The Pattern of Counterurbanization in the Federal Republic of Germany,1977–85

Counterurbanization in developed countries has been one of the main foci of migration research in recent years. The existence of the phenomenon in the Federal Republic of Germany has been debated. In this paper, net migration data, disaggregated by age, are utilized to examine the existence of metropolitan turnaround in the FRG for the period 1978–85. These data are provided at the county level (328 Kreise) which is more detailed than other spatial aggregation levels utilized in previous studies. In addition, use is made of two yearly migration matrices for 1977 and 1983 at the regional planning area level.

In this paper, the coexistence of suburbanization and counterurbanization for the 1978–85 time period is demonstrated. Young adults, 18–25 years of age, gravitated towards the urban cores of metropolitan areas and smaller urban areas. All the other age-groups moved mainly towards the outer suburbs of metropolitan areas, the suburbs of second-tier cities, and the rural counties. The two migration matrices indicate that counterurbanization at the level of regional planning areas was not present in 1977 but started in 1978 and it was present in 1983. At the same spatial level, evidence of a net gain of metropolitan areas from second-tier cities and rural areas is also provided for 1977. This pattern was reversed for the 1978–85 period.