Calvörde

Calvörde
Calvörde roofs with St George's Church
Coat of arms
Calvörde
Location of Calvörde within Börde district
Coordinates: 52°23′44″N 11°17′48″E / 52.39556°N 11.29667°E / 52.39556; 11.29667Coordinates: 52°23′44″N 11°17′48″E / 52.39556°N 11.29667°E / 52.39556; 11.29667
Country	Germany
State	Saxony-Anhalt
District	Börde
Municipal assoc.	Flechtingen
Government
• Mayor	Volkmar Schliephake (CDU)
Area
• Total	122.09 km2 (47.14 sq mi)
Population (2015-12-31)
• Total	3,488
• Density	29/km2 (74/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	39359, 39638
Dialling codes	039051, 039056, 039058, 039059
Vehicle registration	BK
Website	www.calvoerde.de

Calvörde (German pronunciation: [kalˈføːʁdə]) is a municipality in the Börde district of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is part of the Verbandsgemeinde ("collective municipality") Flechtingen.

Calvörde is situated approximately 15 kilometres (9.3 miles) northwest of Haldensleben and 37 km (23 mi) northwest of the state capital Magdeburg. It is located between the Drömling range in the west and the Flechtingen Hills in the south. In the north, it borders on Gardelegen in the Altmarkkreis Salzwedel district. The main settlement Calvörde proper lies between the Ohre River and the parallel Midland Canal.

The municipal area comprises 11 localities (Ortsteile):

Archaeological excavations in the area date back to the Iron Age Jastorf culture about 600-300 BC. The settlement its welf was first documented in 1196, probably named after a ford crossing the Ohre river at the place where today still is a bridge. A trade route which came from Leipzig and Magdeburg in the southeast crossed the river here, leading northwestwards to Lüneburg and Hamburg, with a branch-off to Braunschweig in the west. Calvörde is possibly derived from "bleak (kahl) ford", however, according to local tradition, the emergence of the ford is attributed to a man named Kale and the historic meaning is "Kale's ford".