Hanover or
Hannover[nb 1] (
German:
Hannover (
help·
info), IPA:
[haˈnoːfɐ]), on the river
Leine, is the
capital of the
federal state of
Lower Saxony (
Niedersachsen),
Germany and was once by
personal union the family seat of the
Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, in their dignities as the dukes of
Brunswick-Lüneburg (which title was later called the
Elector of Hanover at the end of the historical period known as
Early Modern Europe). After the
Napoleonic Wars ended, the Electorate was enlarged and made into the capital of the
Kingdom of Hanover.
In addition to being the capital of
Lower Saxony, Hanover was the capital of the administrative area
Regierungsbezirk Hannover (
Hanover region) until Lower Saxony's
administrative regions were disbanded at the beginning of 2005. It is, however, still part of the
Hanover district (
Region Hannover), which is a municipal body made up from the former district and city of Hanover.
With a population of 522,944 (1 February 2007) the
city is a major center of northern Germany, known for hosting annual commercial
expositions such as the
Hanover Fair and the
CeBIT. Every year Hanover hosts the
Schützenfest Hannover, the world's largest Marksmen's Fun Fair, and the
Oktoberfest Hannover, which is the second largest
Oktoberfest in the world. In 2000, Hanover hosted the world fair
Expo 2000. The
Hanover fairground, due to numerous extensions especially for the Expo 2000, is the largest in the world. Hanover also has regional importance because of its universities and medical school, its international airport, and its large
zoo. The city is also a major crossing point of railway lines and highways (
Autobahnen), connecting European main lines in east-west-direction (
Berlin -
Ruhr area) and north-south-direction (
Hamburg -
Munich et al.).
