Bad Soden ( German: [baːt ˈzoːdn̩] ; also: Bad Soden am Taunus ) is a town and spa in the Main-Taunus-Kreis , Hessen , Germany . It had a population of 22,563 as of 2017, up from 21,412 in 2005.
114-495: Bad Soden is a residential town for commuters working in Frankfurt am Main and other surrounding cities. It is known for its various springs, which contain carbonic acid gas and various iron oxides. The waters are used both internally and externally, and are widely exported. Soden lozenges ( German : Sodener Pastillen ), condensed from the waters, are also in great demand. Bad Soden has a well-appointed Kurhaus, an Evangelical and
228-552: A Reichsstadt ( Imperial Free City ), i.e., directly subordinate to the Holy Roman Emperor and not to a regional ruler or a local nobleman. In 1585, Frankfurt traders established a system of exchange rates for the various currencies that were circulating to prevent cheating and extortion. Therein lay the early roots for the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Frankfurt managed to remain neutral during
342-686: A brain drain with professionals like doctors and nurses going abroad for better-paying jobs. As of 2014, about 16.3 million people with an immigrant background were living in Germany, accounting for every fifth person. Of those 16.3 million, 8.2 million had no German citizenship, more than ever before. Most of them had Turkish , Eastern European or Southern European background. The majority of new foreigners coming to Germany in 2014 were from new EU member states such as Poland , Romania , Bulgaria and Croatia , non-EU European countries like Albania , North Macedonia , Switzerland and Norway or from
456-591: A Frankish king named Zuna, who ruled over the province then known as Sicambri . He hoped thereby to perpetuate the name of his lineage. This is chronologically incompatible, however, with the archaeologically demonstrated Roman occupation of the area around Nida fortress in modern Heddernheim . The name is derived from the Franconofurd of the Germanic tribe of the Franks ; Furt ( cf. English ford ) where
570-487: A German company. The legislation enables those with substantial professional experience or training to acquire a work permit and makes it easier for those with vocational experience or with a university degree to obtain residence permits. The new law relaxes requirements for obtaining an EU Blue Card . Blue Cards enable highly skilled applicants to stay in an EU country, and the 2023 reforms lowered minimum annual wage requirements and guaranteed greater mobility within
684-473: A Roman Catholic church, and a hospital. It also has a residential building by the architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser . Bad Soden has two Districts: Altenhein am Taunus and Neuenhein am Taunus. Mayors from 1893: Bad Soden is twinned with: In Leo Tolstoy 's Anna Karenina , the Scherbatskys retire to Bad Soden to cure Kitty's illness. In Ivan Turgenev 's " Spring Torrents ," Dimitry Sanin takes
798-595: A camp for Sinti and Romani people (see Romani Holocaust ), the Dulag Luft West transit camp for Allied prisoners of war, and a subcamp of the Natzweiler-Struthof concentration camp . Frankfurt was severely bombed in World War II (1939–1945). About 5,500 residents were killed during the raids, and the once-famous medieval city center , by that time one of the largest in Germany,
912-656: A city divided into four sectors , could no longer rival it. In 1948, the Allies founded the Bank deutscher Länder , the forerunner of Deutsche Bundesbank . Following this decision, more financial institutions were re-established, e.g. Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Bank . In the 1950s, Frankfurt Stock Exchange regained its position as the country's leading stock exchange. Frankfurt also reemerged as Germany's transportation hub and Frankfurt Airport became Europe's second-busiest airport behind London Heathrow Airport in 1961. During
1026-458: A district committee and chairperson. The largest city district by population and area is Sachsenhausen , while the smallest is Altstadt , Frankfurt's historical center. Three larger city districts (Sachsenhausen, Westend and Nordend ) are divided for administrative purposes into a northern ( -Nord ) and a southern ( -Süd ) part, respectively a western ( -West ) and an eastern ( -Ost ) part, but are generally considered as one city district (which
1140-469: A duration of two years, after which the recruited workers were supposed to return to their home countries. However, many companies repeatedly renewed the work permits; some of the bilateral treaties were even updated to give workers permanent residency upon arrival. As a result, even though many did ultimately return to their countries of origin, several million of the recruited workers and their families ended up settling in Germany permanently. Nevertheless,
1254-557: A free city, becoming the seat of its Bundestag , the confederal parliament where the nominally presiding Habsburg Emperor of Austria was represented by an Austrian "presidential envoy". After the ill-fated revolution of 1848 , Frankfurt was the seat of the first democratically elected German parliament, the Frankfurt Parliament , which met in the Frankfurter Paulskirche (St. Paul's Church) and
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#17327879245531368-509: A group they remain overrepresented in unemployment statistics, which experts ascribe to a combination of red tape and refugees' difficulty in finding housing. Employment among Syrians and Afghans, the two most common nationalities among the 2015–2016 refugee arrivals, rose by 79% and 40%, respectively, between 2017 and 2018. The 2018 Ellwangen police raid , in which residents of a migrant shelter rioted to prevent police from deporting an asylum seeker whose claim had been deemed invalid, sparked
1482-535: A major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War , which began in Donbas in 2014. In addition to tens of thousands of deaths on both sides, this invasion has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II, with around 7.5 million Ukrainians fleeing the country and a third of the population displaced. Accordingly, by October 2022, Germany had recorded net immigration of 750,000 people from Ukraine in
