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The massif known in [[Latin language|Latin]] as ''Vosago mons '' or ''Vosego silva'', sometimes ''Vogesus mons'', was extended to the vast woods covering the region. Later, German speakers referred to the same region as ''Vogesen'' or ''Wasgenwald''.
Over the centuries, settlement population density (increased? needs a verb) gradually, as was typical for a forested region. Forests were cleared for agriculture, livestock and early industrial factories (such as [[charcoal]] works and [[glassworks]]) and the [[water mill]]s used [[hydropower|water power]]. Concentrations of settlement and immigration took place and not only in areas where [[minerals]] were found. In the [[mining]] area of the [[Lièpvrette]] valley, for example, there was an influx of Saxon miners and mining specialists. From time to time, wars, plagues and religious conflicts saw the depopulation of territories – in their wake it was not uncommon for people to be relocated there from other areas.
On the lower heights and buttresses of the main chain on the [[Alsace|Alsatian]] side are numerous castles, generally in ruins, testifying to the importance of this crucial crossroads of Europe, violently contested for centuries. At several points on the main ridge, especially at [[Sainte Odile]] above [[Ribeauvillé]] (German: Rappoltsweiler), are the remains of a wall of unmortared stone with tenons of wood, about {{cvt|1.8|to|2.2|m|ft|0}} thick and {{cvt|1.3|to|1.7|m|ft|0}} high, called the ''Mur Païen'' (Pagan Wall). It was used for defence in the [[Middle Ages]] and [[Archaeology|archaeologists]] are divided as to whether it was built by [[Roman Empire|the Romans]], or [[Gaul|before their arrival]].{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}}
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