91-563: The Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra is a large German jazz ensemble led by Alexander von Schlippenbach . The orchestra performs orchestral jazz and experimental big band music and has included in its ranks such leading musicians as Misha Mengelberg and Kenny Wheeler . The orchestra, which performs rather infrequently, was founded in 1988 by Schlippenbach and has commissioned works by Carla Bley , Manfred Schoof , and Willem Breuker , among others. This article on
182-574: A disability at all. Rather, they are disadvantaged by technologies and social institutions designed to cater to the dominant group. ( See the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities .) People belonging to religious minorities have a faith that is different from that held by the majority. Most countries of the world have religious minorities. It is now widely accepted in the West that people should have
273-423: A jazz ensemble is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a German band or other musical ensemble is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . German people Germans ( German : Deutsche , pronounced [ˈdɔʏtʃə] ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany , or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of
364-486: A minority group as "a group of people who, because of their physical or cultural characteristics, are singled out from the others in the society in which they live for differential and unequal treatment, and who therefore regard themselves as objects of collective discrimination". The definition includes both objective and subjective criteria: membership of a minority group is objectively ascribed by society, based on an individual's physical or behavioral characteristics; it
455-427: A minority, the status of women, as a subordinate group, has led to many social scientists to refer to them as a disadvantaged group. Though women's legal rights and status vary widely across countries, women often experience social inequalities, relative to men, in various societies. Women are sometimes denied access to education and access to the same opportunities as men, especially in under-developed countries. In
546-875: A racial and religious minority). Likewise, individuals may also be part of a minority group in regard to some characteristics, but part of a dominant group in regard to others. The term "minority group" often occurs within the discourse of civil rights and collective rights , as members of minority groups are prone to differential treatment in the countries and societies in which they live. Minority group members often face discrimination in multiple areas of social life, including housing, employment, healthcare, and education, among others. While discrimination may be committed by individuals, it may also occur through structural inequalities , in which rights and opportunities are not equally accessible to all. Those in favour of minority rights often pursue laws designed to protect minority groups from discrimination and afford members of
637-436: A section that stated if authorities did not protect people with learning disabilities from others' actions, such as harm or neglect, then they could be prosecuted. The disability rights movement has contributed to an understanding of disabled people as a minority or a coalition of minorities who are disadvantaged by society, not just as people who are disadvantaged by their impairments. Advocates of disability rights emphasize
728-505: A shared descent, culture, and history. Völkisch elements identified Germanness with "a shared Christian heritage" and "biological essence", to the exclusion of the notable Jewish minority. After the Holocaust and the downfall of Nazism, "any confident sense of Germanness had become suspect, if not impossible". East Germany and West Germany both sought to build up an identity on historical or ideological lines, distancing themselves both from
819-475: A substantial German population. Following the end of World War I , Austria-Hungary and the German Empire were partitioned, resulting in many Germans becoming ethnic minorities in newly established countries. In the chaotic years that followed, Adolf Hitler became the dictator of Nazi Germany and embarked on a genocidal campaign to unify all Germans under his leadership. His Nazi movement defined Germans in
910-536: A substantial number of Germans migrated further eastwards into Eastern Europe . The empire itself was politically divided between many small princedoms, cities and bishoprics. Following the Reformation in the 16th century, many of these states found themselves in bitter conflict concerning the rise of Protestantism . In the 19th century, the Holy Roman Empire dissolved, and German nationalism began to grow. At
1001-507: A very different culture and language makes difficulties in the early stages of life in the new country. Voluntary immigrants do not experience a sense of divided identity as much as involuntary minorities and are often rich in social capital because of their educational ambitions. Major immigrant groups in the United States include Mexicans, Central and South Americans, Cubans, Africans, East Asians, and South Asians. The term sexual minority
