Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt (in
German,
Sachsen-Anhalt) is one of the sixteen
Bundesländer (federal states) that make up the
Federal Republic of Germany. It has an area of 20,447
km², and a population of 2.6 million. Its capital is
Magdeburg.
The state's name is sometimes spelled
Saxony Anhalt in English (without the hyphen).
Lying to the northeast of central Germany, it is eighth largest in area and (since
1996) tenth in population among the country's sixteen
Bundesländer. It borders on the states of
Lower Saxony to the northwest,
Brandenburg to the east,
Saxony to the southeast and
Thuringia to the southwest.
Most of the state consists of plains and is therefore primarily agricultural, but in the southwest lie the eastern part of the
Harz mountains. The main river of Saxony-Anhalt is the
Elbe, running through the state from southeast to northwest. The second largest river, the
Saale, is a tributary of the Elbe.
See also
List of places in Saxony-Anhalt.See also
Saxony-Anhalt LogoSaxony-Anhalt is divided into 21 (rural) counties (
Landkreise),
|
Map of Saxony-Anhalt showing the district boundaries |
and three independent cities (
Stadtkreise),
*
Dessau*
Halle (Saale)*
MagdeburgFrom
1990 to
2003 Saxony-Anhalt was divided into three districts (
Regierungsbezirke) -
Dessau,
Halle and
Magdeburg. On
January 1,
2004 these three districts were abolished, and the 24 counties have since constituted the primary divisions of the state.
A reform to reduce the number of counties is currently planned. Becoming effective in July 2007 there are supposed to be only 11 counties and 3 independent cities.
In prehistoric times, the
Elbe-Saale area was a centre of
Funnelbeaker cultures. Although some of them (like the
Baalberge group) are named after archeological sites in Saxony-Anhalt, they have also existed elsewhere in the Elbe catchment.
The state was created in
1990, shortly before German reunification, covering much the same area as an earlier unit (
1947-
1952) comprising the former
Anhalt, the former
Prussian Province of Saxony and some small exclaves of the former
Brunswick-Lüneburg. The state and its larger cities have lost population since
1989 with migration to the former
West Germany.
List of minister presidents of Saxony-Anhalt
1945-1952
#
1945 -
1949:
Erhard Hübener (
LDPD)#
1949 -
1952:
Werner Bruschke (
SED)
1990 to date
#
1990 -
1991:
Gerd Gies (
CDU)#
1991 -
1993:
Werner Münch (CDU)#
1993 -
1994:
Christoph Bergner (CDU)#
1994 -
2002:
Reinhard Höppner (
SPD)# since
2002:
Wolfgang Böhmer (CDU)
March 26, 2006 state election
See also: Saxony-Anhalt state election, 2006Minister-president
Wolfgang Böhmer (CDU) could not continue his coalition with the FDP and negotiated a
grand coalition with the SPD instead.
Saxony Anhalt is famous for its good soil. The "Magdeburger Börde" contains the best soil in all of Germany and some of the best of Europe. The food industry has an important role in this state. Some of the best known products are "Baumkuchen" from Salzwedel (Altmark) or "Hallorenkugeln" from Halle. In the industrial sector the chemical industry is quite important. One of the biggest chemical producing areas can be found around the cities of Wolfen and Bitterfeld. Because of the chemical industry Saxony Anhalt is also the largest receiver of FDIs (Foreign Direct Investments) in all of eastern Germany.
*
Lied für Sachsen-Anhalt ("Song for Saxony-Anhalt")
*
Official governmental portal*
Webportal Saxony-Anhalt
