Demographics

 On 31 December 2016, there were 1,860,759 people registered as living in Hamburg in an area of
755.3 km2
 The population density was 2,464/km2
 The metropolitan area of the Hamburg region (Hamburg Metropolitan Region) is home to
5,107,429 living on 196/km2
 There were 915,319 women and 945,440 men in Hamburg. For every 1,000 females, there were
1,033 males.
 In 2015, there were 19,768 births in Hamburg of which 38.3% were to unmarried women; 6422
marriages and 3190 divorces, and 17,565 deaths.
 In the city, the population was spread out with 16.1% under the age of 18, and 18.3% were 65
years of age or older. 356 People in Hamburg were over the age of 100.
 According to the Statistical Office for Hamburg and Schleswig Holstein, the number of people with
a migrant background is at 34% (631,246).
 Immigrants come from 180 different countries. 5,891 people have acquired German citizenship
in 2016.
 In 2016, there were 1,021,666 households, of which 17.8% had children under the age of 18;
54.4% of all households were made up of singles. 25.6% of all households were single parent
households. The average household size was 1.8.

Residents in Hamburg with foreign citizenship

Hamburg residents with a foreign citizenship as of 31 December 2016 is as follows

Residents with Foreign Citizenship

Europe 67.2% European Union 38%

Asian 20.6% African 6.6%
American 3.9% Australian and Oceanian 0.4%

German Citizenship Requirements for Naturalization

The requirements that you need to fulfill in order to qualify for naturalization are as follows:

 You must have lived in Germany on a residence permit for at least 8 years, or
 You must have lived in Germany on a residence permit for 7 years and attended an
integration course (this becomes 6 years on special integration circumstances)
 You must prove German language proficiency of at least B1
 You must be financially able to support yourself and your family without any help from
the state
 You must be a law-abiding citizen with no criminal record
  You must pass a citizenship test
 You must renounce any previous citizenships

You can be exempt from the naturalization test if you belong to any of these groups:

 You cannot take the test due to old age, illness, or disability
 You are under 16 years old
 You have a higher education degree from a German university in politics, law, or
social sciences

Largest Groups of Foreign Residents by Citizenship

Nationality Population (Dec. 2017)
Turkey 44,642
Poland 29,824
Afghanistan 19,549
Syria 14,696
Romania 11,129
Portugal 10,489
Bulgaria 10,102
Russia 9,215
Italy 8,559
Iran 7,776
Greece 7,060
Spain 6,999
Serbia 6,983
Croatia 6,896
Macedonia 6,585
Philippines 6,094
Ghana 5,928
France 5,250
China 5,117
Iraq 4,976

Language
 Standard German is spoken in Hamburg, but as typical for northern Germany, the original
language of Hamburg is Low German, usually referred to as Hamborger Platt (German Hamburger
Platt) or Hamborgsch.
 Since large-scale standardization of the German language beginning in earnest in the 18th
century, various Low German-colored dialects have developed.
  Originally, there was a range of such Missingsch varieties, the best-known being the low-prestige
ones of the working classes and the somewhat more bourgeois Hanseatendeutsch (Hanseatic
German), although the term is used in appreciation.
 All of these are now moribund due to the influences of Standard German used by education and
media.
 However, the former importance of Low German is indicated by several songs, such as the
famous sea shanty Hamborger Veermaster, written in the 19th century when Low German was
used more frequently.
 Many toponyms and street names reflect Low Saxon vocabulary, partially even in Low Saxon
spelling, which is not standardized, and to some part in forms adapted to Standard German.
Religion

Religion 2015

EKD Protestants 27% Roman Catholics 11%

Others 7% None 55%

 Less than half of the residents of Hamburg are members of a religion. In late 2015, 27.0% of the
population belonged to the North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church, the largest religious body,
and 10.7% to the Roman Catholic Church. An additional 55% stated they had no religion.
 According to the publication "Muslimisches Leben in Deutschland" (Muslim life in Germany)
estimated 141,900 Muslim lived in Hamburg in 2008.
 May 201, calculations based on census data for 21 countries of origin resulted in the number of
about 143,200 Muslim migrants in Hamburg, making up 8.4% percent of the population.
 Hamburg is seat of one of the three bishops of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Northern
Germany and seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Hamburg.
 There are several mosques, including the Ahmadiyya run Fazle Omar Mosque, which is the oldest
in the city, the Islamic Centre Hamburg, and a Jewish community.