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#17329239632471092-461: A very specific way which included Austrians , Luxembourgers , eastern Belgians , and so-called Volksdeutsche , who were ethnic Germans elsewhere in Europe and globally. However, this Nazi conception expressly excluded German citizens of Jewish or Roma background. Nazi policies of military aggression and its persecution of those deemed non-Germans in the Holocaust led to World War II in which
1183-418: Is a social group within a state that differs from the majority and/or dominant population in terms of ethnicity, language, culture, or religion, but also it also tends to have a close link with a specific territory from which the minority social group originates. Also known as "castelike minorities", involuntary minorities are a term for people who were originally brought into any society against their will. In
1274-570: Is also subjectively applied by its members, who may use their status as the basis of group identity or solidarity . Thus, minority group status is categorical: an individual who exhibits the physical or behavioral characteristics of a given minority group is accorded the status of that group and is subject to the same treatment as other members of that group. Joe Feagin , states that a minority group has five characteristics: (1) suffering discrimination and subordination, (2) physical and/or cultural traits that set them apart, and which are disapproved by
1365-605: Is an important part of German culture, particularly in Southern Germany and the Rhineland . An important German festival is the Oktoberfest . A steadily shrinking majority of Germans are Christians . About a third are Roman Catholics , while one third adheres to Protestantism . Another third does not profess any religion. Christian holidays such as Christmas and Easter are celebrated by many Germans. The number of Muslims
1456-579: Is based on High German and Central German , and is the first or second language of most Germans, but notably not the Volga Germans . Low German , which is often considered to be a distinct language from both German and Dutch, was the historical language of most of northern Germany, and is still spoken by many Germans, often as a second language. It is estimated that there are over 100 million Germans today, most of whom live in Germany, where they constitute
1547-435: Is based on the idea that a group can be considered a minority even if it includes such a large number of people that it is numerically not a minority in society. Some sociologists have criticized the concept of "minority/majority", arguing this language excludes or neglects changing or unstable cultural identities, as well as cultural affiliations across national boundaries. As such, the term historically excluded groups (HEGs)
1638-566: Is considered a defining moment in German history. While the Romans were nevertheless victorious, rather than installing a Roman administration they controlled the region indirectly for centuries, recruiting soldiers there, and playing the tribes off against each other. The early Germanic peoples were later famously described in more detail in Germania by the 1st century Roman historian Tacitus . At this time,
1729-491: Is frequently used by public health researchers to recognize a wide variety of individuals who engage in same-sex sexual behavior, including those who do not identify under the LGBTQ+ umbrella. For example, men who have sex with men (MSM), but do not identify as gay. In addition, the term gender minorities can include many types of gender variant people, such as intersex people, transgender people , or non-binary individuals. However,
1820-505: Is growing. There is also a notable Jewish community, which was decimated in the Holocaust . Remembering the Holocaust is an important part of German culture. A German ethnic identity began to emerge during the early medieval period . These peoples came to be referred to by the High German term diutisc , which means "ethnic" or "relating to the people". The German endonym Deutsche is derived from this word. In subsequent centuries,
1911-584: Is largely determined hereditarily . However, it can also be influenced by factors such as adoption , cultural assimilation , religious conversion , and language shift . As race and ethnicity often overlap, many ethnic minorities are also racial minorities. However, this is not always the case, and some people are ethnic minorities while also being classified as white, such as some Jews , Roma , and Sámi . In some cases, their ethnic identities have been seen as negating their whiteness, in both inter- and intra-group identification. In some countries, such as
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#17329239632472002-535: Is now Germany, west of the Rhine river. He specifically noted the potential future threat which could come from the related Germanic peoples ( Germani ) east of the river. Archaeological evidence shows that at the time of Caesar's invasion, both Gaul and Germanic regions had long been strongly influenced by the celtic La Tène culture . However, the Germanic languages associated with later Germanic peoples were approaching
