A double summit, double peak, twin summit, or twin peak refers to a

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher t ...

hill A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit. Terminology The distinction between a hill and a mountain is unclear and largely subjective, but a hill is universally considered to be not as ...

that has two

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for a m ...

s, separated by a

col In geomorphology, a col is the lowest point on a mountain ridge between two peaks.Whittow, John (1984). ''Dictionary of Physical Geography''. London: Penguin, 1984, p. 103. . It may also be called a gap. Particularly rugged and forbidding co ...

saddle The saddle is a supportive structure for a rider of an animal, fastened to an animal's back by a girth. The most common type is equestrian. However, specialized saddles have been created for oxen, camels and other animals. It is not kno ...

One well-known double summit is

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 ...

’s highest mountain, the Großglockner, where the main summit of the Großglockner is separated from that of the

Kleinglockner At the height of the Kleinglockner is the third highest mountain summit in Austria. However, with a prominence of only 17 metres it is arguable whether it can be counted as an independent mountain, or just as a subpeak of the Großglockner. It ...

by the Glocknerscharte col in the area of a geological fault. Other double summits have resulted from geological folding. For example, on Mont Withrow in

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...

, resistant sandstones form the limbs of the double summit, whilst the softer rock in the core of the fold was eroded.{{cite web , url=http://gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/natmap/cf/intro_e.php , title=Mt. Withrow syncline , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060404185911/http://gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/natmap/cf/intro_e.php , archive-date=2006-04-04 , access-date=2009-05-12 Triple peaks occur more rarely; one example is the Rosengartenspitze in the

Dolomites The Dolomites ( it, Dolomiti ; Ladin: ''Dolomites''; german: Dolomiten ; vec, Dołomiti : fur, Dolomitis), also known as the Dolomite Mountains, Dolomite Alps or Dolomitic Alps, are a mountain range located in northeastern Italy. They form pa ...

. The

Illimani Illimani ( Aymara) is the highest mountain in the Cordillera Real (part of the Cordillera Oriental, a subrange of the Andes) of western Bolivia. It lies near the cities of El Alto and La Paz at the eastern edge of the Altiplano. It is the seco ...

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

is an example of a rare quadruple summit.

Well known double summits (selection)

Well known double summits are (roughly from east to west):

Europe

Limestone Alps The Limestone Alps (german: Kalkalpen) are a mountain ranges system of the Alps in Central Europe. They are of economic importance, including as a watershed source of drinking water. They have many accessible dripstone and ice caves. Geography T ...

Schneeberg (Lower Austria) The Schneeberg, with its high summit ''Klosterwappen'', is the highest mountain of Lower Austria, and the easternmost and northernmost mountain in the Alps to exceed 2000 m. It is a distinctive limestone massif with steep slopes on three si ...

* Kaiserstein in the massif of the Wetterin,

Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered to ...

* Lugauer in the Gesäuse, Styria * Krippenstein (north of the

Dachstein Group Hoher Dachstein () is a strongly karstic mountain in central Austria and the second-highest mountain in the Northern Limestone Alps. It is situated at the border of Upper Austria and Styria, and is the highest point in each of those states. P ...

) * Bischofsmütze in the Dachstein region (

Gosaukamm The Gosaukamm is an Austrian mountain chain within the Dachstein range of the Northern Limestone Alps. Although relatively short in length, the chain forms an imposing backdrop to the valley and town of Gosau. Its highest point reaches an eleva ...

) * Brietkogel and the Eiskogel in the

Tennen Mountains The Tennen Mountains (german: Tennengebirge) is a small, but rugged, mountain range in the Northern Limestone Alps, which lies in front of the Eastern Alps for its entire length. It is a very heavily karstified high plateau, about 60 km² ...

Salzburg state Salzburg (, ; bar, Soizbuag, label= Austro-Bavarian) (also known as ''Salzburgerland'') is a state (''Land'') of the modern Republic of Austria. It is officially named ''Land Salzburg'' to distinguish it from its eponymous capital — the city of ...

