Apetlon

Infobox Town AT
name=Apetlon
name_local=
image_coa = 100px-Apetlonw.jpg


state = Burgenland
regbzk =
district = Neusiedl am See
population =1849
population_as_of = 2005
population_ref =
pop_dens = 22
area = 82.2
elevation =
lat_deg=47
lat_min=45
lat_hem=N
lon_deg=16
lon_min=50
lon_hem=E
postal_code = 7143
area_code =
mayor = Ronald Payer
website =

Apetlon (Hungarian Mosonbánfalva) is a market town in the district of Neusiedl am See in Burgenland in Austria. It is located in a region to the east of the Lake Neusiedl (German: Neusiedlersee; Hungarian: Fertő tó) which is named the "Seewinkel" (lake corner).

Geography

Apetlon is in the Neusiedler See-Seewinkel National Park on the eastern shore of Lake Neusiedl. The town itself is 120 m above sea level. Nearby, an area 114 m above sea level is the lowest elevation of Austria. Characteristic of the area are wide open plains and salt marsh flora, with many small salt lakes around. The Lange Lacke (Long Lake) is the largest of about forty such lakes nearby.

History

The community has been documented for the first time above 1318. It was settled by German-speaking immigrants from Swabia. In 1897, the Austrian Empire was dissolved, and Austria-Hungary was formed, with separate governments in Vienna and Busapest. Since 1898, due to the Pro-Magyar politics in Budapest, the Hungarian village name Bánfalu was used.

After the First World War, Burgenland was named Deutsch-Westungarn (German-West Hungary) in the 1919 Treaty of St. Germain and the Treaty of Trianon and was awarded to Austria in 1919. Since 1921, the town has been part of the newly founded State of Burgenland. Apetlon has been a market town since 1991. In December 2001, the National Park Neusiedlersee was named a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Economy and infrastructure

In Apetlon the primary business is wine production. The city is surrounded by fields with grapevines in them. Tourism also is significant. Every year in May, many ornithologists from all over Europe to see the rare birds. Long before the establishment of the National Park, the Lange Lacke (Long Lake) already was an important nature reserve. Lange Lacke is the largest of about forty salt lakes near the town. It has more than 100 years of scientific data collected on bird life. The bird population and grape growers are in conflict, and farmers have sonic cannons in the fields to frighten birds from eating the grapes.

Language

Apetlonerisch is a dialect of the German Language with words borrowed from the Hungarian Language.

References

External link

* [http://www.nationalpark-neusiedlersee.org/ Neusiedler See-Seewinkel National Park] (German Language)