Munich

Munich
München (German)
Minga (Bavarian)
Location of Munich
Map
Munich is located in Germany
Munich
Munich
Munich is located in Bavaria
Munich
Munich
Coordinates: 48°08′15″N 11°34′30″E / 48.13750°N 11.57500°E / 48.13750; 11.57500
CountryGermany
StateBavaria
Admin. regionUpper Bavaria
DistrictUrban district
First mentioned1158
Subdivisions
Government
 • Lord mayor (2020–26) Dieter Reiter (SPD)
 • Governing partiesGreens / SPD
Area
 • City
310.71 km2 (119.97 sq mi)
Elevation
520 m (1,710 ft)
Population
 (2023-12-31)[2]
 • City
1,510,378
 • Density4,900/km2 (13,000/sq mi)
 • Urban
2,606,021
 • Metro
5,991,144[1]
Time zoneUTC+01:00 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Postal codes
80331–81929
Dialling codes089
Vehicle registrationM, MUC
Websitestadt.muenchen.de
Mariensäule at Marienplatz
Aerial view of the old town
Lion sculptures by Wilhelm von Rümann at the Feldherrnhalle
Alps behind the skyline

Munich (/ˈmjuːnɪk/ MEW-nik; German: München [ˈmʏnçn̩] ; Bavarian: Minga [ˈmɪŋ(ː)ɐ] ) is the capital and most populous city of the Free State of Bavaria, Germany. With a population of 1,594,632 inhabitants as of 31 May 2024,[3] it is the third-largest city by population in Germany, after Berlin and Hamburg, and thus the largest which does not constitute its own state, as well as the 11th-largest city in the European Union. The Munich metropolitan area – including suburbs and satellite towns – has 3 million inhabitants; and the city's metropolitan region is home to about 6.2 million people and is the third largest metropolitan region by GDP in the European Union.[4]

Straddling the banks of the river Isar north of the Alps, Munich is the seat of the Bavarian administrative region of Upper Bavaria, while being the most densely populated municipality in Germany with 4,500 people per km2. Munich is the second-largest city in the Bavarian dialect area, after the Austrian capital of Vienna.

The city was first mentioned in 1158. Catholic Munich strongly resisted the Reformation and was a political point of divergence during the resulting Thirty Years' War, but remained physically untouched despite an occupation by the Protestant Swedes.[5] Once Bavaria was established as the Kingdom of Bavaria in 1806, Munich became a major European centre of arts, architecture, culture and science. In 1918, during the German Revolution of 1918–19, the ruling House of Wittelsbach, which had governed Bavaria since 1180, was forced to abdicate in Munich and a short-lived Bavarian Soviet Republic was declared. In the 1920s, Munich became home to several political factions, among them the Nazi Party. After the Nazis' rise to power, Munich was declared their "Capital of the Movement". The city was heavily bombed during World War II, but has restored most of its old town and boasts nearly 30.000 buildings from before the war all over the city.[6] Following the war, there was a great increase in population and economic power during the years of Wirtschaftswunder. The city hosted the 1972 Summer Olympics.

Today, Munich is a global centre of science, technology, finance, innovation, business, and tourism. Munich enjoys a very high standard and quality of living, reaching first in Germany and third worldwide according to the 2018 Mercer survey,[7] and being rated the world's most liveable city by the Monocle's Quality of Life Survey 2018.[8] Munich is consistently ranked as one of the most expensive cities in Germany in terms of real estate prices and rental costs.[9][10]

In 2023, 30.1 percent of Munich's residents were foreigners, and another 18.5 percent were German citizens with a migration background from a foreign country.[11] Munich's economy is based on high tech, automobiles, and the service sector, as well as IT, biotechnology, engineering, and electronics. It has one of the strongest economies of any German city and the lowest unemployment rate of all cities in Germany with more than one million inhabitants. The city houses many multinational companies, such as BMW, Siemens, Allianz SE and Munich Re. In addition, Munich is home to two research universities, and a multitude of scientific institutions.[12] Munich's numerous architectural and cultural attractions, sports events, exhibitions and its annual Oktoberfest, the world's largest Volksfest, attract considerable tourism.[13]

  1. ^ "Daten und Fakten aus der Metropolregion München" [Data and facts about the Munich Metropolitan Region]. Europäische Metropolregion München e.V. Archived from the original on 20 June 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  2. ^ Genesis Online-Datenbank des Bayerischen Landesamtes für Statistik Tabelle 12411-003r Fortschreibung des Bevölkerungsstandes: Gemeinden, Stichtag (Einwohnerzahlen auf Grundlage des Zensus 2011).
  3. ^ Stadtverwaltung, Landeshauptstadt München. "Bevölkerung". stadt.muenchen.de (in German). Archived from the original on 24 March 2023. Retrieved 21 March 2024.
  4. ^ "The Munich Metropolitan Region" (in German). Europäische Metropolregion München e.V. Archived from the original on 31 May 2017. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  5. ^ Englund, Peter (1993). Ofredsår. Stockholm: Atlantis.
  6. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 March 2024. Retrieved 6 April 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. ^ "Quality of Living City Rankings". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 19 March 2023. Retrieved 19 March 2023.
  8. ^ "Munich Named The Most Livable City In The World". Forbes. 25 June 2018. Archived from the original on 3 July 2018. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  9. ^ Wille, Robin (15 July 2021). "Immobilien: Das sind die 10 teuersten Städte in Deutschland". Business Insider (in German). Archived from the original on 16 April 2022. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  10. ^ "Die 10 teuersten Städte Deutschlands 2020". www.haus.de (in German). Archived from the original on 18 April 2022. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  11. ^ "Bevölkerung am 31.12.2023 nach Migrationshintergrund in den Stadtbezirken" [Population on 31.12.2023 by migration background in the city districts] (PDF). Statistisches Amt München. 31 December 2024. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 November 2024. Retrieved 10 November 2024.
  12. ^ Boytchev, Hristio (2018). "A European heavyweight". Nature. 563 (7729): S14–S15. Bibcode:2018Natur.563S..14B. doi:10.1038/d41586-018-07208-0. ISSN 0028-0836. PMID 30382228. S2CID 256769767.
  13. ^ "Munich Travel Tourism Munich". muenchen.de. Archived from the original on 14 February 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2016.