Rerik (; formerly Alt-Gaarz) is a town in the Rostock district, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Germany. It is situated on the Baltic Sea coast, 19km west of Bad Doberan, and 27km northeast of Wismar. In 1938, Rerik was named after the old Slavic-Scandinavian settlement Reric, that was believed to have been situated near present Rerik.

It is the setting for Alfred Andersch's debut novel, Flight to Afar (1957).

Rerik West

Rerik West, on a peninsula separated from the town itself by a small isthmus, was a military townlet (barracks town) for Soviet forces during the time of the German Democratic Republic. Following German reunification, it was abandoned in 1992 and declared a restricted area due to contamination by unexploded munitions. It is now a ghost town, and has become a haven for wildlife.

Notable people

• Wolfgang Hillebrandt (born 1944), astrophysicist

External links

• Commons category:Rerik-West

References