Southern Jutland (Danish: Sønderjylland) is the name for the region south of the Kongeå in Jutland, Denmark. The region north of the Kongeå is called Nørrejylland (Northern Jutland). Both territories had their own ting assemblies in the Middle Ages (in Viborg and Urnehoved). Southern Jutland is mentioned for the first time in the Knýtlinga saga.
In the 13th century South Jutland became a duchy. The first duke was Canute Lavard (Knud Lavard). In the late 14th century it took the name of the Duchy of Schleswig. The duchy was named after the city of Schleswig (Slesvig). The dukes of Schleswig also became kings of Denmark.
With the demise of the Holy Roman Empire of German Nation in the 19th Century, the term "Sønderjylland" was revieved by Denmark and became the subject of a naming dispute between Danes and Germans (the latter continuing the centuries old "Schleswig") - part of the struggle over possession of the territory itself, which came to war in 1848 and again in 1864.
Following the Schleswig Plebiscites in 1920, South Jutland was divided into Northern and Southern Schleswig. Northern Schleswig was also known as South Jutland County (1970–2006) and is now part of the Region of Southern Denmark. Southern Schleswig is a part of the German federal state Schleswig-Holstein.
Both parts cooperate today as a Euroregion, which covers most of Southern Jutland.
Read more about Southern Jutland: See Also
Famous quotes containing the word southern:
“As it grew darker, I was startled by the honking of geese flying low over the woods, like weary travellers getting in late from Southern lakes, and indulging at last in unrestrained complaint and mutual consolation. Standing at my door, I could hear the rush of their wings; when, driving toward my house, they suddenly spied my light, and with hushed clamor wheeled and settled in the pond. So I came in, and shut the door, and passed my first spring night in the woods.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)