Bavaria has a distinct culture, largely because of its Catholic heritage and conservative traditions,[7] which includes a language, cuisine, architecture, festivals and elements of Alpine symbolism.[8] It also has the second-largest economy among the German states by GDP figures, giving it the status of a wealthy German region.[9]
Contemporary Bavaria also includes parts of the historical regions of Franconia and Swabia, in addition to Altbayern.
Though Bavaria has been occupied by humans since the Paleolithic era, Celtic tribes of the Bronze Age, such as the Boii were the first documented inhabitants of the Bavarian Alps. In June 2023, Archeologists discovered a bronze sword, dated to the 14th century BC, in a former Celtic village; its workmanship so well-preserved "it almost shines."[10] During the early modern era, these peoples were retrospectively romanticized as the most ancient culture of Bavaria,[11] even though the Indo-European languages were relative newcomers to the region. Evidence of the ancient Straubing culture, Únětice culture and La Tène culture may be found in what is Bavaria today.[12][13][14]
Archeologists know of a large Celtic Iron Age settlement which was founded in Feldmoching-Hasenbergl, in the North of suburban Munich.[14] Evidence suggests up to 500 people lived in the village from 450 BC.[14] Local life appears to have centred around what could be a town hall or temple, and continued in different forms up to 1000 AD.[14] In Manching, Upper Bavaria, an unfortified and semi-urban society appears to have prospered between the 3rd century BC until the early 1st Century AD.[15] The settlement featured food ovens, pottery kilns and metallurgical furnaces.[15] By 200 BC the community there was active in trade—finds of coins, along with an icon-like golden tree suggest it was trading with distant Italo-Greek communities.[15]
In the 1st Century BC, Bavaria was conquered by the Roman Empire.[16] An imperial military camp was built 60 km north-west of where Munich sits today, under orders of Augustus Caesar, between 8 and 5 BC.[17] The camp later became the town of Augusta Vindelicorum, which would become the capital of the Roman province of Raetia.[17] Another fort was founded in 60 AD, west of modern-day Manching, as evidenced by a legionnaire's sandal found near remains of an ancient fort.[18] By the late 2nd Century AD, Germanic tribes, including Marcomanni people, were pushing back on Roman forces of Marcus Aurelius and later, Commodus in the Marcomannic Wars.[19] By 180 AD, Commodus had decided to abandon the annexed positions in Bavaria, leaving its control to Celtic and Germanic tribes.[20]
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At Hugbert's death in 735, the duchy passed to Odilo of Bavaria from the neighboring Alemannia. Odilo issued a Lex Baiuvariorum for Bavaria, completed the process of church organization in partnership with Saint Boniface in 739, and tried to intervene in Frankish succession disputes by fighting for the claims of the Carolingian dynasty. He was defeated near Augsburg in 743 but continued to rule until his death in 748.[26][27]
Saint Boniface completed the people's conversion to Christianity in the early 8th century. Tassilo III of Bavaria succeeded to rule Bavaria. He initially ruled under Frankish oversight but began to function independently from 763 onward. He was particularly noted for founding new monasteries and for expanding eastwards, oppressing Slavs in the eastern Alps and along the Danube and colonizing these lands. After 781, however, Charlemagne began to exert pressure and Tassilo III was deposed in 788. Dissenters attempted a coup against Charlemagne at Regensburg in 792, led by Pepin the Hunchback.
A map of Bavaria in the 10th century
With the revolt of Henry II, Duke of Bavaria in 976, Bavaria lost large territories in the south and southeast.
