Germany (TNO:ANM)
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German Reich Deutsches Reich (German) | |
|---|---|
 Location of Germany in Europe | |
| Capital and | Berlin 52°31′N 13°23′E |
| Official languages | German |
| Recognised regional languages | Polish, Czceh |
| Religion (2023) | 48.6% Catholic 40.7% Protestant 9.2% irreligious 1.5% other |
| Demonym(s) | German |
| Government | Unitary parliamentary republic |
| Angela Kresner | |
| Jens Spahn | |
| Legislature | Reichstag |
| Area | |
• Total | 815,161 km2 (314,735 sq mi) |
| Population | |
• 2024 estimate |  135,735,172 |
• Density | 166.51/km2 (431.3/sq mi) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2024 estimate |
• Total |  $8.334 trillion |
• Per capita | $61,398 |
| GDP (nominal) | 2023 estimate |
• Total | $6.749 trillion |
• Per capita | $49,721 |
| Gini (2022) |  31.7medium |
| HDI (2022) | 0.921 very high |
| Currency | Reichsmark (ℛ︁ℳ︁) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (MET) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (MEST) |
| Date format | mm/dd/yyyy |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +49 |
| ISO 3166 code | DE |
| Internet TLD | .de |
Germany, (German: Deutschland) officially the German Reich, (German: Deutsches Reich (German pronunciation: [ˈdɔɪ̯t͡ʃəs ʁaɪ̯ç] (
listen)) is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous country in Europe and the second-largest European country by area. It borders Denmark to the north, Lithuania to the northeast, White Ruthenia, Poland and Ukraine to the east, Slovakia to the southeast, Croatia, Italy and Switzerland to the south, and France and the Netherlands to the west. Germany furthermore borders Ukraine to the north through Gotenland and Norway to the south through Nordstern. The country's capital and largest city, Berlin, is among Europe's largest by population. Its main financial center is Frankfurt, while the country's largest urban area is the Ruhr.
Modern-day Germany has been continuously inhabited by humans since the Lower Paleolithic. Germanic tribes and peoples, who mostly lived in the Nordic region and Northern Germany, migrated south into what the Romans called Germania. After the Fall of the Roman Empire and the rise and fragmentation of the Frankish Empire into Middle and East Francia, the Kingdom of Germany formed the largest and most significant territory of the Holy Roman Empire, which dissolved during the Napoleonic Wars. The German Confederation came to replace the former Holy Roman Empire in 1815.
The 1848 revolutions in Europe saw an early but ultimately unsuccessful attempt at German unification. The North German Confederation, formed as a confederation of German states led by Prussia in the aftermath of the Austro-Prussian War, became the German Empire in 1871. The aftermath of World War I and the German revolution saw the deposition of the monarchy and the formation of a semi-presidential republic. The Nazi party seized power in 1933 with the appointment of Adolf Hitler as Chancellor. The Nazis led Germany throughout the interwar period, World War II and the Cold War, establishing a totalitarian dictatorship which would be toppled in 1973. Democratic, free and multi-party elections were held for the first time since 1930 in 1976.
Germany is commonly considered either a great power or a emerging superpower. Germany's economy is the largest in Europe and among the largest in the world. It dominates in industrial, scientific and technological sectors and is among the world's largest exporters and importers. The country's healthcare and education system are often ranked as among the best in the world.