1596-423: A more competitive labor market. The government argues that Germany, facing a shortage of skilled workers, must attract new talent by facilitating immigration for work and by upending citizenship uptake laws that were among the world's most restrictive. The government's actions were a response to long standing demands from progressives to modernize German immigration policy and from industry leaders to combat
1710-549: A nearly unqualified right to asylum . Around 300,000 Iranians fled from persecution in the wake of the Iranian Revolution between 1979 and 1986 alone. Notable numbers of asylum seekers came from Turkey after a military coup in 1980 and, separately, due to ongoing persecution of Turkish Kurds in the country. Several thousand people also sought refuge in Germany from the Lebanese Civil War . Due to
1824-581: A newly established primogeniture in Italy), Grand Duke of Frankfurt after Dalberg's death (since the latter as a Catholic bishop had no legitimate heirs). The Grand Duchy remained a short episode lasting from 1810 to 1813 when the military tide turned in favor of the Anglo-Prussian-led allies that overturned the Napoleonic order. Dalberg abdicated in favor of Eugène de Beauharnais, which of course
1938-560: A part of early Franconia , the inhabitants were the early Franks , thus the city's name reveals its legacy as "the ford of the Franks on the Main". Among English speakers, the city is commonly known simply as Frankfurt, but Germans occasionally call it by its full name to distinguish it from the other (significantly smaller) German city of Frankfurt an der Oder in the Land of Brandenburg on
2052-541: A population of 5.5 million. Other important cities in the region are Wiesbaden (capital of Hesse ), Mainz (capital of Rhineland-Palatinate ), Darmstadt , Offenbach am Main , Hanau , Aschaffenburg , Bad Homburg vor der Höhe , Rüsselsheim , Wetzlar and Marburg . The city is divided into 46 city districts ( Stadtteile ), which are in turn divided into 121 city boroughs ( Stadtbezirke ) and 448 electoral districts ( Wahlbezirke ). The 46 city districts combine into 16 area districts ( Ortsbezirke ), which each have
2166-681: A population of more than 5.8 million and is Germany's second-largest metropolitan region after the Rhine-Ruhr region and the fourth biggest metropolitan region by GDP in the European Union . Frankfurt is home to the European Central Bank , one of the institutional seats of the European Union, while Frankfurt's central business district lies about 90 km (56 mi) northwest of the geographic center of
2280-649: A post-racial society and called the foreign workers socialist "friends" who would learn skills which could then be applied in their home countries. In reality, racism and exploitation were widespread. The workers were generally strictly segregated from locals and did menial work that locals refused to do. Considerable portions of their paychecks were often diverted to their home governments, making their livelihoods precarious. Female Vertragsarbeiter were not allowed to become pregnant during their stay. If they did, they were forced to have an abortion or faced deportation . Following German reunification in 1990, many of
2394-529: A result, refugees in Hungary requested to be allowed leave for Germany; several thousand began making their way across Hungary and Austria towards Germany on foot. Claiming it was no longer able to process asylum claims properly, Hungary began providing buses for refugees to the Austrian border. Responding to a wave of public sympathy in reaction to widely broadcast scenes of police brutality and refugees dying at
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#17327879245532508-415: A shortage of skilled labor. By making it easier for job applicants to work in Germany, the government hopes to support a stable supply of skilled professionals that ensure German economic growth and competitiveness In July 2024, German Economy Minister Robert Habeck suggested the tax relief for skilled foreign workers. However, the citizenship reforms incited vigorous debate, causing a scandal involving
2622-463: A significant political debate. In 2015, most Germans were very supportive of the large numbers of refugees arriving in Germany. Then- chancellor Angela Merkel declared in a speech, “ Wir schaffen das " (roughly, "we can do this"), which was widely used by news media as well as the public as a defining statement of her policy during the crisis. In 2015, the brunt of the European immigration crisis
2736-553: A simplified manner (e.g., Römer , St. Paul's Church , and Goethe House ). The collection of historically significant Cairo Genizah documents of the Municipal Library was destroyed by the bombing. According to Arabist and Genizah scholar S.D. Goitein , "not even handlists indicating its contents have survived." The end of the war marked Frankfurt's comeback as Germany's leading financial hub, mainly because Berlin, now
2850-470: A sizable population of refugees "trapped" in the country. The Hungarian government began to house refugees in camps under squalid conditions. The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees , overwhelmed with the task of processing the sheer number of incoming asylum claims, was unable to prioritize deporting refugees to Hungary and decided to suspend enforcement of the Dublin regulation for Syrian nationals. As
2964-521: A special group. Since 2005, recognized refugees enjoy the same rights as people who were granted asylum. Germany's national ban on deportation doesn't permit returning refugees to their home country should doing so place them in imminent danger or that doing so would break EU human rights laws. This policy is a major catalyst to the large influx of Syrian refugees following the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War. The distribution of refugees among
3078-570: A trip with his future lover, Gemma, and her current fiancé to Soden, "a small town about half an hour's distance from Frankfurt". Featured heavily in Part 3 of Thomas Pynchon 's Gravity's Rainbow . This Hesse location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main ( / ˈ f r æ ŋ k f ər t / ; German: [ˈfʁaŋkfʊʁt ʔam ˈmaɪn] ; lit. " Frank ford on
3192-446: A year, with the potential to extend the chance card by two years based on employment. Chance card holders must have a university degree or professional training, and must also demonstrate some German proficiency or advanced English skills. Further, the reforms dropped the longstanding restrictions on dual citizenship , allowing most German citizens to hold multiple passports. This change brings German citizenship policy in line with