One of the most important dukes of Bavaria was Henry the Lion of the house of Welf, founder of Munich, and de facto the second most powerful man in the empire as the ruler of two duchies. When in 1180, Henry the Lion was deposed as Duke of Saxony and Bavaria by his cousin, Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor (a.k.a. "Barbarossa" for his red beard), Bavaria was awarded as fief to the Wittelsbach family, counts palatinate of Schyren ("Scheyern" in modern German). They ruled for 738 years, from 1180 to 1918. In 1180, however, Styria was also separated from Bavaria. The Electorate of the Palatinate by Rhine (Kurpfalz in German) was also acquired by the House of Wittelsbach in 1214, which they would subsequently hold for six centuries.[28]
In 1623, the Bavarian duke replaced his relative of the Palatinate branch, the Electorate of the Palatinate in the early days of the Thirty Years' War and acquired the powerful prince-elector dignity in the Holy Roman Empire, determining its Emperor thence forward, as well as special legal status under the empire's laws. During the early and mid-18th century the ambitions of the Bavarian prince electors led to several wars with Austria as well as occupations by Austria (War of the Spanish Succession, War of the Austrian Succession with the election of a Wittelsbach emperor instead of a Habsburg).[29]
To mark the unification of Bavaria and the Electoral Palatinate, both being principal Wittelsbach territories, Elector Maximilian IV Joseph was crowned king of Bavaria. King Maximilian Joseph was quick to change the coat of arms. The various heraldic symbols were replaced and a classical Wittelsbach pattern introduced. The white and blue lozenges symbolized the unity of the territories within the Bavarian kingdom.[30]
The new state also comprised the Duchy of Jülich and Berg as these on their part were in personal union with the Palatinate.[citation needed]
The Duchy of Jülich was ceded to France and the Electoral Palatinate was divided between France and the Grand Duchy of Baden. The Duchy of Berg was given to Joachim Murat. The County of Tyrol and the federal state of Salzburg were temporarily annexed with Bavaria but eventually ceded to Austria at the Congress of Vienna. In return, Bavaria was allowed to annex the modern-day region of Palatinate to the west of the Rhine and Franconia in 1815.
Between 1799 and 1817, the leading minister, Count Montgelas, followed a strict policy of modernization copying Napoleonic France; he laid the foundations of centralized administrative structures that survived the monarchy and, in part, have retained core validity through to the 21st century. In May 1808, a first constitution was passed by Maximilian I,[32] being modernized in 1818. This second version established a bicameral Parliament with a House of Lords (Kammer der Reichsräte) and a House of Commons (Kammer der Abgeordneten). That constitution was followed until the collapse of the monarchy at the end of World War I.
After the rise of Prussia in the early 18th century, Bavaria preserved its independence by playing off the rivalry of Prussia and Austria. Allied to Austria, it was defeated along with Austria in the 1866 Austro-Prussian War and was not incorporated into the North German Confederation of 1867, but the question of German unity was still alive. When France declared war on Prussia in 1870, all the south German states (Baden, Württemberg, Hessen-Darmstadt and Bavaria) aside from Austria, joined the Prussian forces and ultimately joined the Federation, which was renamed Deutsches Reich (German Empire) in 1871.
Bavaria continued as a monarchy, and retained some special rights within the federation (such as railways and postal services and control of its army in peace times).
Part of the German Empire
A map of Bavaria in the German Empire, which was formed in 1871 and endured until 1918
When Bavaria became part of the newly formed German Empire, this action was considered controversial by Bavarian nationalists who had wanted to retain independence from the rest of Germany, as had Austria.
As Bavaria had a heavily Catholic majority population, many people resented being ruled by the mostly Protestant northerners in Prussia. As a direct result of the Bavarian-Prussian feud, political parties formed to encourage Bavaria to break away and regain its independence.[33]
In the early 20th century, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Henrik Ibsen, and other artists were drawn to Bavaria, especially to the Schwabing district in Munich, a center of international artistic activity at the time.
World War I led to the abolition of monarchy all over Germany in 1918. The Bavarian monarchy was the first to fall when on 8 November 1918 Socialist politician Kurt Eisner proclaimed the Free State (i.e. republic) of Bavaria. Eisner headed a new, republican government as minister-president. On 12 November, King Ludwig III signed the Anif declaration, releasing both civil and military officers from their oaths,[34] which the Eisner government interpreted as an abdication.[35]
After losing the January 1919 elections, Eisner was assassinated in February 1919, ultimately leading to a Communist revolt and the short-lived Bavarian Soviet Republic being proclaimed 6 April 1919. After violent suppression by elements of the German Army and notably the Freikorps, the Bavarian Soviet Republic fell in May 1919. The Bamberg Constitution (Bamberger Verfassung) was enacted on 12 or 14 August 1919 and came into force on 15 September 1919, placing Bavaria inside the Weimar Republic.
