Vegetation History of the German Landscapes

• Applicant: Dr. Walter Dörfler
• Subject Area: Prehistory and World Archaeology
• Term: from 2015 to 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 285995341

In 1949/52 Franz Firbas published the two-volume classic "Spät- und nacheiszeitliche Waldgeschichte Mitteleuropas nördlich der Alpen". Meanwhile, more than 65 years have passed. The aim of the project is to make the current state of knowledge on the vegetation and the settlement history accessible to a broad circle of specialist colleagues and interested people. With advances in dating methods, the landscape- and vegetation history of the last 15,000 years can be displayed along an absolute time scale, which was a vision of the future for Firbas. This makes it possible to work out and compare temporal differences in the development of vegetation and cultural landscape between the different landscapes.The chapters on typical geographical areas will be opened with a landscape image and include a presentation of the geographical features (geology, relief, soils, climate, pot. Nat. Vegetation, settlement history). The vegetation history depending on natural succession, climate and human influence will be in the focus . The spatial structure is based on the natural classification of Firbas (1952), but limited to the landscapes within the present borders of Germany. It is regarding to the natural spatial main units according to Meynen u. Schmitthüsen (1953-1962). A total of 38 regions with 5 to 20 pages each will be presented. The chapters on individual landscapes are preceded by a brief overview of the geographic and geological structure of Germany, the history of climate change in the Late Glacial and Holocene, as well as the archeology.It was possible to recruit colleagues from all regions who have the necessary expertise.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• Co-Investigators: Professor Dr. Felix Bittmann; Dr. Susanne Jahns; Professor Dr. Manfred Rösch; Dr. Steffen Wolters