Artificial dwelling hill

(Also called Warf, shipyards, Worth, mound, terpene or Wierde ) A mound is an artificially piled out of earth settlement mound, which serves to protect both humans and animals during storm surges. On a mound ( Warfen or Wurtendörfer ) can be found, depending on the extent of individual farms or village settlements. The shape of the mounds is usually round, but sometimes elongated. They occur in the north-west German marshy areas, in the North Sea to the islets as well as in the Netherlands and in the southwestern Denmark. The early as the 3rd century BC hills were formed long before the dike the only effective flood protection.

Name

For terp other terms are common, as Warf, mound, shipyard, Wierde. In terp there is a secondary t- expansion. Originally, and still today in Ostfriesland was the term Warf, which is derived " advertise ", and not, as is often assumed popular "throw" of. The equivalent name mound against it is probably connected with Werder, the original " island " means. In the Netherlands, they are used primarily in the provinces of Friesland, where they terp or Wierde called, and Groningen ago. In Denmark, they are called vaerfter.

The group includes also protect against the adjacent waters artificially increased economic spaces: the shipyard for shipbuilding and in English with the meaning wharf, warehouse ( - house ) '.

Initial descriptions

The first artificially raised mound in the coastal area have been dated to the 3rd century BC. Already the Roman chronicler Pliny in his Naturalis historia over the people of Chauken that lived along the North Sea coast 2000 years ago:

" We saw in the north called the nations of the Chauken that the larger and the smaller. In a great move, the sea pours there twice in the period of each day and each night over an infinite surface and reveals an eternal strife of nature in an area in which it is doubtful whether it belongs to the country or to the sea. There lived a deplorable people high mounds that are built with the hands according to the measure of the highest tide. In their huts they built the same sailors when the water covered the surrounding country they and shipwrecked when it has receded and their huts equal stranded ships alone are there. From their huts they hunt down remaining fish. They are not permitted, livestock keeping as their neighbors, not even to fight with wild beasts, as every shrubbery missing. From reeds and rushes they weave ropes to make nets for fishing from it. And as they dry the measures taken by the hands of mud more in the wind than in the sun, they heat their food and solidified from the Northwind members by earth. * Serves them to drink only rain water that is collected in the forecourt of mines. "

Terp

Terps have always served at " country in" for humans and livestock as a refuge. They were built for individual farms and also for villages.

Construction

Terp have a structure similar to a Rundlingsdorf. Their farms are arranged in a circle on the hill and stand with the face on Warftfuß outward. To the mound introduces Ringweg. Radiating from the center of the plants extend footpaths outwards, which continue as dirt roads in the corridor.

Since the entire hill acts like a sponge, there are in all settlements a pond -like depression as rainwater collection, called Fething. From this, the residents drew water for the cattle. Before the dike mounds were washed by sea water, so that no wells outside of the mound could be dug. The drinking water for the residents was collected in a special container, called Sood, into which the rain water was passed from the rooftops.

Development history of the terp

In a period of low sea level by the time of Christ emerged in many places in the north-west German Seemarschen initially flat settlements near the sea. As a result of rising flood levels stands, however, the level of the settlements had to be increased. These residents poured onto an annular, about 1 m high hill for each new house from dung and clay. Due to the constant increase arose yard or Kernwarften. From their merger to Dorfwarft larger terp villages such as Feddersen Wierde and Busenwurth formed on the 2nd and 3rd century AD on an elevated surface to 4 m over the surrounding countryside out.

After these ancient mounds were mostly abandoned in the 4th and 5th centuries, the re-population of Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein coast area by Frisians and Saxons began in the 7th century. Once again emerged in a phase of low sea level flat settlements that had to be increased again in the 9th century to mounds.

During the 1st millennium mounds with manure (possibly cover with clothes Soden), aufgewarftet since the 11th century mainly clothes were.

Mounds were built especially until the onset of the 11th century reclamation of the marshes and offered up to that point the only protection against storm surges. On the islets they are still the only flood protection.

Warftsiedlungen today

Along the German North Sea coast there are still many former terp. Examples of Schleswig -Holstein form Wellinghusen in Dithmar and North Frisia ( Tøfting, Elisenhof, Poppenbüll, Waygaard ). A large collection of old terp villages in East Frisia, the municipality Krummhoern, in particular through the village Rysum. In Friesland there are numerous mounds in the country Wanger, such as Minsen. More can be found in the independent city of Wilhelmshaven and in Butjadingen. In the Elbe -Weser Triangle in the mounds Wursten and Hadeln are well researched.

Original terp is often recognized by their on "warden " ending place-names: Breddewarden, Eckwarden, Einswarden, Fedderwarden, Golzwarden, Hammelwarden, long- Warden, Sengwarden (see Werder ).

A well -conserving Warftendorf in Wanger country is the village prosecuted ex Lerns at High churches. It has already been made ​​in 1937 under a preservation order, so that the old structure of infrastructure and farms remained. Here there is also the rain water collection, had the each mound. In a previous worker's house there is a Warfteninformationszentrum representative of the many similar facilities in the village Wanger country. Also in Wanger country lies the village Threw Wüppels. To the village square standing around church, school, village inn, poorhouse, Kusterhaus and Pastorei.

Newer Terps

On holms, which are protected at the most with a summer dike, mounds are indispensable. The mound with the largest area is three acres of the Hanswarft on the holm Hooge. The recent mound is completed after five years of construction 1896 Neupeterswarft on Langeneß; it is, however, abandoned since 1962, when the local residential building was destroyed by a storm surge.