The Rhenish Palatinate was detached from Bavaria in 1946 and made part of the new state Rhineland-Palatinate. In 1949, Bavaria became part of the Federal Republic of Germany, despite the Bavarian Parliament voting against adopting the Basic Law of Germany, mainly because it was seen as not granting sufficient powers to the individual states (Länder), but at the same time declared that it would accept it if two-thirds of the other Länder ratified it. All of the other states ratified it, so it became law.[36] Thus, during the Cold War, Bavaria was part of West Germany.
Bavarian identity
Bavarians have often emphasized a separate national identity and considered themselves as "Bavarians" first, "Germans" second.[37] In the 19th-century sense, an independent Kingdom of Bavaria existed from only 1806 to 1871. A separate Bavarian identity was emphasized more strongly when Bavaria joined the Prussia-dominated German Empire in 1871, while the Bavarian nationalists wanted to keep Bavaria as Catholic and an independent state. Aside from the minority Bavaria Party, most Bavarians now accept Bavaria as part of Germany.[38]
Another consideration is that Bavaria is not culturally uniform. While inhabitants Altbayern ("Old Bavaria"), the regions forming the historic Bavaria before further acquisitions in 1806–1815, speak a Bavarian dialect of German, Franconia in the north and Bavarian Swabia in the south west, have their unique culture, including different dialects of German, East Franconian and Swabian, respectively.
Uniquely among German states, Bavaria has two official flags of equal status, one with a white and blue stripe, the other with white and blue diamond-shaped lozenges. Either may be used by civilians and government offices, who are free to choose between them.[39] Unofficial versions of the flag, especially a lozenge style with coat of arms, are sometimes used by civilians.
Coat of arms
The modern coat of arms of Bavaria was designed by Eduard Ege in 1946, following heraldic traditions.
The Golden Lion: At the dexter chief, sable, a lion rampant Or, armed and langued gules. This represents the administrative region of Upper Palatinate.
The "Franconian Rake": At the sinister chief, per fess dancetty, gules, and argent. This represents the administrative regions of Upper, Middle and Lower Franconia.
The Blue "Pantier" (mythical creature from French heraldry, sporting a flame instead of a tongue): At the dexter base, argent, a Pantier rampant azure, armed Or and langued gules. This represents the regions of Lower and Upper Bavaria.
The Three Lions: At the sinister base, Or, three lions passant guardant sable, armed and langued gules. This represents Swabia.
The White-And-Blue inescutcheon: The inescutcheon of white and blue fusils askance was originally the coat of arms of the Counts of Bogen, adopted in 1247 by the House of Wittelsbach. The white-and-blue fusils are indisputably the emblem of Bavaria and these arms today symbolize Bavaria as a whole. Along with the People's Crown, it is officially used as the Minor Coat of Arms.
The People's Crown (Volkskrone): The coat of arms is surmounted by a crown with a golden band inset with precious stones and decorated with five ornamental leaves. This crown first appeared in the coat of arms to symbolize sovereignty of the people after the royal crown was eschewed in 1923.
At lower elevations the climate is classified according to Köppen's guide as "Cfb" or "Dfb". At higher altitudes the climate becomes "Dfc" and "ET".
The summer months have been getting hotter in recent years.[41] For example, June 2019 was the warmest June in Bavaria since weather observations have been recorded[41] and the winter 2019/2020 was 3 degrees Celsius warmer than the average temperature for many years all over Bavaria. On 20 December 2019 a record temperature of 20.2 °C (68.4 °F) was recorded in Piding.[42] In general winter months are seeing more precipitation which is taking the form of rain more often than that of snow compared to the past.[41]Extreme weather like the 2013 European floods or the 2019 European heavy snowfalls is occurring more and more often. One effect of the continuing warming is the melting of almost all Bavarian Alpine glaciers: Of the five glaciers of Bavaria only the Höllentalferner is predicted to exist over a longer time perspective. The Südliche Schneeferner has almost vanished since the 1980s.[41]
Administrative divisions
Administrative regions
The Bavarian administrative regions of Regierungsbezirke and Bezirke
Bavaria is divided into seven administrative regions called Regierungsbezirke (singular Regierungsbezirk). Each of these regions has a state agency called the Bezirksregierung (district government).
