| Art | Ortsgemeinde |
|---|---|
| Wappen | Wappen Lautzenhausen.png |
| Lat deg | 49 | lat_min = 56 | lat_sec = 17 |
| Lon deg | 7 | lon_min = 16 | lon_sec = 23 |
| Lageplan | Lautzenhausen in SIM.svg |
| Bundesland | Rheinland-Pfalz |
| Landkreis | Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis |
| Verbandsgemeinde | Kirchberg |
| Höhe | 470 |
| Fläche | 5.00 |
| Einwohner | 403 |
| Stand | 2006-12-31 |
| Plz | 55483 |
| Vorwahl | 06543 |
| Kfz | SIM |
| Gemeindeschlüssel | 07 1 40 082 |
| Adresse | Auf der Hurt 2 55483 Lautzenhausen |
| Website | Lautzenhausen |
| Bürgermeister | Siegward Bongard |
Until the 1950s, the village was characterized by agriculture. This changed when the air base – now a civil airport – was built. It was first planned by the French in 1946, but was, however, subsequently built by the Americans. They named it “Hahn Air Base” after nearby Hahn because, as a local joke had it, they could not pronounce “Lautzenhausen”. This is highly unlikely to be true, for the name “Lautzenhausen” () would present no pronunciation difficulties to an English speaker. A somewhat likelier explanation is that a great part of the air base lay within Hahn’s limits, as can be seen in some plans from the time it was built. Since the base’s main gate stood right at the entrance to Lautzenhausen, a cutoff point arose right in the municipality between military and civilian zones. For the municipality, it was a divide that lasted decades. Buildings, some of which had been used for farming, were converted, and new buildings were added. They eventually housed hotels, inns, bars and businesses associated with a red-light district, so that the G.I.’s from the base could be offered something by way of recreation during their off-duty time.
The municipality’s arms might in English heraldic language be described thus: Tierced in mantle, each side chequy Or and azure, in base azure a village fountain with two spouts argent, on a chief of the second a pair of wings conjoined of the third.
The “chequy” pattern and the predominant tinctures (Or and azure, that is, gold and blue) refer to the former lordly landholders in the area, the Counts of Sponheim (from the “Further” County, in this case). For decades, Lautzenhausen was in close association with the United States Air Force’s Hahn Air Base, which held considerable economic importance to the municipality. Standing for this is the charge on the chief, a pair of wings. In base is a stylized representation of a long vanished village fountain, meant to recall the community’s focal point, and by extension, the sense of community that is so basic to village life.
The use of the German word schwarz (“black”) in the title does not refer to the gravel’s colour, but rather imparts the meaning “bootleg” or “illegal”.
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