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Germany

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Countries; European
Countries

                      Bundesrepublik Deutschland
   Federal Republic of Germany

   Flag of Germany Coat of arms of Germany
   Flag            Coat of arms
   Motto: Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit
   (German for "Unity and Justice and Freedom”)
   Anthem: Das Lied der Deutschen (3rd stanza)
   also called Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit
   Location of Germany
   Capital
   (and largest city)   Berlin
                        52°31′N 13°24′E
    Official languages  German ^1
   Government           Federal Republic
    - President         Horst Köhler
    - Chancellor        Angela Merkel ( CDU)
        Formation
    - Holy Roman Empire 843 ( Treaty of Verdun)
    - Unification       January 18, 1871
    - Federal Republic  May 23, 1949
    - Reunification     October 3, 1990
     Accession to EU    March 25, 1953
                        ( West Germany)
                                 Area
    - Total             357,050 km² ( 63rd)
                        137,858 sq mi
    - Water (%)         2.416
                              Population
    - 2005 estimate     82,438,000 ( 14th)
    - 2000 census       n/a
    - Density           230.9/km² ( 50th)
                        598.5/sq mi
        GDP ( PPP)      2005 estimate
    - Total             $2.522 trillion ( 5th)
    - Per capita        $30,579 ( 17th)
      GDP (nominal)     2005 estimate
    - Total             $2.797 trillion ( 3rd)
    - Per capita        $33,854 ( 19th)
       HDI  (2004)      0.932 (high) ( 21st)
         Currency       Euro ( €)^2 ( EUR)
        Time zone       CET ( UTC+1)
    - Summer ( DST)     CEST ( UTC+2)
       Internet TLD     .de ^3
       Calling code     +49
   ^1 Danish, Low German, Sorbian, Romany and Frisian are officially
   recognised and protected as minority languages by the ECRML.
   ^2 Prior to 1999 (introduction of the euro as legal tender) and 2002
   (introduction of the euro as physical notes and coins): Deutsche Mark.
   ^3 The .eu domain is also used, as it is shared with other European
   Union member states.

   Berlin
   Dortmund
   Frankfurt
   Gelsenkirchen
   Hamburg
   Hanover
   Kaiserslautern
   Cologne
   Leipzig
   Munich
   Nuremberg
   Stuttgart

   Germany (German: Deutschland IPA: [ˈdɔɪtʃlant]), officially the Federal
   Republic of Germany (German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland ( help· info),
   IPA: [ˈbʊndəsrepubliːk ˈdɔɪtʃlant]), is a country in Central Europe. It
   is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea,
   to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic, to the south by Austria
   and Switzerland, and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the
   Netherlands. Within its borders are a portion of the Alps, the famous
   Rhine and Danube rivers, and the Black Forest. Its capital is Berlin;
   many of the governmental institutions, ministries as well as embassies
   were moved to Berlin from Bonn (now Federal City of Bonn), the former
   capital of West Germany, in 1999.

   Germany is a democratic parliamentary federal republic, made up of 16
   states (Bundesländer), which in certain spheres act independently of
   the federation. Historically consisting of several sovereign states
   with their own history, distinct German tribe dialects, culture and
   religious beliefs, Germany was unified as a nation state amidst the
   Franco-Prussian War in 1871.

   The Federal Republic of Germany is a member state of the United
   Nations, NATO, the G8 and the G4 nations, and is a founding member of
   the European Union. It is the European Union's most populous and most
   economically powerful member state.

History

   The state now known as Germany was unified as a modern nation-state
   only in 1871, when the German Empire, dominated by the Kingdom of
   Prussia, was forged. This began the German Reich, usually translated as
   empire, but also meaning kingdom, domain or realm.

Early history of the Germanic tribes (100 BC – AD 300)

   The ethnogenesis of the Germanic tribes is assumed to have occurred
   during the Nordic Bronze Age, or at the latest, during the Pre-Roman
   Iron Age in southern Scandinavia and northern Germany, from the first
   century BC expanding south, east and west, coming into contact with
   Celtic tribes of Gaul and Iranian, Baltic and Slavic tribes in Eastern
   Europe. Little is known about early Germanic history, except through
   their interactions with the Roman Empire and archaeological finds.

   Under Augustus, the Roman General Drusus began to invade Germany, and
   it was from this period that the German tribes became familiar with
   Roman tactics of warfare while maintaining their national identity. In
   AD 9, three Roman legions led by Publius Quinctilius Varus were crushed
   by the Cheruscan leader Arminius (Hermann) in the Battle of the
   Teutoburg Forest. Germany as far as the Rhine and the Danube therefore
   remained outside the Roman Empire. By 100, the time of Tacitus'
   Germania, Germanic tribes settled along the Rhine and the Danube (the
   Limes Germanicus), occupying most of the area of modern Germany. The
   3rd century saw the emergence of a number of large West Germanic tribes
   — Alamanni, Franks, Chatti, Saxons, Frisians, Sicambri, Thuringians.
   Around 260, the Germanic peoples broke through the Limes and the Danube
   frontier.

The Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation (843-1806)

   The prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. From Bildatlas der
   Deutschen Geschichte by Dr Paul Knötel (1895)
   Enlarge
   The prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. From Bildatlas der
   Deutschen Geschichte by Dr Paul Knötel (1895)

   The medieval empire stemmed from a division of the Carolingian Empire
   in 843, which was founded by Charlemagne on December 25, 800, and
   existed in varying forms until 1806, its territory stretching from the
   river Eider in the north to the Mediterranean coast in the south. Often
   referred to as the Holy Roman Empire (or the Old Empire), it was
   officially called the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation ("Sacrum
   Romanum Imperium Nationis Germanicæ") since 1448 to adjust the title to
   its then reduced territory.

   Under the reign of the Ottonian emperors (919–1024), the duchies of
   Lorraine, Saxony, Franconia, Swabia, Thuringia and Bavaria were
   consolidated and in 962 the German king was crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
   Under the reign of the Salian emperors (1024–1125), the Holy Roman
   Empire absorbed northern Italy and Burgundy. Under the Hohenstaufen
   emperors (1138–1254) the German princes were increasing their influence
   further south and east.

   The edict of the Golden Bull in 1356 provided the basic constitution of
   the empire up to its dissolution. For three hundred years starting in
   1438, the Emperors were elected nearly exclusively from the Austrian
   Habsburg family.

   In 1530, a separate Protestant church was acknowledged as the new state
   religion in many states of Germany. This led to inter-German dispute,
   the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648). From 1740 onwards the dualism
   between Austria and Prussia dominated the Empire's history. In 1806 the
   Imperium was overrun and dissolved as a result of the Napoleonic Wars.

Restoration and revolution (1814-71)

   "The students way" up to the Wartburg 1817
   Enlarge
   "The students way" up to the Wartburg 1817
   Frankfurt Parliament in 1848/49
   Enlarge
   Frankfurt Parliament in 1848/49

   Following Napoleon's fall and the end of the Confederation of the
   Rhine, the Congress of Vienna convened in 1814 in order to restructure
   Europe. In Germany, the German Confederation was founded, a loose
   league of 39 sovereign states. Disagreement with the restoration
   politics partly led to the lifestyle called Biedermeier and to
   intellectual liberal movements, which demanded unity and freedom during
   the Vormärz epoch, each followed by a measure of Metternich's
   repression of liberal agitation. The Zollverein, a tariff union,
   profoundly furthered economic unity in the [List of German
   Confederation member states|German states]].

