Germany (disambiguation)

Germany is a historical term for the region in central Europe where the German language is spoken, and today usually refers to the Federal Republic of Germany. States which united most or all of these areas, especially the Holy Roman Empire, were often called "Germany".

In modern usage, however, usually only the following states are known as Germany:

• German Empire, the bourgeois monarchy that was formed in 1871 and disbanded at the end of World War I.
• Weimar Republic, a bourgeois democratic government existing during the Interwar Period.
• Nazi Germany, the fascist government that ruled between 1933 and 1945
• West Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany. A state formed from the capitalist portion of the post-WWII division of Germany that later annexed East Germany
• East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic. A state formed from the Soviet portion of the post-WWII division of Germany
• The Federal Republic of Germany, the present unified Germany which is legally the same as West Germany

For the history of Germany as a whole, see History of Germany or German people.