Greifensee (lake)

Greifensee () is a natural lake in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.

Geography

Greifensee is located to the east of the city of Zürich, separated by the Pfannenstiel from Lake Zurich. As the second largest lake in the canton of Zürich (Lake Zurich being the largest), it is about long and at the widest point, with a maximum depth of . The Aabach (Greifensee) (or just Aa) is the main supplying river, while its outlet is the Glatt. On its southeastern end the Mönchaltorfer Aa (or just Aa) enters the Greifensee.

Nature The lakeside is under UNESCO protection, and buildings are not allowed, resulting in reed bed and a rich fauna and flora: Around 400 plant species in the lake and 19 species in its tributaries. The nature reserves are important for the birds breeding there including more than 120 migratory species.

Cultural heritage The lake was known as Glattsee (after the Glatt) in the medieval timesMure bi Glattese, Orig ZUB VI; 2285; 248 (1294); Mure bi Glatse, Orig ZUB VIII; 3097; 349 (1311). Greifensee (Grifense) was at first the name of the fort built by the counts of Rapperswil in the 12th century, recorded as the name of the bailiwick in 1260.The name is presumably from a personal name Grifo, but was etymologised as related to Greif "griffin" from at least the 15th century. Heinrich Meyer, Die Orstnamen des Kantons Zürich: aus den Urkunden gesammelt und erläutert (1848), p. 169. This was adopted as the name of the lake by the 16th century.von Murr ab dem Gryffensee, GHR 55, 67, 83, 84, 85 (1504); Conradi Türst, De situ Confoederatorum descriptio (1544) "Et iterum dominatum circa paludem Griffense cum vico eiusdem vocabuli ac servitute, qui interseccatur v mille passibus a Turego, de quo ad bis mil. pass, contermina eacdem paludi arx Ustri"

Located on the banks, the Prehistoric pile dwelling settlement Greifensee–Storen–Wildsberg is part of the 56 Swiss sites of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps, and the settlement is also listed in the Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance as a Class object. Because the lake has grown in size over time, the original piles are now around to under the water level of .

The noted Swiss author Robert Walser wrote a short literary piece or feuilleton about the lake which was published in 1898, titled “Greifen Lake.” The story is re-published in English in the collections A Schoolboy's Diary and Masquerade and Other Stories. In the short story, the narrator chooses to visit Greifen Lake rather than the bigger famous Zurich Lake.

Greifensee (lake)

Bron en licentie