   The German people had been stirred by the ideals of the French
   revolution. On October 18, 1817, students held a gathering to exchange
   ideas, the high point of which was the burning of works by authors like
   August von Kotzebue, who were against a united German state. A second
   such meeting attracted 30,000 people from all social classes and from
   all regions to the Hambacher celebration. There for the first time, the
   colours of black, red and gold were chosen to represent the movement,
   which later became the national colours.

   The states were also shaped by the Industrial Revolution, which was the
   initial step of the growing industrialisation in Europe and contributed
   to a wave of poverty, causing social uprisings. In light of a series of
   revolutionary movements in Europe, which in France successfully
   established a republic, intellectuals and common people started the
   Revolutions of 1848 in the German states. The monarchs initially
   yielded to the revolutionaries' liberal demands, and an intellectual
   National Assembly, the Frankfurt Parliament, was elected to draw up a
   constitution for the new Germany, completed in 1849. However, the
   Prussian king Frederick William IV, who was offered the title of
   Emperor but with a loss of power, rejected the crown and the
   constitution. This prompted the demise of the national assembly along
   with most of the changes from the revolution.

   In 1862, conflict between the Prussian King Wilhelm I and the
   increasingly liberal parliament erupted over military reforms. The king
   appointed Otto von Bismarck the new Prime Minister of Prussia. Bismarck
   solved the conflict with difficulty and used the desire for national
   unification to further the interests of the Prussian monarchy. In 1864
   he successfully waged war on Denmark. Prussian victory in the
   Austro-Prussian War of 1866 enabled him to create the North German
   Confederation and divide Austria, formerly the leading state of
   Germany, from the more western and northern parts.

Second German Empire (1871-1918)

   Foundation of modern Germany, Versailles, 1871. Bismarck is in white in
   the middle
   Enlarge
   Foundation of modern Germany, Versailles, 1871. Bismarck is in white in
   the middle

   After the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, the German Empire
   (Deutsches Kaiserreich) was proclaimed in Versailles on January 18,
   1871. As a result, the new empire was a unification of all the
   scattered parts of Germany but without Austria — Kleindeutschland.
   Beginning in 1884 Germany established several colonies. The young
   emperor's foreign policy was opposed to that of Bismarck, who had
   established a system of alliances in the era called Gründerzeit,
   securing Germany's position as a great nation, isolating France with
   diplomatic means and avoiding war for decades. Under Wilhelm II,
   however, Germany took an imperialistic course, like other powers, but
   it led to friction with neighbouring countries. Most alliances in which
   Germany had been previously involved were not renewed, and new
   alliances excluded the country. Specifically, France established new
   relations by signing the Entente Cordiale with the United Kingdom, and
   got ties with Russia. Austria-Hungary and Germany became increasingly
   isolated.
   Imperial Germany (1871-1918)
   Enlarge
   Imperial Germany (1871-1918)
   Subdivisions of Germany in 1925. Map showing borders of Germany from
   1919 until 1937.
   Enlarge
   Subdivisions of Germany in 1925. Map showing borders of Germany from
   1919 until 1937.

   Although not one of the main causes, the assassination of Austria's
   crown prince triggered World War I on July 28, 1914, which saw Germany
   as part of the unsuccessful Central Powers in the second-bloodiest
   conflict of all time against the Allied Powers. In November 1918, the
   second German Revolution broke out, and Emperor Wilhelm II and all
   German ruling princes abdicated. An armistice was signed on November
   11, putting an end to the war. Germany was forced to sign the Treaty of
   Versailles in 1919, whose unexpectedly high demands were perceived as
   humiliating in Germany, as a continuation of the war by other means and
   a breaking of traditional post-war diplomacy that included negotiations
   between the victors and vanquished.

Weimar Republic (1919-33)

   After the German Revolution in November 1918, a Republic was
   proclaimed. That year, the German Communist Party was established by
   Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Liebknecht, and in January 1919 the German
   Workers Party, later known as the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche
   Arbeiterpartei ( National Socialist German Workers Party, NSDAP,
   "Nazis"). On August 11, 1919, the Weimar Constitution came into effect,
   with the sign of the Reichspräsident Friedrich Ebert.

   In a cool climate of economic hardship from both the world wide
   Depression and the harsh peace conditions dictated by the Treaty of
   Versailles, and a long succession of more or less unstable governments,
   the political masses in Germany increasingly lacked identification with
   their political system of parliamentary democracy. This was exacerbated
   by a wide-spread right-wing ( monarchist, völkische, and Nazi)
   Dolchstoßlegende, a political myth which claimed the German Revolution
   was the main reason why Germany had lost WWI. On the other hand,
   radical left-wing communists such as the Spartacist League had wanted
   to abolish what they perceived as a "capitalist rule" in favour of a
   "Räterepublik" and were thus also in opposition to the existing form of
   government. During the years following the Revolution, German voters
   increasingly supported anti-democratic parties, both right- (
   monarchists, Nazis) and left-wing ( Communists). At the beginning of
   the 1930s, Germany was not far from a civil war. Paramilitary troops
   were set up by several parties, there were thousands of politically
   motivated murders. They intimidated voters and seeded violence and
   anger among the public, who suffered from high unemployment and
   poverty. After a succession of unsuccessful cabinets, on January 29,
   1933, President von Hindenburg, seeing little alternative and pushed by
   advisors, appointed Adolf Hitler Chancellor of Germany.

Third Reich (1933–45)

   On 27 February 1933, the Reichstag was set on fire. Some basic
   democratic rights were quickly abrogated afterwards under an emergency
   decree. An Enabling Act gave Hitler's government full legislative power
   — only the Sozial Demokratische Partei, SPD voted against it; the
   communists could not because many had already been imprisoned or
   murdered. A centralised totalitarian state was established by a series
   of moves and decrees making Germany a single-party state. Industry was
   closely regulated with quotas and requirements in order to shift the
   economy towards a war production base. In 1936, German troops entered
   the demilitarised Rhineland and British Prime Minister Neville
   Chamberlain's appeasement policies proved inadequate. Emboldened,
   Hitler followed from 1938 onwards a policy of expansionism to establish
   Greater Germany. To avoid a two-front war, Hitler concluded the
   Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact with the Soviet Union, and broke it.

   In 1939 the growing tensions from nationalism, militarism, and
   territorial issues led to the Germans launching a blitzkrieg on
   September 1st against Poland, followed two days later by declarations
   of war by Britain and France, marking the beginning of World War II.
   Germany quickly gained direct or indirect control of the majority of
   Europe. On June 22, 1941, Hitler broke the pact with the Soviet Union
   by opening the Eastern Front and invading the Soviet Union. Shortly
   after Japan attacked the American base at Pearl Harbour, Germany
   declared war on the United States. Although initially the German army
   rapidly advanced into the surprised Soviet Union, the Battle of
   Stalingrad marked a major turning point in the war. Subsequently, the
   German army commenced retreating on the Eastern front, followed by the
   eventual defeat of Germany. On 8 May 1945, Germany surrendered after
   the Red Army occupied Berlin.

   In what later became known as The Holocaust, the Third Reich regime
   enacted governmental policies directly subjugating many parts of
   society: Jews, Slavs, Roma, homosexuals, freemasons, political
   dissidents, priests, preachers, religious opponents, and the disabled,
   amongst others. During the Nazi era about 11 million people were
   murdered in the Holocaust, including more than 6 million Jews.

