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Abstract

These figures show a thirteen-fold overall increase in the number of foreigners residing in the Federal Republic during the second half of the twentieth century (from approximately 500,000 in 1950 to over seven million in 2001). There was also a steady rise in Turkish immigration as a result of the guest-worker program of the 1960s, which also brought a smaller influx of Yugoslavs and Italians.

Statistics on Foreigners in the Federal Republic (1950–2001)

  • Udo Sautter

Source

Country of origin of foreigners in Germany[1]
1950–2001 (in thousands)

Year

Total

Turk.

Yug.

It.

Gr.

Sp.

Aus.

Port.

Nl.

Pol.

1950

548

n.s.

n.s.

n.s.

n.s.

n.s.

n.s.

n.s.

n.s.

n.s.

1951

486

1

23

22

3

1

47

0

75

103

1955

467

2

21

25

3

2

63

0

78

80

1961

686

7

16

197

42

44

57

1

65

n.s.

1967

1807

172

141

413

201

177

116

24

98

54

1969

2381

322

332

515

271

207

121

37

99

48

1971

3439

653

594

590

395

270

163

75

109

50

1973

3966

911

702

631

408

287

173

112

106

42

1975

4090

1077

678

601

390

247

174

119

110

45

1977

3948

1118

630

571

328

201

169

111

107

45

1979

4144

1268

621

594

297

182

169

110

106

51

1981

4630

1546

637

625

299

177

176

109

109

83

1983

4535

1552

613

565

292

166

172

100

109

n.s.

1985

4279

1402

591

531

281

153

173

77

108

n.s.

1987

4241

1454

522

500

256

129

150

69

n.s.

121

1989

4846

1613

611

520

294

127

171

75

n.s.

220

1991

5882

1780

775

560

337

135

187

93

n.s.

271

1993

6878

1918

1239

563

352

133

186

106

n.s.

261

1995

7174

2014

798

586

360

132

185

125

n.s.

277

1997

7366

2107

721

608

363

132

185

132

n.s.

283

1999

7344

2054

737

616

364

130

186

133

111

292

2001

7319

1948

628

616

363

129

189

133

112

310

Abbreviations
n.s. = not specified; Gr. = Greece; It. = Italy; Yug. = Yugoslavia; Nl. = Netherlands; Aus. = Austria (without Hungary); Pol. = Poland; Port. = Portugal; Sp. = Spain; Turk. = Turkey.

Notes

[1] For the period up to and including 1989, in the Federal Republic only.

Source: Udo Sautter, Deutsche Geschichte seit 1815. Tübingen, 2004, p. 40.

Statistics on Foreigners in the Federal Republic (1950–2001), published in: German History in Documents and Images, <https://germanhistorydocs.org/en/two-germanies-1961-1989/ghdi:document-861> [December 21, 2024].