Hallig

A Hallig (plural Halligen) is one of the ten small German islands without protective dikes in the North Frisian Islands on Schleswig-Holstein’s Wadden Sea-North Sea coast.

Related Topics:
German - Dikes - North Frisian Islands - Schleswig-Holstein - Wadden Sea - North Sea

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The name comes from a Celtic word hal, meaning “salt”, a reference to the low-lying land in the region which is often flooded over with saltwater by the tides. Owing to the commoner floodings in the Middle Ages, themselves the result of poorer coastal protection at that time, there were once more Halligen than there are today. A look at the maps on this page will demonstrate that this part of the North Sea coast is very much at the sea's mercy.

Related Topics:
Celtic - Saltwater - Tide - Middle Ages

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The Halligen have areas ranging from 7 to 956 ha, and are often former parts of the mainland, separated therefrom by storm tide erosion. Some are also parts of once much bigger islands sundered by the same forces. Sometimes, owing to sediment deposition, islands have actually grown together to form larger ones. The Hallig Langeneß (or Langeness) includes a former island by that same name, and two others that were called Nordmarsch and Butwehl.

Related Topics:
Mainland - Storm tide - Erosion

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Dwellings and commercial buildings are built upon metre-high man-made hills, called Warften in German, to guard against storm tides. Some Halligen also have overflow dikes.

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Not very many people live on the Halligen. Their livelihoods are mainly based on tourism, coastal protection, and agriculture. This last activity mainly involves cattle raising in the fertile, often flooded, salt meadows.

Related Topics:
Tourism - Agriculture - Cattle

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The Halligen are to be found in the Schleswig-Holsteinisches Wattenmeer National Park. The commercially developed Halligen Nordstrandischmoor, Gröde, Oland, Langeneß, and Hooge are surrounded by the protected area, but not an integral part of it. The smaller Halligen Habel, Südfall, Süderoog, and Norderoog as well as the Hamburger Hallig are parts of the national park. Walks on the tidal flats and informational meetings are offered by tourist boards and the park administration.

Related Topics:
Schleswig-Holsteinisches Wattenmeer National Park - Oland - Habel - Tidal flats

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The island of Mandø in the Danish part of the archipelago is also technically a Hallig, although it is far away from the other ten, which are quite near each other. Mandø can be reached from the mainland over the mudflats at low tide, when a tidal pathway (ebbevej in Danish, meaning "ebb-way") is above water.

Related Topics:
Mandø - Danish - Archipelago - Mudflat - Danish

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