Karlspitzen The Karlspitzen is a twin-peaked mountain in the middle of the Kaisergebirge range of the Northern Limestone Alps in Austria. The two peaks are the northern ''Hintere Karlspitze'' (2,281 m) and the southern ''Vordere Karlspitze'' (2,263 m) with ...

in the

Kaiser Mountains The Kaiser Mountains (german: Kaisergebirge, meaning ''Emperor Mountains'') are a mountain range in the Northern Limestone Alps and Eastern Alps. Its main ridges – are the Zahmer Kaiser and south of it the Wilder Kaiser. The mountains are s ...

* Roßstein and Buchstein,

Upper Bavaria Upper Bavaria (german: Oberbayern, ; ) is one of the seven administrative districts of Bavaria, Germany. Geography Upper Bavaria is located in the southern portion of Bavaria, and is centered on the city of Munich, both state capital and s ...

Klammspitze The Klammspitze is a double-summit mountain in Bavaria, Germany, north of Linderhof Linderhof Palace (german: Schloss Linderhof) is a Schloss in Germany, in southwest Bavaria near the village of Ettal. It is the smallest of the three palaces bui ...

in the

Ammergau Alps The Ammergau Alps (german: Ammergauer Alpen or ''Ammergebirge'') are a mountain range in the Northern Limestone Alps in the states of Bavaria (Germany) and Tyrol (Austria). They cover an area of about 30 x 30 km and begin at the outer edge ...

Guffert The Guffert is a high, isolated, prominent limestone alpenstock in the Brandenberg Alps (Rofan) that, together with the Guffertstein, forms a twin peak. It lies north of Steinberg am Rofan. Because it projects above the Mangfall Mountains to th ...

in the

Rofan The Brandenberg Alps (german: Brandenberger Alpen) are a sub-group of the Northern Limestone Alps, that run in front of the Eastern Alps for their whole length. They lie entirely in Austria between Achensee in Tyrol, the Inn Valley and the Bavari ...

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

Grauspitz The Grauspitz (''Vorder Grauspitze'' or ''Vorder Grauspitz'' on some maps) is a mountain in the Rätikon range of the Alps, located on the border between Liechtenstein and Switzerland. With an elevation of above sea level, the Grauspitz is the ...

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German language, German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constit ...

* Furchetta in the Geisler Group (?) * Altmann in the

Alpstein The Alpstein are a subgroup of the Appenzell Alps in Switzerland. The Alpstein massif is in Appenzell Innerrhoden, Appenzell Ausserrhoden and St. Gallen. Despite it being rather low when compared to other Alpine peaks – the highest mountai ...

, East Switzerland

Central Alps

* Großglockner * Seekarspitze (Schladming Tauern) * Gleichenberge (Styria) *

Lasörling The Lasörling is a mountain, , and the highest summit in the eponymous range that stretches from the Virgental to the Defereggental valleys opposite the Großvenediger. Occasionally the mountain is also called the "''Großer'' Lasörling" (" ...

in the Großvenediger,

High Tauern The High Tauern (pl.; german: Hohe Tauern, it, Alti Tauri) are a mountain range on the main chain of the Central Eastern Alps, comprising the highest peaks east of the Brenner Pass. The crest forms the southern border of the Austrian states of S ...

Unterberghorn The Unterberghorn () in the Austrian district of Kitzbühel in Tyrol is the highest peak between the mountain ranges of the Wilder Kaiser and Loferer Steinberge. The horn or pyramidal peak has two summits - its subpeak is the ''Hefferthorn'' (1 ...

in eastern North Tyrol * Wilde Kreuzspitze in the

Zillertal Alps The Zillertal Alps ( it, Alpi Aurine; german: Zillertaler Alpen) are a mountain range of the Central Eastern Alps on the border of Austria and Italy. Name The range is named after the Zillertal (Ziller river valley) on its north. Geography Th ...

* Rofelewand in the

Ötztal Alps The Ötztal Alps ( it, Alpi Venoste, german: Ötztaler Alpen) are a mountain range in the Central Eastern Alps, in the State of Tyrol in western Austria and the Province of South Tyrol in northern Italy. Geography The Ötztal Alps are arrayed ...

