Kerpen



Kerpen (Ripuarian: Kerpe) is the most populated town in the Rhein-Erft-Kreis (North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany). It is located about 20 kilometres southwest from Cologne. As of 2022, Kerpen has a total population of 67,239.

Division of the town
The town of Kerpen was created in 1975, when the previously independent municipalities Balkhausen, Blatzheim, Brüggen, Buir, Horrem, Kerpen, Manheim, Mödrath, Sindorf and Türnich were merged.

Monuments

 * Burg Bergerhausen
 * Burg Loersfeld
 * Schloss Türnich

Notable people

 * Adolph Kolping (1813–1865), Catholic priest and social reformer
 * Wolfgang von Trips (1928–1961), Formula One motor racing driver
 * Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928–2007), pioneer of electronic music composition
 * Franz-Peter Hofmeister, Olympic medalist in the 4 × 400 m relay
 * Michael Schumacher, 7-time Formula One world champion
 * Ralf Schumacher, brother of Michael, both have emulated von Trips in achieving success in Formula One
 * Patrice Bart-Williams is an acclaimed reggae artist

Education
In 2008, Gymnasium der Stadt Kerpen was considered the largest school in Germany.

Twin towns – sister cities
Kerpen is twinned with:
 * 🇧🇪 St. Vith, Belgium (1975)
 * 🇵🇱 Oświęcim, Poland (1997)