Proper noun

Singular Berlin

Plural -

Berlin

1. The capital city of Germany.
2. One of the component states of Germany according to the current administrative division of the nation.

Derived terms

• Berliner
• East Berlin
• West Berlin

Berlin (English pronunciation: /bɜrˈlɪn/; German pronunciation: [bɛɐˈliːn] ( listen)) is the capital city and one of 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.4 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city and the eighth most populous urban area in the European Union. Located in northeastern Germany, it is the center of the Berlin-Brandenburg Metropolitan Area, comprising 5 million people from over 190 nations. Geographically embedded in the European Plains, Berlin is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate. Around one third of the city's territory is composed of forests, parks, gardens, rivers and lakes.

First documented in the 13th century, Berlin was successively the capital of the Kingdom of Prussia (1701–1918), the German Empire (1871–1918), the Weimar Republic (1919–1933) and the Third Reich (1933–1945). During the 1920s, Berlin was the third largest municipality in the world. After World War II, the city was divided; East Berlin became the capital of East Germany while West Berlin became a West German exclave, surrounded by the Berlin Wall (1961–1989). Following German reunification in 1990, the city regained its status as the capital of all Germany hosting 147 foreign embassies.

Berlin is a major center of culture, politics, media, and science in Europe. Its economy is primarily based on the service sector, encompassing a diverse range of creative industries, media corporations, congress and convention venues. Berlin serves as a continental hub for air and rail transport, and is one of the most visited tourist destinations in the EU. Other industries include optoelectronics, traffic engineering, IT, renewable energy, pharmaceuticals, biomedical engineering, and biotechnology.

The metropolis is home to world-renowned universities, research institutes, sporting events, orchestras, museums and personalities. The urban and historical legacy has made it a popular setting for international film productions. The city is recognized for its festivals, diverse architecture, nightlife, contemporary arts, extensive public transportation networks and a high quality of living. Berlin has evolved into a global focal point for young individuals and artists attracted by a liberal lifestyle and modern zeitgeist.

Berlin, is a city in Germany famous in the Weimar era, between the world wars, for its supposed decadence.

Sourced

• A disgusting city, this Berlin, a place where no one believes in anything.
  • Cagliostro, 1775. Quoted in Gordon, Mel (2000). Voluptuous Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin, p.1. ISBN 092291558X.

• And now we come to the most lurid Underworld of all cities--that of post-war Berlin. Ever since the declaration of peace, Berlin found its outlet in the wildest dissipation imaginable. The German is gross in his immorality, he likes his Halb-Welt or underworld pleasures to be devoid of any Kultur or refinement, he enjoys obscenity in a form which even the Parisian would not tolerate.
  • Netley Lucas, Ladies of the Underworld, 1927. Quoted in Gordon, Mel (2000). Voluptuous Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin, p.1. ISBN 092291558X.

• Berlin stimulates like arsenic.
  • Harold Nicolson, Der Querschnitt, 1929. Quoted in Gordon, Mel (2000). Voluptuous Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin, front fold. ISBN 092291558X.

• Berlin has become the paradise of international homosexuals.
  • Ilya Ehrenburg, 1931. Quoted in Quoted in Gordon, Mel (2000). Voluptuous Panic: The Erotic World of Weimar Berlin, p.83. ISBN 092291558X.

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