* Watzespitze in the Kaunergrat, Ötztal Alps *

Wildspitze Wildspitze () is the highest mountain in the Ötztal Alps and in North Tyrol, as well as the second highest mountain in Austria after the Großglockner and in terms of Topographic prominence, prominence (2261 m) is the fourth summit of the Alps a ...

in the Weißkamm, Ötztal Alps * Schwarzhorn and Weißhorn in

South Tyrol it, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano – Alto Adige lld, Provinzia Autonoma de Balsan/Bulsan – Südtirol , settlement_type = Autonomous province , image_skyline = , image_alt ...

* Ortstock,

Glarus Alps The Glarus Alps (german: Glarner Alpen) are a mountain range in central Switzerland. They are bordered by the Uri Alps and the Schwyz Alps to the west, the Lepontine Alps to the south, the Appenzell Alps to the northeast. The eastern part of ...

Aiguille du Dru The Aiguille du Dru (also the Dru or the Drus; French, Les Drus) is a mountain in the Mont Blanc massif in the French Alps. It is situated to the east of the village of Les Praz in the Chamonix valley. "Aiguille" means "needle" in French. Th ...

in the

Mont Blanc Mont Blanc (french: Mont Blanc ; it, Monte Bianco , both meaning "white mountain") is the highest mountain in the Alps and Western Europe, rising above sea level. It is the second-most prominent mountain in Europe, after Mount Elbrus, and i ...

massif * Aiguille Verte in the Mont Blanc region

Other mountain ranges of Europe

Smolikas Mount Smolikas ( el, Σμόλικας; rup, Smolcu) is a mountain in the Ioannina regional unit, northwestern Greece. At a height of 2,637 metres above sea level, it is the highest of the Pindus Mountains, and the second highest mountain in Gre ...

(Bogdani and Kapetan Tsekouras) in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wit ...

* Bubenik in

Upper Lusatia Upper Lusatia (german: Oberlausitz ; hsb, Hornja Łužica ; dsb, Górna Łužyca; szl, Gōrnŏ Łużyca; pl, Łużyce Górne or ''Milsko''; cz, Horní Lužice) is a historical region in Germany and Poland. Along with Lower Lusatia to th ...

Strohmberg Strohmberg is a mountain of Saxony, southeastern Germany In earlier times there was a Basalt Basalt (; ) is an aphanite, aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in m ...

in Upper Lusatia * Špičák (Sattelberg) in the Ore Mountains * Burgstadtl in the

Duppau Mountains Doupov Mountains ( cs, Doupovské hory, german: Duppauer Gebirge) is a cenozoic volcanic mountain range with the typical structure of stratovolcano. The centre of the stratovolcano was in the place of a former town of Doupov. The highest mounta ...

* Schanzberge near Tischberg,

South Bohemia The South Bohemian Region ( cs, Jihočeský kraj; , ) is an administrative unit (''kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located mostly in the southern part of its historical land of Bohemia, with a small part in southwestern Moravia. The western part ...

* Schwarze Mauer and Kamenec on the

Upper Austria Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, an ...

n- Bohemian border * Großer Auerberg in the Harz *

Ehrenbürg The Ehrenbürg is a double-peaked butte on the edge of the Franconian Jura in Bavaria, Germany. It is in the district of Forchheim in Upper Franconia, in the municipalities of Kirchehrenbach, Leutenbach and Wiesenthau. The north peak is the 51 ...

, a Zeugenberg in

Franconian Switzerland Franconian Switzerland (german: Fränkische Schweiz) is an upland in Upper Franconia, Bavaria, Germany and a popular tourist retreat. Located between the River Pegnitz in the east and the south, the River Regnitz in the west and the River Main i ...

* Hohenstoffeln (volcano in the

Hegau The Hegau is an extinct volcanic landscape in southern Germany extending around the industrial city of Singen (Hohentwiel), between Lake Constance in the east, the Rhine River in the south, the Danube River in the north and the Randen—as the so ...

) *

Berguedà Berguedà () is an inland comarca (county) in Catalonia, Spain, lying partly in the Pyrenees and Pre-Pyrenees, and partly in the Catalan Central Depression. Geography The northern half of Berguedà, known as Alt Berguedà (“Upper Berguedà� ...

in the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...