Division and reunification (1945-90)

   German occupation zones in 1946 after territorial annexations in the
   East. The Saarland (in the French zone) shown with stripes as it was
   not removed from Germany until 1947
   Enlarge
   German occupation zones in 1946 after territorial annexations in the
   East. The Saarland (in the French zone) shown with stripes as it was
   not removed from Germany until 1947

   The war resulted in the death of several million German soldiers and
   civilians, in total nearly ten million, large territorial losses and
   the expulsion of about 15 million Germans of the eastern provinces of
   Germany and various parts of Central and Eastern Europe with ethnic
   German population. All major and many smaller German cities lay in
   ruins. Germany and Berlin were occupied and partitioned by the Allies
   into four military occupation zones controlled by France, the United
   Kingdom, the United States, and the Soviet Union. On May 23, 1949, the
   U.S, Britain and France united their individual sectors to form the
   democratic nation of the Federal Republic of Germany and on October 7,
   1949 the Soviet Zone established the German Democratic Republic, In
   English the two states were known informally as " West Germany" and "
   East Germany" (with historical eastern Germany having fallen to Poland
   and the Soviet Union) respectively.

   West Germany, established as a liberal parliamentary republic with a "
   social market economy", was allied with the United States, the UK and
   France. After the ideological switch in U.S. occupation policy away
   from economic dismantlement and towards reconstruction, which was
   heralded by the "Speech of hope" in September of 1946, the country
   eventually came to enjoy prolonged economic growth beginning in the
   early 1950's ( Wirtschaftswunder). The recovery was largely because of
   the previously forbidden currency reform of June 1948 and U.S.
   assistance through the Marshall Plan aid. West Germany joined NATO in
   1955 and was a founding member of the European Economic Community in
   1958. Across the border, East Germany was at first occupied by and
   later (May 1955) allied with the USSR. An authoritarian country with a
   Soviet-style command economy, East Germany soon became the richest,
   most advanced country in the Warsaw Pact, but many of its citizens
   looked to the West for political freedoms and economic prosperity.
   Relations between East Germany and West Germany remained icy until the
   Western Chancellor Willy Brandt launched a highly controversial
   approchement policy with the East European communist states (
   Ostpolitik) in the early 1970s. This led to a form of mutual
   recognition between East and West Germany.
   The Berlin Wall that had partitioned Berlin in front of the Brandenburg
   Gate shortly after the opening of the wall
   Enlarge
   The Berlin Wall that had partitioned Berlin in front of the Brandenburg
   Gate shortly after the opening of the wall

   During the summer of 1989, rapid changes took place in East Germany,
   which ultimately led to German reunification. Growing numbers of East
   Germans migrated to West Germany via Hungary and clandestinely through
   the border separating East from West Germany. The exodus generated
   demands within East Germany for political change, and mass
   demonstrations with eventually hundreds of thousands of people in
   several cities continued to grow. In the face of these events, East
   German authorities unexpectedly eased the border restrictions in
   November 1989, allowing East German citizens to travel to the West.
   This led to the acceleration of the process of reforms in East Germany
   that ended with German reunification on October 3, 1990. Under the
   terms of the treaty between West and East Germany, Berlin again became
   the capital of the reunited Germany.

Administrative divisions

   Map of Germany
   Enlarge
   Map of Germany

   Germany is divided into 16 states (in German called Länder, singular
   Land; commonly Bundesländer, singular Bundesland). It is further
   subdivided into 439 districts ( Kreise) and cities (kreisfreie Städte)
   (2004). There is a list of all Administrative Divisions of Germany.
   States of Germany
   Enlarge
   States of Germany

   The fifteen largest cities in Germany (population as of December 31,
   2005):
    1. Berlin (capital of Germany) with 3.395.189 inhabitants
    2. Hamburg with 1.743.627 inhabitants
    3. Munich with 1.259.677 inhabitants
    4. Cologne with 983.347 inhabitants
    5. Frankfurt with 651.899 inhabitants
    6. Stuttgart with 592.569 inhabitants
    7. Dortmund with 588.168 inhabitants
    8. Essen with 585.430 inhabitants
    9. Duesseldorf with 574.514 inhabitants
   10. Bremen with 546.852 inhabitants
   11. Hanover with 515.729 inhabitants
   12. Leipzig with 502.651 inhabitants
   13. Duisburg with 501.564 inhabitants
   14. Nuremberg with 499.237 inhabitants
   15. Dresden with 495.181 inhabitants

   Munich
   Enlarge
   Munich
   Berlin
   Enlarge
   Berlin

   The five largest metropolitan areas in Germany (population as of
   January 1, 2005) are listed below. Metro area populations are always
   controversial, and these figures are based on a broad interpretation of
   the term. They are better seen as being for metropolitan regions than
   metropolitan cities.
    1. Rhein-Ruhr with 11,785,196 inhabitants
    2. Frankfurt Rhein-Main Region with 5,822,383 inhabitants
    3. Berlin with 4,262,480 inhabitants
    4. Hamburg with 3,278,635 inhabitants
    5. Stuttgart with 2,344,989 inhabitants

   In English Auf Deutsch (In German)
   State Capital Land Hauptstadt
   1 Baden-Württemberg Stuttgart Baden-Württemberg Stuttgart
   2 (Free State of) Bavaria Munich (Freistaat) Bayern München
   3 Berlin Berlin Berlin Berlin
   4 Brandenburg Potsdam Brandenburg Potsdam
   5 (Free Hanseatic City of) Bremen Bremen (Freie Hansestadt) Bremen
   Bremen
   6 (Free and Hanseatic City of) Hamburg Hamburg (Freie und Hansestadt)
   Hamburg Hamburg
   7 Hesse Wiesbaden Hessen Wiesbaden
   8 Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Schwerin Mecklenburg-Vorpommern
   Schwerin
   9 Lower Saxony Hanover Niedersachsen Hannover
   10 North Rhine-Westphalia Düsseldorf Nordrhein-Westfalen Düsseldorf
   11 Rhineland-Palatinate Mainz Rheinland-Pfalz Mainz
   12 Saarland Saarbrücken Saarland Saarbrücken
   13 (Free State of) Saxony Dresden (Freistaat) Sachsen Dresden
   14 Saxony-Anhalt Magdeburg Sachsen-Anhalt Magdeburg
   15 Schleswig-Holstein Kiel Schleswig-Holstein Kiel
   16 (Free State of) Thuringia Erfurt (Freistaat) Thüringen Erfurt

Geography

Location

   Germany is located in Central Europe and it shares borders with Denmark
   in the North, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and France in the West,
   Austria and Switzerland in the South and Poland and the Czech Republic
   in the East. The North Sea and the Baltic Sea represent additional
   National Borders in the North.

   Geographic coordinates: 51°00′N 9°00′E

Area

   Altitude levels
   Enlarge
   Altitude levels

          + Total: 357,021 km² (137,850 mi²)
          + Land: 349,223 km² (134,835 mi²)
          + Water: 7,798 km² (3,010 mi²)

Territory

   Since reunification Germany has resumed its role as a major centre
   country between Scandinavia in the north and the Mediterranean region
   in the south, as well as between the Atlantic west and the countries of
   Central and Eastern Europe.

   The territory of Germany stretches from the high mountains of the Alps
   (highest point: the Zugspitze at 2,962 m / 9,718  ft) in the south to
   the shores of the North Sea (Nordsee) in the north-west and the Baltic
   Sea (Ostsee) in the north-east. In between are the forested uplands of
   central Germany and the low-lying lands of northern Germany (lowest
   point: Neuendorfer/ Wilstermarsch at 3.54 metres (11.6 ft) below sea
   level), traversed by some of Europe's major rivers such as the Rhine,
   Danube and Elbe.

   Because of its central location, Germany shares borders with more
   European countries than any other country in Europe. Its neighbours are
   Denmark in the north, Poland and the Czech Republic in the east,
   Austria and Switzerland in the south, France and Luxembourg in the
   south-west and Belgium and the Netherlands in the north-west.

