This Article is for all hiking and mountain enthusiasts. The Alps are by no means the highest mountains in the world, but they do give some European countries some pretty high mountains. Moreover this list is not intended to show the highest mountains in Central Europe as a whole (these are mainly in Switzerland), but […]
This Article is for all hiking and mountain enthusiasts. The Alps are by no means the highest mountains in the world, but they do give some European countries some pretty high mountains. Moreover this list is not intended to show the highest mountains in Central Europe as a whole (these are mainly in Switzerland), but to present the highest mountains in Italy, French, Austria, Switzerland and Germany.
LOCATION: The highest mountain in Central Europe is located on the border between France and Italy. As the French-Italian border runs along its ridge, it’s not totally clear where the highest point belongs to.
HIGHT: 4,810 m – 15.780 Feet
NAME: Mount Blanc is the French Name and Monte Bianco the Italian one. In translation both mean the white mountain. Which probably refers primarily to the snowy top and views. And this is the most boring name story in this list.
LOCATION: The Monte Rosa is located at the Switzerland and Italian border. And belongs to the Walliser alps.
HIGHT: 4,634 m – 5,203 feet
NAME: The Switzergerman Name is Dufourspitze. Its named after a Swiss general and cartographer: Guillaume Henri Dufour, who was the first person who drew an exact map of Switzerland in 1862. So Dafour is to honor this person and spitze just means top.
LOCATION: The Großglockner is the highest mountain in the Austrian Alps and belongs to the Hohe Tauern national park, which is by the way also the biggest national park in Austria.
HIGHT: 3,798 m – 12,461 feet
NAME: Well, there are different theories about its Name. It’s also not too easy to translate the Name into English. Groß is great and Glockner is a very old German word for a Bell or the person who rings the bell. And this leads us to the first name theory: It’s named after a bell as it looks like one. Another theory is about the bellwether of a sheep herd, which is called in German dialect a Glogga. And as the Großglockner is the highest mountain in the area, it is the leader there.
LOCATION: The Zugspitze is located in Bavaria in Germany and belongs to the Wetterstein Alps.
HIGHT: 2,962 m – 9,718 feet
NAME: There is a legend about a ghost witch called the Zugghost, who lived on and protected the mountain, which could be the namesake. However, besides this legend, there is also a more scientific explanation regarding the avalanches that always come down in the same areas and follow similar paths. Ultimately, the ghost is, and remains, just a legend. In reality, the name likely comes from the paths of the snow.