Geography of the Alps: Encyclopedia II - Geography of the Alps - Subdivision

Geography of the Alps - Subdivision

While smaller groups within the Alps may be easily defined by the passes on either side, defining larger units can be problematic. A traditional divide exists between the Western Alps and the Eastern Alps, which uses the Splügen Pass (Italian: Passo dello Spluga) on the Swiss-Italian border, together with the Rhine to the north and Lake Como in the south as the defining features. While the Splügen Pass is neither the lowest nor the most important pass in the Alps, it is approximately half-way along the main chain, and makes a convenient boundary.

At least within the Eastern Alps, a relatively simple geological division is possible, into the Northern Calcareous Alps, the Central Alps and the Southern Calcareous Alps. In the Western Alps, the geology is more complex.

The Western Alps are commonly subdivided into the following:

• Ligurian Alps (from Savona to Colle di Tenda)
• Maritime Alps (from Colle di Tenda to Colle de la Maddalena)
• Cottian Alps (from Colle de la Maddalena to Col du Mont Genevre)
• Dauphiné Alps (from Col du Mont Genevre to Col du Mont Cenis)
• Graian Alps (from Col du Mont Cenis to the Little Saint Bernard Pass)
• Pennine Alps (from the Little St. Bernard Pass to the Saint Gotthard Pass)
• Bernese Alps (to the north-west of the Furka Pass)
• Lepontine Alps (from Saint Gotthard Pass to Splügen Pass)
• Glarus Alps (north-east of Oberalp Pass)
• North-Eastern Swiss Alps (north of Sargans)

Within the Eastern Alps, the most widely used subdivision is the Alpenvereins-Einteilung (=alpine club's arrangement), which divides the region into about seventy small areas. See Northern Calcareous Alps, Central Eastern Alps and Southern Calcareous Alps for details.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Subdivision", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki