Andrea Kaufmann

The name "Dornbirn" derives from 'torrin puirron' and means 'Settlement of Torro' (an Alemannic farmer living there). This name is mentioned for the first time in 895, in a document from St. Gallen.  

In 1380 Dornbirn became part of the Habsburg Monarchy. It was elevated to a market community in 1793. It received a municipal status in 1901. The mountain village of Ebnit was annexed in 1932. Dornbirn became the seat of the new Dornbirn district administrative authority in 1969.

Dornbirn is a city and municipality located in the Austrian state of Vorarlberg. Municipality of Dornbirn includes the towns of Hohenems and Lustenau.  

Dornbirn is the largest city in Vorarlberg and the 10th biggest in Austria. The population of Dornbirn is 49,090 people (2017).

In Dornbirn are located the Vorarlberg's regional studio of the ORF (Austrian Broadcasting Corporation) and Zumtobel Lighting Group (an ATX traded company. Many other large companies are situated in Dornbirn.

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In the city

There is the obligatory town museum connected with the archives of Dornbirn, but of greater interest is the Museum of Natural History with a highly interactive exhibition. There is also a small art museum called “Kunstraum Dornbirn”, a museum of traditional nativity scenes and a Rolls-Royce Museum.  

Historic attractions are a few old houses around the town centre and the market square: The Rotes Haus or "red house" was built in 1639 and served as a pub. The martinskirche Church was built in 1839-40 and is mostly a historicist building of mediocre interest.


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Outdoors

The city does not boast an awful lot of attractions. Dornbirn welcomes mostly nature-lovers and aficionados of modern architecture. In the past 20-odd years, Vorarlberg has become a hot-bed for innovative architecture in Austria, and Dornbirn is one of the most significant examples of this trend.