2093-579: Is often similarly used to highlight the role of historical oppression and domination, and how this results in the under-representation of particular groups in various areas of social life. The term national minority is often used to discuss minority groups in international and national politics. All countries contain some degree of racial, ethnic, or linguistic diversity. In addition, minorities may also be immigrant, indigenous or landless nomadic communities. This often results in variations in language, culture, beliefs, practices, that set some groups apart from
2184-776: Is one of the criteria for to determine a national minority, upon the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities . Some especially significant or powerful minorities receive comprehensive protection and political representation. For example, the former Yugoslav Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina recognizes the three constitutive nations, none of which constitutes a numerical majority (see nations of Bosnia and Herzegovina ). However, other minorities such as Roma and Jews , are officially labelled "foreign" and are excluded from many of these protections. For example, they may be excluded from political positions, including
2275-616: The Cold War , but were reunified in 1990. Although there were fears that the reunified Germany might resume nationalist politics, the country is today widely regarded as a "stablizing actor in the heart of Europe" and a "promoter of democratic integration". German is the native language of most Germans. It is the key marker of German ethnic identity. German is a West Germanic language closely related to Frisian (in particular North Frisian and Saterland Frisian ), Luxembourgish , English , Dutch , and Low German . Modern Standard German
2366-725: The Congress of Vienna (1815), and left most of the German states loosely united under the German Confederation . The confederation came to be dominated by the Catholic Austrian Empire , to the dismay of many German nationalists, who saw the German Confederation as an inadequate answer to the German Question . Throughout the 19th century, Prussia continued to grow in power. In 1848 , German revolutionaries set up
2457-483: The German language . The constitution of Germany , implemented in 1949 following the end of World War II , defines a German as a German citizen . During the 19th and much of the 20th century, discussions on German identity were dominated by concepts of a common language, culture, descent, and history. Today, the German language is widely seen as the primary, though not exclusive, criterion of German identity. Estimates on
2548-602: The Kingdom of Poland , where they came to constitute a significant proportion of the population in many urban centers such as Gdańsk . During the 13th century, the Teutonic Knights began conquering the Old Prussians , and established what would eventually become the powerful German state of Prussia . Further south, Bohemia and Hungary developed as kingdoms with their own non-German speaking elites. The Austrian March on
2639-690: The Middle Danube stopped expanding eastwards towards Hungary in the 11th century. Under Ottokar II , Bohemia (corresponding roughly to modern Czechia) became a kingdom within the empire, and even managed to take control of Austria, which was German-speaking. However, the late 13th century saw the election of Rudolf I of the House of Habsburg to the imperial throne, and he was able to acquire Austria for his own family. The Habsburgs would continue to play an important role in European history for centuries afterwards. Under
2730-518: The Romantic era saw a notable flourishing of German culture. Germans of this period who contributed significantly to the arts and sciences include the writers Johann Wolfgang von Goethe , Friedrich Schiller , Johann Gottfried Herder , Friedrich Hölderlin , E. T. A. Hoffmann , Heinrich Heine , Novalis and the Brothers Grimm , the philosopher Immanuel Kant , the architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel ,
2821-488: The United Kingdom . The various minority groups in a country are often not given equal treatment. Some groups are too small or indistinct to obtain minority protections. For example, a member of a particularly small ethnic group might be forced to check "Other" on a checklist of different backgrounds and so might receive fewer privileges than a member of a more defined group. Many contemporary governments prefer to assume
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2912-571: The United States , for example, non-Hispanic Whites constitute the majority (58.4%) and all other racial and ethnic groups ( Mexican , African Americans , Asian Americans , American Indian , and Native Hawaiians ) are classified as "minorities". If the non-Hispanic White population falls below 50% the group will only be the plurality , not the majority. Racial minorities, sometimes referred to synonymously as people of color or non-white people, are minority groups that are discriminated against on
3003-573: The "humiliation of Versailles", continuing traditions of authoritarian and antisemitic ideologies, and the Great Depression all contributed to the rise of Austrian-born Adolf Hitler and the Nazis, who after coming to power democratically in the early 1930s, abolished the Weimar Republic and formed the totalitarian Third Reich . In his quest to subjugate Europe, six million Jews were murdered in
