The Lower Rhine region or Niederrhein (German pronunciation: [ˈniːdɐˌʁaɪn] ) is a region around the Lower Rhine section of the river Rhine in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, between approximately Oberhausen and Krefeld in the East and the Dutch border around Kleve in the West. As the region can be defined either geographically, linguistically, culturally, or by political, economic and traffic relations throughout the centuries, as well as by more recent political subdivisions, its precise borders are disputable and occasionally may be seen as extending beyond the Dutch border.
A cultural bond of the German Lower Rhine region is its Low Franconian language, specifically the Kleverlandish dialect (German: Kleverländisch, Dutch: Kleverlands), which includes the Dutch dialects just across the border. In the region's southeastern portion Bergish is spoken. Other typicalities of the area include the predominantly Catholic background as well as the Rhenish Carnival tradition.
