The Almabtrieb (in

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

: Alpabzug, Alpabfahrt, or in

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

speaking Switzerland: Désalpes;

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a ...

literally: ''drive from the mountain pasture'') is an annual event in the alpine regions in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

, referring to a cattle drive that takes place in late September or early October. During summer, all over the alpine regions

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...

herds feed on alpine

pasture Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep, or sw ...

s (''Almen'' in Austria or Germany, ''Alpen'' in Switzerland) high up in the mountains, a practice known as

transhumance Transhumance is a type of pastoralism or nomadism, a seasonal movement of livestock between fixed summer and winter pastures. In montane regions (''vertical transhumance''), it implies movement between higher pastures in summer and lower val ...

. In numbers, these amount to about 500,000 in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, 380,000 in

, and 50,000 in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

. While there is often some movement of cattle between the ''Almen'' (sing.: ''Alm''), or ''Alpen'' (sing.: ''Alp'') respectively, during the summer, there is usually one concerted cattle drive in the autumn to bring the cattle to their barns down in the valley. If there were no accidents on the ''Alm'' during the summer, in many areas the cattle are decorated elaborately, and the cattle drive is celebrated with music, feasts and dance events in the towns and villages. Upon arrival in the valley, joint herds from multiple farmers are sorted in the ''Viehscheid'', and each animal is returned to its owner. In several places this Alpine custom of ''Almabtrieb'' has today evolved into a major

tourist Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism ...

attraction, with a public festival, and booths set up along the course for selling agricultural, as well as artisans', products along with alcoholic beverages. In the spring, the reverse cattle drive moves from the valley barns to the ''Alp'' (in Switzerland: ''Alpaufzug'', ''Alpfahrt'', ''Alpauffahrt''; in Germany/Austria: ''Almauftrieb''). It is celebrated in Switzerland. One of the first films produced in Switzerland in 1896 showed an Alpaufzug. It is not celebrated in Germany and Austria, however.

References

See also