Definitions for Germans
ger·mans

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1. Germans

   Germans (German: Deutsche, pronounced [ˈdɔʏtʃə] (listen)) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, and sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The constitution of Germany defines a German as a German citizen. During the 19th and much of the 20th century, discussions on German identity were dominated by concepts of a common language, culture, descent, and history. Today, the German language is widely seen as the primary, though not exclusive, criterion of German identity. Estimates on the total number of Germans in the world range from 100 to 150 million, and most of them live in Germany.The history of Germans as an ethnic group began with the separation of a distinct Kingdom of Germany from the eastern part of the Frankish Empire under the Ottonian dynasty in the 10th century, forming the core of the Holy Roman Empire. In subsequent centuries the political power and population of this empire grew considerably. It expanded eastwards, and eventually a substantial number of Germans migrated further eastwards into Eastern Europe. The empire itself was politically divided between many small princedoms, cities and bishoprics. Following the Reformation in the 16th century, many of these states found themselves in bitter conflict concerning the rise of Protestantism. The 19th century saw the dismemberment of the Holy Roman Empire and the growth of German nationalism. The kingdom of Prussia incorporated most of the Germans into its German Empire in 1871, while a substantial number of Germans also inhabited the multiethnic kingdom of Austria-Hungary. During this time a large number of Germans emigrated to the New World, particularly to the United States, Canada and Brazil, as well as establishing prominent communities in New Zealand and Australia. The Russian Empire also contained a substantial German population. In the aftermath of World War I, Austria-Hungary and the German Empire were partitioned, resulting in many Germans becoming ethnic minorities in newly established countries. In the chaotic years that followed, Adolf Hitler became the dictator of Nazi Germany and embarked on a genocidal campaign to unify all Germans under his leadership. This endeavour resulted in World War II and the Holocaust. In the aftermath of Germany's defeat in the war, the country was occupied and partitioned. Millions of Germans were expelled from Eastern Europe. In 1990, the states of West and East Germany were reunified. In modern times, remembrance of the Holocaust has become an integral part of German identity (Erinnerungskulturcode: deu promoted to code: de ). Owing to their long history of political fragmentation, the Germans are culturally diverse and often have strong regional identities. The arts and sciences are an integral part of German culture, and the Germans have produced a large number of prominent personalities in a number of disciplines.

Webster DictionaryRate this definition:5.0 / 1 vote

1. Germans

   of German

FreebaseRate this definition:4.0 / 1 vote

1. Germans

   Germans are the citizens or native-born people of Germany; or people of descent to the ethnic and ethnolinguistic group associated with the German language. This connection may be ethnic, historical, ancestral, cultural, legal or residential. The English term Germans has historically referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages. Legally, Germans are citizens of the Federal Republic of Germany. Of approximately 100 million native speakers of German in the world, roughly 70 million consider themselves Germans. There are an additional 80 million people of German ancestry mainly in the United States, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, South Africa, post-Soviet states, France, Australia, Chile and Italy. Thus, the total number of Germans worldwide lies between 66 and 160 million, depending on the criteria applied. Today, people from countries with a German-speaking majority such as Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Luxembourg, have developed their own national identity, and since the end of World War II, have not referred to themselves as "Germans" in a modern context.

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Germans' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #3824

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'Germans' in Written Corpus Frequency: #4814

Anagrams for Germans »

1. mangers

2. engrams

How to pronounce Germans?

1. Alex

   US English

   David

   US English

   Mark

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Libby

   British

   Mia

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Hayley

   Australian

   Natasha

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

   Priya

   Indian

   Neerja

   Indian

   Zira

   US English

   Oliver

   British

   Wendy

   British

   Fred

   US English

   Tessa

   South African

How to say Germans in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of Germans in Chaldean Numerology is: 5

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of Germans in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of Germans in a Sentence

1. British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond:

   We are actively discussing the maintenance of and the extension of the sanctions regime with the Germans, of course they (the Germans) want to explore the opportunity that tomorrow's meeting, if it goes ahead, may offer.

2. Mark Twain:

   A verb has a hard enough time of it in this world when it is all together. It's downright inhuman to split it up. But that's what those Germans do. They take part of a verb and put it down here, like a stake, and they take the other part of it and put it a way over yonder like another stake, and between these two limits they just shovel in German.

3. Eva Heyman:

   Dear Diary, until now I didn’t want to write about this in you because I tried to put it out of my mind, but ever since the Germans are here, all I think about is Marta. She was also just a girl, and still, the Germans killed her. But I don’t want them to kill me!”

4. Pascal Lamy:

   I've been in this business for 30 years and the Germans have never been a problem, the Germans were pushing the French in the right direction. Now, I have to go and tell the French to go and help the Germans.

5. Kipchoge Keino:

   Kenya has complied with every recommendation by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and we are in the process of being declared compliant to its code, it is wrong for Germans to call for Kenya to be barred from Rio when we have offered its athletes training facilities in Kenya. To make it worse, some agents suspected to be encouraging doping among Kenyan athletes are Germans.

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