Germany and its immigrants: A socio‐demographic analysis

Abstract

Germany is today, along with the USA and Russia, one of the three most important immigration countries worldwide. The authors examine how the immigrant population of Germany has risen despite the fact that the German government has sought to restrict it. They analyse six major streams of migration: refugees and expellees who came immediately after World War II, German resettlers from Eastern Europe ('Aussiedler'), emigration of (West) Germans, migration between East and West Germany, foreign labour migrants and asylum seekers. The dynamics of immigration within each of these channels was remarkably different. As far as absorption and integration are concerned the authors argue that different groups of immigrants should be treated more equally.