Saterland

Saterland
Flag Coat of arms
Saterland
Location of Saterland within Cloppenburg district
Coordinates: 53°2′N 7°43′E / 53.033°N 7.717°E / 53.033; 7.717Coordinates: 53°2′N 7°43′E / 53.033°N 7.717°E / 53.033; 7.717
Country	Germany
State	Lower Saxony
District	Cloppenburg
Government
• Mayor	Hubert Frye (CDU)
Area
• Total	123.62 km2 (47.73 sq mi)
Population (2015-12-31)
• Total	13,283
• Density	110/km2 (280/sq mi)
Time zone	CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Postal codes	26683
Dialling codes	0 44 92 (Scharrel, Sedelsberg) 0 44 98 (Ramsloh, Strücklingen)
Vehicle registration	CLP
Website	www.saterland.de

Saterland (Saterland Frisian: Seelterlound) is a municipality in the district of Cloppenburg, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated between the cities of Leer, Cloppenburg, and Oldenburg. It is home to the ethnic group the Saterland Frisians whose language is still used.

The municipality of Saterland was formed in 1974, when the smaller municipalities Strücklingen (Strukelje in Saterland Frisian), Ramsloh (Roomelse), Sedelsberg (Seeidelsbierich) and Scharrel (Schäddel) were merged.

In medieval times, Saterland was a sandy region occupying an area of about 15 km long by 1–4 km wide surrounded by marshes. It was settled between the 10th and 13th centuries by Frisians from East Frisia. Being relatively isolated, the inhabitants developed their own form of the East Frisian language, Saterland Frisian, which survives to this day. The "Saterfriesen," as the speakers of this language are called in German, are the smallest minority recognized by the federal government.

On the area of the municipality of Saterland is the VLF transmitter DHO38, a large VLF transmitter of the German Navy for sending commands to submarines.