Welcome to Frankfurt, the vibrant and modern city of Germany!
From its delicious cuisine 🥣to its rich cultural heritage, it offers fascinating facts for you to discover!
This article will offer some amazing facts about Frankfurt that will amaze you. Let’s begin this exciting journey!
17 Interesting Frankfurt facts
Meet the delicious treat: Frankfurt is home to the Frankfurter
Love foods? What about giving an unforgettable treat to your taste buds?
Frankfurt is famous as the home to the Frankfurter! Surprised! Right? Let me explain.
Not only the people who live in the city are called Frankfurters, but also the famous sausages of the city are known as Frankfurters 🌭as well.
These delicious snacks 🤤originate in this beautiful city of Germany, although today, you can get to see them in many other cities around the world.
Be stunned by Frankfurt’s name: The city has a longer name
If you are a secret monger like me, then this amazing secret is just for you!!
We usually call this city Frankfurt. However, the official name of this beautiful German city is a little bit longer, and that is Frankfurt am Main.
The meaning of this name is the Main River 🌊 that flows through the city.
You will be amazed to know that the river of the city is pronounced as “mine” and not as the English pronunciation “main.”
New kings of the Holy Roman Empire were elected here
Want to know about the ancient kings of Frankfurt??
The kings of the Holy Roman Empire 👑 were elected in this German city.
The Holy Roman Empire started in the early Middle Ages and remained till the early 1800s.
Romans occupied Austria, modern-day Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, and also the Netherlands for almost ten centuries.
Frankfurt was selected as the site for the election of emperors from 1356 onwards.
This practice continued for almost 400 years and ended with the coronation of Habsburg Franz II, the last Holy Roman Emperor, in 1792.
From 1564, kings were crowned there.
The first ‘make and break the telephone” was invented here
Have you heard about the ‘make and break’ 📞telephone?
That interesting communication device was invented by Phillipp Reis in 1861. In that device, the sound is converted into electrical signals and returned again.
Do not be fooled by the false fact that Thomas Edison or Alexander Graham Bell came up with the idea, as Reis’s work predates theirs.
Actually, Bell even went to see the Reis telephone prior to starting his work.
The very first sentence he transmitted was “Das Pferd frisst keinen Gurkensalat” meaning the horse doesn’t eat cucumber salad. Sounds quite fun, right?
Frankfurt means Ford of the Franks: Its name reflects its love for geography
Love geography like me??
Then let’s explore the Ford hidden in the name of the city Frankfurt!!
The Franks did not build a fort in the city but found a location in the river that was shallow enough to wade through it.
This means Ford; hence, the city is called Frankfurt.
The name of Frankfurt comes from Emperor Charlemagne, as he referred to the city as the “Ford of the Franks” or “Franconovud.”
In 794, he even built a royal council there. However, before that, many settlements had already existed in the city for hundreds of years.
The Largest inner-city forest in Germany: Put your boots to explore it
Heard about the largest inner-city forest 🌳 in Germany!?
The city of Frankfurt can be well-known as one of the most densely populated cities in the country of Germany.
However, it also is home to the largest inner-city forest in the nation.
The word Stadtwald, meaning “city forest,” is a vital part of the refreshing green belt 👏 of Frankfurt. It has a total area of 3866 hectares.
So, this place, famous as one of the biggest urban forests on the planet, is a must-watch site.
The Opera House in Frankfurt: Meet the most beautiful ruin of Germany
I am a big fan of ancient ruins🏰, if you are like me, then this interesting secret will surely amaze you!!
Though being completely burned down by WWII bombs in 1944, the Alte Oper has been lying in ruins for several decades.
The house was not demolished and was known as “Deutschlands schonste Ruine” or “ The most beautiful ruin of Germany.”
Another proof that it was loved by many was that when an initiative to restore this started, over 11 million marks were raised to offer financial support. Later, it was completed in 1980.
See 14 out of 15 of Germany’s tallest skyscrapers
City full of the tallest skyscrapers in the country?? Can you imagine??
Aside from the Post Tower in Bon, every single one of the top 15 tallest skyscrapers in the country can be seen in Frankfurt City.
Also the tallest of these tall buildings is the Commerzbank Tower. It has a height of 260 meters 👏, which is equivalent to the height of about 52 giraffes.
It was built in 1997 and remains one of the tallest buildings in continental Europe today.
