Population and Settlement

Germany is one of Europe’s largest countries and it is no surprise with all of land and

waterways that it has. In Germany there is a wide variation of landscapes that range from tall

mountains, sandy plains, and forest hills. A main selling point of Germany is the main waterways

such as the Rhine River that has become one of the major transport routes in Europe. Another

reason for settlement is that the climate is ideal for raising crops.

When researching I found that there were two different types of settlement that happen

for the Germans. The two types were rural settlement and urban settlement. In rural settlement it

was all about turning farmyards into extremely large villages. This settlement was not known to

be uniform though as it had its phases of advance and retreat. After World War 2 the

organization of agriculture and settlement in eastern and western Germany veered off

considerably (Britannica.com, 2018, pg 13). In the Urban settlement the states were trying to

create capitals, large and small, which lead to Germany inheriting towns and cities. After 1949,

in West Germany, many people abandoned the old cities and traded for the suburbs and

urbanized villages within commuting range (Britannica.com, 2018, pg13). These two settlements

were at different times, but both had such an impact on the settlement of Germany. The urban

settlement has even made a comeback in the last decades of the 20th century and the people have

been restoring the western German towns and cities.

With Germany being right off of the coastal lines it had exceptional conditions for

growing crops. In Diamond’s diffusion theory he explained how different civilizations arose

differently at various speeds, and I think the settlement of Germany is a great example of that as

there was settlement happing at different times for different things. After the Ice Age the loess

areas were covered with forest. Then they were cleared and replaced with plants for sheep

grazing. With a lot forest areas that leads for there to be a lot of game animals like deer, quail,
Population and Settlement

and pheasants (Britannica.com, 2018, pg8). With exceptional climate for crops and animals there

was no question as to why people settled in Germany.

Fast forward to present day and the general population of Germany is 82,271,189 which

makes up 1.08% of the world population. They are the leading producer of lignite, the fourth

largest producer of sulfur and the sixth largest producer of refined copper. With all of these

resources Germany plays a vital role in the metal manufacturing and processing sector

(azomining.com, 2018). These resources were they when the people first started settling and

have just grown since.

Germany has come a long way from since the first settlement to now being one of

Europe’s largest countries. The two types of settlements made Germany very versatile and move

more smoothly as a whole. The type of climate and resources made Germany the obvious choice

for people to settle there.

Population and Settlement

References

Barkin, Kenneth, and Lawrence G. Duggan. “Germany.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 4
July 2018, www.britannica.com/place/Germany/Services.

Thomas, G.P. “Germany: Mining, Minerals and Fuel Resources.” AZoMining.com, AZoMining.com, 24 May 2018,
www.azomining.com/Article.aspx?ArticleID=103.