Bavarians

Bavarians are an ethnographic group of Germans who live in Bavaria, a state in Germany. They have their own special way of speaking called Bavarian, which comes from the area known as Altbayern, or "Old Bavaria." This area was part of the historic Electorate of Bavaria in the 1600s.

Like their neighbors, the Austrians, most Bavarians are Catholic. In many parts of Altbayern, more than 70% of people still belong to the Catholic Church. A political group called the Christian Social Union in Bavaria has been very important in the area for many years. This group is connected to an older one called the Bavarian People's Party, which existed from 1919–1933. Since 1946, leaders from this party have often been in charge of the government in Bavaria, except for a short time when Wilhelm Hoegner was in charge from 1954 to 1957.

Areal and dialectal subdivision

There is no linguistic difference between Bavarians and Austrians. The area of Bavaria has changed a lot throughout history. In the 1800s, the Kingdom of Bavaria added parts of Franconia and Swabia but also gave some land back to Austria.

The Bavarian language has three main dialects:

• Upper Palatinian (Oberpfälzisch) is spoken in northern Bavaria (Bohemian Forest, Regensburg).
• Danube Bavarian (Donaubairisch) is spoken in central and south-eastern Bavaria and in parts of Lower Austria (Munich, Salzburg, Vienna).
• Alpine Bavarian is spoken in south-western Bavaria and southern Austria (Carinthia, Styria) and in South Tyrol.

History

Further information: History of Bavaria and House of Wittelsbach

Bavarians are an ethnic group from Bavaria, a state in Germany. They have their own special dialect called Bavarian. Historically, Bavarians trace their roots back to early groups known as the Baiuvarii, who lived in the region starting in the 6th century. Their name may come from the area near the Bohemian Forest.

Bavaria became part of the Holy Roman Empire and was ruled by various dukes. Over time, Bavaria grew and changed, with Munich becoming its main city. In 1623, Bavaria became an important state known as an Electorate. Later, in 1805, the Kingdom of Bavaria was created, and its borders were set by treaties in 1814. Today, Bavaria has many people and is an important part of Germany.

List of notable Bavarians

Scientists

• Johann Schmidlap was a 16th-century fireworks maker and rocket pioneer.
• Joseph von Fraunhofer was a physicist known for discovering the dark lines in the sun's spectrum, called Fraunhofer lines.
• Max Joseph von Pettenkofer was a chemist and hygienist.
• Johannes Stark won the 1919 Nobel Prize in Physics.
• Ludwig Prandtl was a leading expert in fluid dynamics.
• Feodor Lynen won the 1964 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
• Rudolf Mössbauer won the 1961 Nobel Prize in Physics.

Business

• Johanna Händlmaier co-founded Händlmaier and created a famous sweet Bavarian mustard recipe.
• Stefan Schörghuber was a well-known businessman.

Politicians

• Maximilian II of Bavaria was King of Bavaria from 1848 to 1864.
• Ludwig II of Bavaria was King of Bavaria from 1864 to 1886.
• Franz Josef Strauß served as Minister-President of Bavaria from 1978 to 1988.
• Henry Kissinger was the 56th U.S. Secretary of State from 1973 to 1977.
• Roman Herzog was President of Germany from 1994 to 1999.
• Edmund Stoiber was Minister-President of Bavaria from 1993 to 2007.
• Horst Seehofer was Minister-President of Bavaria from 2008 to 2018.

Artists

• The Asam brothers, Cosmas Damian and Egid Quirin, were talented sculptors, painters, and architects.
• Christoph Willibald Gluck was a famous composer.
• Carl Spitzweg was a well-known painter.
• Richard Strauss was a composer and conductor.
• Ludwig Thoma was a popular writer.
• Franz Marc was a painter known for his colorful artwork.
• Carl Orff was a composer and music teacher.
• Michael Ende was a beloved writer of stories.
• Werner Herzog is a filmmaker, actor, and writer.
• Rainer Werner Fassbinder was a famous filmmaker.
• Patrick Süskind is a writer and screenwriter.
• Jonas Kaufmann is an operatic tenor.

Athletes

• Franz Beckenbauer was a famous footballer and manager.
• Rosi Mittermaier was an alpine skier.
• Philipp Lahm was a former footballer and captain of the German national team that won the 2014 World Cup.
• Magdalena Neuner was a professional biathlete.
• Thomas Müller is a professional footballer.
• Bastian Schweinsteiger was a professional footballer.

Others

• Joseph Ratzinger, known as Pope Benedict XVI, was a professor of theology and served as pope from 2005 to 2013.
• Werner Heisenberg was a major physicist who helped develop Quantum mechanics.