Climate

   The beautiful scenery in southern Bavaria, cold during winters and hot
   in the summer
   Enlarge
   The beautiful scenery in southern Bavaria, cold during winters and hot
   in the summer

   (→ see also commons:Category:Climate diagrams of Germany (FR))

   The greater part of Germany lies in the cool/temperate climatic zone in
   which humid westerly winds predominate.

   The climate is influenced to some extent by the Gulf Stream, which
   promotes an unusually mild climate in areas adjacent to it. The climate
   in Great Britain, Portugal, France and Norway is especially influenced
   by this stream and to a lesser extent the areas bordering on the North
   Sea including the peninsula of Jutland in north Germany and the area
   along the Rhein which flows into the North Sea.

   In the north-west and the north the climate is oceanic and rain falls
   all year round. Winters there are relatively mild and summers tend to
   be comparatively cool, even though temperatures can reach above 30
   degrees Celsius (86 ° F) for prolonged periods of time. Average
   temperatures: Hamburg: January 0.3 °C (33 ° F) / July 17.1 °C (63° F);
   Essen: January 1.5 °C (35 ° F) / July 17.5 °C (64 ° F)

   In the east the climate shows clear continental features; winters can
   be very cold for long periods, and summers can become very warm. Here,
   too, long dry periods are often recorded. Average temperatures: Berlin:
   January −0.9 °C (30 °F) / July 18.6 °C (65 °F)

   In the central part and the south there is a transitional climate which
   varies from moderately oceanic to continental, depending on the
   location. Hot summers with temperatures about 30 degrees Celsius (86
   °F) are possible. Average temperatures: Munich: January −2.2 °C (28 °F)
   / July 17.6 °C (64 °F); Freiburg: January 1.2 °C (34 °F) / July 19.4 °C
   (67 °F)

Demographics

   Population of Germany over time. Note that for years before 1990, the
   values of the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic
   Republic are combined. The federal statistics office estimates the
   population will shrink to approximately 75 million by 2050
   Enlarge
   Population of Germany over time. Note that for years before 1990, the
   values of the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic
   Republic are combined. The federal statistics office estimates the
   population will shrink to approximately 75 million by 2050

   Because of the country's federal and decentralised structure Germany
   has a number of larger cities. The most populous are Berlin, Hamburg,
   Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt and Stuttgart. By far the largest
   conurbation is the Rhine-Ruhr region, including the Düsseldorf-Cologne
   district and the cities of Essen, Dortmund, Duisburg and Bochum. The
   federal structure has kept the population oriented towards a number of
   large cities, and has precluded the growth of any single city that
   would rival such European capitals as London, Paris or Moscow for size.

   As of December 2004, about 7 million foreign citizens are registered in
   Germany and 19% of the country's residents are of foreign or partially
   foreign descent, the majority are Turkish, or are from Italy,
   Yugoslavia, and other European states. In its State of World Population
   2006 report, the United Nations Population Fund lists Germany with
   hosting the third-highest percentage of international migrants
   worldwide, about 5% or 10 million of all 191 million migrants.

   Because of modifications to Germany's traditionally rather unrestricted
   laws on asylum and immigration in the years around 2000, the number of
   annual asylum seekers as well as on immigrants based on German
   ethnicity (mostly from the former Soviet Union) has been declining
   since then.

   Germany is facing major demographic change, its birth rate being one of
   the lowest in the world. The federal statistics office estimates the
   population will shrink to approximately 75 million by 2050, with ethnic
   Germans risking displacement by foreigners with higher birthrates.
   Questions remain as to how Germany will pay for the sustenance of
   immigrants, in addition to its own aging population. Chemnitz is
   thought to be city with the lowest birth rate in the world.
   Panorama view of Frankfurt am Main (Hesse), the banking city of
   Germany.
   Enlarge
   Panorama view of Frankfurt am Main (Hesse), the banking city of
   Germany.

   There are 2.2 million Turks in Germany, 139,000 of them in Berlin
   alone, making them the largest group of foreign workers.

Economy

   A 50 euro cent coin Featuring the Brandenburg Gate, symbol of division
   and reunification.
   Enlarge
   A 50 euro cent coin Featuring the Brandenburg Gate, symbol of division
   and reunification.

General situation

   Germany is the largest European economy and the third largest economy
   in the world in real terms, placed behind the United States and Japan.
   Also, Germany is the fifth nation behind the United States, the
   People's Republic of China, India and Japan in terms of purchasing
   power parity. According to the World Trade Organization, Germany is
   also the world's top exporter, ahead of the United States and number
   two in imports. It currently (2005) has the largest trade surplus in
   the world (160.6 billion euros). While it has positive trade balances
   with most of its EU-partners (+129.8 billion euros / 2005) and the
   United States (+28 billion euros / 2005), it runs trade deficits with
   China (-18.6 billion euros / 2005), Japan (-8.1 billion euros /2005)
   and Russia (-4.3 billion euros / 2005). With a net international
   investment position of 545.9 billion euros (US$682 billion) in Q2 2006
   (Deutsche Bundesbank), Germany is the second largest international
   creditor behind Japan.

   A major issue of concern remains the persistently high unemployment
   rate and weak domestic demand which slows down economic growth. Eastern
   Germany in particular suffers from a lack of a solid base of small and
   medium-sized companies, which provided the foundation for the Federal
   Republic's economic prosperity and is responsible in great measure for
   Germany's lag in economic growth. In spite of its extremely good
   performance in international trade domestic demand has stagnated for
   many years because of wage stagnation and zealous cost-cutting by the
   federal state. Insecurity among consumers has caused many of the
   prevalent economic problems. Germany's government runs a restrictive
   fiscal policy and has cut numerous regular jobs in the public sector.
   Since reunification there has been a net loss of estimated one million
   such jobs. But while regular employment in the public sector shrank,
   "irregular" government employment such as "one-euro jobs" (jobs paid
   this amount per hour on top of unemployment benefits), government
   supported self-employment (known informally as "Ich-AG", or "Me, Inc.")
   and job training increased. Despite the tense situation in eastern
   Germany, total government employment in Germany remains lower than in
   other states such as the United Kingdom or Canada.

   Economical and political discussion in Germany today concentrates on
   whether Germany needs more market reforms such as deregulation of the
   labour market, more low income jobs, lower social security
   contributions, lower taxes for enterprises and employers, or already
   passed too many reforms. In view of problematic socio-economic trends
   (fast growing inequality, rising poverty rates, stagnant wages, less
   social security, constant high unemployment) corporate profits and
   salaries of top managers soar. More and more people in Germany distrust
   the sense and direction of the reforms over the last years. A major
   reason is the pressure that unions and lobbyists exert on parliament.
   One third of the lower house ( Bundestag) are themselves in one union
   or another. Many representatives of the upper house ( Bundesrat) and
   lower house are at the same time on the advisory council (
   Aufsichtsrat) of major concerns in the pharmaceutical, energy and
   automobile sectors leading to exploding costs for the consumer in these
   areas.

   See also below: Science and technology

Exports

   Frankfurt am Main — popularly referred to as "Mainhattan", drawing
   clear parallels to Manhattan — is Germany's financial centre.
   Enlarge
   Frankfurt am Main — popularly referred to as "Mainhattan", drawing
   clear parallels to Manhattan — is Germany's financial centre.

