Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (/ˌbɑːdən ˈvɜːrtəmbɜːrɡ/ BAH-dən VURT-əm-burg, German: [ˌbaːdn̩ ˈvʏʁtəmbɛʁk] ⓘ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state (Land) in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants as of 2019 across a total area of nearly 35,752 km2 (13,804 sq mi), it is the third-largest German state by both area (behind Bavaria and Lower Saxony) and population (behind North Rhine-Westphalia and Bavaria). As a federated state, Baden-Württemberg is a partly-sovereign parliamentary republic. The largest city in Baden-Württemberg is the state capital of Stuttgart, followed by Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Other major cities are Freiburg im Breisgau, Heidelberg, Heilbronn, Pforzheim, Reutlingen, Tübingen, and Ulm.
Baden-Württemberg | |
|---|---|
State | |
| Anthem: "Badnerlied" (unofficial) | |
| Coordinates: 48°32′16″N 9°2′28″E | |
| Country | Germany |
| Founded | 25 April 1952 |
| Capital | Stuttgart |
| Government | |
| • Body | Landtag of Baden-Württemberg |
| • Minister-President | Winfried Kretschmann (Greens) |
| • Governing parties | Greens / CDU |
| • Bundesrat votes | 6 (of 69) |
| • Bundestag seats | 102 (of 736) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 35,751.46 km2 (13,803.72 sq mi) |
| Population (2020-09-30) | |
| • Total | 11,111,496 · 3rd |
| • Density | 311/km2 (810/sq mi) |
| GDP | |
| • Total | €572.837 billion (2022) |
| • Per capita | €50,982 (2022) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| ISO 3166 code | DE-BW |
| NUTS Region | DE1 |
| HDI | 0.956 (2021) very high · 3rd |
| Website | baden-wuerttemberg.de |
What is now Baden-Württemberg was formerly the historical territories of Baden, Prussian Hohenzollern, and Württemberg. Baden-Württemberg became a state of West Germany in April 1952 through the merger of South Baden, Württemberg-Baden, and Württemberg-Hohenzollern. These three states had been artificially created by the Allies after World War II out of the existing traditional states by their separation over different occupation zones.
Baden-Württemberg is especially known for its strong economy with various industries like car manufacturing, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, the service sector, and more. It has the third-highest gross regional product (GRP) in Germany. Part of the Four Motors for Europe and located in the Blue Banana, some of the largest German companies are headquartered in Baden-Württemberg, including Mercedes-Benz Group, Schwarz Group, Porsche, Bosch and SAP.
The sobriquet Ländle, a diminutive of the word Land in the local Swabian, Alemannic and Franconian dialects, is sometimes used as a synonym for Baden-Württemberg.