Germany country profile

27 August 2006
by eub2 -- last modified 04 January 2008

Germany is a federal republic and a founder member state of the European Union. It has the biggest population of any EU country. After the collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the former GDR (German Democratic Republic) was incorporated into the Federal Republic. Five new Bundesländer joined the EU.

Bundesrepublik Deutschland

Germany has the biggest population of any EU country. Its territory stretches from the North Sea and the Baltic in the north to the Alps in the south and is traversed by some of Europe's major rivers such as the Rhine, Danube and Elbe.

Germany is a federal republic. The lawmakers at the national level are the Bundestag, whose members are elected every four years by popular vote and the Bundesrat, which consists of 69 representatives of the 16 states (Bundesländer).

After the collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989, the former GDR (German Democratic Republic) was incorporated into the Federal Republic. Five new Bundesländer joined the European Union.

German is the most widely spoken first language in the European Union.Germany is the world's third largest economy, producing automobiles, precision engineering products, electronic and communications equipment, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, and much more besides. Its companies have invested heavily in the central and east European countries which joined the EU in 2004.

As birthplace of Johann Sebastian Bach, Ludwig van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms and Richard Wagner, among others, Germany's gift to European classical music is important. In thought and word, Germany’s huge heritage includes the works of Luther, Goethe, Schiller, Nietzsche, Kant, Brecht and Thomas Mann.

Germany is the second largest producer of hops in the world and the country is known for its quality beers. Wine is produced in the Moselle and Rhine valleys.

Area: 357 050 km²
Population: 82.5 million (rounded)
Capital city: Berlin
Currency: 1 euro = 100 cent
National day: 3 October
EU-membership: 23 July 1952 (ECSC, founding member)

Head of State: President Horst Köhler
Head of Government: Angela Merkel
Foreign Minister: Frank-Walter Steinmeier
Government: Coalition: Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU, 226 seats), Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD, 222 seats)
Parliament: Bicameral: German Bundestag (Lower House), 614 members elected for a four-year term; German Bundesrat (Upper House), representation of the 16 federal states

GDP: € 2 247.40 billion (2005)
GDP per capita in PPS: € 27 253 (2005)
Economic growth in real terms: + 0.9% (2005)

Links:
Head of State: http://www.bundespraesident.de
Head of Government: http://www.bundeskanzlerin.de
Government: http://www.bundesregierung.de
Parliament: http://www.bundestag.de

Map of Germany


Source: European Commission, Slovenia EU Presidency