   As mentioned above the export of goods is an essential part of the
   German economy and one of the most relevant reasons for Germany's
   wealth. Like many other export oriented countries, Germany itself does
   not have the climate or the natural resources necessary to support a
   high living standard. Overtaking the United States in 2003, Germany is
   now the world's largest exporter of goods with $1.016 trillion exported
   in 2005 (Germany's exports to other euro zone countries are included in
   this total). In export of services (tourism, financial services,
   engineering...) it ranks third behind the United States and the United
   Kingdom.

   Although most of its exports are in engineering (such as cars,
   machinery, chemical goods, and optics), Germany also has a strong
   position in the export of microelectronics, which, according to the
   WTO, account for 15 percent of German exports. Germany sells nearly
   twice as many such products per capita than the United States,
   significantly more than Japan and nearly the same as the United
   Kingdom.

Politics

Political system

   Germany's political system is a framework of a federal parliamentary
   representative democratic republic, whereby the Chancellor is the head
   of government, and of a pluriform multi-party system. Executive power
   is exercised by the government. Federal legislative power is vested in
   both the government and the two chambers of parliament, Bundestag and
   Bundesrat. While the Bundestag is elected in direct election the
   Bundesrat represents the governments of the 16 German States. Since
   1949 the party system is dominated by the conservative Christian
   Democratic Union and the Social Democratic Party of Germany. Smaller
   parties that have an important role are the liberal Free Democratic
   Party, that has been in the Bundestag since 1949, as well as the Green
   Party that has had seats in the parliament since 1983.

   The German head of state is the President of Germany, elected by an
   institution consisting of Bundesrat and Bundestag (called
   Bundesversammlung which means federal convention). The second highest
   official in the German order of precedence is the President of the
   Bundestag elected by the Bundestag itself. He is responsible for the
   parliaments sessions and the regularity of the institution. The third
   highest official is the chancellor as the head of government
   recommended by the President of Germany, elected by the Bundestag and
   if necessary removed by a constructive motion of no confidence of the
   Bundestag. Constructive motion means that the Bundestag has to elect a
   successor.

   The Judiciary of Germany is independent of the executive and the
   legislature. The political system is laid out in the 1949
   constitutional document under approval of the allied forces which
   wanted to assure among other restrictions that Germany's military
   forces are restricted exclusively to defence and that a dictatorship
   could not reoccur. It is known as the Grundgesetz literally Basic Law.
   It is akin to the American Constitution. Changes in the Grundgesetz
   require a majority of two thirds of both chambers of the parliament.
   The Grundgesetz remained in effect with minor amendments after 1990's
   German Reunification.

Legal system

   Germany has a civil or statute law system based ultimately on Roman law
   with some references to Germanic law. Legislative power is divided
   between the Federation and the individual federated states. While
   criminal law and private law have seen codifications on the national
   level (in the Strafgesetzbuch and the Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch
   respectively), no such unifying codification exists in administrative
   law where a lot of the fundamental matters remain in the jurisdiction
   of the individual federated states. In 1976, with the
   Verwaltungsverfahrensgesetz (VwVfG), the main form of actions of
   administration was codified. Most federated states have followed this
   codification. There are a series of special supreme courts; for civil
   and criminal cases the highest court of appeal is the Bundesgerichtshof
   (Federal Court of Justice), located in Karlsruhe. The courtroom style
   is inquisitorial.

   The Federal Constitutional Court ( Bundesverfassungsgericht), also
   located in Karlsruhe, is the German Supreme Court responsible for
   constitutional matters, with power of judicial review. It acts as the
   highest legal authority and ensures that legislative and judicial
   practice conforms to the Constitution. It acts independently of the
   other state bodies, but cannot act on its own behalf.

Foreign relations

   US President George W. Bush welcomes Chancellor Angela Merkel to the
   Oval Office
   Enlarge
   US President George W. Bush welcomes Chancellor Angela Merkel to the
   Oval Office

   Germany plays a leading role in the European Union, having a strong
   alliance with France. Germany is at the forefront of European states
   seeking to advance the creation of a more unified and capable European
   political, defence and security apparatus.

   Since its establishment on May 23, 1949, the Federal Republic of
   Germany kept a notably low profile in international relations, because
   of both its recent history and its occupation by foreign powers. In
   1999, however, on the occasion of the NATO war against Yugoslavia,
   Chancellor Gerhard Schröder's government broke convention by sending
   German troops into combat for the first time since World War II.

   Germany and the United States have been close allies since the end of
   the Second World War. The Marshall Plan and continued US support during
   the rebuilding process after World War II, as well as the significant
   influence American culture has had on German culture, have crafted a
   strong bond between Germany and the US that lasts to this day. Not only
   do the United States and Germany share many cultural similarities: they
   are also deeply economically interdependent. Of all German exports,
   8.8% are US-bound, and US–German trade in 2004 totalled $108.2 billion.
   An illustration of the strong economic relations between the US and
   Germany may be the fact that 18.3% of all cars sold in the US were
   manufactured by German car makers. Other signs of the close ties
   between Germany and the US are the continuing status German-Americans
   as the largest ethnic group in the US and the status of Ramstein Air
   Base, close to the city of Kaiserslautern, Germany, as the largest US
   community outside the US.

Armed forces

   Heer Leopard 2A6.
   Enlarge
   Heer Leopard 2A6.

   Germany's military, the Bundeswehr, is a defence force with Heer
   (German Army), Marine (German Navy), Luftwaffe (German Air Force),
   Zentraler Sanitätsdienst (Central Medical Services) and
   Streitkräftebasis (Joint Service Support Command) branches. It employs
   some 250,000 soldiers (including women in active fighting branches
   since 2001) and 120,000 civilians (will be reduced to 75,000). 40,000
   of the soldiers are 18–23-year-old men on national duty, currently for
   at least 9 months. In peacetime, the Bundeswehr is commanded by the
   Minister of Defence, currently Franz Josef Jung. If Germany goes to
   war, which according to the constitution is allowed only for defensive
   purposes, the Chancellor becomes commander in chief of the German
   Bundeswehr.

   Currently, the German military has about 1,180 troops stationed in
   Bosnia-Herzegovina; 2,650 Bundeswehr soldiers are serving in Kosovo;
   780 soldiers are stationed as a part of EUFOR in the Democratic
   Republic of the Congo; 2,400 soldiers are serving in a navy battle
   group off the coast of the Lebanon as a part of UNIFIL and 3,900
   Bundeswehr troops are assisting the US anti-terrorism operation called
   Enduring Freedom off the Horn of Africa. 4,500 German troops currently
   make up the largest contingent of the NATO-led ISAF force in
   Afghanistan.

Energy policy

   Wind turbine in Germany.
   Enlarge
   Wind turbine in Germany.

   In 2000, the German SPD-led government along with Bündnis 90/Die Grünen
   ( Alliance '90/The Greens), officially announced its intention to phase
   out the use of nuclear energy. Jürgen Trittin as the Minister of
   Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, reached an
   agreement with energy companies on limiting the life span of the
   existing nuclear power plants and an end to the civil usage of nuclear
   power by 2020. See also: the country's nineteen nuclear power plants

   In 1999, electricity production in Germany was powered by coal (47%),
   nuclear power (30%), natural gas (14%), renewable sources (including
   hydro, wind and solar power) (6%), and oil (2%) ( ). As for energy
   consumption, oil accounted for 41% of the total. At the World climate
   conference, the German government announced a carbon dioxide reduction
   target of 25% by the year 2005 as compared to 1990, to protect global
   climate. Note however, that the 1990 numbers included former industrial
   facilities in eastern Germany, most of which soon expired in
   post-1990-Germany.

   In 2005, the German government reached an agreement with Russia in
   building a gas pipeline along the bottom of the Baltic Sea directly
   from Russia to Germany. Bypassing Poland and other Baltic countries
   lead to controversy.

