citizenship
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citizenship
A person's legal membership in a particular state, which is connected with rights and duties. It is also referred to as nationality.
Nachdem sie zehn Jahre in dem Land gelebt hatte, beantragte sie die deutsche Staatsbürgerschaft.
After she had lived in the country for ten years, she applied for German citizenship.
The word is made up of three parts: 'Staat' (state/country), 'Bürger' (citizen; person who lives in a country), and the ending '-schaft' (which describes a state or a community). So it literally means the 'state of being a citizen of a state.'
Die Staatsbürgerschaft bringt sowohl Rechte als auch Pflichten mit sich.
Citizenship brings both rights and duties with it.
In connection with 'Staatsbürgerschaft' (citizenship), certain verbs are often used: you can 'beantragen' (apply for), 'erwerben' (acquire), 'annehmen' (accept/adopt), or 'besitzen' (possess) it. A state can 'verleihen' (grant) it to a person.
Er hat die österreichische Staatsbürgerschaft beantragt.
He applied for Austrian citizenship.
To name the country, you usually use an adjective before the word (e.g., 'die deutsche Staatsbürgerschaft' — German citizenship) or a genitive construction (e.g., 'die Staatsbürgerschaft der Schweiz' — Swiss citizenship / citizenship of Switzerland).
Sie besitzt die italienische Staatsbürgerschaft.
She has Italian citizenship.
citizenry / parliament
'die Staatsbürgerschaft' and 'die Bürgerschaft' look similar, but they do not mean the same thing. 'Staatsbürgerschaft' means an individual person's legal membership in a state. 'Bürgerschaft', on the other hand, means the citizens as a group, or in Hamburg and Bremen, the parliament. The confusion can easily arise because both words are formed with 'Bürger' (citizen). If it is about a passport, naturalization, or legal membership, the word is 'Staatsbürgerschaft'. If it is about the population as a political group or a parliament, 'Bürgerschaft' fits.
Julian hat nach vielen Jahren die deutsche Staatsbürgerschaft bekommen.
After many years, Julian received German citizenship.
In Bremen entscheidet die Bürgerschaft heute über den neuen Haushalt.
In Bremen, the parliament is deciding on the new budget today.