Autism And Country: Understanding The Global Perspective

AUT is the three-letter country code for Austria, a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous city and state. Austria is bordered by Germany to the northwest, the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia to the northeast, Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west.

Austria's location and neighbours

Austria, officially the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by several other countries, including Germany to the northwest, the Czech Republic to the north, Slovakia to the northeast, Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. It is a federation of nine states, with its capital, Vienna, being one of them.

Austria's immediate neighbours include Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Liechtenstein, and Switzerland. Other neighbouring countries include Germany, Italy, Slovakia, and Poland.

Austria's location in the Eastern Alps makes it a largely mountainous country, with about a quarter of its land considered low-lying and only about 32% lying below 500 meters above sea level. The country can be divided into five areas, with the Eastern Alps constituting the biggest portion at 62% of the nation's total area. The other areas include the Austrian foothills, the Carpathians, the foothills in the east and the periphery of the Pannoni low country, and the Austrian granite plateau.

Austria's latitude ranges from 46° to 49° N, and its longitude ranges from 9° to 18° E. The country occupies an area of 83,879 square kilometres (32,386 square miles) and has a population of around 9 million people, making it the 12th most populous country in Europe.

Austrian culture and cuisine

AUT is the three-letter country code for Austria. Austrian culture and cuisine have been influenced by the country's history as a multinational empire, with a variety of cultures contributing to its unique traditions. The Habsburg Empire, which once stretched from the borders of Imperial Russia to the Adriatic, encompassed over 51 million people from more than a dozen nationalities, speaking 16 different languages. This diverse cultural landscape has greatly influenced Austrian cuisine, with neighbouring countries in Central Europe, particularly Hungary, Bavaria, Bohemia, and Northern Italy, leaving their mark on Austrian dishes and preparation methods.

Austrian cuisine is known for its rich flavours and abundance of meats and carb-dense foods like pastries and breads. The country's capital, Vienna, is famous for its coffeehouse culture, which is said to have originated after the Battle of Vienna in 1683, when bags of coffee beans were left behind by the retreating Turkish army. This coffee culture is an integral part of Austrian social life, with friends and neighbours often gathering for coffee and cake, much like the British afternoon tea tradition.

Viennese cuisine, a prominent aspect of Austrian culinary traditions, is largely based on the cooking traditions of the Habsburg Empire. However, each state in Austria has its own independent regional specialities. Here are some popular dishes and beverages that showcase the diversity and richness of Austrian cuisine:

• Viennese Apfelstrudel – A flaky pastry filled with spiced apple, cinnamon, sugar, and raisins. It is a beloved Austrian street food and one of the country's national dishes.
• Wiener Schnitzel – A fried delight made with veal cutlet, breaded and pan-fried, typically served with fried potatoes, sour cream, and onions. It is considered one of Austria's national dishes and can be found everywhere from street food stalls to high-end restaurants.
• Vienna Sausage – A type of sausage made by parboiling and then smoking pork and beef at low temperatures. It is a favourite food of Austrians and is used in main dishes or simply fried and served in a bun.
• Knödel – Dumplings that can be both sweet and savoury. Savoury Knödel are served as a side dish or in soups, while sweet Knödel are often made with plums.
• Tafelspitz – A classic Austrian dish of beef boiled in a broth of vegetables and spices, served with minced apples, horseradish, or sour cream with chives.
• Tiroler Gröstl – A comforting pan-fried dish from the Austrian Alps, made with potatoes, chopped beef or pork, butter, onion, and often topped with a fried egg.
• Käsespätzle – A cheesy dish similar to macaroni and cheese, made with soft egg noodles and a generous helping of cheese, often paired with wine.
• Gulasch (Goulash) – A hearty stew with Hungarian origins, featuring potatoes, onions, bell peppers, and sausages, seasoned with hot paprika. It is commonly served for breakfast with toasted bread.
• Kaiserschmarrn – Literally translated as "king's shred," this dish consists of fluffy shredded pancakes topped with jams, sweet sauces, fruit compotes, or caramelised dry fruits. It can be served as a dessert or a meal.
• Sachertorte – A famous Austrian dessert, the Sachertorte is a chocolate cake with apricot jam filling, traditionally enjoyed with whipped cream.
• Beer – Austrian beers are typically pale lagers, with the exception of the naturally cloudy Zwicklbier and wheat beer. Beer is sold in various sizes, and at festivals, you might find one-litre Maß and two-litre Doppelmaß in the Bavarian style.
• Wine – Wine is principally cultivated in the east of Austria, with Lower Austria, Burgenland, Styria, and Vienna being the most important wine-producing areas. The Grüner Veltliner grape yields notable white wines, while Zweigelt is the most widely planted red wine grape.

