Zellertal

This article is about the collective municipality. For the local region, see Zellertal (region).

Zellertal is a municipality in the Donnersbergkreis district, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The villages of Zell [de], Harxheim and Niefernheim form Zellertal.

Zellertal
Municipality
Zeller Denkmal Niefernheim Harxheim Zell
Coat of arms
Location of Zellertal within Donnersbergkreis district
Zellertal Show map of Germany Zellertal Show map of Rhineland-Palatinate
Coordinates: 49°38′57″N 08°08′22″E
Country	Germany
State	Rhineland-Palatinate
District	Donnersbergkreis
Municipal assoc.	Göllheim
Subdivisions	3 Ortsteile
Government
• Mayor (2019–24)	Christian Lauer[1]
Area
• Total	6.93 km2 (2.68 sq mi)
Elevation	205 m (673 ft)
Population  (2023-12-31)[2]
• Total	1,145
• Density	170/km2 (430/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes	67308
Dialling codes	06355
Vehicle registration	KIB
Website	www.goellheim.de

Zellertal is located in the eponymous region, which in turn is part of the Palatinate wine region and borders on the Rhenish Hesse wine region.

Geography

Location

The three villages that make up the municipality are located between Worms and Kaiserslautern in the Rhenish-Hessian Hills. They are the easternmost part of Donnersbergkreis district. The Pfrimm river flows through Harxheim and Niefernheim, whilst Zell is located further up on the slope of Osterberg hill.

Neighbouring municipalities are Ober-Flörsheim, Mölsheim, Wachenheim, Kindenheim, Bubenheim, Immesheim and Einselthum.

Divisions

The municipality is divided into three villages:^[3]

Division	further inhabited places
Harxheim	Bannmühle, Jüngstmühle, Kurpfalzmühle
Niefernheim	Haus Lauer, Reitzenmühle
Zell	Klosterhof

Climate

Despite its location in the North Palatinate Zellertal has a milder climate then the rest of the district. It profits of the hillside to the north, protecting the valley from cold snaps. The east–west orientation guarantees a large amount of sunshine each day.

History

The name of Zell derives of the cell (Latin: cella) of Philipp of Zell an eremite and saint who lived in the area in the 8th century. His festival is celebrated yearly on the Sunday after 3 May.

In medieval times the three villages were owned by Hornbach Abbey and given as fief to the Counts of Leiningen.

The municipality in its current shape was formed on 1 January 1976 when the three municipalities of Harxheim (pop. 714), Niefernheim (pop. 188) and Zell (pop. 228) merged.

Demographics

Religion

The Catholics are part of the Diocese of Speyer, the Protestants of the Evangelical Church of the Palatinate. Zell has a church for each denomination, Harxheim has a Protestant one.

Population

The change in population from 1815 to 2017 in the current municipal borders.^[4]

Year population 1815 987 1835 1.148 1871 961 1905 978 1939 1.057 1950 1.341

Year population 1961 1.302 1970 1.261 1987 1.189 2005 1.246 2017 1.157

Politics

Council

The village council is composed of 16 members who were elected in a personalized proportional representation in the local elections on June 9, 2024, and the honorary mayor as chairman.^[5]

Heraldry

The coat of arms shows Saint Philipp of Zell, who could be seen on the three villages individual coats of arms. The grapes symbolise viticulture.

Culture and sights

Buildings

The village center of Zell is a protected architectural ensemble.

There are several more protected buildings like St. Philipp's Church, several old wineries or the Protestant church of Harxheim.

The most famous sight is the Ehrenmal known as Zeller Denkmal (Zell monument) in the vernacular. It was built in 1928 at the road between Zell and Mölsheim and has become a symbol of the whole region.

• 
  Saint Philipp's Church in Zell
• 
  Protestant Church of Zell
• 
  Winery in Niefernheim
• 
  Winery of the Dannenfelser family in Harxheim

Nature

There are four protected natural monuments in the municipality.

Festivals

St. Philipps festival is celebrated in May each year. The Parkfest in Zell is celebrated on the fourth weekend of July.

Economy and infrastructure

Economy

The local economy is based on viticulture and tourism related to viticulture. See Rhineland-Palatinate for a further description of the local viticulture. A wind farm is partly located in the municipal district.

Infrastructure

Roads

B47 federal road passes through the valley along the northern edge of Harxheim. Minor roads connect the villages to one another as well as to Albisheim or Ebertsheim.

Public transit

The three villages are served by bus lines 904 and 921 of the VRN. The latter runs hourly on weekdays between Kirchheimbolanden and Monsheim where trains to Mainz, Alzey or Worms can be reached. Line 904 runs to Göllheim and Eisenberg.

The eponymous Zeller Valley Railway has not been served by regular passenger trains since the 1980s. There was a two-hourly weekend service from 2001 to 2016. The station for the municipality is called Harxheim-Zell.

Education

Zellertal elementary school is attended by around 200 pupils.