Upper Palatinate

Oberpfalz is an administrative district in east-central Bavaria, located near the border between Germany and the Czech Republic. Measuring some 3742 square miles in area, t was a Bavarian province in 1838, and included the imperial city of Regensburg and its possessions, the historic Upper Palatinate area, and a few smaller principalities. It is drained southward by the Naab River, which rises in the Fichtel Hills and the districts portion of the Bohemian Forest. This river was once a major trade route and has some 100 late medieval castles in its valley. The Naab joins the Danube just above Regensburg. Large towns are found in the wider river valleys. Most industry is located in Amberg and Regensburg and in smaller cities in the Naab and Vils River basins. Oberpfalz is one of the smallest German regions in terms of population, its 1994 estimated population being only about 1,009,00 inhabitants.