Austrian history

The history of Austria covers the history of Austria and its predecessor states. In the late Iron Age, Austria was occupied by people of the Hallstatt Celtic culture (c. 800 BC), who first organised as a Celtic kingdom referred to by the Romans as Noricum, dating from c. 800 to 400 BC. At the end of the 1st century BC, the lands south of the Danube became part of the Roman Empire. In the Migration Period, the 6th century, the Bavarii, a Germanic people, occupied these lands until it fell to the Frankish Empire established by the Germanic Franks in the 9th century. The name Ostarrîchi (Austria) has been in use since 996 AD when it was a margravate of the Duchy of Bavaria and from 1156 an independent duchy (later archduchy) of the Holy Roman Empire (962–1806).

Austria was dominated by the House of Habsburg and House of Habsburg-Lorraine from 1273 to 1918. In 1806, when Emperor Francis II of Austria dissolved the Holy Roman Empire, Austria became the Austrian Empire, and was also part of the German Confederation until the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. In 1867, Austria formed a dual monarchy with Hungary: the Austro-Hungarian Empire. When this empire collapsed after the end of World War I in 1918, Austria was reduced to the main, mostly German-speaking areas of the empire (its current frontiers), and adopted the name, the Republic of German-Austria. However, union with Germany and the chosen country name were forbidden by the Allies at the Treaty of Versailles. This led to the creation of the First Austrian Republic (1919–1933).

Following the First Republic, Austrofascism tried to keep Austria independent from the German Reich. Engelbert Dollfuss accepted that most Austrians were German and Austrian, but wanted Austria to remain independent from Germany. In 1938, Austrian-born Adolf Hitler annexed Austria to Germany, which was supported by a large majority of Austrians. After the German defeat in World War II, the German identity in Austria was weakened. Ten years after the Second World War Austria again became an independent republic as the Second Austrian Republic in 1955. Austria joined the European Union in 1995.

Austrian language

AUT is the three-letter country code for Austria.

There is no language called Austrian. The official language of Austria is German, specifically Austrian German, which differs from German as spoken in Germany. Austrian German is influenced by the Austro-Bavarian dialect. German is the de facto first language of Austria and is used in the media, in schools, and for official announcements. Approximately 97-98% of people in Austria speak German, and a little over 93% call it their mother tongue.

Austro-Bavarian is the main dialect outside of Vorarlberg, and has approximately 8.3 million speakers in Austria. Austro-Bavarian differs greatly from Standard German, and is very difficult for German speakers from other regions to understand. Austro-Bavarian has no official orthography, but there are literary efforts, especially in poems, to depict the sound of the pronunciation in the spelling. Some examples of Austro-Bavarian phrases include Griaß God ('greet God' = 'may God greet you'), Servus/Servas ('at your service') as a greeting, and Pfiat di / Pfiat eich (euch) ('watch over you [God]' = 'may God watch over you') to say 'goodbye'.

Alemannic, or Swiss German, is the main dialect in Vorarlberg, spoken by about 300,000 people. It is very difficult for German speakers to understand.

In addition to German, several minority languages are spoken in Austria, some of which have official status. These include Hungarian, Slovenian, Burgenland-Croatian, Czech, Slovak, Romany, and sign language. Serbo-Croatian is the largest minority language in Austria, spoken by more than 4% of the population. Turkish is the second-largest minority language, spoken by 2.3% of the population.

Austrian sport

AUT is the three-letter country code for Austria, a country with a rich history in sports. With its mountainous terrain, Austria is known for its winter sports, particularly alpine skiing. Austrian athletes such as Annemarie Moser-Pröll, Hermann Maier, Toni Sailer, and Marcel Hirscher are renowned as some of the greatest alpine skiers of all time. Austria has dominated the sport in the Winter Olympics, FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, and FIS Ski Jumping World Cup. At the 2011 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships, Austria swept all five ski jumping gold medals.

In addition to alpine skiing, other winter sports are popular in Austria, including snowboarding, ski jumping, bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton. The Winter Olympics were hosted in Innsbruck, Austria, in 1964 and 1976, and the town also hosted the first Winter Youth Olympics in 2012.

Moving away from winter sports, football (soccer) is the most popular sport in Austria. The Austrian Football Association governs the sport, and the Bundesliga is the top level for professional men's football. The most successful teams include Rapid Wien, Austria Wien, and Red Bull Salzburg. While Austria has not qualified for a FIFA World Cup since 1998, they co-hosted the UEFA European Football Championship with Switzerland in 2008 and qualified for the tournaments in 2016 and 2021.

Ice hockey is another popular sport in Austria, with 12 professional teams in the Austrian Hockey League, including teams from neighbouring countries. EC KAC, from Klagenfurt, is the most successful team.

Motorsport is the third most popular spectator sport in Austria, with the Austrian Grand Prix being held intermittently since 1963. Notable Austrian drivers include three-time Formula One champion Niki Lauda and 1970 champion Jochen Rindt.

Other sports with a following in Austria include basketball, American football, tennis, and even chess. The first official world chess champion, Wilhelm Steinitz, was Austrian.

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