Passau is a district in the southeast of Bavaria

Bavaria

Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...

. It encloses the city of Passau

Passau

Passau is a town in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is also known as the Dreiflüssestadt or "City of Three Rivers," because the Danube is joined at Passau by the Inn from the south and the Ilz from the north....

 geographically from two sides. Neighboring districts are (from the east clockwise) Rottal-Inn

Rottal-Inn

Rottal-Inn is a Kreis in the southeastern part of Bavaria, Germany. Neighboring districts are Altötting, Mühldorf, Landshut, Dingolfing-Landau and Passau...

, Deggendorf

Deggendorf (district)

Deggendorf is a district in Bavaria, Germany. It is bordered by the districts of Regen, Freyung-Grafenau, Passau, Rottal-Inn, Dingolfing-Landau and Straubing-Bogen.-History:The district was established in 1936...

, Freyung-Grafenau

Freyung-Grafenau

Freyung-Grafenau is a district in Bavaria, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Passau, Deggendorf, Regen, the Czech Republic and by Austria.-History:...

. To the south it borders Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

.

History

Archaeological findings prove that the area was settled more than 7000 years ago. In 1971 the district was created by merging the previous districts Wegscheid, Vilshofen, Griesbach (Rottal) and parts of the districts Pfarrkirchen and Eggenfelden. The city's original name was Batava (also known as Batavia) in Roman times. Passau survived three major fires, the biggest one being the all-destructive fire from 1662. After much of the city had burned down, bishops rebuilt it in Baroque style. To this day, massive cathedrals such as the St. Stephan's Dom (Dom means "cathedral" in German) stun visitors from all over the world. St. Stephan houses the world's largest church organ.

Geography

The district consists of two geographically different parts, separated by the river Danube

Danube

The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

. In the north is the southern part of the Bayrischer Wald

Bavarian Forest

thumb|The village of Zell in the Bavarian ForestThe Bavarian Forest is a wooded low-mountain region in Bavaria, Germany. It extends along the Czech border and is continued on the Czech side by the Šumava . Geographically the Bavarian Forest and Bohemian Forest are sections of the same mountain range...

 (Bavarian Forest) mountains with hills up to 1000 meter. In the south of the Danube

Danube

The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

 river the landscape is only hilly with plains between the valleys of the Inn and Ilz river.

Coat of arms

The bottom of the coat of arms show the blue-and-white checkered symbol of Bavaria. In the top part is a red wolf and a red panther. The wolf represents the abbey of Passau (Hochstift Passau), which is now the central part of the district. The panther is the symbol of the Wittelsbach

Wittelsbach

The Wittelsbach family is a European royal family and a German dynasty from Bavaria.Members of the family served as Dukes, Electors and Kings of Bavaria , Counts Palatine of the Rhine , Margraves of Brandenburg , Counts of Holland, Hainaut and Zeeland , Elector-Archbishops of Cologne , Dukes of...

 family, and it represents the area of the former districts Vilshofen and Griesbach.

Towns and municipalities

Towns	Verbandsgemeinden	Municipalities
Bad Griesbach (Rottal) Hauzenberg Hauzenberg Hauzenberg is a municipality in the district of Passau, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated 15 km northeast of Passau.... Pocking Pocking Pocking is a town in the district of Passau, in Lower Bavaria, Germany. It is situated about 30 km south-west of Passau, close to the Austrian border.-History:... Vilshofen Vilshofen an der Donau Vilshofen an der Donau is a town in the German district of Passau.-Demographics:ReligionThe population of Vislhofen is overwhelmingly Christian. In Vilshofen there is a Catholic Church, a Protestant Church and a new Apostolic Church...	Aidenbach Aidenbach Aidenbach is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Rotthalmünster Rotthalmünster Rotthalmünster is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Tittling Tittling Tittling is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Markt Aidenbach Aidenbach Aidenbach is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Eging am See Eging am See Eging am See is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Fürstenzell Fürstenzell Fürstenzell is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany. Fürstenzell is the birthplace of former Bayern Munich defender Klaus Augenthaler.... Hofkirchen Hofkirchen, Bavaria Hofkirchen is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Hutthurm Hutthurm Hutthurm is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Obernzell Obernzell Obernzell is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Ortenburg Ortenburg Ortenburg is a municipality and old market town in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.-History:Set in the Wolfach River valley, Ortenburg can look back over a 900 year history. In about 1120 it was established by the Princes of Ortenburg. At the same time the upwardly mobile von Kamm... Rotthalmünster Rotthalmünster Rotthalmünster is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Tittling Tittling Tittling is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Untergriesbach Untergriesbach Untergriesbach is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Wegscheid Wegscheid Wegscheid is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Windorf Windorf Windorf is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany....	Aicha vorm Wald Aicha vorm Wald Aicha vorm Wald is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Aldersbach Aldersbach Aldersbach is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany. The former Cistercian Aldersbach Abbey, of which the baroque church remains, is located in the village.... Bad Füssing Bad Füssing Bad Füssing is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Beutelsbach Beutelsbach Beutelsbach is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Breitenberg Breitenberg Breitenberg is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Büchlberg Büchlberg Büchlberg is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Fürstenstein Fürstenstein Fürstenstein is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Haarbach Haarbach Haarbach is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Kirchham Kirchham Kirchham is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Kößlarn Kößlarn Kößlarn is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Malching Malching Malching is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Neuburg am Inn Neuburg am Inn Neuburg am Inn is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Neuhaus am Inn Neuhaus am Inn Neuhaus is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Neukirchen vorm Wald Neukirchen vorm Wald Neukirchen vorm Wald is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Ruderting Ruderting Ruderting is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in south-east Germany.... Ruhstorf an der Rott Ruhstorf an der Rott Ruhstorf is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Salzweg Salzweg Salzweg is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany. It is located near the German border with Austria.... Sonnen Sonnen Sonnen is a small municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany. It is located in the Danube forest, lower Bavarian forest and is located mostly in the district Passau at a height of 700 to 900 meters. Sonnen lies 28 km from Passau, 9 km from Hauzenberg and from the forest... Tettenweis Tettenweis Tettenweis is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Thyrnau Thyrnau Thyrnau is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Tiefenbach Tiefenbach, Passau Tiefenbach is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany.... Witzmannsberg Witzmannsberg Witzmannsberg is a municipality in the district of Passau in Bavaria in Germany....

External links

• Official website (German)