityExpress
InterCityExpress
The Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
stop is the railway station at Montabaur
Montabaur
Montabaur is a town and the district seat of the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. At the same time, it is also the administrative centre of the Verbandsgemeinde of Montabaur – a kind of collective municipality – to which 24 other communities belong...
on the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed rail line.