The plastic deformation and recrystallization behavior of the commercial magnesium alloys AZ31 and ME21 were analyzed in a wide temperature range. Using the conventional hyperbolic sine equation the flow stress dependence on temperature and strain rate was modeled. The activation energy for plastic deformation significantly increased with increasing temperature and delivered values above 180 kJmol(-1) for both alloys in the very high-temperature regime (400-550 A degrees C). At lower temperatures (250-400 A degrees C) the activation energy of the AZ31 alloy was approximately 108 kJmol(-1) considering the peak stress as well as 120 kJmol(-1) considering the flow stress at a strain of 0.5. The stress exponent varied in a range between 4.5 and 6.5. During the high-temperature compression tests a partial recrystallized microstructure was formed, which was distinctly different in AZ31 compared to ME21 due to the different onset of dynamic recrystallization (DRX) mechanisms.