Upper Austria, Austriai

Regional Level Types
Upper Austria	State
Austria	Country

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Upper Austria (Oberösterreich) is a federal state in northern Austria, covering approximately 11,980 km². It is bordered by Germany (Bavaria) to the north and west, the Czech Republic to the north-east, and the Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, and Salzburg to the east and south. The Danube River flows west to east through the centre of the state, forming a major geographic and economic axis. Upper Austria’s landscape ranges from the lowlands of the Danube valley and Alpine foreland in the north to mountainous terrain in the south, including parts of the Northern Limestone Alps.

Geologically, Upper Austria spans several major geological units. The northern part of the state lies within the Bohemian Massif, composed mainly of Precambrian and Palaeozoic crystalline rocks such as granite and gneiss. South of the Danube, the landscape transitions into the Molasse Basin, a foreland basin filled with Cenozoic sedimentary rocks derived from erosion of the rising Alps. The southernmost areas extend into the Northern Limestone Alps, dominated by thick sequences of Triassic and Jurassic limestones and dolomites that form steep alpine terrain, karst landscapes, and prominent mountain ranges.

This geological diversity underpins Upper Austria’s mineral and extractive heritage. Quarrying of limestone and dolomite has been particularly important, supplying raw materials for cement, lime, and construction. Granite from the Bohemian Massif has long been used as building stone, while clay deposits supported brick and ceramic industries. The region is also notable for salt mining, historically associated with Alpine areas of Austria more broadly, and for the use of natural resources to support early industry along the Danube. While large-scale metal mining has been limited, industrial minerals remain economically significant.

Administratively, Upper Austria is divided into 15 districts (Bezirke) and 3 statutory cities (Statutarstädte), with Linz as the state capital and a major industrial and cultural centre on the Danube. Upper Austria’s identity reflects its position between the Alpine world and the Central European lowlands, with landscapes, settlement patterns, and industries shaped by river systems, mountain geology, and long-standing use of mineral and natural resources.

Commodity List

This is a list of exploitable or exploited mineral commodities recorded from this region.

Mineral List

Mineral list contains entries from the region specified including sub-localities

188 valid minerals. 4 (TL) - type locality of valid minerals. 1 erroneous literature entry.

Rock Types Recorded

Rock list contains entries from the region specified including sub-localities