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The 'Neanderthal (Neandertal)' is a small valley of the river Düssel in the German Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the area of the towns Erkrath and Mettmann around their boarder, near the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, Düsseldorf. In 1856, the area became famous for the discovery of Neanderthal 1.
In 1901 an orthographic reform in Germany changed the spelling of ''Thal'' (valley) to ''Tal''. The scientific names like ''Homo neanderthalensis'' or ''Homo sapiens neanderthalensis'' for Neandertal man are not affected by this change, because the laws of taxonomy retain the original spelling at the time of naming.

The Neandertal was originally a limestone canyon widely known for its rugged scenery, waterfalls and caves. However, industrial mining during the 19th and 20th centuries removed almost all of the limestone and dramatically changed the shape of the valley. It was during such a mining operation that the bones of the original Neandertal man were found in a cave. Neither the cave nor the cliff in which it was located exist anymore.
During the 19th century the valley was called ''Neandershöhle'' (Neander's Hollow), and after 1850 ''Neanderthal'' (Neander Valley). It was named after Joachim Neander, a 17th-century German pastor. ''Neander'' is the Greek translation of his family name ''Neumann'' — both names meaning "new man". He lived nearby in Düsseldorf and loved the valley to give him the inspiration for his compositions. Former names of the gorge were ''Das Gesteins'' (The Rockiness) and ''Das Hundsklipp'' (Cliff of dogs, perhaps in a sense like "Beastly Cliff").

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External links

★ Neanderthal Museum