Ludwigslust-Parchim District

Ludwigslust-Parchim, commonly abbreviated as LUP, is a rural district in the southwest of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. At it is the second largest district in all of Germany by area, only being surpassed by neighboring Mecklenburgische Seenplatte, while also having the lowest population density of the districts in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the sixth-lowest in Germany overall. Its territory comprises 145 municipalities, 16 thereof towns, most of which are administered by one of the 15 constituent Ämter in the district. The seat of the district administration is Parchim. It is a member of the Hamburg Metropolitan Region.

==Geography== The district lies in the southwest of the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern within the historical region of Mecklenburg. About half of the district is part of the Griese Gegend region, while the northwestern portions of the district, particularly near the town of Sternberg, are part of the Sternberger Seenlandschaft. The Elde river, originating from Altenhof in neighboring Mecklenburgische Seenplatte, flows through the whole southern length of the district, including through the towns Plau am See, Lübz, Parchim, Neustadt-Glewe, Grabow, and Dömitz. An outflow of the Lake Schwerin, the Stör, bisects the district and connects to the Elde by Neustadt-Glewe.