Reich ( ; ) is a German loanword cognate with the English reign, region, and rich, but used most often to designate an empire, realm, or nation. The qualitative connotation from the German is "(imperial,) sovereign state." It is cognate with the Latin word lang: regnum (kingdom) and the Scandinavian rike/rige, , , ; as found in bishopric. It is the word traditionally used for a variety of sovereign entities, including Germany in many periods of its history. It is also found in the compound lang: Königreich, "kingdom" (Königtum), and in the country names lang: Frankreich (France, lit. "the Realm of the Franks"), lang: Österreich (Austria, the "Eastern Realm"), lang: Sverige (Sweden, the "Realm of the Swedes") and in England as Surrey - Suthrige, 'southern realm'. The German version of the Lord's Prayer uses the words lang: Dein Reich komme for "lang: ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου" (usually translated as "thy kingdom come" in English), and the Lord's Prayer in Scandinavian also uses the cognate word; so it is in Old English - 'Tobecyme thin rice'.
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Reich ( ; ) is a German loanword cognate with the English reign, region, and rich, but used most often to designate an empire, realm, or nation. The qualitative connotation from the German is "(imperial,) sovereign state." It is cognate with the Latin word lang: regnum (kingdom) and the Scandinavian rike/rige, , , ; as found in bishopric. It is the word traditionally used for a variety of sovereign entities, including Germany in many periods of its history. It is also found in the compound lang: Königreich, "kingdom" (Königtum), and in the country names lang: Frankreich (France, lit. "the Realm of the Franks"), lang: Österreich (Austria, the "Eastern Realm"), lang: Sverige (Sweden, the "Realm of the Swedes") and in England as Surrey - Suthrige, 'southern realm'. The German version of the Lord's Prayer uses the words lang: Dein Reich komme for "lang: ἐλθέτω ἡ βασιλεία σου" (usually translated as "thy kingdom come" in English), and the Lord's Prayer in Scandinavian also uses the cognate word; so it is in Old English - 'Tobecyme thin rice'.
Used adjectivally, lang: reich is the German word for "rich". Like its Latin counterpart, lang: imperium, Reich does not necessarily connote a monarchy; the Weimar Republic and Nazi Germany continued to use the name Deutsches Reich despite both being republican in structure.
Reich, German
The term Reich was part of the German names for Germany for much of its history. Reich was used by itself in the common German variant of the Holy Roman Empire, the "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation" (lang: Heiliges römisches Reich deutscher Nation). Der rîche was a title for the Emperor. However, it should be noted that Latin, not German, was the formal legal language of the medieval Empire, so English-speaking historians are more likely to use Latin lang: imperium than German lang: Reich as a term for this period of German history.
The unified Germany which arose under Chancellor Otto von Bismarck in 1871 was called in German lang: Deutsches Reich. Deutsches Reich remained the official name of Germany until 1945, although these years saw three very different political systems more commonly referred to in English as: "the German Empire" (1871–1918), the Weimar Republic (1919–1933; the term is a postwar coinage not used at the time), and Nazi Germany (the Third Reich) (1933–1945).
Use during Weimar Republic
After 1918 "Reich" was usually not translated as "Empire" in English-speaking countries, and the title was instead simply used in its original German. During the Weimar Republic the term "lang: Reich" and the prefix "lang: Reichs-" referred not to the idea of empire but rather to the institutions, officials, affairs etc. of the whole country as opposed to those of one of its constituent federal states. Das Reich meant the legal persona of the (federal) State, similar to The Crown designating the State (and its treasury) in Commonwealth countries.