   Due in part to generous subsidies Germany leads Europe by having the
   greatest capacity on the continent to generate electricity from sun and
   wind. In terms of total installed capacity to generate electricity from
   windpower Germany is No.1 in the world. By 2005 it had a capability to
   generate 18,427.5 MW (in comparison: 2nd place Spain — 10,027 MW; 3rd
   place; USA — 9,141 MW). Because of the whims of wind and sun and the
   reluctance of the conventional energy companies to transmit renewable
   energy on their transmission lines the power actually generated seldom
   reaches the capacity to produce it. Since the environmentalistists have
   been voted out of government and the end of subsidies in 2006 the
   number of new wind generators to be installed in Germany has dropped
   dramatically. However, Germany's emphasis on renewable energy sources
   has resulted in the founding of numerous high-tech companies developing
   such technologies. Germany is also the main exporter of wind turbines,
   the demand greatly exceeding capacity.

Society

Religion

   Martin Luther, Father of the Protestant Reformation and reformer of the
   German language, 1529
   Enlarge
   Martin Luther, Father of the Protestant Reformation and reformer of the
   German language, 1529

   Germany is the home of the Reformation launched by Martin Luther in the
   early 16th century. Today, Protestants (particularly in the north and
   east) comprise about 33% of the population and Roman Catholics
   (particularly in the south and west) also 33%. The current Roman
   Catholic Pope, Benedict XVI, was born in Bavaria. In total more than 55
   million people officially belong to a Christian denomination.

   The third largest religious identity in Germany, after the two
   Christian groups, is that of non-religious people (including atheists
   and agnostics (especially in former GDR)), who amount to a total of
   28.5% of the population (23.5 million).

   Approximately 3 million Muslims (predominantly from Turkey and some
   from the former Yugoslavia) live in Germany. Most are Sunnis and
   Alevites from Turkey but there are a small number of Shiites.

   Today's Germany has Western Europe's third-largest Jewish population.
   In 2004, twice as many Jews from former Soviet republics settled in
   Germany as in Israel, bringing the total influx to more than 200,000
   since 1991. About half joined a settled Jewish community, of which
   there are now more than 100, with a total of 100,000 members — up from
   30,000 before reunification. Some German cities have seen a revival of
   Jewish culture, particularly in Berlin, where there are also 3,000
   Israelis. Jews have a strong voice in German public life through the
   Zentralrat der Juden in Deutschland (Central Council of Jews in
   Germany). Other cities with significant Jewish populations are
   Frankfurt and Munich.

Social issues

   Berliner Dom
   Enlarge
   Berliner Dom

   The German social market economy (German: soziale Marktwirtschaft)
   helped bring about the "economic miracle" (the German "
   Wirtschaftswunder") that rebuilt Germany from rubble after World War II
   to one of the most impressive economies in Europe. Still today, Ludwig
   Erhard, minister of economics in the Adenauer administration
   (1949–1963) and later chancellor (1963–1966), is widely recognised as
   having been the "father" of this profound rise in the country's
   economic and social wealth.

   Germany continues to struggle with a number of social issues, although
   problems created by the German Reunification of 1990 have begun to
   diminish. The standard of living is higher in the western half of the
   country, but easterners now share a reasonably high standard of living.
   Germans continue to be concerned about a relatively high level of
   unemployment, especially in the former East German states. The country
   has passed several reforms to curb unemployment. Recent polls have
   indicated a growing poverty in the country. In spring of 2006 it had
   reached 8% of the population, in the easten part as high as 20%
   according to the FES (Friedrich-Ebert Stiftung).

   For centuries, a woman's role in German society was summed up by the
   three words: Kinder (children), Küche (kitchen), and Kirche (church) —
   Kinder, Küche, Kirche. Throughout the twentieth century, however, women
   have gradually won victories in their quest for equal rights. Despite
   significant gains, discrimination remains in united Germany. Women are
   noticeably absent in the top tiers of German business. They only hold
   9.2% of jobs in Germany's upper and middle management positions. Until
   2001 women were barred from serving in combat units in the Bundeswehr,
   being restricted to the medical service and the administration. The
   first woman to become chancellor is Angela Merkel, who was elected in
   2005.
   Angela Merkel
   Enlarge
   Angela Merkel

   Since World War II, Germany has experienced intermittent turmoil from
   various groups. In the 1970s leftist terrorist organisations like the
   Red Army Faction engaged in a string of assassinations and kidnappings
   against political and business figures and there has been a recent
   surge in right-wing nationalist crimes. According to former Interior
   Minister Otto Schily, the number of these crimes rose 8.4% to 12,553
   cases in 2004, which the minister attributed to such crimes as the
   display of illegal Nazi symbols being reported more frequently.

   As mentioned elsewhere in this article population growth is burdened
   with an extremely low fertility/birthrate. Currently Germany's average
   birth rate has plunged to less than 1.4 children per mother, a
   situation which would lead to the demise of any species if nothing is
   undertaken to relieve it. Lawmakers ask what the state can do to
   encourage women to have more children. According to provisional figures
   from the Federal Statistics Office, 680,000 babies were born in Germany
   in 2005, down from a peak of 1.36 million in 1964 and fewer even than
   in 1945, when nearly all the country lay in rubble.

   Germany has failed to implement EU laws prohibiting racial
   discrimination. The European Court of Justice ruled on April 29, 2005,
   that Germany had breached EU law by failing to transpose fully the
   'Racial Equality Directive' prohibiting discrimination on the grounds
   of race or ethnic origin (Directive 2000/43/EC). Immigrants to Germany
   may generally face integration issues and other difficulties. In
   addition to the challenges of adapting to a new language and culture,
   they may be subject to security-related police inquiries and violence
   from right-wing nationalist groups.

   Some German states have banned Muslim teachers from wearing headscarves
   in class and all except Bavaria have banned crosses from the classroom
   as well, generally by prohibiting the use of all religious symbols by
   teachers. This is legitimate by combining the German states' privilege
   of educational laws with the principle of separation of church and
   state, both provided for in the German federal constitution: According
   to this legal view, teachers in their vocational function within a
   state administered educational system are obliged to maintain and
   publicly exhibit religious neutrality when on duty. As this status of
   employment does not hold for pupils, whose constitutional right to
   religious freedom thus remains unencumbered by these provisions, this
   ban cannot legally be extended to them as it is in France.

Education

   The University of Heidelberg is one of the most renowned universities
   in the world
   Enlarge
   The University of Heidelberg is one of the most renowned universities
   in the world

   Germany has one of the world's highest levels of education and many
   famous universities. The most important foreign languages taught at
   school are English, French, Latin, Italian and Spanish. Some languages,
   such as Russian, Ancient Greek, Turkish, Chinese, Japanese, Polish and
   Arabic are taught less widely. Since the end of World War II, the
   number of youths entering universities has more than tripled, but
   university attendance still lags behind many other European nations
   because of its very high standards. In the annual league of top-ranking
   universities compiled by Shanghai Jiaotong University in 2004, Germany
   came 4th overall, with 7 universities in the top 100 (to compare, the
   United States had 51 in the top 100, but also had a greater number of
   universities generally; proportionally, the two compare very well). The
   highest ranking university, at #45, was the TU Munich. Most German
   universities are state-owned and were until recently free of charge.
   However, a recently passed education reform calls for fees between €300
   and €500 per semester from each student, started in 2006 in the first
   state (Niedersachsen). Additionally university students are often
   supported by the so called BAföG, a federal subsidy, running as high as
   €290 per month as interest free credit plus €290 as direct payment.

