Austria

The Republic of Austria is a landlocked country located in central Europe.The capital city is Vienna.Austria shares it’s border with Germany and the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west.The country is spanned around 83,870 sq km in which land is 82,444 sq km and water is 1,426 sq km.

After the defeat in World war 1,Austria shrunk into a small republican country from the center of Austro-Hungarian Empire.In 1955 Austria was declared to be neutral after Soviet military withdrawal.But after the downfall of Soviet Union in 1991,Austria was enlisted as a European Union in 1995.26th October is celebrated as the National day of Austria.

HISTORY:-Present Austria was ruled by numerous tribes in pre-Roman age.After the Roman empire sank,Austria was attacked by the Bavarians and Slavic Avars.In 788 when
Charlemagne won the land,he inferred colonization and Christianity.Later after gaining possession of the land,Ottokar,the king of Bohemia lost it to Hapsburg in 1278.Austria was ruled by the Hapsburg dynasty until World War 1.

In the World War 1,Austria was a part of the central power.After the war Austria lost its political and economic stability.In 1918,Austria,was proclaimed a republic.The monarchy was dissolved in 1919 and a parliamentary democracy was set up on 10th november,1920.
After World War II,the U.S. and Britain freed Austria.But the Russians carried on with the occupation.Finally on 15th may 1955,Austria got freedom from those occupations of USSR and other powers.The second Austrian republic was declared on 26th October,1955.
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CULTURE:-Austrian cultural environment gave birth to great musicians like,Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Joseph Haydn, Franz Schubert, Anton Bruckner, Johann Strauss, Sr., Johann Strauss,Gustav Mahler, Arnold Schoenberg, Anton Webern and Alban Berg.Vienna was a prominent seat of composers in 18th and 19th centuries.The city had become the capital of classical music,while in early 1500s the musicians concentrated on instrumental music like lute.The famous jazz musician Josef Zawinul and pop musician Falco were born in Austria.

Painters like Gustav Klimt,Oskar Kokoschka,Egon Schiele and photographer like Inge Morath and architect Otto Wagner also were of Austrian origin. Ludwig Boltzmann, Ernst Mach, Victor Franz Hess and Christian Doppler,Lise Meitner, Erwin Schrödinger and Wolfgang Pauli were some of the internationally reputed scientists of Austrian origin. Sigmund Freud,the famous pcychiatrist was also Austrian.Physicist Anton Zeilinger was the first scientist to demonstrate quantum teleportation . Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein and Karl Popper, biologists Gregor Mendel and Konrad Lorenz, mathematician Kurt Gödel were also Austrians.Novelists like Arthur Schnitzler, Stefan Zweig, Thomas Bernhard, Franz Kafka, and Robert Musil, poets like Georg Trakl, Franz Werfel, Franz Grillparzer, Rainer Maria Rilke, and Adalbert Stifter, writer Karl Kraus were Austrians.Novelist Elfriede Jelinek won the Nobel prize.

UNICEF:-UNICEF in Austria works since 1962.It works to protect child development,rights and education.It also works for advocating for the children.UNICEF vigorously carries on with the campaigns for general awareness.UNICEF cards and gifts are also available to stretch helping hands to the distressed children.The famous actress Christiane Hörbiger with the objective to educate girl child works for UNICEF.

GEOGRAPHY:-Geographically Austria is located at 47 20 N,13 20 E.Austria is mainly formed of mountains,as it is based on the Alps.The western and southern part of the country are mostly mountainous while eastern and northern parts are mostly flat or slightly sloping.As the country is landlocked,it does not has any coastline.The lowest point is Neusiedler See(115 m)while the highest point is Grossglockner(3,798 m).Austria is badly affected by some natural calamities-like landslides,avalanches,earthquakes.The main river is Danube.40% of the country has been covered by forests.

CLIMATE:-The climate is mostly continental and mild with cloudly sky.It has cold,rainy winters sometimes with snowfalls and temperate summers coupled with occasional rains.

GOVERNMENT:-Austria is a federal,parliamentarian,democratic republic.The constitution is written in 1920 while it is revised in 1929 but reinstated on 1st May,1945. The President is the head of state,who is elected by popular voting.There are three branches of the government- Executive,Legislative,Judicial.Executive branch consists of the President,chancellor and cabinet.Legislative branch consists of Federal Council(62 seats)and National Council(183 seats).Judicial section is composed of Constitutional court,Administrative Court,Supreme Court. Some important political parties are Social Democratic Party,People's Party,Freedom Party, Greens.Voting rights are given to all from the age of 16.

The President(the head of state):-Heinz Fischer(2004)
chancellor(the head of the government):-Alfred Gusenbauer(2007)

STATES:-Austria is composed of 9 states:
Burgenland
Carinthia
Lower Austria
Upper Austria
Salzburg
Styria
Tyrol
Vorarlberg
Vienna
TRASPORTATION:- Railways: total: 6,021 km (3,552 km electrified) (2004).
Highways: 133,718 km; paved: 133,718 km (including 1,677 km of expressways) (2003).
Waterways: 358 km (2007).
Ports and harbors: Enns, Krems, Linz, Vienna.
Airports: 55 (2007).

POPULATION (2008 est.):- 8,205,533
Growth rate: 0.1%)
Birth rate 8.6/1000
Infant mortality rate: 4.4/1000
Life expectancy: 79.3
Density per sq mi: 257
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:10,000
Literacy rate: 98%

ECONOMY:- Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2007 est.): $319.7 billion; per capita $39,000.

Real growth rate: 3.3%.

Inflation: 1.9%.

Unemployment: 4.3%.

Arable land: 16.59%.

Agriculture: grains, potatoes, sugar beets, wine, fruit; dairy products, cattle, pigs, poultry; lumber
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Labor force: 3.56 million (2007 est.); agriculture and forestry 3%, industry and crafts 27%, services 70%.

Industries: construction, machinery, vehicles and parts, food, metals, chemicals, lumber and wood processing, paper and paperboard, communications equipment, tourism

Natural resources: oil, coal, lignite, timber, iron ore, copper, zinc, antimony, magnesite, tungsten, graphite, salt, hydropower.

Exports: $158.3 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): machinery and equipment, motor vehicles and parts, paper and paperboard, metal goods, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs.

Imports: $157.4 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal goods, oil and oil products; foodstuffs.

Major trading partners: Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Netherlands (2006).

Monetary units: Euro (formerly schilling) Budget:

Revenues: $176.4 billion

Expenditures: $178.3 billion (2007 est.)

RACE:-Roman Catholic 74%
Protestant 5%
Islam 4%
none 12% (2001)

RELIGION:-Roman Catholic 74%
Protestant 5%
Islam 4%
none 12% (2001)

CITIES:- Capital and largest city is Vienna. Other large cities are Graz,Linz, Salzburg, Innsbruck

LANGUAGE:- German (88.6%)is the national language.Other prominent languages are Turkish 2.3%, Serbian 2.2%, Croatian (official in Burgenland) 1.6%,other (Slovene,official in Carinthia) and (Hungarian,official in Burgenland) 5.3%