3306-762: Is "FRA", the IATA code for Frankfurt Airport. Roman Empire , pre 475 Francia , ca. 475–843 East Francia , 843–962 [REDACTED] Holy Roman Empire , 962–1806 [REDACTED] Free City of Frankfurt , 1372–1806 [REDACTED] Grand Duchy of Frankfurt , 1806–1813 [REDACTED] Free City of Frankfurt , 1813–1866 [REDACTED] Kingdom of Prussia , 1866–1871 [REDACTED] German Empire , 1871–1918 [REDACTED] Weimar Republic , 1918–1933 [REDACTED] German Reich , 1933–1945 [REDACTED] American occupation zone , 1945–1949 [REDACTED] West Germany , 1949–1990 [REDACTED] Germany , 1990–present At
3420-645: Is 248.31 km (95.87 sq mi) and extends over 23.4 km (14.54 mi) east to west and 23.3 km (14.48 mi) north to south. Its downtown is north of the river Main in Altstadt district (the historical center) and the surrounding Innenstadt district. The geographical center is in Bockenheim district near Frankfurt West station . Frankfurt at the heart of the densely populated Frankfurt Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region with
3534-459: Is also not an administrative city district (it covers parts of the western Innenstadt district, the southern Westend district and the eastern Bahnhofsviertel district). Many city districts are incorporated suburbs ( Vororte ) or were previously independent cities, such as Höchst . Some like Nordend and Westend arose during the rapid growth of the city in the Gründerzeit following
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3648-879: Is home to influential educational institutions, including the Goethe University with the Universitätsklinikum Frankfurt ( de ) (Hesse's largest hospital), the FUAS , the FUMPA , and graduate schools like the FSFM . The city is one of two seats of the German National Library (alongside Leipzig ), the largest library in the German-speaking countries and one of the largest in the world. Its renowned cultural venues include
3762-609: Is one of the world's busiest international airports by passenger traffic and the main hub for Germany's flag carrier Lufthansa . Frankfurt Central Station is one of the largest rail stations in Europe and the busiest junction operated by Deutsche Bahn , the German national railway company, with 342 trains a day to domestic and European destinations. Frankfurter Kreuz , also known as the Autobahn interchange and located close to
3876-488: Is one of the few cities in the European Union (EU) to have such a skyline, which is why Germans sometimes refer to Frankfurt as Mainhattan , combining the local river Main and " Manhattan ". The other well-known nickname is Bankfurt . Before World War II , the city was noted for its unique old town , the largest timber-framed old town in Europe. The Römer area was later rebuilt and is popular with visitors and for events such as Frankfurt Christmas Market . Other parts of
3990-435: Is why often only 43 city districts are mentioned, even on the city's official website). Some larger housing areas are often falsely called city districts, even by locals, like Nordweststadt (part of Niederursel , Heddernheim and Praunheim ), Goldstein (part of Schwanheim ), Riedberg (part of Kalbach-Riedberg ) and Europaviertel (part of Gallus ). The Bankenviertel ( banking district ), Frankfurt's financial district,
4104-574: The Main ") is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse . Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany . Located in the foreland of the Taunus on its namesake Main , it forms a continuous conurbation with Offenbach am Main ; its urban area has a population of over 2.7 million. The city is the heart of the larger Rhine-Main metropolitan region, which has
4218-644: The Bundestag to significantly curtail the previously unqualified right to asylum in Germany, which former German refugees had "held sacred because of their reliance on it to escape the Nazi regime " and which required a constitutional amendment . Applications from people entering Germany after passing through other European Community member states, where they theoretically could have already applied for asylum, were now refused, as were applications from nationals of designated safe countries. Though only about 5 percent of
4332-548: The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority and European Systemic Risk Board in 2011. Frankfurt is the largest city in the state of Hesse in the western part of Germany. Frankfurt is located on both sides of the river Main , south-east of the Taunus mountain range. The southern part of the city contains the Frankfurt City Forest , Germany's largest city forest. The city area
4446-520: The Free City of Frankfurt . The Prussian administration incorporated Frankfurt into its province of Hesse-Nassau . The Prussian occupation and annexation were perceived as a great injustice in Frankfurt, which retained its distinct western European, urban and cosmopolitan character. The formerly independent towns of Bornheim and Bockenheim were incorporated in 1890. In 1914, the citizens founded
4560-531: The Holocaust , in which almost all remaining German Jews and many other religious or ethnic groups, such as German Roma , were systematically murdered. In the decades since, Germany has experienced renewed immigration, particularly from Eastern and Southern Europe, Turkey and the Middle East. Since 1990, Germany has consistently ranked as one of the five most popular destination countries for immigrants in
4674-580: The Holy Roman Empire and the German Confederation , were common destinations for the persecuted or migrant workers. Early examples include Protestants seeking religious freedom and refugees from the partitions of Poland . Jewish migrants, mostly from Eastern Europe, was also significant in successive waves. In the 20th century, rising antisemitism and xenophobia resulted in the mass emigration of German Jews and culminated in
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4788-464: The Middle East , Africa , East Asia , South Asia , Southeast Asia , South America , North America , Australia and New Zealand . Due to ongoing conflicts in the Middle East, many people are hoping to seek asylum in the European Union and Germany. The vast majority of immigrants are residing in the so-called old states of Germany . In 2022, there were 23.8 million people, 28.7 percent of
