2011-12-07

Tyskland




Germany

This article is about the country. For other uses of terms redirecting here, see Germany (disambiguation) and Deutschland (disambiguation).
Federal Republic of Germany
Bundesrepublik Deutschland
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem:
National anthem of Germany - U.S. Army 1st Armored Division Band.ogg

The third stanza of Das Lied der Deutschen
The Song of the Germans
Location of Germany (dark green)– in Europe (green & dark grey)– in the European Union (green) — [Legend]
Location of Germany(dark green)

– in Europe(green & dark grey)
– in the European Union(green) — [Legend]
Capital
(and largest city)		 Berlin
52°31′N 13°23′E / 52.517°N 13.383°E
Official language(s) German
Demonym German
Government Federal parliamentary republic
- President Christian Wulff (CDU)
- Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU)
- President of the Bundestag Norbert Lammert (CDU)
- President of the Bundesrat Hannelore Kraft (SPD)
Formation
- Holy Roman Empire 2 February 962
- Unification 18 January 1871
- Federal Republic 23 May 1949
- Reunification 3 October 1990
Area
- Total 357,021 km (63rd)
137,847 sq mi
- Water (%) 2.416
Population
- 2010 estimate 81,799,600 (15th)
- Density 229/km (55th)
593/sq mi
GDP (PPP) 2011 estimate
- Total $3.089 trillion (5th)
- Per capita $37,935 (18th)
GDP (nominal) 2011 estimate
- Total $3.628 trillion (4th)
- Per capita $44,555 (19th)
Gini (2006) 27 (low)
HDI (2011) increase 0.905 (very high) (9th)
Currency Euro (€)(2002 – present) ( EUR )
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Drives on the right
ISO 3166 code DE
Internet TLD .de
Calling code 49
^ Danish, Low German, Sorbian, Romany and Frisian are officially recognised by the ECRML.
^ Before 2002: Deutsche Mark (DEM).
^ Also .eu, shared with European Union member states.

Germany Listen/ˈdʒɜrməni/, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland, pronounced ( listen)), is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With 81.8 million inhabitants, it is the most populous member state and the largest economy in the European Union. It is one of the major political powers of the European continent and a technological leader in many fields.

A region named Germania, inhabited by several Germanic peoples, was documented before AD 100. During the Migration Age, the Germanic tribes expanded southward, and established successor kingdoms throughout much of Europe. Beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation while southern and western parts remained dominated by Roman Catholic denominations, with the two factions clashing in the Thirty Years' War. Occupied during the Napoleonic Wars, with the rising of Pan-Germanism inside the German Confederation resulted in the unification of most of the German states into the German Empire in 1871 which was Prussian dominated. After the German Revolution of 1918–1919 and the subsequent military surrender in World War I, the Empire was replaced by the Weimar Republic in 1918, and partitioned in the Versailles Treaty. Amidst the Great Depression, the Third Reich was proclaimed in 1933. The latter period was marked by Fascism and the Second World War. After 1945, Germany was divided by allied occupation, and evolved into two states, East Germany and West Germany. In 1990 Germany was reunified.

Germany was a founding member of the European Community in 1957, which became the EU in 1993. It is part of the Schengen Area and since 1999 a member of the eurozone. Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, the OECD and the Council of Europe, and took a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2011–2012 term.

It has the world's fourth largest economy by nominal GDP and the fifth largest by purchasing power parity. It is the second largest exporter and third largest importer of goods. The country has developed a very high standard of living and a comprehensive system of social security. Germany has been the home of many influential scientists and inventors, and is known for its cultural and political history.

Etymology

History

Germanic tribes and Frankish Empire

Holy Roman Empire

German Confederation and Empire

Weimar Republic and Third Reich

East and West Germany

Berlin Republic and the EU

Geography

Climate

Most of Germany has a temperate seasonal climate in which humid westerly winds predominate. The climate is moderated by the North Atlantic Drift, the northern extension of the Gulf Stream. This warmer water affects the areas bordering the North Sea; consequently in the north-west and the north the climate is oceanic. Rainfall occurs year-round, especially in the summer. Winters are mild and summers tend to be cool, though temperatures can exceed 30 °C (86 °F).

The east has a more continental climate; winters can be very cold and summers very warm, and long dry periods are frequent. Central and southern Germany are transition regions which vary from moderately oceanic to continental. In addition to the maritime and continental climates that predominate over most of the country, the Alpine regions in the extreme south and, to a lesser degree, some areas of the Central German Uplands have a mountain climate, characterised by lower temperatures and greater precipitation.

Biodiversity

Politics

Constituent states

Germany comprises sixteen states that are collectively referred to as Länder. Each state has its own state constitution and is largely autonomous in regard to its internal organisation. Due to differences in size and population the subdivision of these states varies, especially between city states (Stadtstaaten) and states with larger territories (Flächenländer). For regional administrative purposes five states, namely Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia and Saxony, consist of a total of 22 Government Districts (Regierungsbezirke). As of 2009 Germany is divided into 403 districts (Kreise) on municipal level, these consist of 301 rural districts and 102 urban districts.

Foreign relations

Military

Economy

Infrastructure

Science and technology

Demographics

Religion

Languages

Education

Health

Culture

Arts

Literature and philosophy

Media

German cinema dates back to the earliest years of the medium with the work of Max Skladanowsky, which was particularly influential with German expressionists such as Robert Wiene and Friedrich Wilhelm Murnau. Director Fritz Lang's Metropolis (1927) is referred to as the first modern science-fiction film. In 1930 the Austrian-American Josef von Sternberg directed The Blue Angel, the first major German sound film. During the 1970s and 1980s, New German Cinema directors such as Volker Schlöndorff, Werner Herzog, Wim Wenders, and Rainer Werner Fassbinder put West German cinema on the international stage. The annual European Film Awards ceremony is held every other year in Berlin, home of the European Film Academy (EFA); the Berlin Film Festival, held annually since 1951, is one of the world's foremost film festivals.

More recently, films such as Good Bye Lenin! (2003), Gegen die Wand (Head-on) (2004), Der Untergang (Downfall) (2004), and Der Baader Meinhof Komplex (2008) have had international success. The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film went to the German production Die Blechtrommel (The Tin Drum) in 1979, to Nowhere in Africa in 2002, and to Das Leben der Anderen (The Lives of Others) in 2007. Germany's television market is the largest in Europe, with some 34 million TV households. Around 90% of German households have cable or satellite TV, with a variety of free-to-view public and commercial channels.

Cuisine

Sports

See also

References

Work cited

Fulbrook, Mary (1991). A Concise History of Germany. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521368360.

External links

Wikimedia Atlas of Germany

States of Germany City-states
Former states
Europe (orthographic projection).svg States with limited recognition Dependencies and
other territories
Denmark
Finland
United Kingdom
Flag of NATO Structure Members
Representative
Issues Agreements Ministerial Conferences People
Members

1. All twenty-seven member states of the European Union are also members of the WTO in their own right:

2. Special administrative region of the People's Republic of China

3. Designated name for the Republic of China (commonly known as Taiwan)
Gold: founding member. Blue: Later (current) full members. Members
Full
Observer
Former
Provisionally referred to by the Council of Europe as "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" see Macedonia naming dispute.
Partners for
Cooperation Bodies and posts


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