Social and Cultural Environment

What makes Deutschland so great??

Germany is often known as Land der Dichter und Denker, which means “The land of the poets and thinkers”.
Germans pride themselves in knowing that some of the greatest composers, philosophers, and ideas were formed in their country.
Beethoven and Bach-two of the world’s greatest composers
Immanuel Kant- a well-known and important philosopher
University of Berlin served as an influential model for a number of modern western universities.

My Favorite Part: The Music Scene!!

As of 2006, Germany is the fifth largest music market in the world and has exerted a strong influence on dance and Rock music, and pioneered trance music. Artists such as Herbert Grönemeyer, Scorpions, Rammstein, Nena, Dieter Bohlen, Tokio Hotel and Modern Talking have enjoyed international fame. German musicians and, particularly, the pioneering bands Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk have also contributed to the development of electronic music. Germany hosts many large rock music festivals annually. The Rock am Ring festival is the largest music festival in Germany, and among the largest in the world. German artists also make up a large percentage of Industrial music acts, which is called Neue Deutsche Härte. Germany hosts one of the largest Goth rock scenes and festivals in the entire world, with events like Wave-Gotik-Treffen easily attracting up to 30,000 people.

Second to Music Would be…Sports!!

Sport forms an integral part of German life, as demonstrated by the fact that 27 million Germans are members of a sports club and an additional twelve million pursue such an activity individually. Football is by far the most popular sport, and the German Football Federation (Deutscher Fußballbund) with more than 6.3 million members is the largest athletic organization in the country. It also attracts the greatest audience, with hundreds of thousands of spectators attending Bundesliga matches and millions more watching on television. The other two most popular sports in Germany are marksmanship and tennis represented by the German Marksmen’s Federation and the German Tennis Federation respectively, both including more than a million members. Other popular sports include handball, volleyball, basketball, and ice hockey. Germany has historically been one of the strongest contenders in the Olympic Games. In the 2008 Summer Olympics, Germany finished fifth overall, whereas in the 2006 Winter Olympics Germany finished first.



Food! Glorious Food!



Beer- According to a representative survey, beer is a German's favorite drink. 79% of German adults drink beer regularly. 67% of German women and 91% of German men drink beer at least once a month.
There is also a huge festival that celebrates the greatness of beer- Oktoberfest, which is held in Muenchin (Munich) at the end of September each year.
Though corn is a favorite in America, corn in Germany is usually used to feed live-stock, such as pigs.
Berliners are some of the most delicious pastries. Similar to America’s cream or jelly-filled donuts, they are filled with raspberry, strawberry, and cherry jelly, as well as Bavarian cream, and are often rolled in white or powdered sugar.
Cakes are generally made with all fresh fruits, topped with fresh apples, strawberries, plums, and cherries, but usually don’t consist of much or any sugar.
Bratwurst and Sauerkraut- what Germany is best known for other than their delicious beer.

Beliefs and Religion:
The German government has limited responsibilities for culture, which is devolved to the states of Germany, called Länder.
64.1% of the German population belongs to Christian denominations.
31.4% are Roman Catholic
32.7% are affiliated with Protestantism
(The figures are known accurately because Germany imposes a church tax on those who disclose a religious affiliation).
The North and East is predominantly Protestant, the South and West rather Catholic. Nowadays there is a non-religious majority in Hamburg and the East German states. Germany formed a substantial part of the Roman Catholic Holy Roman Empire, but was also the source of Protestant reformers such as Martin Luther. Historically, Germany had a substantial Jewish population. Only a few thousand people of Jewish origin remained in Germany after the Holocaust, but the German Jewish community now has approximately 100,000 members, many from the former Soviet Union. Germany also has a substantial Muslim minority, most of whom are from Turkey.

What’s With Your Attitude?
Germans believed that women had two important roles: one was to have children and look after them, the other was to look after her husband. Most women were happy to take on this role as it meant they didn't have to compete with men for jobs. They had a lot of rights taken away from them they were never made to feel like second class citizens. They were the future of Germany and were precious to Hitler and the future he had planned. Hitler summed up his ideas at Nuremberg in 1934 where he delivered his theory of women and their role in Germany. He believed that woman had their own world, which was smaller and it focused on her children, her husband and housework, the man's world revolved around work and power.

Let’s Get Down to Business!
German, Austrian, and Swiss business concerns are known throughout the world. Volkswagen AG is the largest manufacturer of automobiles in Europe and one of the biggest firms in Germany. Adidas AG, founded by a German, is one of the most important makers of sportswear in Europe. Nestle AG, most famous for chocolate, is Switzerland’s best-known food and beverage concern, and next to Swissair [now “Swiss”] and Rolex, one of the corporate names most readily associated with Switzerland. But well-known giants like these make up less than ten percent of the companies in the German-speaking business world.
Most German firms are small to medium-sized concerns, known in German as the Mittelstand. There is no direct English equivalent for Mittelstand, a term that goes back to feudal times. The German word refers not only to small and medium-sized businesses, but also to a common work ethic and to the middle-class business people who employ about two-thirds of the German work force. Although the Mittelstand was virtually eliminated in communist East Germany, it has existed in the German lands for centuries. Today, the Mittelstand accounts for about half of the total industrial production of Germany alone.