3094-640: The German inventor Johannes Gutenberg contributed to the formation of a new understanding of faith and reason. At this time, the German monk Martin Luther pushed for reforms within the Catholic Church. Luther's efforts culminated in the Protestant Reformation . Religious schism was a leading cause of the Thirty Years' War , a conflict that tore apart the Holy Roman Empire and its neighbours, leading to
3185-506: The German lands were relatively decentralized, leading to the maintenance of a number of strong regional identities. The German nationalist movement emerged among German intellectuals in the late 18th century. They saw the Germans as a people united by language and advocated the unification of all Germans into a single nation state, which was partially achieved in 1871. By the late 19th and early 20th century, German identity came to be defined by
3276-467: The German lands. The Habsburg dynasty managed to maintain their grip upon the imperial throne in the early modern period . While the empire itself continued to be largely de-centralized, the Habsburgs own personal power increased outside of the core German lands. Charles V personally inherited control of the kingdoms of Hungary and Bohemia, the wealthy low countries (roughly modern Belgium, Luxembourg and
3367-752: The German states, including the German emperor Wilhelm II , were overthrown in the November Revolution which led to the establishment of the Weimar Republic . The Germans of the Austrian side of the Dual Monarchy proclaimed the Republic of German-Austria , and sought to be incorporated into the German state, but this was forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles and Treaty of Saint-Germain . What many Germans saw as
3458-622: The Germanic peoples, or Germani , were fragmented into a large number of peoples who were frequently in conflict with both the Roman Empire and one another. He described them as a diverse group, dominating a much larger area than Germany, stretching to the Vistula in the east, and Scandinavia in the north. German ethnicity began to emerge in medieval times among the descendants of those Germanic peoples who had lived under heavy Roman influence between
3549-409: The Germans have been represented by many prominent personalities in a significant number of disciplines, including Nobel prize laureates where Germany is ranked third among countries of the world in the number of total recipients. The English term Germans is derived from the ethnonym Germani , which was used for Germanic peoples in ancient times. Since the early modern period, it has been
3640-428: The Germans. By the late 18th century, German intellectuals such as Johann Gottfried Herder articulated the concept of a German identity rooted in language, and this notion helped spark the German nationalist movement, which sought to unify the Germans into a single nation state . Eventually, shared ancestry, culture and language (though not religion) came to define German nationalism. The Napoleonic Wars ended with
3731-449: The Holocaust . WWII resulted in widespread destruction and the deaths of tens of millions of soldiers and civilians, while the German state was partitioned. About 12 million Germans had to flee or were expelled from Eastern Europe. Significant damage was also done to the German reputation and identity, which became far less nationalistic than it previously was. The German states of West Germany and East Germany became focal points of
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3822-682: The Jastorf Culture, but it is unclear whether these indicate ethnic continuity. Under Caesar's successors, the Romans began to conquer and control the entire region between the Rhine and the Elbe which centuries later constituted the largest part of medieval Germany. These efforts were significantly hampered by the victory of a local alliance led by Arminius at the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 AD, which
3913-662: The Middle Ages, and competed with the nobility for power. Between the 11th and 13th centuries, Germans actively participated in five Crusades to "liberate" the Holy Land . From the beginnings of the kingdom, its dynasties also participated in a push eastwards into Slavic-speaking regions. At the Saxon Eastern March in the north, the Polabian Slavs east of the Elbe were conquered over generations of often brutal conflict. Under
4004-447: The Nazi past and each other. After German reunification in 1990, the political discourse was characterized by the idea of a "shared, ethnoculturally defined Germanness", and the general climate became increasingly xenophobic during the 1990s. Today, discussion on Germanness may stress various aspects, such as commitment to pluralism and the German constitution ( constitutional patriotism ), or
4095-714: The Nazi regime was defeated by allied powers , led by the United States , the United Kingdom , and the former Soviet Union . In the aftermath of Germany's defeat in the war, the country was occupied and once again partitioned. Millions of Germans were expelled from Central and Eastern Europe. In 1990, West Germany and East Germany were reunified . In modern times, remembrance of the Holocaust, known as Erinnerungskultur ("culture of remembrance"), has become an integral part of German identity. Owing to their long history of political fragmentation, Germans are culturally diverse and often have strong regional identities. Arts and sciences are an integral part of German culture , and
