fast facts: germany
The Federal Republic of Germany is Europe's most populous and richest country. With more than 82 million people, Germany's citizens enjoy a high standard of living, with universal health care, low crime rates, and high investment in infrastructure and education.
Germany's People
More than 91 percent of people are ethnically German. Turkish is the next largest ethnic group, at 2.4 percent of the population. The remaining 6.1 percent are mostly Serbo-Croatian, Italian, Greek, Russian, Polish and Spanish.
The largest religious affiliation is Protestant with 38 percent. Next is Roman Catholic, 34 percent, and Muslim, 1.7 percent. Those unaffiliated or practicing some other religion are 26.3 percent of the population.
Government
Chief of State: President Johannes Rau (since July 1, 1999)
Head of Government: Chancellor Angela Dorothea Merkel (since October 27, 1998). Merkel, who holds a doctorate in physics, is simultaneously the first female Chancellor of Germany, the first citizen of the former German Democratic Republic to assume the chancellery of reunited Germany, and the first woman to lead Germany since it became a modern nation-state in 1871. She is also, as of 2007, the youngest person to be German chancellor since the Second World War. Merkel, considered by Forbes Magazine to be the most powerful woman in the world at present, is only the third woman to serve on the G8 after Margaret Thatcher & Kim Campbell and in 2007 became the second woman to chair a G8 summit after Margaret Thatcher.
Legislative Branch: the bicameral Parliament consists of the Bundestag (Federal Assembly) and the Bundesrat (Federal Council).
Economy
After the U.S. and Japan, Germany is the world's most technologically powerful country. Nevertheless, the generous social benefits system has begun to take its toll on the economy, and the government has already begun cutting back on some services. The high unemployment rate of 10 percent or more continues to be long-term problem because of the high contribution rates for social programs on wages. As Germany's aged population increases, the country will struggle more to meet citizens' demands.
National HolidayGerman Unity Day - October 3 - celebrates the unification of West and East Germany on October 3, 1990.
Capital City
Berlin is Germany's capital city. Once divided, reunited Berlin now has the seat of the German Government and Parliament. The old "Reichstag" or Parliament Building has undergone renovation, complete with a beautiful glass dome. The old Potsdam Square in the middle of the city is now called "Daimler City."
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The Federal Republic of Germany is Europe's most populous and richest country. With more than 82 million people, Germany's citizens enjoy a high standard of living, with universal health care, low crime rates, and high investment in infrastructure and education.
Germany's People
More than 91 percent of people are ethnically German. Turkish is the next largest ethnic group, at 2.4 percent of the population. The remaining 6.1 percent are mostly Serbo-Croatian, Italian, Greek, Russian, Polish and Spanish.
The largest religious affiliation is Protestant with 38 percent. Next is Roman Catholic, 34 percent, and Muslim, 1.7 percent. Those unaffiliated or practicing some other religion are 26.3 percent of the population.
Government
Chief of State: President Johannes Rau (since July 1, 1999)
Head of Government: Chancellor Angela Dorothea Merkel (since October 27, 1998). Merkel, who holds a doctorate in physics, is simultaneously the first female Chancellor of Germany, the first citizen of the former German Democratic Republic to assume the chancellery of reunited Germany, and the first woman to lead Germany since it became a modern nation-state in 1871. She is also, as of 2007, the youngest person to be German chancellor since the Second World War. Merkel, considered by Forbes Magazine to be the most powerful woman in the world at present, is only the third woman to serve on the G8 after Margaret Thatcher & Kim Campbell and in 2007 became the second woman to chair a G8 summit after Margaret Thatcher.
Legislative Branch: the bicameral Parliament consists of the Bundestag (Federal Assembly) and the Bundesrat (Federal Council).
Economy
After the U.S. and Japan, Germany is the world's most technologically powerful country. Nevertheless, the generous social benefits system has begun to take its toll on the economy, and the government has already begun cutting back on some services. The high unemployment rate of 10 percent or more continues to be long-term problem because of the high contribution rates for social programs on wages. As Germany's aged population increases, the country will struggle more to meet citizens' demands.
National HolidayGerman Unity Day - October 3 - celebrates the unification of West and East Germany on October 3, 1990.
Capital City
Berlin is Germany's capital city. Once divided, reunited Berlin now has the seat of the German Government and Parliament. The old "Reichstag" or Parliament Building has undergone renovation, complete with a beautiful glass dome. The old Potsdam Square in the middle of the city is now called "Daimler City."