4902-528: The Soviet Union , Poland and Romania . Germany initially received around 40,000 per year. In 1987, the number doubled, in 1988 it doubled again and in 1990 nearly 400,000 immigrated. Upon arrival, ethnic Germans became citizens at once according to Article 116 of the Basic Law, and received financial and many social benefits, including language training, as many did not speak German. Social integration
5016-582: The St. Bartholomew's Day massacre in 1572, around 40,000 of whom settled in what is now Germany. Although many returned to France after the 1598 Edict of Nantes , which proclaimed a policy of religious tolerance towards Huguenots, repeated waves of conflict and persecution over the next few centuries spurred new waves of emigration. Brandenburg-Prussia , Hesse-Kassel , Brandenburg-Bayreuth , and Hanover were major destinations of Huguenots during this time. Several thousand English and Scottish Presbyterians also fled
5130-531: The Thirty Years' War , but suffered from the bubonic plague that refugees brought to the city. After the war, Frankfurt regained its wealth. In the late 1770s the theater principal Abel Seyler was based in Frankfurt, and established the city's theatrical life. Following the French Revolution , Frankfurt was occupied or bombarded several times by French troops. It remained a Free city until
5244-546: The Unification of Germany , while others were formed from territory which previously belonged to other city district(s), such as Dornbusch and Riederwald . Until the year 1877 the city's territory consisted of the present-day inner-city districts of Altstadt , Innenstadt , Bahnhofsviertel , Gutleutviertel , Gallus , Westend , Nordend , Ostend and Sachsenhausen . Bornheim was part of an administrative district called Landkreis Frankfurt , before becoming part of
5358-865: The Wallanlagen , Volkspark Niddatal , Grüneburgpark , the City Forest , two major botanical gardens (the Palmengarten and the Botanical Garden Frankfurt ) and the Frankfurt Zoo . Frankfurt is the seat of the German Football Association (Deutscher Fußball-Bund – DFB) , is home to the first division association football club Eintracht Frankfurt , the Löwen Frankfurt ice hockey team, and
5472-514: The Yugoslav wars in the 1990s and the Syrian civil war in the 2010s. Motivated in part by low birth rates and labour shortages, German government policy towards immigration has generally been relatively liberal since the 1950s, although conservative politicians resisted the normalization of Germany as a country of immigrants and citizenship laws accordingly remained relatively restrictive until
5586-482: The 16th and 17th centuries led large numbers of Protestants to settle in Protestant — or at least religiously tolerant — principalities and cities of the Holy Roman Empire , much of which would later become Germany. According to one estimate, a total of 100,000 Protestants moved from Habsburg lands to what is now southern and central Germany in the 17th century. Large numbers of Huguenots also fled France after
5700-401: The 1970s, the city created one of Europe's most efficient underground transportation systems. That system includes a suburban rail system ( S-Bahn ) linking outlying communities with the city center, and a deep underground light rail system with smaller coaches ( U-Bahn ) also capable of travelling above ground on rails. In 1998, the European Central Bank was founded in Frankfurt, followed by
5814-507: The 2019 Skilled Immigration Act. In order to qualify for a visa under the new rules, applicants must obtain official recognition of their professional qualification from a certification authority recognized by the German government. Further, the applicant must meet language competency requirements and obtain a declaration from their prospective employer. International students make up nearly 15 percent of Germany's student population, with 325,000 international students studying in Germany during
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#17327879245535928-421: The Allies' wartime bombardment. Frankfurt was the original choice for the provisional capital city of the newly founded state of West Germany in 1949. The city constructed a parliament building that was never used for its intended purpose (it housed the radio studios of Hessischer Rundfunk ). In the end, Konrad Adenauer , the first postwar Chancellor , preferred the town of Bonn , for the most part because it
6042-529: The Apostle and now Frankfurt Cathedral . Frankfurt was one of the most important cities in the Holy Roman Empire . From 855, the German kings were elected and crowned in Aachen . From 1562, the kings and emperors were crowned and elected in Frankfurt, initiated for Maximilian II . This tradition ended in 1792, when Francis II was elected. His coronation was deliberately held on Bastille Day , 14 July,
6156-507: The EU in order to encourage more applicants to use the system. Further, family reunification services are expedited for Blue Card holders, effectively easing immigration for families of Blue Card applicants. The new legislation also introduces a so-called chance card, which gives applicants without a job offer but with enough qualifications the opportunity to live and work in Germany. Successful applicants are allowed to seek employment for up to
6270-539: The EU at Gadheim in Lower Franconia . Like France and Franconia , the city is named after the Franks . Frankfurt is the largest city in the Rhenish Franconian dialect area. Frankfurt was a city state , the Free City of Frankfurt , for nearly five centuries, and was one of the most important cities of the Holy Roman Empire , as a site of Imperial coronations ; it lost its sovereignty upon
6384-430: The EU. Frankfurt is one of the major financial centers of the European continent, with the headquarters of the European Central Bank , Deutsche Bundesbank , Frankfurt Stock Exchange , Deutsche Bank , DZ Bank , KfW , Commerzbank , DekaBank , Helaba , several cloud and fintech startups , and other institutes. Automotive, technology and research, services, consulting, media and creative industries complement
6498-471: The Frankfurt spelling for Frankfurt am Main on 24 October 1953 and last used the Frankfort spelling on 10 June 1954. The suffix am Main has been used regularly since the 14th century. In English, the city's full name of Frankfurt am Main means "Frankfurt on the Main" (pronounced like English mine or German mein ). Frankfurt is located on an ancient ford (German: Furt ) on the river Main . As
