44 Interesting Facts About Germany

Germany is known for a lot of things. 

Some highlights include many tuition-free universities, high-quality education, and cultural diversity.

However, there are many more intriguing things to learn about Germany than you probably think. We’ve compiled this list of the most interesting facts about Germany you probably never heard of before.

44 Interesting Facts About Germany

1. According to the latest statistics by the United Nations, there are currently 84,488,027 people living in Germany.
2. One-third of Germany is still covered in forests and woodlands.
3. Germany is a member of the European Union.
4. 65% of the highways in Germany (Autobahn as Germans call them) have no imposed speed limit; however, they have a recommended speed limit of 130 km/h.
5. Most public German universities offer high-quality education with low tuition or no cost, apart from administrative fees.
6. There were once over 20,000 castles in Germany. However, 60% of them are in ruin, and about 15,000 castles remain.
7. There are around 1,500 breweries in Germany, with over 7,000 sorts of beers available.
8. Germany is the seventh-largest country in Europe. It covers an area of 137,847 square miles (357,022 km²), of which 34,836 square miles (90,224 km²) are covered by land, and 7,798 square miles contains water.
9. The Germans’ love for beer is also expressed through the popular saying, “Durst wird durch Bier erst schön,” which translates to “Thirst is only beautiful when accompanied by beer.”
10. Berlin is 9 times bigger than Paris and has more bridges than Venice, with 1,700 bridges in Berlin and 409 bridges in Venice.
11. Germany is composed of sixteen federal states. Each state has its constitution divided into 403 administrative districts (Kreis or Landkreis), of which 294 are rural and 102 are urban districts. Bavaria is the largest state, with 27,240 square miles or 70,550.19 km².
12. Germany is one of the most densely populated countries in the world, with 77% of the population living in populated areas.
13. Germany shares borders with nine other countries. Denmark, Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.
14. According to the latest statistics, Germany has the largest economy in the EU, with a gross domestic product (GDP) of 4.2 trillion USD, and lies in fourth place in the world behind the US, China, and Japan.
15. Germany is one of the world’s largest car producers. Selling 3.4 million cars in 2011. VW’s Golf has been one of the best-selling cars since 1981, and in 2012, it sold more than 240,702 Golfs around Europe. In 2013, the top-selling car brands in Germany were Volkswagen, Mercedes, Audi, and BMW.
16. The first printed book was printed in Germany, a Latin language Bible by Johann Gutenberg.
17. Germany is one of the world’s leading book nations. Publishing around 94,000 titles every year.
18. The first magazine ever seen was launched in 1663 in Germany, called “Erbauliche Monaths-Unterredungen” started by a poet and theologian named Johann Rist.
19. Germany was the first country in the world to adopt Daylight saving time – DST, also known as summertime. This occurred on April 30, 1916, in the midst of WWI.
20. When JFK visited Berlin, on June 26, 1963, he said, “Ich bin ein Berliner” (I am one with the people of Berlin). A long-lasting myth mistakenly conveyed that this statement translated to “I am a jelly donut”. Although the word “Berliner” has traditionally referred to a jelly donut in the north, west, and southwest of Germany, this is not the case with Berlin. In Berlin, this type of donut is known as “Pfannkuchen.” So, no Berliner would interpret JFK’s speech as a mistake.
21. German is the fifth most widely taught language worldwide, after Spanish.
22. German remains the language with the most native speakers in Europe, with around 100 million native speakers, after Russian, with 120 million native speakers.
23. German is the official language in Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Liechtenstein.
24. Donaudampfschifffahrtselektrizitätenhauptbetriebswerkbauunterbeamtengesellschaft is the longest word to be published. It is 79 letters long.
25. There are 35 dialects of the German language.
26. Germany has over 300 different kinds of bread and over 1,200 types of cake.
27. There are over 1,000 kinds of sausages in Germany.
28. Beer is considered a food in Bavaria officially.
29. Smoking is banned in public places, with some exceptions in a few states.
30. Germany is among the top ten countries that consume the most beer.
31. The biggest Beer Festival in the world is Oktoberfest in Munich, Bavaria, where the beer glass size is not 500ml but a whole liter!
32. The true German way of ordering three drinks (originally with beer) is to raise three fingers: the thumb, index, and middle finger , which is common among Western Europeans.
33. Germany has more football (soccer for the North Americans) fan clubs than anywhere else.
34. Germany has (once) lost a penalty shootout in a major football competition. It was in 1976 when West Germany lost a shootout 5-3 in the European Championships against Czechoslovakia. On the four other occasions the Germans have been involved in one, they won.
35. The Christmas tree (Tannenbaum) tradition came from Germany, and it is believed that Martin Luther, a 16th-century German protestant, started this tradition.
36.  Germany has over 400 zoos, the most in the world.
37. Chancellor Angela Merkel has a Barbie doll made after her, designed by Mattel in 2009.
38. Germans celebrate the start of school by giving their children sweet-filled cardboard cones known as “Schultüte,” containing sweets, toys, school supplies, etc.
39. Most taxis in Germany are Mercedes because they give great deals to the taxi companies.
40. Holocaust denial is either implicitly or explicitly a crime in 17 countries, including Germany and Austria.
41. Guinness World Records  says the world’s narrowest street is in Reutlingen, Germany. It is called Spreuerhofstrasse and is 31cm (one foot) wide at its narrowest point.
42. The Chancellor’s office in Berlin is known locally as the “washing machine” because of its unusual architecture.
43. Germany is a leader in climate and energy policies – it decided in 2011 to decommission all nuclear power stations (then produce around 18 percent of electricity consumed) by 2022 and replace them with renewable energies and new storage for green energy electricity.
44. In Germany, there’s no punishment for a prisoner who tries to escape jail because it is a basic human instinct to be free, as long as no crime is committed while escaping.