4186-675: The Netherlands), the Kingdoms of Castile, Aragon, Sicily, Naples, and Sardinia, and the Dukedom of Milan. Of these, the Bohemian and Hungarian titles remained connected to the imperial throne for centuries, making Austria a powerful multilingual empire in its own right. On the other hand, the low countries went to the Spanish crown and continued to evolve separately from Germany. The introduction of printing by
4277-460: The Rhine and Elbe rivers. This included Franks , Frisians , Saxons , Thuringii , Alemanni and Baiuvarii - all of whom spoke related dialects of West Germanic . These peoples had come under the dominance of the western Franks starting with Clovis I , who established control of the Romanized and Frankish population of Gaul in the 5th century, and began a process of conquering the peoples east of
4368-618: The Rhine area since at least the 2nd century BC. The resulting demographic situation reported by Caesar was that migrating Celts and Germanic peoples were moving into areas which threatened the Alpine regions and the Romans. The modern German language is a descendant of the Germanic languages which spread during the Iron Age and Roman era. Scholars generally agree that it is possible to speak of Germanic languages existing as early as 500 BCE. These Germanic languages are believed to have dispersed towards
4459-529: The Rhine from the direction of the Jastorf culture , which was itself a Celtic influenced culture that existed in the Pre-Roman Iron Age , in the region near the Elbe river. It is likely that first Germanic consonant shift , which defines the Germanic language family, occurred during this period. The earlier Nordic Bronze Age of southern Scandinavia also shows definite population and material continuities with
4550-641: The Rhine. The regions long continued to be divided into " Stem duchies ", corresponding to the old ethnic designations. By the early 9th century AD, large parts of Europe were united under the rule of the Frankish leader Charlemagne , who expanded the Frankish empire in several directions including east of the Rhine, consolidating power over the Saxons and Frisians , and establishing the Carolingian Empire . Charlemagne
4641-567: The United Kingdom, there is a preference to categorise people by ethnicity instead of race. Ethnicity encompasses a mix of "long shared cultural experiences, religious practices, traditions, ancestry, language, dialect or national origins". The United Kingdom considers everyone but white British people to be an ethnic minority, including other white Europeans such as White Irish people (excluding in Northern Ireland). A national minority
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#17329239632474732-431: The United States' one-drop rule and blood quantum laws , South Africa's apartheid , and Nazi Germany Nuremberg race laws . Other times, race has been a matter of self-identification, with de facto racist policies implemented. In addition to governmental policy, racism may persist as social prejudice and discrimination. There are also social groups that are usually identified through ethnicity . Like race, ethnicity
4823-486: The United States, for instance, it includes but is not limited to Native Americans, Native Hawaiians, Puerto Ricans, African Americans, and in the 1800s, native-born Hispanics . Immigrants take on minority status in their new country, usually in hopes of a better future economically, educationally, and politically than in their homeland. Because of their focus on success, voluntary minorities are more likely to do better in school than other migrating minorities. Adapting to
4914-480: The academic context, the terms "minority" and "majority" are used in terms of hierarchical power structures . For example, in South Africa, during Apartheid , white Europeans held virtually all social, economic, and political power over black Africans. For this reason, black Africans are the "minority group", despite the fact that they outnumber white Europeans in South Africa. This is why academics more frequently use
5005-646: The arts and crafts. In the late Middle Ages the German economy grew under the influence of urban centers, which increased in size and wealth and formed powerful leagues, such as the Hanseatic League and the Swabian League , in order to protect their interests, often through supporting the German kings in their struggles with the nobility. These urban leagues significantly contributed to the development of German commerce and banking. German merchants of Hanseatic cities settled in cities throughout Northern Europe beyond
5096-665: The basis of race . Though definitions vary cross-culturally, modern racism is primarily based on the European and American classifications of race that developed during the Age of Exploration , as European countries sought to categorize the nations they colonized into pseudo-scientific phenotypical groups. In the United States's system, whiteness is at the top of a hierarchy that automatically classifies mixed-race individuals as their subordinate race . Sometimes, racist policies explicitly codified pseudo-scientific definitions of race: such as