Bezirke (regional districts) are the third communal layer in Bavaria; the others are the Landkreise and the Gemeinden or Städte. The Bezirke in Bavaria are territorially identical with the Regierungsbezirke, but they are self-governing regional corporation, having their own parliaments. In the other larger states of Germany, there are only Regierungsbezirke as administrative divisions and no self-governing entities at the level of the Regierungsbezirke as the Bezirke in Bavaria.
The second communal layer is made up of 71 rural districts (called Landkreise, singular Landkreis) that are comparable to counties, as well as the 25 independent cities (Kreisfreie Städte, singular Kreisfreie Stadt), both of which share the same administrative responsibilities.
The 71 rural districts are on the lowest level divided into 2,031 regular municipalities (called Gemeinden, singular Gemeinde). Together with the 25 independent cities (kreisfreie Städte, which are in effect municipalities independent of Landkreis administrations), there are a total of 2,056 municipalities in Bavaria.
In 44 of the 71 rural districts, there are a total of 215 unincorporated areas (as of 1 January 2005, called gemeindefreie Gebiete, singular gemeindefreies Gebiet), not belonging to any municipality, all uninhabited, mostly forested areas, but also four lakes (Chiemsee-without islands, Starnberger See-without island Roseninsel, Ammersee, which are the three largest lakes of Bavaria, and Waginger See).
The German Greens and the center-right Free Voters have been represented in the state parliament since 1986 and 2008 respectively.
In the 2003 elections the CSU won a ⅔ supermajority – something no party had ever achieved in postwar Germany. However, in the subsequent 2008 elections the CSU lost the absolute majority for the first time in 46 years.[46]
The losses were partly attributed by some to the CSU's stance for an anti-smoking bill.[further explanation needed] (A first anti-smoking law had been proposed by the CSU and passed but was watered down after the election, after which a referendum enforced a strict antismoking bill with a large majority).
The last state elections were held on 8 October 2023. The CSU could almost maintain the results from the last elections with 37%. The Greens lost 3% compared to the last election with a result of 14.4%. The SPD lost again compared to the last election and was now at 8.4%. The liberals of the FDP were not able to reach the five-percent-threshold thus they are not part of the Landtag anymore, the second time after the 2013 elections. The right-wing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) gained another 4% with now at 14.6% of the vote.[47]
The center-right Free Voters party gained 15.8% of the votes and for the second time formed a government coalition with the CSU which led to the subsequent reelection of Markus Söder as Minister-President of Bavaria.[48]
The Constitution of Bavaria of the Free State of Bavaria was enacted on 8 December 1946. The new Bavarian Constitution became the basis for the Bavarian State after the Second World War.
Bavaria has a unicameralLandtag (English: State Parliament), elected by universal suffrage.[49] Until December 1999, there was also a Senat, or Senate, whose members were chosen by social and economic groups in Bavaria, but following a referendum in 1998, this institution was abolished.[50]
The Bavarian State Government consists of the Minister-President of Bavaria, eleven Ministers and six Secretaries of State. The Minister-President is elected for a period of five years by the State Parliament and is head of state. With the approval of the State Parliament he appoints the members of the State Government. The State Government is composed of the:
Ministry of the Interior, for Sport and Integration (Staatsministerium des Innern, für Sport und Integration)
Ministry for Housing, Construction and Transport (Staatsministerium für Wohnen, Bau und Verkehr)
Ministry of Justice (Staatsministerium der Justiz)
Ministry for Education and Culture (Staatsministerium für Bildung und Kultus)
Ministry for Science and Art (Staatsministerium für Wissenschaft und Kunst)
Ministry of Finance and for Home Affairs (Staatsministerium der Finanzen und für Heimat)
Ministry for Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy (Staatsministerium für Wirtschaft, Landesentwicklung und Energie)
Ministry for Environment and Consumer Protection (Staatsministerium für Umwelt und Verbraucherschutz)
Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Forestry (Staatsministerium für Ernährung, Landwirtschaft und Forsten)
Ministry for Family, Labour and Social Affairs (Staatsministerium für Familie, Arbeit und Soziales)
Ministry for Health and Care (Staatsministerium für Gesundheit und Pflege)
Ministry for Digital Affairs (Staatsministerium für Digitales)[51]
Political processes also take place in the seven regions (Regierungsbezirke or Bezirke) in Bavaria, in the 71 rural districts (Landkreise) and the 25 towns and cities forming their own districts (kreisfreie Städte), and in the 2,031 local authorities (Gemeinden).
