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East Germany Settlement Patterns
In 1985 East Germany had an average population density of 154
persons per square kilometer. Densities ranged from 57 persons in
the northern district of Neubrandenburg to 312 in the southern
industrial town of Karl-Marx-Stadt (formerly Chemnitz). In the
north, where soils are of generally poor quality and few towns of
historical significance are found, the population was rather
sparsely distributed. In the south, where rich loessial soils
provide attractive farmland and major mineral deposits are found,
the population was denser and was concentrated in and around
urban-industrial centers.
Major transportation routes bypass the northern third of the
country. There are few large industrial centers outside of newly
developed coastal ports, and the quality of the land is such as
to favor forests, pastureland, and mixed extensive-intensive
agriculture. By far the most important port city is Rostock,
whose 1985 population was 244,444. Rostock was developed into a
major center after the war in order to compensate for the loss of
strategically located ports. Stralsund and Wismar were also
developed into port cities and in 1985 were sizable
municipalities of 75,480 and 57,465, respectively.
In the central third of the country, East Berlin overshadows
all other cities in terms of its size and its political and
economic significance. It had a 1985 population of 1.2 million
and an average density of 3,016 persons per square kilometer.
Over the years it has acted as a magnet, attracting persons from
all over East Germany. It has a higher proportion of the
economically active population than any of the other districts
but a relatively low proportion of the young. Other important
urban centers in the central section of the country include
Potsdam, Brandenburg, Frankfurt am Oder, and Magdeburg. Potsdam
(139,467) lies to the southwest of Berlin and is a center for
light industry. Brandenburg is located west of Berlin and had a
1985 population of 94,862. Frankfurt am Oder lies near the
Polish-German border. Although after the war it suffered some
loss of inhabitants because of its location, the city's
population in 1985 stood at 85,593. With the exception of East
Berlin, Magdeburg (population 288,965) is the largest city in the
central part of the country. It is located near the inter-German
border in a fertile agricultural region and is one of the oldest
cities in the country.
The southern third is the most densely populated and the most
industrialized section of the country. It also contains the most
fertile agricultural land. The loessial soils of the Börderland
make the region attractive for farming. Intensive agriculture
predominates, and the farm population lives in nucleated village
settlements. Most of East Germany's mineral resources are also
found in the south, and large cities developed around the
deposits. In 1985 the two largest cities were Leipzig (553,660)
and Dresden (519,769). Leipzig has lost population since the
1970s but in 1985 was still the second largest city in East
Germany. Surrounded by rich agricultural land and easily
accessible, it is well known as a publishing and printing center
but more particularly as the site of the semiannual Leipzig Fair.
Dresden, in the southeast, is a historic city noted for its
impressive art collections. In 1985 eight other cities in the
south each had populations in excess of 100,000. Cottbus
(124,752) specializes in light industries. Dessau (103,569) is
the center of an important local food processing industry. Halle
(235,169) supports a variety of industrial activities. Farther
south lie Karl-Marx-Stadt and Zwickau, having populations of
315,452 and 120,206, respectively. Several large cities are
located in the southwest. Erfurt, the largest, had 216,046
residents; also sizable were Gera (131,843) and Jena (107,401).
The urban population, i.e., those living in cities or towns
of 2,000 or more, constituted about 77 percent of the total
populace in 1985. Only 26 percent of the population lived in
cities or towns of 100,000 inhabitants. Instead about 30 percent
of the population made their homes in small and medium-sized
towns of 5,000 to 50,000. World War II greatly affected the rate
and direction of urbanization. Many of the more industrialized
towns suffered heavy damage during the war and were only slowly
rebuilt. In the immediate postwar period, there was also some
internal migration away from towns located along border areas. An
exception was the city of Eisenhüttenstadt, near the GermanPolish border. Constructed in 1950 as a model socialist city, it
attracted a sizable population for employment in its iron and
steel industries.
In keeping with the socialist pattern of urban planning, the
state has attempted to develop urban centers throughout the
country, to encourage uniform regional development, and to reduce
disparities between rural and urban areas. The government has
encouraged the development of some industry in the northern and
central districts and fostered a diversification of industry in
the south in order to revitalize centers with diminished
resources and to redirect industrial activity toward priority
sectors. In reality, planners have not been successful in
controlling and balancing growth between rural and urban areas or
among districts.
There have been no official restrictions on the internal
movement of the population. However, a shortage of housing and
difficulties related to switching jobs has prevented large-scale
internal migration. Movement has taken place primarily within
district boundaries, and residents have gone from rural areas and
small urban centers to medium- and large-sized municipalities. In
1985, for example, about 16 persons per 1,000 inhabitants moved
across district boundaries.
Data as of July 1987
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