Gau (territory) Austria in 1938, the country, briefly renamed "Ostmark" between 1938 and 1942, was sub-divided into seven "Reichsgaue". These had boundaries broadly the same as the former Austrian "Länder" (states), with the Tyrol and Vorarlberg being merged as "Tyrol-Vorarlberg", Burgenland being divided between Styria and "Lower Danube" ("Niederdonau", the renamed Lower Austria). Upper Austria was also renamed "Upper Danube" ("Oberdonau"), thus eliminating the name of "Austria" ("Österreich" in German) from the official map. A small number of boundary changes also took place, the most significant of which was the massive expansion of Vienna's official territory, at the expense of "Lower Danube".
Vorarlberg Rhine Valley areas of Bregenz and Dornbirn, live about 180,000 people, around half the population of Vorarlberg. The "green lung" of this region is the Vorarlberg Ried, which is on the border with Switzerland and is surrounded by the settlements of Vorarlberg on three sides. Geographically the Lower Rhine Valley also includes the municipality of Altach. Due to its historical links with the municipality of Götzis and membership of the district of Feldkirch, Altach is often considered part of the Oberland. Vorarlberg Rhine Valley The Vorarlberg Rhine Valley (), also called the Vorarlberg Oberland and Unterland, is a section of the Alpine