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Austria.
Austria
The Republic of Austria is a landlocked country in Central Europe, a federation of 9 states. Austria is bordered by Liechtenstein and Switzerland in the west, Italy and Slovenia in the south, Hungary and Slovakia in the east, and Germany and the Czech Republic in the north.
Republik
Österreich
(In Detail)
(Full size)
National
motto: None
Official language
German
Capital
Vienna
President
Thomas Klestil
Chancellor
Wolfgang Schüssel
Area
- Total
- % water
Ranked 112nd
83,858 km²
1.3%
Population
- Total (2000)
- Density
Ranked 86th
8,150,835
97/km²
Independence
July 27, 1955
Currency
Euro(€)¹, see also Austrian euro coins
Time zone
UTC +1
National anthem
Land der Berge, Land am Strome
Internet TLD
.AT
Calling Code
43
(1) Prior to 1999:
Austrian schilling
Table of contents showTocToggle("show","hide")
1 History
2 Politics
3 States
4 Geography
5 Economy
6 Demographics
7 Culture
8 Miscellaneous topics
9 External links
History
Main article: History of Austria
After being conquered by the Romans, Huns, Lombards, Ostrogoths, Bavarii and Franks, Austria came under the rule of the Babenbergs from the 10th to the 13th century, which were succeeded by the Habsburgs.
The line of this family continued to govern Austria until the 20th century.
After the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire, Austria became part of the double-monarchy Austria-Hungary in 1867.
This nation was split up after being on the losing side of World War I, forming Austria as it is today.
Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938 (the "Anschluss").
The Allies occupied Austria at the end of World War II until 1955, when the country again became fully independent under the condition that it remained neutral.
However, after the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe, Austria became increasingly involved in European affairs, and in 1995, Austria joined the European Union, and the euro monetary system in 1999.
Politics
Main article: Politics of Austria
The head of state is a president, elected every 6 years by popular vote. The President chooses the chancellor, traditionally the leader of the largest party in the elections for parliament.
The Austrian parliament consists of two chambers, the Bundesrat (federal council), which consists of 64 representatives of the states, based on population, and the Nationalrat (national council), which has 183 directly elected members.
After three decades of social-democratic (SPÖ) participation in government a right-wing coalition was formed in 2000, consisting of the conservative People's Party (ÖVP) and the right-wing Freedom Party (FPÖ). However, after some turmoil within the FPÖ concerning party policy and leadership, Federal Chancellor Wolfgang Schüssel (ÖVP) announced on September 9, 2002 that general elections would be held prematurely at the end of November.
In the elections of November 24, 2002, the ÖVP won a landslide victory (42.3% of the vote), whereas the FPÖ was reduced to a mere 10.1%.
The current Austrian parliament (Nationalrat, 183 seats) is made up as follows:
On February 28, 2003, the coalition between the ÖVP and the FPÖ was continued, again with Wolfgang Schüssel (ÖVP) as Federal Chancellor. His Vice Chancellor was Herbert Haupt (FPÖ) until replaced by Hubert Gorbach (FPÖ) on October 20, 2003.
Prior to that, long-lasting "probing talks" ("Sondierungsgespräche") took place between the ÖVP and the other major parties FPÖ, SPÖ and the Green Party.
States
Main article: States of Austria
Map
A federal republic, Austria is divided into nine states, or Bundesländer.
These are:
Geography
Main article: Geography of Austria
Being situated in the Alps, Austria's west and south are mountainous making Austria a well-known winter sports destination.
The highest mountain is the Grossglockner, at 3.798 m, followed by the Wildspitze (3.774 m above sea level).
The north and east of the country are mostly rolling terrain.
The climate is temperate, with cold winters and cool summers.
The main cities are capital Vienna, situated on the Danube, Salzburg, Innsbruck, Graz and Linz.
Economy
Main article: Economy of Austria
Austria, with its well-developed market economy and high standard of living, is closely tied to other European Union economies, especially Germany's.
Membership in the EU has drawn an influx of foreign investors attracted by Austria's access to the single European market and proximity to EU aspirant economies.
Slowing growth in Germany and elsewhere in the world slowed the economy to only 1.2% growth in 2001.
To meet increased competition from both EU and Central European countries, Austria will need to emphasize knowledge-based sectors of the economy, continue to deregulate the service sector, and lower its tax burden.
An Austrian town (Kaprun, 786 metres, 2580 feet) in the state of Salzburg
Larger version
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of Austria
About ten percent of the Austrians are of non-Austrian descent, many from surrounding countries, especially from the former East Bloc nations.
Over 18,000 indigenous Slovenians live in the Austrian provinces of Carinthia and Styria.
A large group of labour immigrants is also present.
The official language, German, is spoken by everybody; the dialect is similar to that spoken in southern Germany.
