1900 for good yields. Beginning in 1770, 31 inhabitants emigrated. Out of 180 inhabitants, eight fell in the First World War and two went missing in action. In the Second World War, of the 56 soldiers from Auen, 23 fell and 4 went missing. In the course of the 1969 administrative restructuring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Auen was grouped into the Verbandsgemeinde of Bad Sobernheim. In 1993, the Auener Chronik, the village chronicle, was published. In recent years, Auen has grown into a residential community fit for tourism that has still not lost its rustic character. Municipality’s name Auen is a placename that describes a settlement or a homestead. Only beginning in the mid 18th century did the current spelling “Auen” establish itself as the customary one. In Modern High German, the name literally means “floodplains” or “riverside flats”, and indeed this would seem to be its derivation. Thus it is Germanic, but from Celtic dhwö, from Proto-Indo-European akua (“water”), a(z)wjö (“island”). It is akin to the Latin aqua (“water”) and the Old High German auw(i)a (“land at, in or near water”). Over the ages, Auen has borne the following names: 1047: Auwen 1124: Auwen 1488: dorff Awen 1588: Awen 1601: Dörflein Awen 1720: Gemeind Awen 1731: Auwen 1758: Auen 1761: Auen Population development Auen has always been a small village that has never emerged from the shadows. In 1437/1438, the village's population was recorded as 8 hearths (for which read “households”). Between 1580 and 1600, there were 81 inhabitants living at 18 hearths, and in 1808 there were 152 inhabitants in Auen. The table shows Auen's population development since Napoleonic times. The figures in the table from 1871 to 1987 are based on censuses: Religion As at 31 August 2013, there are 193 full-time residents in Auen, and of those, 96 are Evangelical (49.741%), 55 are Catholic (28.497%), 3 (1.554%) belong to other religious groups and 39 (20.207%) either have no religion or will not reveal their religious affiliation. Politics Municipal council The council is made up of 6 council members, who were elected by majority vote at the municipal election held on 7 June 2009, and the honorary mayor as chairman. Mayor Auen's mayor is Torsten Baus. Coat of arms The German blazon reads: Schild durch silbernen Schrägbalken geteilt, der mit einem Schwarzen A belegt ist. Oben blau-goldenes Schach, unten in Blau eine goldene Abtskrümme. The municipality's arms might in