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In contemporary usage, an Austrian (in of the Republic Of Austria , or (2) a person of Austrian origin or descent. In a historical context the term refers to a native German-speaker of the one-time Habsburg empire, or in a wider sense to a citizen of any of the various lands of that empire that did not form the Hungarian half of the " Dual Monarchy ". ETYMOLOGY The English word "Austrian" is a derivative of the proper name "Austria", which comes, via Medieval Latin , from the Old High German name '' Ostarrîchi '', meaning "Eastern Realm". The same word is the source for the modern German word ''Österreich''. The oldest known mention in writing of ''Ostarrîchi'' dates from the year 996 , when it was used to refer to a region in what is now Lower Austria . A Latin translation for Ostarrîchi, ''Marcha Orientalis'', was itself retranslated into German during the 19th Century as '' Ostmark '', which was the official name applied to modern-day Austria for part of the time that it was incorporated into Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1945 . ''Ostmark'' itself does not appear to have been used during the Middle Ages . HISTORY For fuller details of the history of the modern state, see: History Of Austria Early history Over time the Eastern Mark became known as the Duchy of Austria. In 1278 the territory, by then corresponding roughly to what are now Upper and Lower Austria , passed to the House Of Habsburg , with whose history it became closely associated until the early 20th Century . Within a century the Habsburgs had added Carinthia , Styria , Carniola , and the Tyrol to their rule, thus effectively controlling most of the territory of the modern state. Being ruled from Austria, the name of the duchy came to be informally applied to all these territories collectively, and hence their inhabitants also became known as "Austrians" (whilst still retaining their own description as "Carinthians", etc). The Habsburgs greatly increased their political prestige and power with the acquisition of the lands of the crowns of Hungary and Bohemia in 1526 , but the cultural identity of these additional territories retained much more distinctly separate than the German-speaking lands of the south. However, the longer history under rule from Vienna, and the common German-speaking identity of lands such as Carinthia, Styria, etc, began to create a sense of "Austrian" identity, as distinct from, say, "Bavarian" or "German" identities of their neighbours. Changes in the political context Although not formally a unitary state, the lands ruled by the Habsburgs would sometimes be known, at least to outsiders, by the name "Austria". In reality they remained a disparate range of semi-autonomous states, most of which were part of the complex network of states that was the Holy Roman Empire (the "federal government" of which was itself ruled for much of its later existence by the Habsburgs). However, the second half of the 18th Century saw an increasingly centralised state begin to develop, and the massive political changes occurring in Germany as the result of the French Revolution indirectly resulted in the formal creation of an Austrian Empire . For the first time the citizens of the various territories were now citizens of the one same state. A further major change resulted from a reorganisation of the empire in 1867 into a " Dual Monarchy ", with the kingdom of Hungary gaining a considerable amount of political autonomy as one of the two halves. The other half remained a patchwork of states, broadly coterminous with the modern-day Austria and the Czech Republic . These non-Hungarian lands, formally known as "the Kingdoms and States Represented in the Imperial Council" were sometimes known as Austria , for want of a better name. An alternative label in this context is " Cisleithania ". Nineteenth-century nationalism See also: Pan-Germanism These "Austrian" lands had also been members of the Habsburg-dominated German Confederation since 1815 . This split political personality also reflected a cultural uncertainty as to whether the German-speaking peoples under Austrian rule were Austrian, or German, or both. The developing sense of a "German" nationality had been accelerated massively as a consequence of the political turmoil and wars that engulfed Central Europe following the French Revolution and the rise to power of Napoleon Bonaparte . Although the years of peace after Napoleon's fall quickly saw German nationalism largely pushed out of the public political arena, the Revolutions Of 1848 established it as a significant political issue for a period of over twenty years. Political debate centred on the nature of a possible future German state to replace the Confederation, and part of that debate concerned the issue of whether or not the Austrian lands had a place in the Germany polity; the alternative views were known as Kleindeutschland ("Little Germany") and Großdeutschland ("Greater Germany"). Inevitably this debate influenced people's description of themselves, and others, as "Austrian". Habsburg influence over the German Confederation was rivalled by the increasingly powerful Prussia n state. Political manoeuvering by the Prussian Chancellor (head of government) Otto Von Bismarck resulted in military defeat of the Austrians in 1866 and the collapse of the Confederation, both effectively ending any future Habsburg influence on German political events. The so-called Franco-Prussian War and the establishment of a German Empire, headed by Prussia and pointedly excluding any of the Austrian lands, diminished the influence of pan-Germanism in the Habsburg territories, and worked to build a sense of a distinctively Austrian identity as the state turned away from Germany and turned its gaze towards the Balkan Peninsula . However, the growth of nationalism didn't only affect the German-speaking peoples under Habsburg rule. While Hungarian national aspirations were largely satisfied by the establishment of the Dual Monarchy, other ethnic and linguistic groups sought political autonomy. Ultimately the failure to find a solution to these groups' (sometimes conflicting) aspirations lead to the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian state in 1918 . The "First Republic" The last year of the First World War saw the collapse of Habsburg authority throughout an increasingly greater part of its empire, and the military surrender in November 1918 finally brought with it the abdication of the last emperor. The creation of the Czecho-Slovak and South Slav states, full Hungarian independence, and the post-war treaties imposed by the victorious Allies combined to see the newly-established Austrian republic both with the boundaries it has today, and a largely homogeneous German-speaking population. However, German-speaking communities were also left scattered throughout the other new states, as well as in the northern part of the Tyrol which now found itself part of Italy. Initially the republic took the name ''Deutschösterreich'' (" German Austria "), reflecting a popular desire to unite with the new German republic. This hope was to be dashed by the Treaty Of Versailles in 1919 , and the new state thus changed its name to "Republic of Austria" on October 21 1919 . Desire for unity with Germany was motivated both by a sense of common national identity, and also by a fear that the new state, stripped of its one-time imperial possessions, and surrounded by potentially hostile nation-states, would not be economically viable. By 1938 , with Nazi governments in control of both Berlin and Vienna, the country was annexed to Germany as the "''Ostmark''". In 1942 the name was changed to the "Danubian and Alpine Districts", thus eradicating any links with an Austrian national past. Some Austrians managed to defy German rule; the most notable grouping was the resistance organisation O5 . Austria and Austrians since 1945 The end of the Second World War in 1945 saw the re-establishment of an independent Austria, although the Allied Powers remained in occupation until 1955 . Enthusiasm for unification with Germany was largely obliterated as a result of the experience of Nazi rule. Faced with a future unambiguously separate from its neighbour, Austrians' self-image has since developed in confidence, with the centuries of rule by the Habsburgs proving to be a source for establishing a modern identity with a historical continuity. Unlike in the 19th Century , Austrians today do not consider themselves to be "German". Indeed, being (mis)identified as such can cause resentment. The logic of the existence of an independent German-speaking Austrian state is no longer questioned as it was in the early years of its existence. Austria today still remains broadly ethnically homogeneous. However, immigration in recent decades has resulted in around 10% of the country being a member of an ethnic or linguistic minority, although 88.6% of the population are native German-speakers (according to the 2001 census). Austria's history and geographical location has resulted in recent immigration from Slovenia , the Czech Republic , Hungary , Slovakia , Romania , and Poland . As with neighbouring Germany, there has also been immigration from Turkey . THE SURNAME ÖSTERREICHER ("AUSTRIAN") A number of notable Austrian personalities have had the surname Österreicher:
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