Why does Germany tend to have a large number of intelligent people?
They don't have more intelligent people, just a general level of education that compares favorably with many comparably developed countries. They live in a way that makes them seem more educated. Their culture values education more than other cultures do such as that of the U.S. (so are more educated) - Germany has an effective education system so they're better educated - German culture is "materialistic" when it comes to education much like Americans are materialistic with regards to stuff. The people, and government take steps to ensure higher education is accessible by having free or low cost universities and colleges.
There is no neutral data to support the notion that Germans are any stupider or smarter than the population of any other developed country.
The present state of data on international differences in intelligence is unsatisfactory. Because of the historic politicisation of this topic, there are many differences in views, including amongst scientists. Some scientific studies do show that Germany has a relatively high national IQ, and if this be the case, then it might tend to suggest a relatively higher proportion of smart people.
Not more intelligent, just more educated. I believe the biggest factor is that being ignorant comes at a steep social price in Germany. In Germany, you cannot really impress people with wealth (people are suspicious of wealth), instead, the key measure that everyone aims for is appearing sophisticated. This explains a bunch of symptoms, like the bookcases in every living room (often filled with classics or an encyclopedia that the owners haven't read), the popularity of books on manners or 'general knowledge', the effort made to pronounce foreign words as in the original language, the habit of talking about current events by way of small talk...
The education system is another factor of course. German education is completely free, including university, and the average German school routinely outperforms the average American school. As an example, it is generally possible for German high school graduates to skip the first two years of American college. German universities don't teach any general knowledge anymore, you immediately start with a schedule specific to your field of study. A side effect is also that German job ads never call for 'any bachelor degree' - they either require a specific degree that is relevant to the job, or they are happy with a high school diploma. The biggest reason for the quality of German education is not students' intelligence but that teaching is a highly-regarded profession. Teachers have to undergo rigorous training (average starting age is 30 because the studies & internships & exams take that long to complete) and teachers' salaries are several times as high as in the US.
There is no neutral data to support the notion that Germans are any stupider or smarter than the population of any other developed country.
The present state of data on international differences in intelligence is unsatisfactory. Because of the historic politicisation of this topic, there are many differences in views, including amongst scientists. Some scientific studies do show that Germany has a relatively high national IQ, and if this be the case, then it might tend to suggest a relatively higher proportion of smart people.
Not more intelligent, just more educated. I believe the biggest factor is that being ignorant comes at a steep social price in Germany. In Germany, you cannot really impress people with wealth (people are suspicious of wealth), instead, the key measure that everyone aims for is appearing sophisticated. This explains a bunch of symptoms, like the bookcases in every living room (often filled with classics or an encyclopedia that the owners haven't read), the popularity of books on manners or 'general knowledge', the effort made to pronounce foreign words as in the original language, the habit of talking about current events by way of small talk...
The education system is another factor of course. German education is completely free, including university, and the average German school routinely outperforms the average American school. As an example, it is generally possible for German high school graduates to skip the first two years of American college. German universities don't teach any general knowledge anymore, you immediately start with a schedule specific to your field of study. A side effect is also that German job ads never call for 'any bachelor degree' - they either require a specific degree that is relevant to the job, or they are happy with a high school diploma. The biggest reason for the quality of German education is not students' intelligence but that teaching is a highly-regarded profession. Teachers have to undergo rigorous training (average starting age is 30 because the studies & internships & exams take that long to complete) and teachers' salaries are several times as high as in the US.
