All Topics  
Districts of Germany

 

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Districts of Germany
 
 
  Topics Districts of Germany Topic Home

German districts ( or (in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia

North Rhine - Westphalia is the westernmost and - in terms of population and economic output - the largest States of Germany of Germany. North Rhine - Westphalia has over 18 million inhabitants, contributes about 22% of Germany's gross domestic product and comprises a land area of 34,083 km? ....
 and Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein

Schleswig-Holstein is the Northern Germany of the sixteen States of Germany of Germany. Its capital city is Kiel, other notable cities are L?beck and Flensburg....
), singular: and ; Kreis means 'circle') are administrative units used in Germany
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 and the former state of Prussia
Prussia

Prussia was, most recently, a historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. This state had for centuries substantial influence on Germany and European history....
. The district
District

Districts are a type of administrative division, in some countries managed by a local government. They vary greatly in size, spanning entire regions or counties, several municipality, or subdivisions of municipalities....
s are at an intermediate level of administration between the (German states
States of Germany

Germany is a federation consisting of sixteen states, known in German language as L?nder . Since Land is the literal German word for "country", the term Bundesl?nder is commonly used colloquially, as it is more specific, though technically incorrect within the corpus of German law....
) and the local / municipal levels . They are not to be confused with the larger . Their equivalent in other nations is the county
County

A county is a land area of Local government government within a larger state. A county may have city and towns within its area....
 or arrondissement
Arrondissement

An arrondissement is an administrative division in France, most of the nations which were its former colonies in Africa and some other French-speaking nations, as well as in Belgium and the Netherlands....
. They correspond to level 3 administrative units or Local Administrative Units
Local administrative unit

Generally, a local administrative unit is a low level administrative division of a country, ranked below a province, region, or state. Not all countries describe their locally governed areas this way, but it can be descriptively applied anywhere to refer to counties, municipalities, etc....
 under the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics
Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics

The Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics, , is a geocode standardization for referencing the administrative divisions of country for statistical purposes....
.
majority of the districts are rural districts of which there are 313.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Districts of Germany'
Start a new discussion about 'Districts of Germany'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


German districts ( or (in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia

North Rhine - Westphalia is the westernmost and - in terms of population and economic output - the largest States of Germany of Germany. North Rhine - Westphalia has over 18 million inhabitants, contributes about 22% of Germany's gross domestic product and comprises a land area of 34,083 km? ....
 and Schleswig-Holstein
Schleswig-Holstein

Schleswig-Holstein is the Northern Germany of the sixteen States of Germany of Germany. Its capital city is Kiel, other notable cities are L?beck and Flensburg....
), singular: and ; Kreis means 'circle') are administrative units used in Germany
Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
 and the former state of Prussia
Prussia

Prussia was, most recently, a historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. This state had for centuries substantial influence on Germany and European history....
. The district
District

Districts are a type of administrative division, in some countries managed by a local government. They vary greatly in size, spanning entire regions or counties, several municipality, or subdivisions of municipalities....
s are at an intermediate level of administration between the (German states
States of Germany

Germany is a federation consisting of sixteen states, known in German language as L?nder . Since Land is the literal German word for "country", the term Bundesl?nder is commonly used colloquially, as it is more specific, though technically incorrect within the corpus of German law....
) and the local / municipal levels . They are not to be confused with the larger . Their equivalent in other nations is the county
County

A county is a land area of Local government government within a larger state. A county may have city and towns within its area....
 or arrondissement
Arrondissement

An arrondissement is an administrative division in France, most of the nations which were its former colonies in Africa and some other French-speaking nations, as well as in Belgium and the Netherlands....
. They correspond to level 3 administrative units or Local Administrative Units
Local administrative unit

Generally, a local administrative unit is a low level administrative division of a country, ranked below a province, region, or state. Not all countries describe their locally governed areas this way, but it can be descriptively applied anywhere to refer to counties, municipalities, etc....
 under the Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics
Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics

The Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics, , is a geocode standardization for referencing the administrative divisions of country for statistical purposes....
.

Types of districts

The majority of the districts are rural districts of which there are 313. Cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants (and smaller towns in some states) do not usually belong to a district, but take over district responsibilities themselves, similar to the concept of independent cities. These are known as urban districts —cities which constitute a district in their own right—and there are currently (2007) 116 of them, bringing the total number of districts to 429.

In North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia

North Rhine - Westphalia is the westernmost and - in terms of population and economic output - the largest States of Germany of Germany. North Rhine - Westphalia has over 18 million inhabitants, contributes about 22% of Germany's gross domestic product and comprises a land area of 34,083 km? ....
, there are some cities with more than 100,000 inhabitants which are not urban districts, for example Iserlohn
Iserlohn

Iserlohn is a city in the M?rkischer Kreis district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is the largest city by population and area within the district and the Sauerland region....
, Recklinghausen, Siegen, Paderborn, Bergisch Gladbach, Witten and Neuss
Neuss

Neuss is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the west bank of the Rhine opposite D?sseldorf, and owes its success to its location at the crossing of historic and modern trade routes....
. These cities, however, take over many district responsibilities themselves although belonging to a district. As an exception, the former rural and urban districts of Hanover
Hanover

Hanover or Hannover#Definitions , on the river Leine, is the capital city of the Federal states of Germany of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the House of Hanover, in their dignities as the dukes of Brunswick-L?neburg ....
 in Lower Saxony
Lower Saxony

Lower Saxony lies in northern Germany and is second in area and fourth in population among the sixteen States of Germany of Germany. In rural areas Low German is still spoken, but the number of speakers is declining....
 were united in 2001 to form the new Region Hannover
Hanover (district)

Hanover is a districts of Germany in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is bounded by the districts of Soltau-Fallingbostel, Celle , Gifhorn , Peine , Hildesheim , Hamelin-Pyrmont, Schaumburg and Nienburg ....
 with about 1,000,000 inhabitants.

Responsibilities

The districts are responsible for the following:

  • according to federal and regional laws:
    • the building and upkeep of B roads
    • other building plans which cover more than one local authority's area
    • caring for national parks
    • social welfare
    • youth welfare
    • the building and upkeep of hospitals
    • the building and upkeep of state institutes of secondary education
    • household waste collection and disposal
    • car registration
    • electing the or , the chairperson of the district


  • according to local laws: (differ in each region)
    • financial support for culture
    • the building of pedestrian zones and bicycle lanes
    • financial support for school exchanges
    • the building and upkeep of public libraries
    • revitalisation of the economy
    • encouraging tourism
    • the management of (state run adult education colleges)


All these tasks are carried out by local (municipal) authorities operating together. Urban districts have these responsibilities and also those of the municipalities.

District council


The district council, the , is the legislative body of the district and is responsible for local self-administration. The parliament is elected directly every five years, except in Bavaria
Bavaria

Bavaria , with an area of and almost 12.5 million inhabitants, is a region located in the southeast of Germany and is the largest States of Germany of Germany by area....
 where it is elected every six years.

District administration


The executive authority is an officer known as or , who administers the district. In parts of northern Germany, this is also the name of the district administration, in southern Germany it is known as .

See also

  • Germany
    Germany

    Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands....
  • States of Germany
    States of Germany

    Germany is a federation consisting of sixteen states, known in German language as L?nder . Since Land is the literal German word for "country", the term Bundesl?nder is commonly used colloquially, as it is more specific, though technically incorrect within the corpus of German law....
  • List of German urban districts
  • List of rural districts of Germany
  • List of administrative divisions of Germany
    List of administrative divisions of Germany

    This is a list of the administrative divisions of Germany. It includes the List of German rural districts as well as the List of German urban districts....