Kuppe

A kuppe is the term used in German speaking central Europe for a mountain or hill with a rounded, dome like summit that carries no exposed rock formation such as a tor. When several such rounded summits cluster together they form what is called a kuppengebirge, a range of kuppe hills. The landform is most common across Europe Central Uplands and the Prealps, with notable examples in the Fichtel Mountains and Pohorje, and a particularly dense cluster in the Rhon Mountains, part of which is named the Kuppenrhon after the feature. The term also appears widely in German place names, including Wasserkuppe and Schneekoppe. In German language cartography the word has broadened to cover all biaxially convex, rounded eminences, even those with somewhat more angular profiles, and in petroleum geology the same word describes underground formations where oil or natural gas accumulates.