6612-406: The German government established a cap limiting ethnic German immigration to 220,000 people per year, which was later lowered to 100,000. In total, more than 4.5 million ethnic Germans moved to Germany between 1990 and 2007. And in parallel, a third stream of immigration starting in the mid-1980s were war refugees , of which West Germany accepted more than any other West European country due to
6726-468: The Polish border. The city district Bonames has a name probably dating back to Roman times, thought to be derived from bona me(n)sa (good table). The common abbreviations for the city, primarily used in railway services and on road signs, are Frankfurt (Main) , Frankfurt (M) , Frankfurt a. M. , Frankfurt/Main or Frankfurt/M . The common abbreviation for the name of the city is "FFM". Also in use
6840-585: The University of Frankfurt, later named Goethe University Frankfurt . This marked the only civic foundation of a university in Germany; today it is one of Germany's largest. From 6 April to 17 May 1920, following military intervention to put down the Ruhr uprising , Frankfurt was occupied by French troops . The French claimed that Articles 42 to 44 of the peace treaty of Versailles concerning
6954-566: The West ( Übersiedler ) had begun with the gradual opening of the Eastern bloc . In 1990, the year of German reunification , the number swelled to 389,000. As Eastern bloc countries gradually began to open their borders in the 1980s, large numbers of ethnic Germans from these countries began to move to Germany. German law at the time recognized an almost unlimited right of return for people of German descent, of whom there were several million in
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#17327879245537068-479: The airport, is the most-heavily used interchange in the EU, used by 320,000 cars daily. In 2011 human-resource-consulting firm Mercer ranked Frankfurt as seventh in its annual 'Quality of Living' survey of cities around the world. According to The Economist cost-of-living survey, Frankfurt is Germany's most expensive city and the world's tenth most expensive. Frankfurt has many downtown high-rise buildings that form its renowned Frankfurt skyline . In fact, it
7182-753: The anniversary of the storming of the Bastille . The elections and coronations took place in St. Bartholomäus Cathedral , known as the Kaiserdom (Emperor's Cathedral), or its predecessors. The Frankfurter Messe ('Frankfurt Trade Fair') was first mentioned in 1150. In 1240, Emperor Frederick II granted an imperial privilege to its visitors, meaning they would be protected by the empire. The fair became particularly important when similar fairs in French Beaucaire lost attraction around 1380. Book trade fairs began in 1478. In 1372, Frankfurt became
7296-403: The anti-immigrant far-right Alternative for Germany (in German, Alternative für Deutschland, AfD). The government argues that the reforms create opportunity and provide security for the 14% of the population that do not have citizenship, aligning German policy with that of Western peers like Canada and France. Opposition leaders argue that the changes devalue German citizenship and introduce
7410-518: The asylum applications were approved and appeals sometimes took years to be processed, many asylum seekers were able to stay in Germany and received financial and social aid from the government. In June 2015, new arrivals of asylum seekers, which had been increasing steadily for years, began to rise sharply, driven especially by refugees fleeing wars in Syria , Iraq and Afghanistan . An original projection of 450,000 asylum seekers entering Germany for
7524-591: The basketball club Frankfurt Skyliners , and is the venue of the Frankfurt Marathon and the Ironman Germany . Frankfurt is the largest financial hub in continental Europe . It is home to the European Central Bank , Deutsche Bundesbank , Frankfurt Stock Exchange and several large commercial banks. The Frankfurt Stock Exchange is one of the world's largest stock exchanges by market capitalization and accounts for more than 90 percent of
7638-430: The city on 1 January 1877, followed by Bockenheim on 1 April 1895. Seckbach , Niederrad and Oberrad followed on 1 July 1900. The Landkreis Frankfurt was finally dispersed on 1 April 1910, and therefore Berkersheim , Bonames , Eckenheim , Eschersheim , Ginnheim , Hausen , Heddernheim , Niederursel , Praunheim , Preungesheim and Rödelheim joined the city. In the same year a new city district, Riederwald ,
7752-469: The collapse of the Holy Roman Empire in 1805/6. In 1806, it became part of the principality of Aschaffenburg under the Fürstprimas ( Prince-Primate ), Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg . This meant that Frankfurt was incorporated into the Confederation of the Rhine . In 1810, Dalberg adopted the title of a Grand Duke of Frankfurt . Napoleon intended to make his adopted son Eugène de Beauharnais , already Prince de Venise (" prince of Venice ",
7866-469: The collapse of the empire in 1806, regained it in 1815 and then lost it again in 1866, when it was annexed (though neutral) by the Kingdom of Prussia . It has been part of the state of Hesse since 1945. Frankfurt is culturally, ethnically and religiously diverse, with half of its population, and a majority of its young people, having a migrant background . A quarter of the population consists of foreign nationals, including many expatriates . In 2015, Frankfurt
7980-474: The concert hall Alte Oper , continental Europe's largest English theater and many museums, 26 of which line up along the Museum Embankment , including the Städel , the Liebieghaus , the German Film Museum ( de ), the Senckenberg Natural Museum , the Goethe House and the Schirn art venue. Frankfurt's skyline is shaped by some of Europe's tallest skyscrapers, which has led to the term Mainhattan . The city has many notable green areas and parks, including
8094-399: The country has also seen several distinct major waves of immigration. These include the forced resettlement of ethnic Germans from eastern Europe after World War II, the guest worker programme of the 1950s–1970s , and ethnic Germans from former Communist states claiming their right of return after the breakup of the Soviet Union . Germany also accepted significant numbers of refugees from
8208-490: The country's modern borders and the many political entities that preceded it, has occurred throughout the country's history. Today, Germany is one of the most popular destinations for immigrants in the world, with well over 1 million people moving there each year since 2013. As of 2019, around 13.7 million people living in Germany, or about 17% of the population, are first-generation immigrants. Even before Germany 's formal founding in 1871, its predecessor states, such as