In 1995 Bavaria introduced direct democracy on the local level in a referendum. This was initiated bottom-up by an association called Mehr Demokratie (English: More Democracy). This is a grass-roots organization which campaigns for the right to citizen-initiated referendums. In 1997 the Bavarian Supreme Court tightened the regulations considerably (including by introducing a turn-out quorum). Nevertheless, Bavaria has the most advanced regulations on local direct democracy in Germany. This has led to a spirited citizens' participation in communal and municipal affairs—835 referendums took place from 1995 through 2005.
Unlike most German states (Länder), which simply designate themselves as "State of" (Land [...]), Bavaria uses the style of "Free State of Bavaria" (Freistaat Bayern). The difference from other states is purely terminological, as German constitutional law does not draw a distinction between "States" and "Free States". The situation is thus analogous to the United States, where some states use the style "Commonwealth" rather than "State". The term "Free State", a creation of the 19th century and intended to be a German alternative to (or translation of) the Latin-derived republic, was common among the states of the Weimar Republic, after German monarchies had been abolished. Unlike most other states – many of which were new creations – Bavaria has resumed this terminology after World War II. Two other states, Saxony and Thuringia, also call themselves "Free State".
Arbitrary arrest and human rights
In July 2017, Bavaria's parliament enacted a new revision of the "Gefährdergesetz", allowing the authorities to imprison a person for a three months term, renewable indefinitely, when they have not committed a crime but it is assumed that they might commit a crime "in the near future".[52] Critics like the prominent journalist Heribert Prantl have called the law "shameful" and compared it to Guantanamo Bay detention camp,[53] assessed it to be in violation of the European Convention on Human Rights,[54] and also compared it to the legal situation in Russia, where a similar law allows for imprisonment for a maximum term of two years (i.e., not indefinitely).[55]
Bavaria has long had one of the largest economies of any region in Germany, and in Europe.[56] Its gross domestic product (GDP) in 2007 exceeded €434 billion (about U.S. $600 billion).[57] This makes Bavaria itself one of the largest economies in Europe, and only 20 countries in the world have a higher GDP.[58] The GDP of the region increased to €617.1 billion in 2018, accounting for 18.5% of German economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was €43,500 or 145% of the EU27 average in the same year. The GDP per employee was 114% of the EU average. This makes Bavaria one of the wealthiest regions in Europe.[59] Bavaria has strong economic ties with Austria, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, and Northern Italy.[60]
In 2019 GDP was €832.4 ($905.7) billion, €48,323 ($52,577.3) per capita.[61]
Agriculture
The most distinctive high points of Bavarian agriculture are:
Hop growing in region Hallertau, which is up to 80% of German production and exported worldwide.
The well-hydrated alpine meadows are used to produce large quantities of quality milk, which is used to make a variety of cheese (including blue-veined cheese), yogurt and butter.
The cultivation of asparagus is widespread, which is a very popular new season vegetable. In season ("Spargelzeit") restaurants offer special separated asparagus menu. There is an asparagus museum in Schrobenhausen.
There are farms producing venison from deer and roe.
Good ecology and strict control allow for the production of a large amount of organic products ("bio") and baby food.
