Major Cities: After Berlin, the most populous cities are Hamburg (1.7 million), Munich (1.2 million), Cologne (964,000), Frankfurt (644,000), Essen (603,000), Dortmund (592,000), Stuttgart (582,000), Düsseldorf (568,000), Bremen (543,000), and Hanover (516,000).

Independence: The Day of German Unity commemorates the official reunification of the democratic Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) and the communist German Democratic Republic (East Germany) on October 3, 1990. The holiday is the equivalent of an independence celebration because it marks the end of the country’s Cold War-driven division into two separate states.

Public Holidays: Official holidays are New Year’s (January 1), Good Friday/Easter Monday (variable dates in March or April), May Day (May 1), Ascension Day (variable date in April or May), Pentecost (variable date in April or May), Day of German Unity (October 3), and Christmas/Boxing Day (December 25–26).

Flag: The German flag is a horizontal tricolor consisting of black (top),

red (middle), and yellow (bottom) stripes.

RECENT NEWS ARTICLES

Germany: Iran could have nuclear bomb by 2015  -  24 Oct 2006
Mail & Guardian Online,Iran is unlikely to be able to develop a nuclear bomb before 2015, the chief of Germany's BND foreign intelligence agency said on Tuesday. ...

Germany's Merck Said 3Q Profits Fell  -  24 Oct 2006
Forbes,By MATT MOORE , 10.24.2006, 08:53 AM. German drugmaker Merck KGaA, which is acquiring Switzerland's Serono SA, said Tuesday that ...

Comstor Germany to Distribute Plantronics Headsets  -  24 Oct 2006
TMCnetBy Johanne Torres. Comstor Germany announced today a new distribution agreement with headset manufacturer Plantronics. The new deal ...

Crownline Boats In Germany  -  24 Oct 2006
WSIL TV,...and for Crownline Boats," said Riem. Crownline's biggest customer is Gunter Siegel of Germany. The company estimates that Siegel ...

DISILLUSION, NEAERA Confirmed For Germany's WACKEN OPEN AIR ...  -  24 Oct 2006
Blabbermouth.net,DISILLUSION and NEAERA have been confirmed for next year's installment of the Wacken Open Air festival, set to take place August 2-4, 2007 in Wacken, Germany. ...

The Nazi Germany/apartheid South Africa invention that could make ...  -  24 Oct 2006
SlateHow Nazi Germany and apartheid South Africa perfected one of the world's most exciting new fuel sources. Why Democratic-leaning ...

IVG purchases four office properties in Germany for â‚¬190 million  -  24 Oct 2006
Immo-news.net (Comunicados de prensa),IVG Immobilien AG is purchasing an office property portfolio in Germany for â‚¬190 million to add to its own portfolio. The seller ...

Germany Anxious to Spare its Criminals from Bulgaria's Prisons  -  24 Oct 2006
Sofia News Agency,Germany's Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries, however, slammed Stiober for not knowing what he was talking about, and explained that the EU laws only allowed ...

BioGaia Signs Agreement For Germany  -  24 Oct 2006
NPIcenter (press release),BioGaia has signed an agreement with HSO Pharma, Austria giving the company exclusive rights to market BioGaiaÂ´s probiotic tablets and drops in Germany. ...

Turkish-German Literature Festival in Germany  -  24 Oct 2006
Zaman Online,Essen, a city in Germany, will host the Turkish-German Literature Festival, organized by the Grend Culture Center for the second time this year, between ...

Germany Drops in Press-Freedom Index  -  24 Oct 2006
Deutsche Welle,Germany lost status in the annual press-freedom rankings by a journalism advocacy group, sliding from 18th to 23rd place amid revelations that the country's ...

Germany : Puma on a roll with ambitious plans  -  24 Oct 2006
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BT Germany to deploy WAN for Rhineland Pfalz communities  -  24 Oct 2006
Telecom Paper (subscription),BT Germany has won contracts from the communities in Rhineland Pfalz and from the state Rhineland Pfalz. Under the two-figure million ...

Vodafone Germany has 2 million UMTS users  -  24 Oct 2006
Telecom Paper (subscription),Vodafone Germany has two million UMTS customers, who generate 7 percent of Vodafone's total revenues, according to Vodafone director Erik Friemuth at Systems ...

Golf star has roots in Naples and Germany  -  24 Oct 2006
The News-Press,Karlsruhe, Germany, is home of that country's largest oil refinery, two major German Internet providers, and was the birthplace of automaker Karl Benz. ...

Condor operates twice a week to Germany  -  24 Oct 2006
Herald Publications,BY HERALD REPORTER. PANJIM, OCT 23 â€“ German airline Condor has officially announced commencement of commercial flights between Goa and Germany. ...

Germany: ESG flying experimental vehicle goes into operation  -  24 Oct 2006
Rotorhub (press release),The mission equipment carrier fulfils an urgent requirement of the German Bundeswehr: helicopter components can now be tested under real conditions during ...

Germany to be tougher on foreign students  -  24 Oct 2006
United Press InternationalBERLIN, Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Germany is planning to tighten visa procedures for foreign students after a pair botched an attempted train bombing three months ago. ...

Air Berlin discounts flights to Germany by 50%  -  24 Oct 2006
Cheapflights.co.uk,Book by midnight on Thursday, October 26: Air Berlin is discounting fares on selected flights to Germany and Austria by up to 50 per cent. ...

Biggest brain drain in Germany since 1954  -  24 Oct 2006
United Press International23 (UPI) -- Germany is losing its best young brains because they are emigrating to countries where they can make more money or enjoy better working conditions. ...

South Africa: SA And Germany to Hold 2010 World Cup Talks  -  Oct 23, 2006
AllAfrica.com,Zuma is meeting her German counterpart to discuss among other things, South Africa's preparations for the 2010 Soccer World Cup and the Germany's co-operation ...

This series of profiles of foreign nations is part of the Country Studies Program, formerly the Army Area Handbook Program. The profiles offer brief, summarized information on a country’s historical background, geography, society, economy, transportation and telecommunications, government and politics, and national security. In addition to being featured in the front matter of published Country Studies, they are now being prepared as stand-alone reference aides for all countries in the series, as well as for a number of additional countries of interest. The profiles offer reasonably current country information independent of the existence of a recently published Country Study and will be updated annually or more frequently as events warrant.