Wiehl is a municipality and town in the Oberbergischer Kreis district of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, about 41 kilometers east of Cologne, with 25,213 residents as of December 2025 across 53.26 square kilometers. First recorded in 1131 under the name Wila, it did not gain official town status until 1971, and is home to the axle manufacturer BPW Bergische Achsen, founded in 1898, and to Merten, a historic electric wiring maker now part of Schneider Electric.
Facts
Area (sq km) Founding Year Founding Year Population Estimate Year Elevation (m) FAQs
Which document first mentions Wiehl?
A papal confirmation of 1131 for the St Cassius foundation in Bonn.
Wiehl is first mentioned in a document from 1131, in which Pope Innocent II confirmed the possessions and income of the St Cassius foundation in Bonn. The long list includes the farm and church at Wiehl with the whole tithe. Because tithes could only be collected from thriving settlements, Wiehl must be older than this first written record.
Sources
1. Wiehl (Wikidata)
P1082 (population)
population 25,213 (2025)
P625 (coordinate location)
latitude 50.95, longitude 7.533333
P2044 (elevation above sea level)
elevation 191 m
P2046 (area)
area 53.27 sq km
P1082 (population), P585 (point in time)
population 25213 (2025)
View the Source2. Wiehl (Wikipedia)
Source text, founding-year-range-start: 1131
Wiehl is first recorded in 1131 under the name of Wila.
Source text, founding-year-range-end: 1131
Wiehl is first recorded in 1131 under the name of Wila.
Source text, founding-year: 1131
Wiehl is first recorded in 1131 under the name of Wila.
- In Group: Cities of Western Europe (World), Wikipedia; part-of country and UN M49 subregion
On Continent: Europe, Lead paragraph names Germany; continent follows from the atlas record for Germany
a municipality in the Oberbergischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
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