Hopfengarten (hop garden)
Allgäuer meadows
Asparagus with sauce hollandaise
Vineyards in Klingenberg-am-Main
Industries
Bavaria has the best developed industry in Germany[62] and the lowest unemployment rate with 2.9% as of October 2021.[63]
Branches:
Oil refining. Although there is oil production in Bavaria, it does not meet domestic needs. Most of the oil is imported via pipelines from the Czech Republic (Russian oil) and from the Italian port of Trieste (Near East oil). Three refineries are situated near Ingolstadt and another one in Burghausen.The last one is a part of the Bavarian chemical triangle and delivers raw materials to other chemical plants.
Refinery Ingolstadt
Transalpine pipeline
Automotive is the most important and best developed Bavarian industry, which includes design and manufacture of luxury cars (4 BMW and 2 Audi manufacturing plants, headquarters of both companies, R&D centers, test tracks), trucks (Traton MAN), special vehicles (Tadano Faun), buses (Evobus/Setra), and automotive parts (engines, electronics, cables, seats, interiors, cabrio roofs, heating, and brake systems, software). Bavaria has the second-most employees (207,829) in the automotive industry of all German states after Baden-Württemberg as of 2018.[64]
BMW 7 Series
Audi A5
MAN TGX
Faun HK 100
Setra S515HDH
Aerospace and defense, which manufacture multi-role attack jet Eurofighter Typhoon, missiles from MBDA and Diehl Defence, parts of rocket Ariane, regional jet Dornier 728, ultra-light planes from Grob Aerospace, turbo jet engines for civil and military applications from MTU Aero Engines, helicopters Airbus, main battle tank Leopard 2, drones, composite parts, avionics, radars, propellants, initiators, powder, munitions. In Munich suburban Oberpfaffenhofen situated control center of European satellite navigation system Galileo, German Space Operations Center, Microwaves and Radar Institute, Institute of Communications and Navigation, Remote Sensing Technology Institute, Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics, Institute for Software Technology, Institute of System Dynamics and Control.
Eurofighter Typhoon
Grob G 120TP
Airbus EC-665 Tiger
PARS 3 LR
Leopard 2
Other transport manufacturing are represented in Bavaria. Ship yards even exist, for example Bavaria Yachtbau, despite being located many hundreds of kilometers from the sea, manufacturing 4-stroke marine diesel engines which are used in cruise liners, ferries and warships. Rail technology is produced in Munich-Allach (locomotive Siemens Vectron) and rail maintenance vehicles in Freilassing.
Medical equipment. In Erlangen is a headquarter of Siemens Healthineers which produces devices for computer tomography, interventional X-ray systems, radiation therapy, and molecular and magnetic resonance imaging software. Brainlab creates software and hardware for image-guided surgery. Roche Diagnostics in Penzberg manufactures therapeutic proteins, diagnostic tests, reagents, analyze system and biopharma products.
Siemens E.Cam Duet
Brewery. Bavaria has long tradition of brewery, near a half of all German breweries are located here (645 of 1300). All possible types of breweries exist: home brewery of hotel or restaurant, belong to big international concern, state-owned, castle or monastery breweries. The perfect quality of beer is guaranteed by 500-years law ("Reinheitsgebot"), which allow as beer ingredients only water, hops, yeast and malt of barley, wheat or rye. But difference of roasting, fermentation or mixing allow to produce many different types of beers (not brand). Vladimir Putin at 2009 tasted beer from Brauerei Aying, Barack Obama at 2015 also tasted Bavarian beer of Karg Brauerei in Murnau. In Freising situated research center Weihenstephan for brewing and food quality.
Several American companies have established research and development facilities in the Munich region: Apple (chip design), Google (data security), IBM (Watson technology), Intel (drones and telecommunication chips), General Electric (3D-printers and additive manufacturing), Gleason (gears manufacturing), Texas Instruments (chip design and manufacturing), Coherent (lasers).
