{"id":7337,"date":"2016-06-15T08:46:07","date_gmt":"2016-06-15T08:46:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/?p=7337"},"modified":"2017-12-08T13:49:27","modified_gmt":"2017-12-08T13:49:27","slug":"german-nationalparks-part-12-vorpommersche-boddenlandschaft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/german\/german-nationalparks-part-12-vorpommersche-boddenlandschaft\/","title":{"rendered":"German Nationalparks \u2013 Part 12: Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft"},"content":{"rendered":"

In previous months, we have already explored a large part of the gesch\u00fctzte Sch\u00f6nheit\u00a0<\/em>(protected beauty) of German nature.\u00a0We went to the windige K\u00fcsten\u00a0<\/em>(windy shores) of the\u00a0Wattenmeer<\/a>, <\/em>the\u00a0eindrucksvolle Felsen\u00a0<\/em>(impressive rocks) of the\u00a0S\u00e4chsische Schweiz<\/a>, <\/em>the\u00a0Jahrhunderte alten W\u00e4lder\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>(centuries old forests) of the\u00a0Bayerischer Wald<\/a><\/em>, the\u00a0Erzminen\u00a0<\/em>(ore mines) in the\u00a0Harz<\/a>,<\/em>\u00a0the\u00a0<\/em>Tiger\u00a0<\/em>(tigers) roaming around in the\u00a0Eifel<\/a>,\u00a0<\/em>the\u00a0Tausend Seen\u00a0<\/em>(thousand lakes) of\u00a0M\u00fcritz<\/a><\/em>, the hohe Gebirge\u00a0<\/em>(high mountain ranges) of\u00a0Berchtesgaden<\/a>, <\/em>and the atemberaubende Natur\u00a0<\/em>(stunning nature) of the\u00a0Schwarzwald<\/a><\/em>. We discovered the\u00a0bedrohten<\/em>\u00a0Kreidefelsen\u00a0<\/em>(threatened chalk cliffs) of\u00a0Jasmund<\/a><\/em>. Last time, we visited\u00a0Hainich<\/a><\/em>, and its\u00a0Alte Buchen\u00a0<\/em>(old beeches). Last week, we went to\u00a0Hessen<\/em>, to\u00a0Nationalpark Kellerwald-Edersee\u00a0<\/em>with the\u00a0Staudamm\u00a0<\/em>(dam) of the\u00a0Edersee<\/em> and its old forests.<\/p>\n

This time, we will move north again, close to\u00a0Nationalpark Jasmund<\/em>:\u00a0Nationalpark Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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The National Parks in Germany (Image by Lencer at Commons.wikimedia.org under license CC BY SA 3.0)<\/p><\/div>\n

Der Nationalpark\u00a0Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft<\/em><\/strong><\/a><\/h3>\n

Nationalpark Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft\u00a0<\/em>is quite a mouthful! It was established on October 1, 1990, as part of the\u00a0Nationalparkprogramm\u00a0<\/em>(National park program) of the\u00a0DDR\u00a0<\/em>(German Democratic Republic, GDR, or East Germany). Part of this program were also\u00a0Nationalparks Jasmund<\/em>, S\u00e4chsische Schweiz, M\u00fcritz\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0Harz<\/em>. It is a huge park, the third largest of Germany. It takes up\u00a0a part of the island\u00a0R\u00fcgen\u00a0<\/em>(where\u00a0Jasmund<\/em> is located), a part of the\u00a0Festland\u00a0<\/em>(mainland) of\u00a0Bundesland\u00a0<\/em>(Federal State)\u00a0Mecklenburg-Vorpommern<\/em> and a part of the\u00a0Ostsee\u00a0<\/em>(Baltic Sea).<\/p>\n

But let’s look at that name.\u00a0Nationalpark\u00a0<\/em>is clear. Check the first post<\/a> for what they are all about. They are like the US State Parks.\u00a0Vorpommersche\u00a0<\/em>quite clearly refers to\u00a0Vorpommern\u00a0<\/em>(Western Pomerania or Hither Pomerania). The North-Eastern part of Bundesland Mecklenburg-Vorpommern\u00a0<\/em>is actually\u00a0Vorpommern<\/em>, and this is also where you can find the park in the State, so also that makes sense.<\/p>\n

But what is a\u00a0Boddenlandschaft<\/em>?\u00a0Landschaft\u00a0<\/em>(landscape, countryside) just tells us that this is an area characterized by\u00a0Bodden<\/em>. But what are\u00a0Bodden<\/em>?<\/p>\n

Bodden\u00a0<\/em>translated to English gives the same word:\u00a0Bodden. So that doesn’t help much. But we have a definition from Wikipedia<\/a>: “Bodden are briny bodies of water often forming lagoons, along the southwestern shores of the Baltic Sea, primarily in Germany’s state of <\/em>Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.”\u00a0<\/em>So\u00a0Bodden\u00a0<\/em>are basically shallow waters that form lagoons, which are the result of waters cut off from the main water (here the Ostsee\u00a0<\/em>(Baltic Sea)) by an island, for example. This explains why\u00a0Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft\u00a0<\/em>is also translated as “Western Pomerania Lagoon Area”. And if it has its own word, it must be special. Guess why it is a protected\u00a0Nationalpark<\/em>!<\/p>\n

What does\u00a0Bodden\u00a0<\/em>mean itself, though? It is assumed that this comes from the German word\u00a0Boden<\/em> (ground, bottom, soil), referring to the shallowness of the water, as it is so close to the ground. And in the North-German dialect, this can lead to the word\u00a0Bodden<\/em> – short\u00a0o<\/em> instead of a long one.<\/p>\n

Anyway, back\u00a0to the park!<\/p>\n

What is special about the\u00a0Nationalpark Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft?<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Die Lagunen<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n