Germany Semester

Culture

The name Germany is used in three senses: first, it refers to the region in Central Europe commonly regarded as constituting Germany, even when there was no central German state, as was the case for most of Germany's history; second, it refers to the unified German state established in 1871 and existing until 1945; and third, since October 3, 1990, it refers to the united Germany, formed by the accession on this date of the German Democratic Republic (GDR, or East Germany) to the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG, or West Germany). The name Federal Republic of Germany refers to West Germany from its founding on May 23, 1949, until German unification on October 3, 1990. After this date, it refers to united Germany. For the sake of brevity and variety, the Federal Republic of Germany is often called simply the Federal Republic.

Source: Bavaria, Germany - http://www.hickerphoto.com/bavaria-putzbrunn-germany-9868-pictures.htm

The Root of German Culture

Unity and freedom first emerged as issues in the wars of liberation against Napoleon. The French Emperor was beaten but the removal of the foreign rulers brought the Germans neither a united Germany nor liberal conditions in the states of the German Confederation that in 1815 replaced the Old Reich. Yet the call for unity and freedom could no longer be suppressed permanently.

Though the history and legacy of Prussia are not without controversy, they are much broader than commonly assumed. A closer look shows that equating Prussia with authoritarianism and militarism is an over-simplification. Among other achievements, the early Prussian state set standards of public administration and education still in place today. Perhaps less well known are the ideals of religious and ethnic tolerance and intellectual exchange furthered by early Prussian rulers such as Frederick William, the Great Elector (1620-1688), Frederick William I (1713-1740), and the ever-popular Frederick the Great (1740-1786).

While the once sprawling state of Prussia no longer exists - Prussia as an entity within Germany was dissolved in 1947 - its leaders left an enduring legacy that still enriches the German culture and landscape. Its architectural legacy is visible in palaces and other structures, especially in and around Berlin.

Source: Albright-knox Art Gallery http://www.albrightknox.org/ArtStart/Beckmann_s.html

Germanic peoples occupied much of the present-day territory of Germany in ancient times. The Germanic peoples are those who spoke one of the Germanic languages.

Evidence from archaeological finds and place-names suggests that, while early Germanic peoples probably occupied much of northern Germany during the Bronze and early Iron ages, peoples speaking Celtic languages occupied what is now southern Germany.

When the Western Roman Empire ended in 476, the Germanic tribes west of the Rhine were not politically united. The West Germanic tribes, however, spoke dialects of a common language and shared social and political traditions. These traditions had been influenced by centuries of contact with the Roman world, both as federated troops within the empire and as participants in the broader political and economic network that extended beyond the Roman frontier. In particular a strongly military structure of social organization, under the direction of commanders termed kings or dukes, had developed among the federated tribes within the empire and spread to tribes living outside the empire proper.

German and German speaking philosophers have made vast contributions to philosophy, and through philosophy, to the course of world history. Perhaps the most influential were the 'great triumvirate' of Kant, Hegel and Marx. Other noteworthy philosophers include Schopenhauer, Nietzsche, Heidegger and the Nobel prize-winner Hermann Hesse.

Famed minds such as Humboldt and Einstein, Hegel and Planck laid the foundations for Germany’s reputation as a land of scholars and as the “country of thinkers and poets”. As early as medieval times, scholars from all over Europe made the pilgrimage to the newly founded universities in
Heidelberg, Cologne and Greifswald. Later, following the university reforms carried out by Wilhelm von Humboldt (1767–1835), the German universities actually became considered the ideal example followed by discerning academics elsewhere.

Arts and Traditions

There are many sides to cultural life in Germany: From North to South there are around 400 theaters and 140 professional orchestras. The museum world is of quite unparalleled quality – featuring 600 art museums with diverse internationally renowned collections. Young German painting is equally vibrant, and is long since part of the international scene. And Germany is one of the major book nations, with around 80,000 new books and re-editions each year. The 350 dailies and thousands of magazines go to show how lively the German media world is. Moreover, German films are once again a great success at home and abroad.

Land of the poets and thinkers, Goethe was German, as were Beethoven and Bach. And yet this land of culture still has no national authority with overall responsibility for culture for the country as a whole. According to the Basic Law, culture is the responsibility of the individual federal states.

Outside the country, German theater frequently has a reputation for being brash and self-absorbed. It is, however, theater with a system behind it that is admired the world over. Even small towns boast opera houses and ballet troupes as well as theaters; overall there is a distinct theater world, a well-established network of state, municipal, traveling, and private theaters.

Germany’s reputation as a musical nation is still based on names like Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Handel and Richard
Strauss. Students from around the world flock to its music academies, music lovers attend the festivals – from the Wagner Festival in Bayreuth to the Donaueschingen Festival of Contemporary Music.

Shortly before the dawn of the new millennium a firework woke the slumbering German film industry: Tom Tykwer’s 1998 film “Run Lola Run”. The experimental comedy about the redhead Lola, fate, love and chance captures the spirit of the late 1990s. The global audience saw Lola’s daredevil race against time through the streets of Berlin as a metaphor for the restlessness of an era. “Run Lola Run” proved to be an international breakthrough for director Tom Tykwer and Franka Potente, who played the leading role.
Ever since 1951, the Berlin International Film Festival has been held every February. Following the Cannes festival, that in Berlin is the second largest film festival in the world and “the” showcase for German film. For two weeks art, glamour, parties and business all interweave in the heart of Berlin, centering on Potsdamer Platz. Each year, some 400,000 filmgoers and 16,500 trade visitors attend – film stars, film producers, distributors, buyers, financers and journalists. Source: German Embassy - www.germany.info

Oktoberfest

In late September and early October, Germans celebrate Oktoberfest. The first Oktoberfest was the celebration of the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig and Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen in 1810.

The Oktoberfest is a sixteen-day festival held each year in Munich, Bavaria, Germany during late September and early October. It is one of the most famous events in the city and the world's largest fair, with some six million people attending every year, and is an important part of German culture. Beer plays a central role in the fair, with every festival beginning with a keg of beer tapped by the Mayor of Munich who declares O'zapft is! (Bavarian for "It’s tapped!"). A special Oktoberfest beer is brewed for the occasion, which is slightly darker and stronger, in both taste and alcohol.

The European Parliament recognizes beer from Germany as being a “traditional foodstuff”, a label only awarded to a very few forms of nourishment. This is thanks to the famous “Purity Law” that only allows the use of certain natural ingredients in beer. This means that even today the basics of all German beers are hops, malt, water and yeast. In addition to large breweries, smaller traditional regional breweries have a place in the hearts of beer drinkers. These make up 80 percent of the adult population in Germany. They can choose between 5,000 different brands produced by 1,270 breweries: a world record.