The South Tyrol Alpine Club (, ), abbreviated AVS, is an association of German and Ladin-speaking mountain climbers in

South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...

, northern

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. Founded in 1946, it is subdivided into 36 sections and 58 local divisions. The AVS is based in

Bolzano Bolzano ( ; ; or ) is the capital city of South Tyrol (officially the province of Bolzano), Northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third largest in historical Tyrol. The ...

and has more than 76,000 members.

History

Originally, the

ean alpine club sections were members of the German and Austrian Alpine Club (''Deutscher und Österreichischer Alpenverein''). In 1869 the first sections were founded in Bozen and Niederdorf, Puster Valley. By 1910, 15 more sections had been established in South Tyrol. They initiated the construction of 19 mountain huts, an extensive network of paths through the mountains and training for mountain guides. After the end of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the annexation of South Tyrol by Italy and the coming into power of the

fascists Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural social h ...

, the South Tyrolean sections were disappropriated and banned in 1923 (see Italianization of South Tyrol). After the end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, on December 31, 1945, the military administration of the Allies permitted the foundation of the South Tyrol Alpine Club. Its inaugural meeting took place in Bolzano on 14 June 1946. Nowadays, the AVS takes care of more than 9,500 km of hiking trails and is involved in nature conservancy and South Tyrolean cultural issues as well. The club is a member of the

Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme The International Climbing and Mountaineering Federation, commonly known by its French name Union internationale des associations d'alpinisme (UIAA; ), was founded in August 1932 in Chamonix, France when 20 mountaineering associations met for ...

and the Club Arc Alpin. In 2007, the AVS finished its project to digitalise all hiking trails in South Tyrol.Website with the digitalised data

Notes

External links

Homepage of the Alpenverein Südtirol
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alpenverein Sudtirol Clubs and societies in Italy Climbing and mountaineering organizations Sport in South Tyrol Alpine clubs

History

Notes

See also

External links