The Black Forest

The Black Forest

The Black Forest is a large mountain range located in southwestern Germany. As the name suggests, it’s covered by a lush forest. The highest summit¹ of the range is the Feldberg mountain (1, 493 m above sea level). The region is widely known for its precious minerals as well as its rich history, culture and cooking style.

In ancient literature the region is first mentioned in the works of Pliny and Tacitus. Almost for 2000 years, from the 5th century BC up to the 16th century, the Black Forest was known only for its surplus of ore. Workers of the few settlements that were in the region made a living mining lead, silver and iron.

An outbreak of plague and the German Peasants’ War forced a decline of the region in the 16th century, through and all the way up to the beginning of the 18th century, when the mines were reopened, while lumbering and rafting² of precious timber solidified its prospects of economic prosperity.

The region’s relative seclusiveness³ coupled with an access to abundant mineral resources made people who lived in the Black Forest into artisan⁴ craftsmen. Even before the widespread advent⁵ of precision mechanics, the people of the Black Forest made additional income making wooden clocks and toys when mines and lumber mills were closed. When the Industrial Revolution dawned and a railway network made its way into the region, its clockmakers, jewelers and glassmakers became prominent throughout Europe.

In the 20th and 21st centuries the main industries of the region were power plants and tourism. Many of the mines were remade into museums, which are opened daily for the visitors. Numerous military conflicts of the Late Middle Ages, as well as those of early modern period, have left many archeological sites to discover, many of them pertaining⁶ to warfare, including more than 200 km of defensive fortifications. New archeological sites are still being discovered these days, and the full inventorying⁷ is still yet to be completed.

Someone who has no interest in history or industry can still find many interesting things to do there. The big lakes Titisee and Schluchsee are surrounded by small resort towns that offer miscellaneous water sport activities including deep diving. Each year the region sees a competition held between amateur and professional confectioners⁸ who aim to perfect an art of making the famous Black Forest gateau⁹.

Today the region makes use of developed transport infrastructure and is easily accessible from any other region of Germany. A bus ticket from Berlin to Freiburg, one of the largest cities in the region, will cost you approximately 30 euros.

1. ¹ summit (контекст. ) – вершина;

2. ² rafting (контекст. ) – сплав древесины по реке на плотах;

3. ³ seclusiveness – изоляция, удалённость;

4. ⁴ artisan – мастер своего дела;

5. ⁵ advent – появление, пришествие;

6. ⁶ pertaining – относящийся к чему-либо;

7. ⁷ inventorying – опись, инвентаризация;

8. ⁸ confectioners – кондитеры;

9. ⁹ gateau – кремовый торт.

Обратите внимание:

Названия «Шварцвальд» и The Black Forest эквивалентны; в традиции русского языка прижилась немецкая транскрипция, в английском – буквальный перевод. Название региона на немецком – Schwarzwald.

2 Перевод с русского на английский

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