Alamannia

Alamannia / Alemania / Alamannus / Alemanii - There are many different names for the area and people that were basically the beginning of Germany.

In the 7th century, the original Alamannia was mostly comprised of 'historic Swabia', meaning it covered the majority of present-day Baden-Württemberg and eastern Switzerland.

According to The Historian's History of the World,

   Alamanni were subjugated by the Franks in 496 AD.
   Alamannia was formally incorporated with Germany in 920 AD. This is the first reference to 'Germany' in this text's timeline.
   The last reference to Alamannia is as a dukedom in 1097 AD.

From Frankish subjugation in 496 AD until the crowning of the first Holy Roman Emperor in 962 AD, Alemania fell under Frankish rule. After this time, Germany was a kingdom within the Holy Roman Empire with Alamannia as a dukedom. By the end of the 11th century, Alamannia was commonly being referred to as Swabia.

Also associated with Alamannia from the 8th century was the Island of Reichenau, which lies in Lake Constance in modern southern Germany. The Abbey of Reichenau was founded in 724 by the Saint Pirmin.

References

1. The Alamanni
2. Lexicon Universale, Historiam Sacram Et Profanam Omnis aevi, omniumque Gentium, 1698, Johann Jacob Hofmann. [Site is in German, original text is in Latin.]
3. History and Geography of Europe, Year 700
4. The Historians' History of the World, Vol XVII, Henry Smith Willams. London and New York: Hooper & Jackson, 1907. Page 57, 58
5. "Swabia." The Encyclopedia Britannica. Ed. Hugh Chisholm. 11th Ed. Vol 26. 1911. Page 176