   Germany (along with Austria and Switzerland) has a special system of
   apprenticeship called "Duale Ausbildung" in which apprentices learn in
   a company as well as in a state-run school.

   German educational ideals differ considerably from Anglo-Saxon
   educational ideals, emphasising socialisation, debate, vocal
   participation in class and critical faculties. The results of the PISA
   student assessments, which tested students' comprehension of the
   respective subject matter only, were a shock to the German public but
   no surprise to many education experts. In the test of 31 countries in
   year 2000, Germany ranked 21st in reading and 20th in both Mathematics
   and the Natural Sciences.

   Participation in the official school system is compulsory. However,
   home-schooling is still practised by a small number of people. There
   has been some publicity to government prosecution of this practice.

Culture

   Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a significant German poet
   Enlarge
   Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a significant German poet

   Germany's contributions to the world's cultural heritage are numerous,
   and the country is often known as das Land der Dichter und Denker (the
   land of poets and thinkers).

   Many historical figures, though not citizens of Germany in the modern
   sense, were important and influential figures in German culture, such
   as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Franz Kafka and Stefan Zweig.

Literature, philosphy and sociology

   German literature can be traced back to the Middle Ages, in particular
   to such authors as Walther von der Vogelweide and Wolfram von
   Eschenbach, considered some of the most important poets of medieval
   Europe. The fairy tales by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm are world famous and
   the Nibelungenlied, whose author is not known, is also a major
   contribution to German literature. The Thidrekssaga with similar
   sources is more based in the north european area. Theologian Luther,
   who translated the Bible into German, is widely credited for having set
   the basis for modern "High German" language. The most admired German
   poets and authors are Lessing, Goethe, Schiller, Kleist and Hoffmann.
   Other poets include Friedrich Hölderlin, Heinrich Heine, Annette von
   Droste-Hülshoff, Theodor Fontane, Rainer Maria Rilke and authors of the
   20th century include Nobel Prize winners Thomas Mann, Hermann Hesse,
   Heinrich Böll and Günter Grass. Other famous authors are Brecht and
   Schmidt. Germany's influence on world philosophy was significant as
   well, as exemplified by Albertus Magnus, Leibniz, Kant, Herder,
   Mendelssohn, Novalis, Fichte, Hegel, Marx, Engels, Feuerbach,
   Schopenhauer, Schweitzer, Nietzsche, Husserl, Hartmann, Jaspers,
   Luxemburg, Heidegger, Arendt, Steiner, Gadamer and Habermas. In the
   field of sociology influential German thinkers were Tönnies, Simmel,
   Weber, Horkheimer, Adorno and Luhmann.

German language

   The German language was once the lingua franca of central, eastern and
   northern Europe. Within the European Union, German is the language with
   the most native speakers, with more than English, French, Spanish and
   Italian, because the borders of the German language reach through
   Austria, France, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, Luxembourg, the Netherlands
   and into Switzerland. As a foreign language, German is the third most
   taught worldwide. It is also the second most used language on the
   Internet after English. The language has its origin in Old High German
   which is related to old English. There are numerous dialects of German,
   many of which are not intelligible to speakers of standard German or a
   different dialect. Some consider Low German to be a different language
   from High German; Low German has been given the status of a minority
   language by the European Union, although it is less used today in the
   traditionally Low German-speaking areas of northern Germany. Other
   dialects, which are very different from standard German are spoken in
   Saxony, Bavaria, Rhineland-Palatinate and Swabia. The Pennsylvania
   Dutch, spoken by the Amishe is derived from the dialect spoken in the
   Rhineland-Palatinate.

Music

   Ludwig van Beethoven was an influential German composer and pianist
   Enlarge
   Ludwig van Beethoven was an influential German composer and pianist

   In the field of music, Germany's influence is noted through the works
   of, among others, Bach, Handel, Telemann, Beethoven, Mendelssohn
   Bartholdy, Mozart, Brahms, Schumann, Wagner, Strauss, Orff.

Science and technology

   Germany is a leading nation in scientific research and the production
   of innovative technological products. Some of the most important
   industrial contributions include automobiles, rocketry, material
   science, and chemical products.

   As in physics and chemistry, Germans are a leading nation in the Nobel
   Prizes for physiology or medicine. In spite of past achievements of
   their ideals young scientists are currently emigrating at the rate of
   over 2000 per month (26,000 in 2005). Assumed reasons are overwhelming
   bureaucracy and a bleak outlook for their future.

   Germany has been the homeland of many great scientists like Helmholtz,
   Fraunhofer, Fahrenheit, Kepler, Haeckel, Wundt, Virchow, Ehrlich,
   Humboldt, Röntgen, Braun, Einstein, Born, Planck, Heisenberg,
   Creuzfeldt, Hertz, Koch, Hahn, Leibniz, Liebig, Ostwald, Haber, Mayr
   and Bunsen.

   It has been the home of many inventors and engineers such as Gutenberg,
   Otto, Geiger, Fick, Lilienthal, Junkers, Reis, von Ardenne, von
   Mayenburg, Bosch, Bentz, von Drais, Zeppelin, Krupp, Siemens, von
   Braun, Porsche, Maybach, Daimler, Zuse, Diesel and Benz.

   Important mathematicians were born in Germany such as Dedekind, Bessel,
   Gauß, Hilbert, Jacobi, Riemann, Riese, Klein, Cantor, Weierstraß and
   Weyl.

   With the construction of the first laboratory for psychology at the
   University of Leipzig in 1879 , Wilhelm Wundt established psychology as
   an independent empirical science. Important psychologists were born in
   Germany such as Wundt, von Helmholtz, Charlotte Bühler, Karl Bühler,
   Heckhausen.

Transport

   Map of the German autobahn network
   Enlarge
   Map of the German autobahn network
   Germany hosts a lot of the central European traffic corridors —
   Bundesautobahn 3 next to the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed rail line
   Enlarge
   Germany hosts a lot of the central European traffic corridors —
   Bundesautobahn 3 next to the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed rail line

   Because of Germany's central situation in Europe, the volume of
   traffic, especially goods transit, is very high. In the past decades,
   much of the freight traffic shifted from rail to road transport, which
   led the Federal Government to introduce a motor toll for trucks in
   2005. In addition, individual traffic increased to an extent that on
   German roads, traffic densities are very high by international
   comparison. For the future, a further strong increase of traffic is
   expected.

   High-speed vehicular traffic has a long tradition in Germany, not only
   owing to the automobile industry, but also, because the first motorway
   ( Autobahn) in the world, the AVUS, and the world's first automobile
   were developed and built by Karl Benz in Germany. Germany possesses one
   of the densest road systems of the world. It covers 12,037 kilometres
   (7,479  mi) of federal "Autobahn" motorways and 41,386 kilometres
   (25,716 mi) of federal highways. In contrast to other European
   countries, German motorways partially have no blanket speed limit.
   However, signposted limits are in place on many dangerous or congested
   stretches, and where traffic noise or pollution poses a nuisance; some
   of these limits apply only at night or only in wet conditions.
   InterCity Express train (generation III), Stuttgart
   Enlarge
   InterCity Express train (generation III), Stuttgart

   Another way to travel is via rail. Deutsche Bahn (German Rail) is the
   major German railway infrastructure and service operator. For commuter
   and regional services, franchises of various sizes are granted by the
   individual states, though largely financed from the federal budget.
   Unsubsidised long-range service operators can compete freely all over
   the country, at least in theory. Actually, Deutsche Bahn holds a de
   facto monopoly on long-range services.