Pen y Fan Pen y Fan () is the highest peak in South Wales, situated in the Brecon Beacons National Park. At above sea-level, it is also the highest British peak south of Cadair Idris in Snowdonia. It is the highest point ( county top) of the historic co ...

in the

Brecon Beacons The Brecon Beacons ( cy, Bannau Brycheiniog, ) are a mountain range in South Wales. In a narrow sense, the name refers to the range of Old Red Sandstone peaks which lie to the south of Brecon. Sometimes referred to as "the central Beacons" t ...

Asia

* Hasan Dağı in the region of

Cappadocia Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde. According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Re ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

* Ushba in

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to t ...

Elbrus Mount Elbrus ( rus, links=no, Эльбрус, r=Elbrus, p=ɪlʲˈbrus; kbd, Ӏуащхьэмахуэ, 'uaşhəmaxuə; krc, Минги тау, Mingi Taw) is the highest and most prominent peak in Russia and Europe. It is situated in the we ...

(twin-peaked volcano) in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, mainly comprising Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia (country), Georgia, and parts of Southern Russia. The Caucasus Mountains, including the Greater Caucasus range ...

Raja Gyepang ''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being atte ...

in Central Lahaul,

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

* Machapucharé in the

Annapurna Annapurna (; ne, अन्नपूर्ण) is a mountain situated in the Annapurna mountain range of Gandaki Province, north-central Nepal. It is the tenth highest mountain in the world at above sea level and is well known for the diffic ...

massif in the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over ...

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is ma ...

Chogolisa Chogolisa ( ur, from ''Chogo Ling Sa''; literally "Great Hunt") is a trapezoidal mountain in the Karakoram range in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan. It lies near the Baltoro Glacier in the Concordia region, which is home to some of the ...

in the

Karakorum Karakorum ( Khalkha Mongolian: Хархорум, ''Kharkhorum''; Mongolian Script:, ''Qaraqorum''; ) was the capital of the Mongol Empire between 1235 and 1260 and of the Northern Yuan dynasty in the 14–15th centuries. Its ruins lie in t ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

Broad Peak Broad Peak ( ur, ) is a mountain in the Karakoram on the border of Pakistan and China, the twelfth-highest mountain in the world at above sea level. It was first ascended in June 1957 by Fritz Wintersteller, Marcus Schmuck, Kurt Diemberger ...

with pre- and main summit in the Karakorum, China/Pakistan *

Gasherbrum IV Gasherbrum IV ( ur, گاشر برم -4; ), surveyed as K3, is the 17th highest mountain on Earth and the 6th highest in Pakistan. It is one of the peaks in the Gasherbrum massif. The Gasherbrums are a remote group of peaks located at the n ...

, southern neighbour of Broad Peak in the Karakorum, Pakistan

Other mountain regions

* Mont Ross on the

Kerguelen Islands The Kerguelen Islands ( or ; in French commonly ' but officially ', ), also known as the Desolation Islands (' in French), are a group of islands in the sub-Antarctic constituting one of the two exposed parts of the Kerguelen Plateau, a l ...

* Pico Duarte on

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

(Dominican Republic) * Chaupi Orco in the

Andes The Andes, Andes Mountains or Andean Mountains (; ) are the longest continental mountain range in the world, forming a continuous highland along the western edge of South America. The range is long, wide (widest between 18°S – 20°S ...

* Ancohuma in the Andes * The Brothers in the

Olympic Mountains The Olympic Mountains are a mountain range on the Olympic Peninsula of the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are not especially high – Mount Olympus is the highest at ; however, the east ...

(USA/Washington) * Double Peak in the

Cascade Mountains The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...

(USA/Washington) *

Kaufmann Peaks Kaufmann Peaks is a 3,110 and 3,094 metre double summit mountain located on a ridge between the Howse River valley and Mistaya River valley of Banff National Park, in the Canadian Rockies of Alberta, Canada. The nearest higher neighbor is Mount S ...

Banff National Park Banff National Park is Canada's oldest national park, established in 1885 as Rocky Mountains Park. Located in Alberta's Rocky Mountains, west of Calgary, Banff encompasses of mountainous terrain, with many glaciers and ice fields, dense conif ...

Canada

References

Summits Geodesy Cartography Physical geography Slope landforms Topography Oronyms