Hof, Bavaria in the context of "Fichtel Mountains"

East Franconian (German: Ostfränkisch [ˈɔstfʁɛŋkɪʃ] ), usually referred to as Franconian in German (Fränkisch [ˈfʁɛŋkɪʃ] ), is a dialect spoken in Franconia, the northern part of the federal state of Bavaria and other areas in Germany around Nuremberg, Bamberg, Coburg, Würzburg, Hof, Bayreuth, Meiningen, Bad Mergentheim, and Crailsheim. The major subgroups are Unterostfränkisch (spoken in Lower Franconia and southern Thuringia), Oberostfränkisch (spoken in Upper and Middle Franconia) and Südostfränkisch (spoken in some parts of Middle Franconia and Hohenlohe). Until the wholesale expulsion of Germans from Bohemia, the dialect was also spoken around Saaz (today: Žatec).

In the transitional area between Rhine Franconian in the northwest and the Austro-Bavarian dialects in the southeast, East Franconian has elements of Central German and Upper German. The same goes only for South Franconian German in adjacent Baden-Württemberg. East Franconian is one of the German dialects with the highest number of speakers.

Ogden (/ˈɒɡ.dən/ OG-dən) is a city in and the county seat of Weber County, Utah, United States, located approximately 10 miles (16 km) east of the Great Salt Lake and 40 miles (64 km) north of Salt Lake City. The population was 87,321 in 2020, according to the United States Census Bureau, making it Utah's eighth largest city. The city served as a major railway hub through much of its history, and still handles a great deal of freight rail traffic which makes it a convenient location for manufacturing and commerce. Ogden is also known for its many historic buildings, proximity to the Wasatch Mountains, and as the location of Weber State University.

Ogden is a principal city of the Ogden-Clearfield metropolitan area, which includes all of Weber, Morgan, Davis, and Box Elder counties. The 2010 Census placed the Metro population at 597,159. In 2010, Forbes rated the Metro as America's 6th best place to raise a family. Ogden has had a sister city relationship to Hof in Bavaria, Germany, since 1954.

Via Imperii (Imperial Road) was one of the most important of a class of roads known collectively as imperial roads (German: Reichsstraßen) of the Holy Roman Empire. This old trade route ran in a south–north direction from Venice on the Adriatic Sea and Verona in the Kingdom of Italy across the Brenner Pass through Germany to the Baltic coast passing the following cities:

• Innsbruck in the County of Tyrol
• Augsburg in the Prince-Bishopric of Augsburg
• the Imperial city of Nuremberg
• Bayreuth, Berneck, Münchberg and Hof in the Principality of Bayreuth
• Plauen, Mylau and Reichenbach in the Vogtland region
• Zwickau, Altenburg, Regis, Borna, Markkleeberg and Connewitz in the Margraviate of Meissen
• Leipzig – intersection with east–west Via Regia
• Wittenberg in Saxe-Wittenberg
• Cölln/Berlin, capital of Brandenburg
• Bernau bei Berlin
• Stettin in the Duchy of Pomerania

The cities on the route held the privilege of staple right, merchants were obliged to use the toll road and in turn enjoyed protection by the Imperial authority under the terms of the Landfrieden.