5187-410: The concept of minority rights and bringing prominence to it. The League of Nations Minorities Commission defined minority in 1919 as "nationals belonging to racial, religious, or linguistic minorities". Protection of minority groups, such as through careful drawing of boundaries of states and proportional representation , was seen as integral in preventing causes of future wars. Louis Wirth defined
5278-523: The death of millions of Germans. The terms of the Peace of Westphalia (1648) ending the war, included a major reduction in the central authority of the Holy Roman Emperor. Among the most powerful German states to emerge in the aftermath was Protestant Prussia , under the rule of the House of Hohenzollern . Charles V and his Habsburg dynasty defended Roman Catholicism. In the 18th century, German culture
5369-401: The difference in physical or psychological functioning rather than inferiority. For example, some autistic people argue for acceptance of neurodiversity , much as opponents of racism argue for acceptance of ethnic diversity. The deaf community is often regarded as a linguistic and cultural minority rather than a group with disabilities, and some deaf people do not see themselves as having
5460-516: The dominant group, (3) a shared sense of collective identity and common burdens, (4) socially shared rules about who belongs and who does not determine minority status, and (5) tendency to marry within the group. There is a controversy with the use of the word minority, as it has a generic and an academic usage. Common usage of the term indicates a statistical minority; however, academics refer to power differences among groups rather than differences in population size among groups. The above criticism
5551-524: The dominant group. As these differences are usually perceived negatively, this results in loss of social and political power for members of minority groups. There is no legal definition of national minorities in international law, though protection of minority groups is outlined by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities . International criminal law can protect
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#17329239632475642-425: The failure of the dominant English -speaking majority to integrate French Canadians has provoked Quebec separatism . Others assert that minorities require specific protections to ensure that they are not marginalized: for example, bilingual education may be needed to allow linguistic minorities to fully integrate into the school system and compete equally in society. In this view, rights for minorities strengthen
5733-454: The formation of a united German Empire . In the years following unification, German society was radically changed by numerous processes, including industrialization, rationalization, secularization and the rise of capitalism. German power increased considerably and numerous overseas colonies were established. During this time, the German population grew considerably, and many emigrated to other countries (mainly North America), contributing to
5824-526: The freedom to choose their religion, including the right to convert from one religion to another, or not to have any religion ( atheism and/or agnosticism ). However, in many countries, this freedom is constricted. In Egypt , a new system of identity cards requires all citizens to state their religion—and the only choices are Islam , Christianity , or Judaism (See Egyptian identification card controversy ). In most societies, numbers of men and women are roughly equal . Though women are not considered to be
5915-727: The growth of the German diaspora . Competition for colonies between the Great Powers contributed to the outbreak of World War I , in which the German, Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires formed the Central Powers , an alliance that was ultimately defeated, with none of the empires comprising it surviving the aftermath of the war. Under the terms of the Treaty of Versailles, the German and Austro-Hungarian Empires were both dissolved and partitioned, resulting in millions of Germans becoming ethnic minorities in other countries. The monarchical rulers of
6006-431: The king. German kings were elected by members of the noble families, who often sought to have weak kings elected in order to preserve their own independence. This prevented an early unification of the Germans. A warrior nobility dominated the feudal German society of the Middle Ages, while most of the German population consisted of peasants with few political rights. The church played an important role among Germans in
6097-499: The later control of powerful German dynasties it became an important region within modern Germany, and home to its modern capital, Berlin. German population also moved eastwards from the 11th century, in what is known as the Ostsiedlung . Over time, Slavic and German-speaking populations assimilated, meaning that many modern Germans have substantial Slavic ancestry. From the 12th century, many Germans settled as merchants and craftsmen in
6188-868: The leadership of Otto von Bismarck , Prussia expanded its sphere of influence and together with its German allies defeated Denmark in the Second Schleswig War and soon after Austria in the Austro-Prussian War , subsequently establishing the North German Confederation . In 1871, the Prussian coalition decisively defeated the Second French Empire in the Franco-Prussian War , annexing the German speaking region of Alsace-Lorraine . After taking Paris, Prussia and their allies proclaimed
