Länder
Länder is the plural form of Land in German and refers to subnational political units within a federal system. In German-speaking countries the term is most commonly used for the federal states, or Bundesländer, of Germany and Austria. A Land is a territory with its own government, constitution, and competences recognized by the national constitution. In Germany, the 16 Länder have significant powers in areas such as education, policing, culture, and local administration, and they participate in federal lawmaking through the Bundesrat. They maintain their own parliaments and ministries, but they are not sovereign states; sovereignty is shared with the federal government.
In Germany, the 16 Länder are: Baden-Württemberg (Stuttgart), Bayern (München), Berlin (Berlin), Brandenburg (Potsdam), Bremen (Bremen),
Austria uses the term Bundesländer for its nine states: Burgenland, Kärnten, Niederösterreich, Oberösterreich, Salzburg, Steiermark, Tirol,
In Switzerland the subnational units are cantons (Kantone) rather than Länder, reflecting different constitutional arrangements in