Tourism
With 40 million tourists in 2019, Bavaria is the most visited German state and one of Europe's leading tourist destinations.[65]
Population density of Germany with Bavaria in the southeast
Bavaria has a population of approximately 13.1 million inhabitants (2020). Eight of the 80 largest cities in Germany are located within Bavaria with Munich being the largest (1,484,226 inhabitants, approximately 6.1 million when including the broader metropolitan area), followed by Nuremberg (518,370 inhabitants, approximately 3.6 million when including the broader metropolitan area), Augsburg (296,582 inhabitants) and Regensburg (153,094 inhabitants). All other cities in Bavaria had less than 150,000 inhabitants each in 2020. Population density in Bavaria was 186/km2 (480/sq mi), below the national average of 233/km2 (600/sq mi). Foreign nationals resident in Bavaria (both immigrants and refugees/asylum seekers) were principally from other EU countries and Turkey.
Some features of the Bavarian culture and mentality are remarkably distinct from the rest of Germany. Noteworthy differences (especially in rural areas, less significant in the major cities) can be found with respect to religion, traditions, and language.
As of 2020[update] 46.9% of Bavarians adhered to Catholicism (a decline from 70.4% in 1970).[72][70] 17.2 percent of the population adheres to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Bavaria, which has also declined since 1970.[72][70] Three percent was Orthodox, Muslims make up 4.0% of the population of Bavaria. 31.9 percent of Bavarians are irreligious or adhere to other religions.
Traditions
Bavarians commonly emphasize pride in their traditions. Traditional costumes collectively known as Tracht are worn on special occasions and include in AltbayernLederhosen for males and Dirndl for females. Centuries-old folk music is performed. The Maibaum, or Maypole (which in the Middle Ages served as the community's business directory, as figures on the pole represented the trades of the village), and the bagpipes of the Upper Palatinate region bear witness to the ancient Celtic and Germanic remnants of cultural heritage of the region. There are many traditional Bavarian sports disciplines, e.g. the Aperschnalzen, competitive whipcracking.
Whether in Bavaria, overseas or with citizens from other nations Bavarians continue to cultivate their traditions. They hold festivals and dances to keep their heritage alive.
Bavarians tend to place a great value on food and drink. In addition to their renowned dishes, Bavarians also consume many items of food and drink which are unusual elsewhere in Germany; for example Weißwurst ("white sausage") or in some instances a variety of entrails. At folk festivals and in many beer gardens, beer is traditionally served by the litre (in a Maß). Bavarians are particularly proud[73] of the traditional Reinheitsgebot, or beer purity law, initially established by the Duke of Bavaria for the City of Munich (i.e. the court) in 1487 and the duchy in 1516. According to this law, only three ingredients were allowed in beer: water, barley, and hops. In 1906 the Reinheitsgebot made its way to all-German law, and remained a law in Germany until the EU partly struck it down in 1987 as incompatible with the European common market.[74] German breweries, however, cling to the principle, and Bavarian breweries still comply with it in order to distinguish their beer brands.[75] Bavarians are also known as some of the world's most prolific beer drinkers, with an average annual consumption of 170 liters per person.[citation needed]
Bavaria is also home to the Franconia wine region, which is situated along the river Main in Franconia. The region has produced wine (Frankenwein) for over 1,000 years and is famous for its use of the Bocksbeutel wine bottle. The production of wine forms an integral part of the regional culture, and many of its villages and cities hold their own wine festivals (Weinfeste) throughout the year.
Three German dialects are most commonly spoken in Bavaria: Austro-Bavarian in Old Bavaria (Upper Bavaria, Lower Bavaria, and the Upper Palatinate), Swabian German (an Alemannic German dialect) in the Bavarian part of Swabia (southwest) and East Franconian German in Franconia (north). In the small town Ludwigsstadt in the north, district Kronach in Upper Franconia, Thuringian dialect is spoken. During the 20th century an increasing part of the population began to speak Standard German (Hochdeutsch), mainly in the cities.
