Lake Constance

Lake Constance (German: Bodensee) is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee ("upper lake"), the Untersee ("lower lake"), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein.

The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps. Specifically, its shorelines lie in the German states of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, the Austrian state of Vorarlberg, and the Swiss cantons of Thurgau and St. Gallen. The Rhine flows into it from the south. It is approximately located at .

Lake Constance was first mentioned by the Roman geographer Pomponius Mela about AD 43. He noted that the Rhine flows through two lakes, and gave them the Latin names Lacus Venetus (Obersee) and Lacus Acronius (Untersee). Pliny the Elder used the name Lacus Brigantinus, after the Roman city of Brigantium (today Bregenz). The lake is also colloquially known as the Swabian Sea (das Schwäbische Meer).

The freshwater lake sits at 395 m above sea level and is Central Europe's third largest, after Lake Balaton and Lake Geneva. It is 63 km long, and at its widest point, nearly 14 km. It covers approximately 571 km² (208 mi²) of total area. The greatest depth is 252 m in the middle of the eastern part (Obersee). Its volume is approximately 55 km³. The lake has four parts: Obersee (main, 476 km²), Überlinger See (north, 61 km²), Untersee (west, 63 km²), and the Zeller See and Gnadensee (northwest). The regulated Rhine flows into the lake in the southeast, through the Obersee, the city of Konstanz and the Untersee and flows out near Stein am Rhein. Lake Constance provides fresh water to many cities in south Germany.

Lake Constance was formed by the Rhine Glacier during the ice age. The Rhine, the Bregenzer Ache, and the Dornbirner Ache carry sediments from the Alps to the lake, thus gradually decreasing the depth of the lake in the southeast.

The lake was frozen in the years 1077 (?), 1326 (partial), 1378 (partial), 1435, 1465 (partial), 1477 (partial), 1491 (partial?), 1517 (partial), 1571 (partial), 1573, 1600 (partial), 1684, 1695, 1709 (partial), 1795, 1830, 1880 (partial), and 1963.

Approximately 1000 tons of fish were caught by 150 professional fishermen in 2001 which was below the previous ten year average of 1200 tons per year. The Lake Constance trout (Salmo trutta) was almost extinct in the 1980s due to pollution, but thanks to protective measures has made a significant return.

The lake itself is an important drinking water source for south-west Germany called Bodenseewasserversorgung.

Car ferries link Romanshorn, Switzerland to Friedrichshafen, and Konstanz to Meersburg.

International borders

There is no legally binding agreement as to where the boundaries lie between Switzerland, Germany and Austria where these three countries meet in Lake Constance. While Switzerland holds the view that the border runs through the middle of the lake, Austria is of the opinion that the lake stands in condominium of all the states on its banks. Germany holds no unambiguous opinion. Legal questions pertaining to ship transport and fishing are regulated in separate treaties.

Naturally, disputes arise. One concerns a houseboat which was moored in two states, another concerns the rights to fish in the Bay of Bregenz. In relation to the latter, an Austrian family was of the opinion that it alone had the right to fish in broad portions of the bay. However, this was accepted neither by the Austrian courts nor by the organs and courts of the other states.

Recent floods

A 100-year flood around June 1999 (Pfingsthochwasser 1999) raised the level about 2 metres above normal, flooding harbors and many shoreline buildings and hotels.
In late August 2005, heavy rains raised the level by more than 70 cm in a few days. The rains caused widespread flooding and washed out highways and railroads.

Islands in the lake

The three major islands are: Mainau Island
Reichenau Island
Lindau

This is a complete list of the islands in Lake Constance, listed from east to west:

Towns and cities at the lake

Austria

Hard
Hörbranz
Bregenz
Lochau
Höchst
Fussach
Gaissau

Germany

From the entry of the Rhine, on the northern or right shore: On the Upper Lake (Obersee) and Überlinger See
Lindau (in Bavaria)
Wasserburg
Nonnenhorn
Kressbronn (in Baden-Württemberg)
Langenargen
Eriskirch
Friedrichshafen
Immenstaad
Hagnau
Stetten
Meersburg
Uhldingen-Mühlhofen (on Überlinger See)
Überlingen
Sipplingen
Bodman-Ludwigshafen
Konstanz with suburbs
Wallhausen
Dingelsdorf
Litzelstetten
On the lower lake (Untersee)
Reichenau (including the island with same name)
Allensbach (on Gnadensee)
Radolfzell (on Zellersee)
Moos
Gaienhofen
Öhningen

Switzerland

From the entry of the Rhine, on the southern or left shore: On the Upper Lake (Obersee)
Altenrhein, St. Gallen
Rorschach, St. Gallen
Horn, Thurgau
Steinach, St. Gallen
Arbon, Thurgau (as all the following)
Frasnacht
Egnach
Romanshorn
Uttwil
Kesswil
Güttingen
Altnau
Landschlacht
Münsterlingen
Bottighofen
Kreuzlingen (and Konstanz, Germany)
On the Rhine
Gottlieben
On the Lower Lake (Untersee)
Ermatingen
Mannenbach
Berlingen
Steckborn
Mammern
Eschenz
Stein am Rhein, Schaffhausen

Translation

The phrase "Lake Constance" occurs as such in the following languages: English, Simple English.

Translation(s) in other languages: Afrikaans: Bodenmeer, Alemannic: Bodensee, Arabic: بحيرة كونستانس, Bosnian: Bodensko jezero, Breton: Lenn Konstanz, Bulgarian: Боденско езеро, Catalan: Llac de Constança, Czech: Bodamské jezero, Welsh: Bodensee, Danish: Bodensøen, German: Bodensee, Estonian: Bodeni järv, Spanish: Lago de Constanza, Esperanto: Bodenlago, Basque: Konstantza lakua, French: Lac de Constance, Galician: Lago Constanza, Korean: 보덴 호, Croatian: Bodensko jezero, Indonesian: Danau Konstanz, Icelandic: Bodenvatn, Italian: Lago di Costanza, Hebrew: ימת קונסטנץ, Swahili: Ziwa la Konstanz, Latin: Lacus Bodamicus, Latvian: Bodenezers, Luxembourgish: Bodensee, Lithuanian: Bodeno ežeras, Hungarian: Bodeni-tó, Marathi: बोडन से, Dutch: Bodenmeer, Japanese: ボーデン湖, Norwegian (Bokmål): Bodensjøen, Norwegian (Nynorsk): Bodensjøen, Polish: Jezioro Bodeńskie, Portuguese: Lago de Constança, Romanian: Lacul Constanţa, Romansh: Lai da Constanza, Russian: Боденское озеро, Albanian: Liqeni i Bodenit, Slovak: Bodamské jazero, Slovenian: Bodensko jezero, Serbian: Боденско језеро, Finnish: Bodenjärvi, Swedish: Bodensjön, Turkish: Konstanz Gölü, Ukrainian: Боденське озеро, Urdu: جھیل کونسٹانس, Chinese: 博登湖.