Country Germany District Cloppenburg Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2) Area 123.6 km² Local time Thursday 4:34 AM Dialling code 0 | State Lower Saxony Elevation 5 m (16 ft) Postal codes 26683 Population 12,883 (31 Dec 2008) Postal code 26683 | |
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Weather 4°C, Wind NE at 10 km/h, 73% Humidity | ||
Saterland (Saterland Frisian: Seelterlound) is a municipality in the district of Cloppenburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated between the cities of Leer, Cloppenburg, and Oldenburg. It is home to the ethnic group the Saterland Frisians whose language is still used.
Contents
Map of 26683 Saterland, Germany
Division of the municipality
The municipality of Saterland was formed in 1974, when the smaller municipalities Strücklingen (Strukelje in Saterland Frisian), Ramsloh (Roomelse), Sedelsberg (Seeidelsbierich) and Scharrel (Schäddel) were merged.
History
In medieval times, Saterland was a sandy region occupying an area of about 15 km long by 1–4 km wide surrounded by marshes. It was settled between the 10th and 13th centuries by Frisians from East Frisia. Being relatively isolated, the inhabitants developed their own form of the East Frisian language, Saterland Frisian, which survives to this day. The "Saterfriesen," as the speakers of this language are called in German, are the smallest minority recognized by the federal government.
Notable places
On the area of the municipality of Saterland is the VLF transmitter DHO38, a large VLF transmitter of the German Navy for sending commands to submarines.