Ethnography
Bavarians consider themselves to be egalitarian and informal.[76] Their sociability can be experienced at the annual Oktoberfest, the world's largest beer festival, which welcomes around six million visitors every year, or in the famous beer gardens. In traditional Bavarian beer gardens, patrons may bring their own food but buy beer only from the brewery that runs the beer garden.[77]
Museums
There are around 1,300 museums in Bavaria, including museums of art and cultural history, castles and palaces, archaeological and natural history collections, museums of technological and industrial history, and farm and open-air museums. The history of Bavarian museums dates back to manorial cabinets of curiosities and treasuries. The art holdings of the House of Wittelsbach thus formed the first and essential foundation of later state museums. As early as the mid-16th century, Duke Albrecht V (r. 1550–1579) had collected paintings as well as Greek and Roman sculptures (or copies made of them). He had the Antiquarium in the Munich Residence built specifically for his collection of antique sculptures. The electors Maximilian I (r. 1594–1651) and Max II. Emanuel (r. 1679–1726) expanded the art collections considerably. In the Age of Enlightenment at the end of the 18th century, there was a demand to open up art collections to the general public in the spirit of "popular education". But Museums were not founded by the state until the time of the art-loving King Ludwig I (r. 1825–1848). In Munich, he built Glyptothek (opened 1830), Alte Pinakothek (opened 1836), and Neue Pinakothek (opened 1853). Also, the foundation of the Germanisches Nationalmuseum in Nuremberg (1852), the establishment of the Neue Pinakothek, which opened in 1853, and the Bavarian National Museum (1867) in Munich were of central importance for the development of museums in Bavaria in the 19th century. With the end of the monarchy in 1918, many castles and formerly Wittelsbach property passed to the young Free State. In particular, the castles of king Ludwig II (r. 1864–1886) Neuschwanstein, Linderhof and Herrenchiemsee, quickly became magnets for the public. Since then, the number of Bavarian Museums has grown considerably, from 125 in 1907 to around 1,300 today.[78]
^Richard McMahon (2016). The Races of Europe: Construction of National Identities in the Social Sciences, 1839-1939. Palgrave Macmillan UK. p. 176. ISBN9781137318466.
^Heiko Steuer; Janine Fries-Knoblach; John Hines, eds. (2014). The Baiuvarii and Thuringi: An Ethnographic Perspective. Boydell Press. p. 2. ISBN9781843839156.
^Heiko Steuer; Janine Fries-Knoblach; John Hines, eds. (2014). The Baiuvarii and Thuringi: An Ethnographic Perspective. Boydell Press. p. 7. ISBN9781843839156.
^Warren Brown (2001). Unjust Seizure (1st ed.). Cornell University Press. p. 63. ISBN9780801437908.
^Frassetto, Michael (2013). The Early Medieval World: From the Fall of Rome to the Time of Charlemagne [2 Volumes]. ABC-CLIO. p. 145. ISBN978-1598849967.
^Collins, Roger (2010). Early Medieval Europe, 300–1000. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 273. ISBN978-1137014283.
^Harrington, Joel F. (1995). Reordering Marriage and Society in Reformation Germany. Cambridge University Press. p. 17. ISBN978-0521464833.
^Alan Forrest; Peter H. Wilson, eds. (2008). The Bee and the Eagle: Napoleonic France and the End of the Holy Roman Empire, 1806. Palgrave Macmillan UK. pp. 98–99. ISBN9780230236738.
^Paul R. Hanson (2015). Historical Dictionary of the French Revolution (2 ed.). Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN978-0810878921.
^James J. Sheehan (1993). German History, 1770–1866. Clarendon Press. p. 265. ISBN978-0198204329.
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^Shirer, William L. (2011). The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster. p. 33. ISBN9781451642599.
^To date, however, no member of the House of Wittelsbach has ever formally declared renunciation of the throne. Imre Karacs (13 July 1996). "Bavaria buries the royal dream Funeral of Prince Albrechty". The Independent. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
^landtagswahl2023.bayern.de. "landtagswahl2023.bayern.de". landtagswahl2023.bayern.de. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023. Retrieved 18 November 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
^"Daten & Fakten". Bavarian Ministry of Economic Affairs, Regional Development and Energy (in German). Archived from the original on 22 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
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