The People
Except for extremely small minorities, such as the Danes in the north and people of Slavic descent in the east, the people are German. They are the descendants of Germanic, Celtic, and other tribes that began settling in the country as early as the fifth century B.C. One early tribe was the Teutones, from whom the term Teutonic (meaning Germanic) is derived.
The population of Germany, according to a 1994 official estimate, is about 81,539,000. The population density is in excess of 590 persons per square mile (228 per km2), more than eight times that of the United States. The population is predominantly urban.
German is one of the Teutonic tongues of the Indo-European family. A number of dialects are spoken. High German, which developed from the dialects of southern and central Germany, is the official and literary language. Low German, prevailing in parts of the north, is sometimes considered a dialect and sometimes a separate language.
The German constitution guarantees freedom of religion. About 41 per cent of the people belong to the Evangelical Church (an association of Lutheran and several other Protestant churches); 36 per cent of the people are Roman Catholics. Protestants are in the majority in the northern and the eastern states while Catholics are more numerous in the southern states, especially Bavaria. Other religions include Judaism and Islam.
Germany has almost no illiteracy. Elementary and secondary education is free, and attendance is compulsory from 6 to 18. Young persons not enrolled in full-time school beyond age 15 must attend a part-time vocational school for three years. The constitution leaves most of the power to design and administer educational systems to the states. Systems vary, but the basic structure is as follows:
All children attend primary, or basic, school (Grundschule), the first four years of the eight-year elementary school (Volksschule). They may then (1) continue in elementary school, after which they attend vocational school; (2) attend a six-year intermediate school (Mittelschule, or Realschule); or (3) attend a nine-year high school (Gymnasium). There are three types of Gymnasia: Modern Language, Classical Language, and Mathematics-Science.
During 1949–90, education in East Germany emphasized Communist ideological training and preparation for specific jobs or professions and did not provide a general education. Elementary and secondary education were combined in 10- and 12-year polytechnic schools. After the reunification of Germany in 1990, state governments in the former East Germany began to reform their curriculums and educational systems to conform to those of the Federal Republic.
Institutions of higher learning in Germany include universities, technical colleges, and scientific colleges. Among notable universities are those at Berlin, Bonn, Cologne, Göttingen, Heidelberg, Munich, Leipzig, Dresden, and Tübingen. There are also schools for adult education, the arts and music, theology, and teacher training.
Walking, hiking, skiing, cycling, swimming, and rowing are popular activities for all ages. Many Germans belong to local Turnvereine (gymnastics clubs). All schools have sports programs, and Federal Youth Games are held each summer and winter. Soccer has become the most popular active team game as well as the favorite spectator sport. Annual auto races are held at the Nuremberg track.
Germany has one of the richest cultural heritages in the western world. German musical tradition reaches back to the medieval minnesingers and meistersingers. Johann Sebastian Bach was one of the great composers of the Baroque period. The composers Ludwig van Beethoven and Johannes Brahms were masters of the classical era. Richard Wagner was an important composer of the Romantic period. Notable modern German composers include Richard Strauss, Paul Hindemith, and Carl Orff. Many annual music festivals are held, including the Wagner Festival at Bayreuth and the Beethoven Festival at Bonn.
Germany has produced many leading poets, dramatists, and novelists. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Friedrich von Schiller were leaders of the German Classicist movement during the 18th century. Max Reinhardt, Bertolt Brecht, and others made Berlin a center of modern drama after World War I. The German authors Gerhart Hauptmann, Thomas Mann, and Heinrich Böll have won the Nobel Prize for literature.
Painters of distinction from Germany include Albrecht Dürer, Hans Holbein the Younger, and Lucas Cranach. The Expressionist movement began in Germany with Franz Marc and Vasily Kandinsky, a Russian emigré.
Germany has produced many notable architects, philosophers, and scientists. Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius were leading architects in the 20th century, and Germany was home of the Bauhaus school of art and design. Major contributions to philosophic thought were made by Immanuel Kant, Georg Friedrich Hegel, Arthur Schopenhauer, and Friedrich Nietzsche. Important scientific discoveries were made by the astronomer Johannes Kepler, the chemist Justus von Liebig, and the physicists Hermann von Helmholtz and Albert Einstein.
