Germany

• temperate and marine;
• cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers;
• occasional warm mountain (foehn) wind

agricultural land:

48%;

• arable land 34.1%;
• permanent crops 0.6%;
• permanent pasture 13.3%

forest:

31.8%

other:

20.2% (2011 est.)

• emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries contribute to air pollution;
• acid rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests;
• pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents from rivers in eastern Germany;
• hazardous waste disposal;
• government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power by 2022;
• government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive

• strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea;
• most major rivers in Germany - the Rhine, Weser, Oder, Elbe - flow northward;
• the Danube, which originates in the Black Forest, flows eastward

noun:

German(s)

adjective:

German

at birth:

1.06 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.04 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1.02 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.98 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.78 male(s)/female

total population:

0.97 male(s)/female (2016 est.)

conventional long form:

Federal Republic of Germany

conventional short form:

Germany

local long form:

Bundesrepublik Deutschland

local short form:

Deutschland

former:

German Empire, German Republic, German Reich

etymology:

• the Gauls (Celts) of Western Europe may have referred to the newly arriving Germanic tribes who settled in neighboring areas east of the Rhine during the first centuries B.C. as "Germani," a term the Romans adopted as "Germania";
• the native designation "Deutsch" comes from the Old High German "diutisc" meaning "of the people"

name:

Berlin

geographic coordinates:

52 31 N, 13 24 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

• 16 states (Laender, singular - Land);
• Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern (Bavaria), Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hessen (Hesse), Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania), Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony), Nordrhein-Westfalen (North Rhine-Westphalia), Rheinland-Pfalz (Rhineland-Palatinate), Saarland, Sachsen (Saxony), Sachsen-Anhalt (Saxony-Anhalt), Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen (Thuringia);
• note - Bayern, Sachsen, and Thueringen refer to themselves as free states (Freistaaten, singular - Freistaat), while Hamburg prides itself on being a Free and Hanseatic City (Freie und Hansestadt)

• 18 January 1871 (establishment of the German Empire);
• divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and France) in 1945 following World War II;
• Federal Republic of Germany (FRG or West Germany) proclaimed on 23 May 1949 and included the former UK, US, and French zones;
• German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany) proclaimed on 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR zone;
• West Germany and East Germany unified on 3 October 1990;
• all four powers formally relinquished rights on 15 March 1991;
• notable earlier dates: 10 August 843 (Eastern Francia established from the division of the Carolingian Empire);
• 2 February 962 (crowning of OTTO I, recognized as the first Holy Roman Emperor)

history:

previous 1919 (Weimar Constitution); latest drafted 10 to 23 August 1948, approved 12 May 1949, promulgated 23 May 1949, entered into force 24 May 1949

amendments:

• proposed by Parliament;
• passage and enactment into law require two-thirds majority vote by both the Bundesrat (upper house) and the Bundestag (lower house) of Parliament;
• articles including those on basic human rights and freedoms cannot be amended;
• amended many times, last in 2012 (2016)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a German citizen or a resident alien who has lived in Germany at least 8 years

dual citizenship recognized:

yes, but requires prior permission from government

residency requirement for naturalization:

8 years

• 18 years of age;
• universal;
• age 16 for some state and municipal elections

chief of state:

President Frank-Walter STEINMEIER (since 19 March 2017; inaugurated 22 March 2017)

head of government:

Chancellor Angela MERKEL (since 22 November 2005)

cabinet:

Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) recommended by the chancellor, appointed by the president

elections/appointments:

• president indirectly elected for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term) by a Federal Convention consisting of the 630-member Federal Parliament (Bundestag) and 630 delegates indirectly elected by the state parliaments;
• election last held on 12 February 2017 (next to be held February 2022);
• chancellor indirectly elected by absolute majority by the Federal Parliament for a 4-year term;
• Federal Parliament vote for chancellor last held on 17 December 2013 (next to be held following the general election, 24 September 2017)

election results:

• Frank-Walter STEINMEIER elected president;
• Federal Convention vote count - Frank-Walter STEINMEIER (SPD) 931, Christopher BUTTERWEGGE (The Left) 128, Albrecht GLASER (Alternative for Germany AfD) 42, Alexander HOLD (BVB/FW) 25, Engelbert SONNEBORN (Pirates) 10;
• Angela MERKEL (CDU) reelected chancellor;
• Federal Parliament vote - 462 for, 150 against, 49 abstentions

description:

bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 seats; members appointed by each of the 16 state governments) and the Federal Diet or Bundestag (631 seats - total seats can vary each electoral term; approximately one-half of members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote and approximately one-half directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote; members serve 4-year terms)

elections:

• Bundestag - last held on 24 September 2017 (next to be held in 2021);
• most postwar German governments have been coalitions;
• note - there are no elections for the Bundesrat;
• composition is determined by the composition of the state-level governments;
• the composition of the Bundesrat has the potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election

election results:

• Bundestag - percent of vote by party - CDU/CSU 32.9%, SPD 20.5%, AfD 12.6%, FDP 10.8%, The Left 9.2%, Alliance '90/Greens 8.9%, other 5%;
• seats by party - CDU/CSU 246, SPD 153, FDP 80, The Left 69, Alliance '90/Greens 67

highest court(s):