8322-553: The demilitarization of the Rhineland had been broken. In 1924, Ludwig Landmann became the first Jewish mayor of the city, and led a significant expansion during the following years. During the Nazi era , the synagogues of the city were destroyed and the vast majority of the Jewish population fled or was killed. During World War II , Frankfurt was the location of a Nazi prison for underage girls with several forced labour camps,
8436-633: The economic base. Frankfurt's DE-CIX is the world's largest internet exchange point . Messe Frankfurt is one of the world's largest trade fairs . Major fairs include the Music Fair and the Frankfurt Book Fair , the world's largest book fair. With 108 consulates, among which the largest is the US Consulate General , Frankfurt is second to New York City among non-capital cities in regards to consulate seats. Frankfurt
8550-791: The end of the war, Frankfurt became a part of the newly founded state of Hesse, consisting of the old Hesse-(Darmstadt) and the Prussian Hesse provinces. The city was part of the American Zone of Occupation of Germany. The Military Governor for the United States Zone (1945–1949) and the United States High Commissioner for Germany (HICOG) (1949–1952) had their headquarters in the IG Farben Building , intentionally left undamaged by
8664-623: The face of AfD approaching victory in the next elections. German asylum law is based on the 1993 amendment of article 16a of the Basic Law as well as on the 1951 Convention and 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees . In accordance with the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees , Germany grants refugee status to persons that are facing prosecution because of their race, religion, nationality or belonging to
8778-412: The federal states is calculated using the "Königsteiner Schlüssel", which is recalculated annually. Germany hosts one of the largest populations of Turkish people outside Turkey. Kurds make up 80 to 90 percent of all Turkish refugees in Germany while the rest of the refugees are former Turkish military officers, teachers, and other types of public servants who fled the authoritarian government following
8892-587: The first EU country they set foot in, which for about the 85% of sea arrivals was Greece , and for about 15%, Italy . However, instead of applying there, many attempted to travel to Northern and Western European countries, mostly by traveling through the Balkans and re-entering the EU through Hungary or Croatia. As a result, Hungary registered 150,000 asylum seekers by August 2015. However, the vast majority of these refugees had no desire to remain in Hungary and wanted to move on to Western or Northern Europe, leading to
9006-498: The first half of 2022, according to the office, responsible for collecting information on German society, economy, and the environment. That influx pushed Germany's population growth to 1%, or about 843,000 people, in the first half of the year. Germany's population rose to an all-time high of 84.3 million people in 2022. In 2023, 1,933,000 people immigrated to Germany, including 276,000 from Ukraine and 126,000 from Turkey , while 1,270,000 people emigrated. Net immigration to Germany
9120-503: The formation of a center-left government which promised to reform immigration law. In 2023, the coalition began implementing a series of reforms including the Skilled Workers Immigration Act (in German, Fachkräfteeinwanderungsgesetz , or FEG) that among other things eased requirements for foreign workers, relaxed naturalization requirements and legalized multiple citizenship. The Counter-Reformation in
9234-428: The former West Germany , Frankfurt Airport became the busiest in Germany , one of the busiest in the world, the airport with the most direct routes in the world, and the primary hub for Lufthansa , the national airline of Germany and Europe's largest airline. Frankfurt Central Station is Germany's second-busiest railway station after Hamburg Hbf , and Frankfurter Kreuz is the most-heavily used interchange in
9348-447: The government by covering the victims of immigration and by showing individual stories, which humanized them. The widespread sexual assaults on New Year's Eve of 2015 , for which a significant number of suspects were asylum seekers, marked a shift in the tone of media coverage and public opinion towards refugees, though the government noted refugees were, statistically, no more likely than locals to commit crimes. Between 2010 and 2016,
9462-588: The government continued to encourage the public perception of the arriving immigrants as temporary guest workers ( Gastarbeiter) and for many years made little provision for their integration into German society. East Germany set up similar foreign recruitment schemes, although at much smaller scales and exclusively with other socialist states. Most foreign workers recruited to East Germany, known locally as Vertragsarbeiter , came from North Vietnam (ca. 60,000), Cuba (30,000), Mozambique (21,000) and Angola (6,000). The government portrayed East Germany as
9576-450: The hands of smugglers in Hungary, and unable to keep the migrants out of the country without resorting to brutal force, the German and Austrian chancellors, Angela Merkel and Werner Faymann decided to allow the refugees in. The publicity from this decision led hundreds of thousands of people fleeing the Syrian civil war to make for Germany. Although the number of refugees in formal employment more than tripled between 2016 and 2019, as
9690-422: The highest number since 2016, when 722,370 people applied for asylum. People from Ukraine are not included. Most asylum seekers in 2023 were from Turkey, Syria and Afghanistan. In September 2023, more than 120 boats carrying approximately 7,000 migrants from Africa arrived on the island of Lampedusa within 24 hours. Some of the migrants were relocated to Germany. On 24 February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine in
9804-578: The meeting triggered massive public backlash as tens of thousands of Germans gathered in major cities like Stuttgart , Berlin and Munich to protest the plan. The AfD distanced itself from the event and insisted that it was not sponsored by the party. A deal signed by both countries in September 2024 opened German labour market for up to a quarter of a million skilled and semi skilled workers from Kenya. It also included an agreement on readmission and return of unwanted individuals. The arrangement came in