   The InterCity Express or ICE is a type of high-speed train operated by
   Deutsche Bahn in Germany and neighbouring countries, for example to
   Zürich, Switzerland or Vienna, Austria. ICE trains also serve Amsterdam
   (The Netherlands) as well as Liège and Brussels (Belgium). In spite of
   branch lines progressively being closed for at least the last seven
   decades, the rail network throughout Germany is still very extensive
   and provides excellent services in most areas. Nearly all larger
   metropolitan areas are served by an S-Bahn heavy rail metro system. A
   large proportion of towns feature underground and/or tram systems. Good
   urban and overland bus services are ubiquitous.

   Frankfurt International Airport is a major international airport and
   European transportation hub. Frankfurt Airport ranks among the world's
   top ten airports and serves 304 flight destinations in 110 countries.
   Depending whether total passengers, flights or cargo traffic are used
   as a measure, it ranks as the busiest, second busiest and third busiest
   in Europe. alongside London Heathrow Airport and Paris's Charles de
   Gaulle.

   Germany's second important international airport is Munich
   International Airport; other major airports are Düsseldorf
   International Airport, Berlin, Hamburg Airport and Cologne Bonn
   Airport. Travelling by plane within Germany is unusual due to the
   extensive network of motorways and railway services.

International rankings

Political and economic rankings

     * Political freedom — Free; political rights and civil liberties both
       rated 1 (the highest score available)
     * Press freedom — 18th freest in the world at 4.00
     * GDP per capita (PPP) — 17th highest in the world at I$30,579
     * Human Development Index — 20th highest in the world at 0.930
     * Income equality — 14th most equal income at 28.3 ( Gini index)
     * Literacy rate — Equal 1st with 99.9%
     * Unemployment rate — 80th lowest with 10.60%
     * Corruption — 16th lowest with a rating of 8.2
     * Economic freedom — Equal 19th freest with a rating of 1.96

Health rankings

     * Fertility rate — 171st most fertile country with a rating of 1.39
       per woman
     * Birth rate — 192nd most births per capita at 8.33 per 1000 people
     * Infant mortality — 11th least infant deaths with a rating of 4.16
       per 1000 births
     * Death rate — 55th highest with a rating of 10.55 deaths per 1000
       people
     * Life expectancy — 23rd highest with 78.80 years
     * Suicide rate — 28th highest with 20.4 for men, 7.0 for women and
       13.5 total

Other rankings

     * CO[2] emissions per capita — 34th highest with 9.8 metric tons per
       capita
     * Electricity consumption — 7th highest with 510,400,000,000 kWh
     * Broadband uptake — 18th highest with 13.0%
     * Beer consumption — 3rd largest with 115.8 L per capita

Neighbouring countries

   North Sea Flag of Denmark  Denmark Flag of Sweden  Sweden
   Image:Template CanadianCityGeoLocation North.png
   Baltic Sea
   Flag of Netherlands  Netherlands
   Flag of Belgium  Belgium North Flag of Poland  Poland
   West    Flag of Germany  Germany     East
   South
   Flag of Luxembourg  Luxembourg
   Flag of France  France •  Flag of Switzerland  Switzerland Flag of
   Czech Republic  Czech Republic
   Flag of Austria  Austria

   Flag of Germany States of Germany

   Baden-Württemberg · Bavaria · Berlin · Brandenburg · Bremen · Hamburg ·
   Hesse · Lower Saxony · Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania · North
   Rhine-Westphalia · Rhineland-Palatinate · Saarland · Saxony ·
   Saxony-Anhalt · Schleswig-Holstein · Thuringia
   Countries of Europe

   Albania · Andorra · Armenia^1 · Austria · Azerbaijan^2 · Belarus ·
   Belgium · Bosnia and Herzegovina · Bulgaria · Croatia · Cyprus^1 ·
   Czech Republic · Denmark · Estonia · Finland · France · Georgia^2 ·
   Germany · Greece · Hungary · Iceland · Ireland · Italy · Kazakhstan^2 ·
   Latvia · Liechtenstein · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Republic of Macedonia
   · Malta · Moldova · Monaco · Montenegro · Netherlands · Norway · Poland
   · Portugal · Romania · Russia^2 · San Marino · Serbia · Slovakia ·
   Slovenia · Spain · Sweden · Switzerland · Turkey^2 · Ukraine · United
   Kingdom · Vatican City

   (1) Entirely in Asia but having socio-political connections with
   Europe. (2) Has significant territory in Asia.
   Baltic Region

   Baltic States: Flag of Estonia  Estonia • Flag of Latvia  Latvia • Flag
   of Lithuania  Lithuania

   Baltic countries: Flag of Denmark  Denmark • Flag of Finland  Finland •
   Flag of Germany  Germany • Flag of Poland  Poland • Flag of Russia
   Russia • Flag of Sweden  Sweden

   Countries that are in the drainage basin but do not border on the sea:
   Flag of Belarus  Belarus • Flag of Czech Republic  Czech Republic •
   Flag of Norway  Norway • Flag of Slovakia  Slovakia • Flag of Ukraine
   Ukraine
   Countries and territories on the North Sea

   Mainland Europe: Flag of Belgium  Belgium • Flag of Denmark  Denmark •
   Flag of France  France • Flag of Germany  Germany • Flag of Netherlands
    Netherlands

   Great Britain, Scandinavian Peninsula and on the sea: Flag of Faroe
   Islands  Faroe Islands • Flag of Norway  Norway • Flag of United
   Kingdom  United Kingdom ( Flag of England  England, Flag of Scotland
   Scotland)
   European Union members and candidates

   Austria • Belgium • Cyprus • Czech Republic • Denmark • Estonia •
   Finland • France • Germany • Greece • Hungary • Ireland • Italy •
   Latvia • Lithuania • Luxembourg • Malta • Netherlands • Poland •
   Portugal • Slovakia • Slovenia • Spain • Sweden • United Kingdom

   Countries acceding on January 1, 2007: Bulgaria • Romania

   Candidate countries: Croatia • Turkey • Republic of Macedonia (referred
   to as the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia by the European Union)
   Group of Eight (G8)

   Flag of Canada  Canada · Flag of France  France · Flag of Germany
   Germany · Flag of Italy  Italy · Flag of Japan  Japan · Flag of Russia
    Russia · Flag of United Kingdom  United Kingdom · Flag of United
   States  United States
   North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)
   Flag of NATO

   Belgium • Bulgaria • Canada • Czech Republic • Denmark • Estonia •
   France • Germany • Greece • Hungary • Iceland • Italy • Latvia •
   Lithuania • Luxembourg • Netherlands • Norway • Poland • Portugal •
   Romania • Slovakia • Slovenia • Spain • Turkey • United Kingdom •
   United States

   Candidate countries: Albania • Croatia • Republic of Macedonia (as
   FYROM)
   Weimar Triangle

   France • Germany • Poland
   Germanic-speaking nations and regions in Europe

   Scandinavian: Flag of Åland  Åland Islands • Flag of Denmark  Denmark •
   Flag of Finland  Finland • Flag of Faroe Islands  Faroe Islands • Flag
   of Iceland  Iceland • Flag of Norway  Norway • Flag of Sweden  Sweden

   German/ Franconian: Flag of Austria  Austria • Flag of Belgium  Belgium
   • Flag of Germany  Germany • Flag of Liechtenstein  Liechtenstein •
   Flag of Luxembourg  Luxembourg • Flag of Netherlands  Netherlands •
   Flag of Switzerland  Switzerland

   Anglo-Frisian: Flag of Republic of Ireland  Ireland • Flag of Friesland
     Friesland • Flag of United Kingdom  United Kingdom • Gibraltar

   Coordinates: 51°31′48″N, 9°55′12″E

   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Germany"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