Government
 The city of Hamburg is one of 16 German states, therefore the Mayor of Hamburg's office
corresponds more to the role of a minister-president than to the one of a city mayor.
 As a German state government, it is responsible for public education, correctional institutions and
public safety; as a municipality, it is additionally responsible for libraries, recreational facilities,
sanitation, water supply and welfare services.
 Since 1897, the seat of the government has been the Hamburg Rathaus (Hamburg City Hall), with
the office of the mayor, the meeting room for the Senate and the floor for the Hamburg
Parliament.
 From 2001 until 2010, the mayor of Hamburg was Ole von Beust, who governed in Germany's first
statewide "black-green" coalition, consisting of the conservative CDU(Christian Democratic
 Union) and the alternative GAL, which are Hamburg's regional wing of the Alliance 90/The
Greens party.
 Von Beust was briefly succeeded by Christoph Ahlhaus in 2010, but the coalition broke apart on
November, 28. 2010.
 On 7 March 2011 Olaf Scholz (SPD) became mayor. After the 2015 election the SPD and
the Alliance 90/The Greens formed a coalition.
Boroughs
 Hamburg is made up of seven boroughs (Bezirke) and subdivided into 104 quarters (Stadtteile).
 There are 181 localities (Ortsteile). The urban organization is regulated by the Constitution of
Hamburg and several laws. Most of the quarters were former independent cities, towns or villages
annexed into Hamburg proper.
 The last large annexation was done through the Greater Hamburg Act of 1937, when the
cities Altona, Harburg and Wandsbek were merged into the state of Hamburg. The Act of the
Constitution and Administration of Hanseatic city of Hamburg established Hamburg as a state and
a municipality. Some of the boroughs and quarters have been rearranged several times.
 Each borough is governed by a Borough Council (Bezirksversammlung) and administered by a
Municipal Administrator (Bezirksamtsleiter).
 The boroughs are not independent municipalities: their power is limited and subordinate to
the Senate of Hamburg.
 The borough administrator is elected by the Borough Council and thereafter requires
confirmation and appointment by Hamburg's Senate. The quarters have no governing bodies of
their own.
 In 2008, the boroughs were Hamburg-Mitte, Altona, Eimsbüttel, Hamburg- Nord, Wandsbek,
Bergedorf and Harburg.

Hamburg-Mitte
 Hamburg-Mitte "Hamburg Centre" covers mostly the urban centre of the city and consists of the
quarters Billbrook, Billstedt, Borgfelde, Finkenwerder, HafenCity, Hamm, Hammerbrook, Horn,
Kleiner Grasbrook, Neuwerk, Rothenburgsort, St. Georg, St. Pauli, Steinwerder, Veddel,
Waltershof and Wilhelmsburg.
 The quarters Hamburg-Altstadt ("old town") and Neustadt ("new town") are the historical origin
of Hamburg.
Altona
 Altona is the westernmost urban borough, on the right bank of the Elbe river. From 1640 to 1864,
Altona was under the administration of the Danish monarchy. Altona was an independent city
until 1937.
 Politically, the following quarters are part of Altona: Altona-Altstadt, Altona-Nord, Bahrenfeld,
Ottensen, Othmarschen, Groß Flottbek, Osdorf, Lurup, Nienstedten, Blankenese, Iserbrook,
Sülldorf, Rissen, Sternschanze.
Bergedorf
 Bergedorf consists of the quarters Allermöhe, Altengamme, Bergedorf—the centre of the former
independent town, Billwerder, Curslack, Kirchwerder, Lohbrügge, Moorfleet, Neuengamme,
Neuallermöhe, Ochsenwerder, Reitbrook, Spadenland and Tatenberg.
Eimsbüttel
 Eimsbüttel is split into nine quarters: Eidelstedt, Eimsbüttel, Harvestehude, Hoheluft-West,
Lokstedt, Niendorf, Rotherbaum, Schnelsen and Stellingen.
 Located within this borough is former Jewish neighbourhood Grindel.

Hamburg-Nord
 Hamburg-Nord contains the quarters Alsterdorf, Barmbek-Nord, Barmbek-Süd, Dulsberg,
Eppendorf, Fuhlsbüttel, Groß Borstel, Hoheluft-Ost, Hohenfelde, Langenhorn, Ohlsdorf with
Ohlsdorf cemetery, Uhlenhorst and Winterhude.
Harburg
 Harburg lies on the southern shores of the river Elbe and covers parts of the port of Hamburg,
residential and rural areas, and some research institutes.
 The quarters are Altenwerder, Cranz, Eißendorf, Francop, Gut Moor, Harburg, Hausbruch,
Heimfeld, Langenbek, Marmstorf, Moorburg, Neuenfelde, Neugraben-Fischbek, Neuland,
Rönneburg, Sinstorf and Wilstorf.
Wandsbek
 Wandsbek is divided into the quarters Bergstedt, Bramfeld, Duvenstedt, Eilbek, Farmsen-Berne,
Hummelsbüttel, Jenfeld, Lemsahl-Mellingstedt, Marienthal, Poppenbüttel, Rahlstedt, Sasel,
Steilshoop, Tonndorf, Volksdorf, Wandsbek, Wellingsbüttel and Wohldorf-Ohlstedt.