6279-406: The leadership of the Habsburgs the Holy Roman Empire itself remained weak, and by the late Middle Ages much of Lotharingia and Burgundy had come under the control of French dynasts, the House of Valois-Burgundy and House of Valois-Anjou . Step by step, Italy, Switzerland, Lorraine , and Savoy were no longer subject to effective imperial control. Trade increased and there was a specialization of
6370-416: The least number of individuals, or less than half, is a "minority". Usually a minority group is disempowered relative to the majority , and that characteristic lends itself to different applications of the term minority. In terms of sociology, economics, and politics, a demographic that takes up the smallest fraction of the population is not necessarily labelled the "minority" if it wields dominant power. In
6461-495: The majority of the population. There are also sizable populations of Germans in Austria, Switzerland, the United States, Brazil, France, Kazakhstan, Russia, Argentina, Canada, Poland, Italy, Hungary, Australia, South Africa, Chile, Paraguay, and Namibia. The Germans are marked by great regional diversity, which makes identifying a single German culture quite difficult. The arts and sciences have for centuries been an important part of German identity. The Age of Enlightenment and
6552-509: The minority group equal social status and legal protections as held by members of the dominant group. Prior to the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920) , the term "minority" primarily referred to political parties in national legislatures, not ethnic, national, linguistic or religious groups. Such minority parties were powerless relative to the majority (or plurality) political group. The Paris Conference has been attributed with coining
6643-460: The most common name for the Germans in English. The term Germans may also be applied to any citizens, natives or inhabitants of Germany, regardless of whether they are considered to have German ethnicity. In some contexts, people of German descent are also called Germans. In historical discussions the term "Germans" is also occasionally used as a way to refer to members of the Germanic peoples during
6734-406: The notion of a Kulturnation (nation sharing a common culture). The German language remains the primary criterion of modern German identity. Minority group The term " minority group " has different usages, depending on the context. According to its common usage, the term minority group can simply be understood in terms of demographic sizes within a population: i.e. a group in society with
6825-493: The painter Caspar David Friedrich , and the composers Johann Sebastian Bach , Ludwig van Beethoven , Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , Joseph Haydn , Johannes Brahms , Franz Schubert , Richard Strauss and Richard Wagner . Popular German dishes include brown bread and stew . Germans consume a high amount of alcohol , particularly beer, compared to other European peoples. Obesity is relatively widespread among Germans. Carnival (German: Karneval , Fasching , or Fastnacht )
6916-436: The people they rule all belong to the same nationality rather than separate ones based on ethnicity. The United States asks for race and ethnicity on its official census forms, which thus breaks up and organizes its population into sub-groups, primarily racial rather than national. Spain does not divide its nationals by ethnic group or national minorities, although it does maintain an official notion of minority languages, that
7007-503: The politics of some countries, a "minority" is an ethnic group recognized by law, and having specified rights. Speakers of a legally recognized minority language , for instance, might have the right to education or communication with the government in their mother tongue. Countries with special provisions for minorities include Canada , China , Ethiopia , Germany , India , the Netherlands , Poland , Romania , Russia , Croatia , and
7098-610: The presidency. There is debate over recognizing minority groups and their privileges. One view is that the application of special rights to minority groups may harm some countries, such as new states in Africa or Latin America not founded on the European nation-state model, since minority recognition may interfere with establishing a national identity. It may hamper the integration of the minority into mainstream society, perhaps leading to separatism or supremacism . In Canada , some feel that
7189-598: The recognition of LGBTQ+ people as members of a minority group. These inequalities include social discrimination and isolation, unequal access to healthcare , employment, and housing, and experience negative mental and physical health outcomes due to these experiences. Leading up to the Human Rights Act 1998 in the UK, a rise in the awareness relating to how disabled people were being treated began. Many started to believe that they were being denied basic human rights. This act had
7280-541: The rights of racial or ethnic minorities in several ways. The right to self-determination is a key issue. The Council of Europe regulates minority rights in the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages and the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities . In some places, subordinate ethnic groups may constitute a numerical majority, such as Blacks in South Africa under apartheid . In