9918-404: The mid-2000s. A major reform of immigration law in 2005 saw the state commit, for the first time, resources to the integration of newcomers and significantly liberalised the labour market for skilled professionals while restricting it for unskilled labourers . Smaller immigration reforms in 2009, 2012 and 2020 contributed to the broad trend of liberalisation. The 2021 federal elections saw
10032-695: The new formed States of post-war Germany and Allied-occupied Austria , because of changing borderlines in Europe. Due to a shortage of laborers during the Wirtschaftswunder ("economic miracle") in the 1950s and 1960s, the West German government signed bilateral recruitment agreements with Italy in 1955, Greece in 1960, Turkey in 1961, Morocco in 1963, Portugal in 1964, Tunisia in 1965 and Yugoslavia in 1968. These agreements allowed German companies to recruit foreign citizens to work in Germany. The work permits were at first issued for
10146-409: The number of Muslims living in Germany increased from 3.3 million (4.1% of the population) to nearly 5 million (6.1%). The most important factor in the growth of Germany’s Muslim population is immigration. The intake of refugees in Germany temporarily decreased in the following years, while deportations increased and leveled out at around 20,000. 352,000 people applied for asylum in Germany in 2023,
10260-681: The old town were reconstructed as part of the Dom-Römer Project from 2012 to 2018. Frankonovurd (in Old High German ) or Vadum Francorum (in Latin ) were the first names mentioned in written records from 794. It transformed to Frankenfort during the Middle Ages and then to Franckfort and Franckfurth in the modern era . According to historian David Gans , the city was named c. 146 AD by its builder,
10374-565: The outbreak of the Yugoslav Wars in 1991, large numbers of refugees headed to Germany and other European countries. Between 1990 and 1992 nearly 900,000 people sought asylum in a united Germany. In 1992 Germany admitted almost 70 percent of all asylum seekers registered in the European Community . By comparison, only about 100,000 people sought asylum in the U.S in the same year. The growing numbers of asylum seekers led
10488-424: The potential for introducing domestically political conflict from abroad. The AfD 's political rise in Germany is credited to the political saliency of immigration. The party strongly opposes the citizenship reforms. In 2024, party members were caught meeting with neo-Nazis and other right-wing extremists to discuss the forcible "remigration" of German citizens they deemed insufficiently assimilated . News of
10602-422: The rest of the world which is increasingly shifting towards an acceptance of multiple citizenship. In addition to this change, legal residents only have to wait five years before qualifying for naturalization , as opposed to the previous eight . The traffic light coalition that was created after the 2021 federal elections committed to implementing immigration reforms in an effort to make Germany
10716-515: The river was shallow enough to be crossed on foot. By the 19th century, the name Frankfurt had been established as the official spelling. The older English spelling of Frankfort is now rarely seen in reference to Frankfurt am Main, although more than a dozen other towns and cities, mainly in the United States, use this spelling, including Frankfort, Kentucky , Frankfort, New York , and Frankfort, Illinois . The New York Times first used
10830-504: The roughly 90,000 foreign workers living in what had been East Germany had no legal status as immigrant workers under the Western system. Consequently, many faced deportation or premature termination of residence and work permits, as well as open discrimination in the workplace and racism in everyday life. The vast majority ultimately returned to their home countries. During the 1980s, a small but steady stream of East Germans immigrating to
10944-627: The total population, who had a migration background. European Union free movement of workers principles require that all EU member state citizens have the right to solicit and obtain work in Germany regardless of citizenship. These basic rules for freedom of movement are given in Article 39 of the Treaty on the European Union. Immigration to Germany as a non- EU - citizen is limited to skilled or highly educated workers and their immediate family members. In April 2012, European Blue Card legislation
11058-480: The turnover in the German market. In 2010, 63 national and 152 international banks had their registered offices in Frankfurt, including Germany's major banks, notably Deutsche Bank , DZ Bank , KfW , Deka Bank and Commerzbank , as well as 41 representative offices of international banks. Frankfurt is considered a global city (alpha world city) as listed by the GaWC group's 2012 inventory. Among global cities it
11172-510: The violent reign of Mary Tudor ; many settled in Frankfurt . Many Dutch Calvinists settled in northwestern Germany after the Dutch Revolt . Towards the end of World War II , and in its aftermath, up to 12 million refugees of ethnic Germans , so-called " Heimatvertriebene " (German for "expellees", literally "homeland displaced persons") were forced to migrate from the former German areas, as for instance Silesia or East Prussia , to
11286-627: The western borders of Frankfurt lies the Kapellenberg as part of the Taunus with one of the first Stone Age cities in Europe. The Celts had different settlements in the Taunus mountains north of Frankfurt, the biggest one the Heidetrank Oppidum . The first traces of Roman settlements established in the area of the river Nidda date to the reign of Emperor Vespasian in the years 69 to 79 AD. Nida (modern Heddernheim , Praunheim )
11400-563: The whole of 2015 was revised upwards to 800,000 in August and again in September to over 1 million. The actual final number was 1.1 million; Germany spent about €16 billion (0.5% of GDP) on processing and housing refugees that year. Most of the refugees entering Western and Central Europe around this time came by land via the so-called "Balkan route." According to an EU law (the Dublin regulation ), refugees were required to file asylum claims in