Frankfurt during World War II: Animals escaped the zoo and wandered the streets
Have you watched wild animals 🐘 wandering in the streets?? The people of Frankfurt did!!
Almost all the male employees of the zoo were conscripted, during World War II, including Dr Steinbacher. The zoo 🐘 animals had to stay in their enclosures throughout the war; however, the staff sheltered in a small bunker under the pond.
In 1944, when 27 bombs destroyed the zoo buildings, the animals escaped and wandered the streets.
There were even lions among them, who had to be killed to protect the public from harm. So, imagine wild animals wandering in the streets without any restrictions!
Frankfurt City: The airport baggage system of the city is 67 km in length
We all love to travel, right? So, you will surely love Frankfurt for its amazing airport baggage ✈️system.
The fourth-biggest airport in Europe, and also the biggest airport in Germany, has a baggage system equivalent to the length of almost one and a half marathons.
It even has a collection of more than 75000 staff and receives over 60 million passengers per year.
It handles more than 460,000 flights and transports over 2 million tons of cargo.
the city where the first Wikimania was held
Little friends love to go through Wikipedia, me too!! This secret about Frankfurt will surely amaze you!
Wkimania is a yearly conference that is held for all things related to Wikipedia.
Also, it is the first one of its kind that was held in the year 2005 in Frankfurt 👏 City.
The largest trade show for books in the world
Love to enjoy a trade show for 📚books?? Then Frankfurt will definitely amaze you!!
The Frankfurter Buchmesse is the largest trade show for books on the planet.
It is the event where some of the biggest publishing deals for writers took place.
The beautiful city of Frankfurt in 1749: It is where Goethe was born
Ignite your love for literature, little scholars, with this interesting secret about Frankfurt!
The giant of German literature, Goethe, was born in the city of Frankfurt in the year 1749. He even spent his early life here and even returned to his birthplace many times throughout his lifetime.
Though he spent his last days in Weimar, various of his notable works were written in Frankfurt City.
Those even include one of his most popular works, written in 1774, called “The Sorrows of Young Werther.”
It has the 10-the largest stock exchange building
Stock exchange market?? Frankfurt has a really large building for this!! Surprised, right?
The beautiful city of Frankfurt has the tenth-largest stock exchange building around the globe. It was built in the year 1843.
On the outside of this huge building, you will get to see beautiful bronze statues of a bull and also a bear.
These animal statues are the symbols of the ups and downs of the stock market.
The city of happiness is Frankfurt
Want to be a happy soul, just be like the people of Frankfurt City!!
This beautiful German city, Frankfurt, ranks very high in the surveys conducted on the quality of life. It occupies the place seventh once in this ranking.
So, you can think of this city as a place full of happy 😃people. Hence, many plans for a holiday in Frankfurt to enjoy true happiness.
The City of Fairytale: The famous Grimm brothers are from a place that is near Frankfurt
Oh, God! How much I wish to hear some fairytales 🧜♀️from my grandparents!!
You will be wondered by the secret that the famous Grimm brothers, who compiled some awesome and never-to-forget fairy tales lived in Hanau.
Some of their evergreen fairytales are Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and Rose Red, Cinderella, and many more.
The city of Hanau is barely 25 kilometers away from the beautiful city of Frankfurt. Later, they moved to Marburg City, which is almost 100 kilometers away.
Known as an impressive central station
This German city, Frankfurt, has a really great location?? Want to know more?? Let’s begin.
Due to the location of Frankfurt in the middle region of Germany, it is used as a perfect transport hub for both short and long-distance traveling.
The Frankfurt Central Station is described as the most important station in the country by Deutsche Bahn.
If you ever find yourself at the central Railway station of the place, Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof, look at the main entrance from the building’s front part. There you will see the statue of Atlas carrying the Earth 🌎on his shoulders.
Summing up
So, little knowledge hunters, now you know that Frankfurt is a city that takes pride in its world-famous structures, natural beauty, cultural heritage, and interesting history.
From the famous tradeshow and happy people to a huge airport cargo and historical ruins, what in Frankfurt attracts you more?
Get back to us with your questions, and we would love to hear from you.
I’m a former teacher (and mother of Two Childs) with a background in child development. Here to help you with play-based learning activities for kids. ( Check my Next startup Cledemy.Com)
