schürfen

Schürfen (lowercase schürfen) is a term from mining language that denotes the act of searching for mineral resources by digging. As a verb, schürfen means to prospect for ore or minerals and, in some contexts, to perform small-scale, manual extraction. The word is used mainly in German-speaking regions and in historical or hobby contexts.

In practice, schürfen includes manual digging, trenching, taking test pits, and collecting samples to assess the presence and grade of minerals. In gold or placer prospecting, it may also involve panning, sluicing, or shallow surface digging. It generally refers to reconnaissance work or small-scale activity, in contrast to industrial mining operations, which are described with terms such as Bergbau.

Historically, schürfen played a significant role in early mining and in rural economies where individuals searched hillsides, riverbeds, and outcrops for valuable minerals. In modern regulation, related concepts such as Schürfrecht denote the right to prospect in a given area, often subject to environmental and land-use rules.

Because of regional and historical variation, the exact meaning of schürfen can differ: in some contexts it emphasizes discovery and sampling rather than extraction. The term is primarily found in German-language sources and academia dealing with mining history and prospecting.