11514-532: The winter semester 2020/2021. According to a study from the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), around 54 percent of foreign students in Germany decide to stay after graduation. Substantial reforms began to be enacted in 2023, touching many aspects of German immigration policy. The Skilled Workers Immigration Act updates previous immigration legislation concerning the ability of foreign workers to find work in Germany or begin employment at
11628-434: The world. According to the federal statistics office in 2016, over one in five Germans has at least partial roots outside of the country. In modern Germany, immigration has generally risen and fallen with the country's economy. The economic boom of the 2010s, coupled with the elimination of working visa requirements for many EU citizens, brought a sustained inflow from elsewhere in Europe. Separate from economic trends ,
11742-488: Was 663,000 in 2023, down from a record 1,462,000 in 2022. In September 2024, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Kenyan President William Ruto signed an agreement that opened the German labor market to up to 250,000 skilled and semi-skilled migrant workers from Kenya . The German government has already signed or is negotiating migration partnerships with Morocco , Nigeria , India , Colombia , Kyrgyzstan , Uzbekistan , Georgia and Moldova . There are concerns about
11856-447: Was a Roman civitas capital ( Civitas Taunensium ). Alemanni and Franks lived there , and by 794, Charlemagne presided over an imperial assembly and church synod, at which Franconofurd (alternative spellings end with -furt and -vurd) was first mentioned. It was one of the two capitals of Charlemagne's grandson Louis the German , together with Regensburg . Louis founded the collegiate church , rededicated in 1239 to Bartholomew
11970-630: Was almost completely destroyed. It became a ground battlefield on 26 March 1945, when the Allied advance into Germany was forced to take the city in contested urban combat that included a river assault. The 5th Infantry Division and the 6th Armored Division of the United States Army captured Frankfurt after several days of intense fighting, and it was declared largely secure on 29 March 1945. Frankfurt consists to over 40% of buildings from before World War II, besides all destruction. After
12084-517: Was close to his hometown, but also because many other prominent politicians opposed the choice of Frankfurt out of concern that Frankfurt would be accepted as the permanent capital, thereby weakening the West German population's support for a reunification with East Germany and the eventual return of the capital to Berlin . Postwar reconstruction took place in a sometimes simple modern style, thus changing Frankfurt's architectural face. A few landmark buildings were reconstructed historically, albeit in
12198-640: Was created on territory that had formerly belonged to Seckbach and Ostend. On 1 April 1928 the City of Höchst became part of Frankfurt, as well as its city districts Sindlingen , Unterliederbach and Zeilsheim . Simultaneously the Landkreis Höchst was dispersed with its member cities either joining Frankfurt ( Fechenheim , Griesheim , Nied , Schwanheim , Sossenheim ) or joining the newly established Landkreis of Main-Taunus-Kreis . Immigration to Germany Immigration to Germany , both in
12312-405: Was home to 1,909 ultra high-net-worth individuals , the sixth-highest number of any city. As of 2023, Frankfurt is the 13th-wealthiest city in the world and the second-wealthiest city in Europe (after London ). Frankfurt is a global hub for commerce, culture, education, tourism and transportation, and is the site of many global and European corporate headquarters. Due to its central location in
12426-420: Was implemented in Germany, allowing highly skilled non-EU citizens easier access to work and live in Germany. Although uptake of the scheme has grown steadily since then, its use remains modest; around 27,000 blue cards were issued in Germany in 2018. Self-employment requires either an initial investment of EUR 250,000 and the creation of a minimum of 5 jobs. New regulations were enacted in 2020 in response to
12540-428: Was often difficult, even though ethnic Germans were entitled to German citizenship, but to many Germans they did not seem German. In 1991, restrictions went into effect, in that ethnic Germans were assigned to certain areas, losing benefits if they moved. The German government also encouraged the estimated several million ethnic Germans living in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe to remain there. From 1993 to 1999,
12654-522: Was only a symbolic action, as the latter effectively never ruled after the ruin of the French armies and Frankfurt's takeover by the allies. After Napoleon's final defeat and abdication, the Congress of Vienna (1814–1815) dissolved the grand-duchy and Frankfurt became a fully sovereign city-state with a republican form of government. Frankfurt entered the newly founded German Confederation (till 1866) as
12768-616: Was opened on 18 May 1848. In the year of its existence, the assembly developed a common constitution for a unified Germany, with the Prussian king as its monarch. The institution failed in 1849 when the Prussian king, Frederick William IV , declared that he would not accept "a crown from the gutter". Frankfurt lost its independence after the Austro-Prussian War in 1866 when Prussia annexed several smaller states, among them
12882-705: Was placed on Germany when 890,000 refugees crossed the border and applied for asylum, most of them fleeing from the Syrian War. By 2018, 670,000 out of 700,000 Syrians living in Germany immigrated as a result of internal strife and conflict in Syria beginning in 2011. A 2015 survey shows that 46% of the entire German population was facilitating help in some way for refugees. All over, German citizens were creating initiatives and support groups for asylum seekers as well as donating their time to help on-site with refugees. Media helped shape German attitudes as well as put pressure on
12996-680: Was ranked tenth by the Global Power City Index 2011 and 11th by the Global City Competitiveness Index 2012 . Among financial hubs, the city was ranked eighth by the International Financial Centers Development Index 2013 and ninth in the 2013 Global Financial Centres Index . Its central location in Germany and Europe makes Frankfurt a major air, rail, and road transport hub . Frankfurt Airport
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