Wikipedia:WikiProject Germany/Portal:Baden-Württemberg

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 Baden-Württemberg 

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Introduction

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 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.

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. (Full article...)

Selected article

Blautopf
Blautopf

The Blautopf (German for Blue Pot; "blau" means blue, "topf" means pot) is a spring that serves as the source of the river Blau in the karst landscape on the Swabian Jura's southern edge, in Southern Germany. It is located in the city of Blaubeuren, approximately 16 km (9.9 mi) west of Ulm. It forms the drain for the Blau cave system and feeds the river Blau, which after 14.5 km (9.0 mi), flows into the river Danube in the city of Ulm. Because of its high water pressure, the spring has developed a funnel-like shape, which at its deepest point has a depth of 21 metres (69 ft). The water's peculiarly blue color, varying in intensity due to weather and flow, is the result of chemical properties of limestone densely distributed in the water.

Numerous legends and folk tales refer to the Blautopf. Its characteristic colour was explained by the account that every day someone would pour a vat of ink into the Blautopf. Another myth stated that every time someone tried to measure the Blautopf's depth with a leaden sounding line, a water nix stole the sounding line. Therefore, it was not possible to determine the depth of the Blautopf. Because of this tale, there is a rock called Klötzle Blei ("little block of lead" in the local dialect) in the vicinity of the Blautopf.

Selected biography

Roland Emmerich
Roland Emmerich

Roland Emmerich (German: [ˈʁoːlant ˈɛməʁɪç]; born November 10, 1955) is a German film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films, most of which are English-language Hollywood productions, have made more than $3 billion worldwide, including just over $1 billion in the United States, making him the country's 14th-highest grossing director of all time. He began his work in the film industry by directing the film The Noah's Ark Principle (1984) as part of his university thesis and also co-founded Centropolis Entertainment in 1985 with his sister. He is a collector of art and an active campaigner for the LGBT community, and is openly gay. He is also a campaigner for awareness of global warming and equal rights. Emmerich was born in Stuttgart, West Germany, and grew up in the nearby town of Sindelfingen. In 1977, he began attending University of Television and Film Munich with the intention of studying to become a production designer.

State facts

Selected image

Schiltach
Schiltach
Credit: Harke
The river Schiltach in Schiltach in the Black Forest.

Did you know?

  • ...that the 18th-century Schloss Bruchsal is noted for its fine Roccoco decoration and in particular its grand Baroque entrance staircase, which is regarded as one of the finest examples of its genre.

Subcategories

Selected panorama

Courtyard facade of the Maulbronn Monastery
Courtyard facade of the Maulbronn Monastery
Credit: H. Zell

Maulbronn Monastery (German: Kloster Maulbronn) is a former Roman Catholic Cistercian Abbey and Protestant seminary located at Maulbronn in the German state of Baden-Württemberg. The 850 year old, mostly Romanesque monastery complex, one of the best preserved examples of its kind in Europe, is one of the very first buildings in Germany to use the Gothic style. In 1993, the abbey was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Topics

Cities: FreiburgHeidelbergHeilbronnKarlsruheMannheimPforzheimReutlingenStuttgartUlm

Politics of Baden-Württemberg: List of Ministers-President of Baden-WürttembergBundesverfassungsgerichtDemokratische VolksparteiLandtag

Economy: BoschEnBWHeidelberger DruckmaschinenHugo BossMercedes-BenzPorscheSAP

History of Baden-Württemberg: List of Ministers-President of Baden-WürttembergKingdom of WürttembergGrand Duchy of BadenHohenzollernWürttemberg-Baden

Symbols: Coat of arms of Baden-WürttembergFlag of Baden-WürttembergBadnerlied

Languages and culture: Alemannic dialectsSwabian GermanSwabian-Alemannic FastnachtKehrwocheBollenhut

The Kaiserstuhl hills including the Totenkopf.

Badische LandesbibliothekBibliotheca Palatina

WeißenhofsiedlungStuttgarter FernsehturmVitra Design Museum

Hochschule für Gestaltung UlmState Academy of Fine Arts StuttgartStaatsgalerie StuttgartStaatliche Kunsthalle KarlsruheZKM

BlautopfSource of the DanubeDanube SinkholeBlack Forest National ParkTriberg Waterfalls

Related portals

Associated Wikimedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

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