Federal Court of Justice (court consists of 127 judges including the court president, vice-presidents, presiding judges, and other judges, and organized into 25 Senates subdivided into 12 civil panels, 5 criminal panels, and 8 special panels; Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (consists of 2 Senates each subdivided into 3 chambers, each with a chairman and 8 members)

judge selection and term of office:

• Federal Court of Justice judges selected by the Judges Election Committee, which consists of the Secretaries of Justice from each of the 16 federated States and 16 members appointed by the Federal Parliament;
• judges appointed by the president of Germany;
• judges serve until mandatory retirement at age 65;
• Federal Constitutional Court judges - one-half elected by the House of Representatives and one-half by the Senate;
• judges appointed for 12-year terms with mandatory retirement at age 68

subordinate courts:

• Federal Administrative Court;
• Federal Finance Court;
• Federal Labor Court;
• Federal Social Court;
• each of the 16 German states or Land has its own constitutional court and a hierarchy of ordinary (civil, criminal, family) and specialized (administrative, finance, labor, social) courts

• Alliance '90/Greens [Cem OEZDEMIR and Simone PETER]
• Alternative for Germany or AfD [Joerg MEUTHEN]
• Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]
• Christian Social Union or CSU [Horst SEEHOFER]
• Free Democratic Party or FDP [Christian LINDNER]
• Pirate Party Germany or Pirates [Stefan KORNER]
• The Left or Die Linke [Katja KIPPING and Bernd RIEXINGER]
• Social Democratic Party or SPD [Martin SCHULZ]
• United Civil Movements of Brandenburg/Free Voters [Peter VIDA]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Hans Peter WITTIG (since 21 May 2014)

chancery:

4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007

telephone:

[1] (202) 298-4000

FAX:

[1] (202) 298-4249

consulate(s) general:

Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Kent LOGSDON (since 20 January 2017)

embassy:

Pariser Platz 2

mailing address:

Clayallee 170, 14191 Berlin

telephone:

[49] (30) 8305-0

FAX:

[49] (30) 8305-1215

consulate(s) general:

Dusseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich

• three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold;
• these colors have played an important role in German history and can be traced back to the medieval banner of the Holy Roman Emperor - a black eagle with red claws and beak on a gold field

• potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages;
• milk products;
• cattle, pigs, poultry

agriculture:

1.4%

industry:

24.2%

services:

74.3% (2016)

lowest 10%:

3.6%

highest 10%:

24% (2000)

general assessment:

• one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems;
• as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part

domestic:

• extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system;
• cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries

international:

country code - 49; Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the Inmarsat, Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik satellite systems (2015)

• a mixture of publicly operated and privately owned TV and radio stations;
• national and regional public broadcasters compete with nearly 400 privately owned national and regional TV stations;
• more than 90% of households have cable or satellite TV;
• hundreds of radio stations including multiple national radio networks, regional radio networks, and a large number of local radio stations (2008)

number of registered air carriers:

20; inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 1,113

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

115,540,886

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

6,985,007,915 mt-km (2015)

• condensate 37 km;
• gas 26,985 km;
• oil 2,826 km;
• refined products 4,479 km;
• water 8 km (2013)

total:

43,468.3 km

standard gauge:

43,209.3 km 1.435-m gauge (19,973 km electrified)

narrow gauge:

• 220 km 1.000-m gauge (79 km electrified);
• 15 km 0.900-m gauge;
• 24 km 0.750-m gauge (2014)

country comparison to the world: 6

total:

645,000 km

paved:

645,000 km (includes 12,800 km of expressways)

note: includes local roads (2010)

country comparison to the world: 12

major seaport(s):

Baltic Sea - Rostock; North Sea - Wilhelmshaven

river port(s):

• Bremen (Weser);
• Bremerhaven (Geeste);
• Duisburg, Karlsruhe, Neuss-Dusseldorf (Rhine);
• Brunsbuttel, Hamburg (Elbe);
• Lubeck (Wakenitz)

oil terminal(s):

Brunsbuttel Canal terminals

container port(s):

Bremen/Bremerhaven (5,547,000), Hamburg (8,821,000) (2015)

LNG terminal(s) (import):

Hamburg

• 17-23 years of age for male and female voluntary military service;
• conscription ended 1 July 2011;
• service obligation 8-23 months or 12 years;
• women have been eligible for voluntary service in all military branches and positions since 2001 (2013)

refugees (country of origin):

• 375,122 (Syria);
• 86,045 (Iraq);
• 46,292 (Afghanistan);
• 30,020 (Eritrea);
• 22,910 (Iran);
• 19,136 (Turkey);
• 9,189 (Serbia and Kosovo);
• 7,879 (Somalia);
• 5,255 (Russia);
• 5,169 (Pakistan) (2016);
• 10,305 (Ukraine) (2017) note: estimate represents asylum applicants since Ukraine crisis began in 2014 until September 2017

stateless persons:

12,017 (2016)

• source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors;
• transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs;
• major financial center