There is, however, a separate standard for Austrian German with differences to the German spoken in Germany.
More than three-quarters of Austrians are Roman Catholic.
Other important religions are Islam and Protestantism.
Culture
Main article: Culture of Austria
Austria has been the birthplace for several famous composers such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Johann Strauss, Sr. & Johann Strauss, Jr. and Arnold Schoenberg, Anton Webern, Alban Berg (last 3 were in the famous Second Viennese School).
Other famous Austrians include physicists Ludwig Boltzmann and Erwin Schrödinger as well as philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein and Kurt Gödel, psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, poet Peter Rosegger (see Music of Austria), and painter Gustav Klimt.
Being situated in the Alps, Austria has been the homeland of many great alpine skiers, such as Toni Sailer, Hermann Maier, Annemarie Moser-Pröll and Anita Wachter.
Holidays
DateEnglish Name
Local NameRemarks
January 1New Year's DayNeujahr
January 6EpiphanyEpiphanieHeilige Drei Könige
MoveableEaster SundayOstersonntagGood Friday work-free for Protestants
MoveableEaster MondayOstermontag
May 1 Staatsfeiertagalso, Labour day
MoveableAscensionChristi HimmelfahrtThursday 40 days after Easter
MoveablePentecostPfingstsonntag
MoveableWhit MondayPfingstmontag
MoveableCorpus ChristiFronleichnamThursday 11 days after Pentecost
August 15Assumption of MaryMariae Himmelfahrt
October 26National dayNationalfeiertagLaw on neutrality passed in 1955
November 1All SaintsAllerheiligen
December 8Immaculate ConceptionMariae Empfängnis
December 25ChristmasChristtag, Weihnachten
December 26Boxing DayStephanitag
Miscellaneous topics
Much of the material in these articles comes from the CIA World Factbook 2000 and the 2003 U.S. Department of State website.
External links
Europe
Albania | Andorra | Austria | Azerbaijan | Belarus | Belgium | Bosnia and Herzegovina | Bulgaria | Croatia | Czech Republic | Denmark | Estonia | Finland | France | Georgia | Germany | Greece | Hungary | Iceland | Ireland | Italy | Kazakhstan | Latvia | Liechtenstein | Lithuania | Luxembourg | Macedonia | Malta | Moldova | Monaco | Netherlands | Norway | Poland | Portugal | Romania | Russia | San Marino | Serbia and Montenegro | Slovakia | Slovenia | Spain | Sweden | Switzerland | Turkey | Ukraine | United Kingdom | Vatican City
Dependencies
Azores | Channel Islands | Faroe Islands | Gibraltar | Isle of Man
European Union (EU)
Austria | Belgium | Denmark | Finland | France | Germany | Greece | Ireland | Italy | Luxembourg | The Netherlands | Portugal | Spain | Sweden | United Kingdom
Acceding to membership on 1 May 2004
Cyprus | Czech Republic | Estonia | Hungary | Latvia | Lithuania | Malta | Poland | Slovakia | Slovenia
Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)
Australia | Austria | Belgium | Canada | Czech Republic | Denmark | Finland | France | Germany | Greece | Hungary | Iceland | Ireland | Italy | Japan | South Korea | Luxembourg | Mexico | Netherlands | New Zealand | Norway | Poland | Portugal | Slovakia | Spain | Sweden | Switzerland | Turkey | United Kingdom | United States
The above article is adapted from from Wikipedia All Wikipedia article text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License
A Death in Vienna by Daniel Silva
Rick Steves' Germany, Austria, and Switzerland 2004 by Rick Steves
Vienna (Eyewitness Travel Guides) by Stephen Brook
Hayek's Challenge: An Intellectual Biography of F. A. Hayek by Bruce J. Caldwell
Fodor's Austria, 10th Edition : The Guide for All Budgets, Where to Stay, Eat, and Explore On and Off the BeatenPath by Fodor's
A Nervous Splendor: Vienna, 1888-1889 by Frederic Morton
Streetwise Vienna by Streetwise Maps
Frommer's Austria, 10th Edition by Darwin Porter
Lonely Planet Austria (Austria, 3rd Ed) by Mark Honan
Fodor's Vienna and the Danube Valley: The Guide for All Budgets, Where to Stay, Eat, and Explore on and Off the Beaten Path (Fodor's Vienna and the Danube Valley) by Fodor's
Vienna Prelude by Bodie Thoene
Who Was Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart? (Who Was...?) by Yona Zeldis McDonough
Austria (Eyewitness Travel Guides) by Teresa Czerniewicz-Umer
The German Way : Aspects of Behavior, Attitudes, and Customs in the German-Speaking World by Hyde Flippo
Arnold: An Unauthorized Biography by Wendy Leigh
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