7371-576: The ruling political elite of a country" and reserves the term 'minority' only for groups that have been granted minority rights by their state of residence. Minority group membership is typically based on differences in observable characteristics or practices, such as: ethnicity (ethnic minority), race (racial minority), religion ( religious minority ), sexual orientation ( sexual minority ), or disability . The framework of intersectionality can be used to recognize that an individual may simultaneously hold membership in multiple minority groups (e.g. both
7462-539: The same term were also used in the Low Countries , for the related dialects of what is still called Dutch in English, which is now a national language of the Netherlands and Belgium . The first information about the peoples living in what is now Germany was provided by the Roman general and dictator Julius Caesar , who gave an account of his conquest of neighbouring Gaul in the 1st century BC. Gaul included parts of what
7553-704: The same time however, the concept of German nationality became more complex. The multiethnic Kingdom of Prussia incorporated most Germans into its German Empire in 1871, and a substantial additional number of Germans were in the multiethnic kingdom of Austria-Hungary . During this time, a large number of Germans also emigrated to the New World , particularly to the United States , especially to present-day Pennsylvania . Large numbers also emigrated to Canada and Brazil , and they established sizable communities in New Zealand and Australia . The Russian Empire also included
7644-564: The temporary Frankfurt Parliament , but failed in their aim of forming a united German homeland. The Prussians proposed an Erfurt Union of the German states, but this effort was torpedoed by the Austrians through the Punctation of Olmütz (1850), recreating the German Confederation. In response, Prussia sought to use the Zollverein customs union to increase its power among the German states. Under
7735-422: The term "minority group" to refer to a category of people that experience relative disadvantage, as compared to members of a dominant social group. To address this ambiguity, Harris Mylonas has proposed the term "non-core group", instead of "minority group", to refer to any aggregation of individuals that is perceived as an unassimilated ethnic group (on a linguistic, religious, physical, or ideological basis) by
7826-482: The terms sexual and gender minority are often not preferred by LGBTQ+ people, as they represent clinical categories rather than individual identity. Though lesbian , gay , bisexual , transgender , and queer (LGBTQ+) people have existed throughout human history, they represent a numerical and social minority. They experience numerous social inequalities stemming from their group membership as LGBTQ+ people. LGBTQ+ rights movements across many western countries led to
7917-604: The time of the Roman Empire . The German endonym Deutsche is derived from the Old High German term diutisc , which means "ethnic" or "relating to the people". This term was used for speakers of West-Germanic languages in Central Europe since at least the 8th century, after which time a distinct German ethnic identity began to emerge among at least some them living within the Holy Roman Empire. However, variants of
8008-650: The total number of Germans in the world range from 100 to 150 million, most of whom live in Germany. The history of Germans as an ethnic group began with the separation of a distinct Kingdom of Germany from the eastern part of the Frankish Empire under the Ottonian dynasty in the 10th century, forming the core of the Holy Roman Empire . In subsequent centuries the political power and population of this empire grew considerably. It expanded eastwards, and eventually
8099-455: Was crowned emperor by Pope Leo I in 800. In the generations after Charlemagne the empire was partitioned at the Treaty of Verdun (843), eventually resulting in the long-term separation between the states of West Francia , Middle Francia and East Francia . Beginning with Henry the Fowler , non-Frankish dynasties also ruled the eastern kingdom, and under his son Otto I , East Francia, which
8190-570: Was mostly German, constituted the core of the Holy Roman Empire . Also under control of this loosely controlled empire were the previously independent kingdoms of Italy , Burgundy , and Lotharingia . The latter was a Roman and Frankish area which contained some of the oldest and most important old German cities including Aachen , Cologne and Trier , all west of the Rhine. Leaders of the stem duchies which constituted this eastern kingdom — Bavaria , Franconia , Swabia , Thuringia , and Saxony ― continued to wield considerable power independently of
8281-509: Was significantly influenced by the Enlightenment . After centuries of political fragmentation, a sense of German unity began to emerge in the 18th century. The Holy Roman Empire continued to decline until being dissolved altogether by Napoleon in 1806. In central Europe, the Napoleonic wars ushered in great social, political and economic changes, and catalyzed a national awakening among
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