Avolsheim
| Avolsheim | ||
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Avolsheim in winter
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 Avolsheim
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Location within Grand Est region
Avolsheim
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| Coordinates: 48°33′44″N 7°30′07″E / 48.5622°N 7.5019°ECoordinates: 48°33′44″N 7°30′07″E / 48.5622°N 7.5019°E | ||
| Country | France | |
| Region | Grand Est | |
| Department | Bas-Rhin | |
| Arrondissement | Molsheim | |
| Canton | Molsheim | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor (2014–2020) | Françoise Hauss | |
| Area1 | 1.83 km2 (0.71 sq mi) | |
| Population (2010)2 | 728 | |
| • Density | 400/km2 (1,000/sq mi) | |
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | |
| INSEE/Postal code | 67016 /67120 | |
| Elevation | 164–362 m (538–1,188 ft) | |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. |
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1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
Avolsheim is a French commune in the Bas-Rhin department in the Grand Est region of north-eastern France.
The inhabitants of the commune are known as Avolsheimois or Avolsheimoises.
The commune has been awarded one flower by the National Council of Towns and Villages in Bloom in the Competition of cities and villages in Bloom.
Avolsheim is located some 22 km west by south-west of Strasbourg and 18 km north of Obernai. Access to the commune is by the D422 from Odratzheim in the north which passes through the centre of the commune and the town and continues south to Molsheim. The D127 goes east from the town to Dachstein. Apart from the significant sized urban area the commune is mixed forest and farmland.
The Bruche river flows north through the east of the commune and abruptly turns right near the northern border of the commune before continuing east to join a branch of the Rhine at Strasbourg. The Mossig river flows from the north-west forming the northern border of the commune before joining the Bruche.
The first written record of the name of a village in the current commune dates from the year 788 and is called Hunzolfesheim. It was found in 1051 spelled Avelsheim then Afelsheim in 1350 with a dialectal form Âfelse. In 1496 it was written Afeltzheim and in 1589 Avelssheim again but with two "s". Since then, the village has had its present name and its spelling has not changed.
The prefix offe (offen in German = "open") was the origin of the name Avolsheim and therefore means "Open Town". It is possible that this name was given to the village since it was devoid of walls, which in the Middle Ages was relatively rare.
There is an old local saying in dialect: Es steht offe wie Âfelse ("It is as open as Avolsheim") suggesting that at one time the steeple at Avolsheim, which remained so long in ruins so was "open to the sky", that this could have been the origin of its name. This argument, with the previous one, are confirmed by the popular phrase, Fescht wie Landau un Offe wie Âfelse meaning "A Fort (or fortified) like Landau or open like Avolsheim".
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Wikipedia