lauben

Laube (plural Lauben) is a German term for several related architectural forms centered on outdoor shelter and leisure. In its most common sense, a Laube is a small garden building, typically a wooden or timber-framed hut with a roof and partial walls, designed as a sheltered place to sit, dine, or relax in a yard, park, or allotment garden. Such structures range from simple shacks to more elaborate pavilions and are often placed at the edge of a garden or within a grove.

A second sense refers to a covered street or passage formed by a continuous row of structures with a roof or arcade. These Lauben provide weather protection for pedestrians and often house small shops, cafés, or kiosks. The term expresses the idea of shelter and shade provided by a leafy or arched corridor.

The word is rooted in the German concept of shelter or shade and has long been part of Central European domestic and urban landscapes. Lauben are characteristic of historic garden design as well as older city cores, where they survive as heritage elements or are recreated in modern garden architecture.

In contemporary use, Lauben appear in private gardens, in parks as historical features, and in some tourist areas as preserved or reconstructed examples of traditional street architecture. They continue to symbolize outdoor leisure and vernacular building traditions.

See also: Laube, Laubengang.