Census
The Census data contains information about the demographic and social structure of the population and households in Germany. Furthermore, it serves to determine the population and housing conditions, as well as a basis for sampling and extrapolation for further surveys. The census of 1970 and 1987 where full surveys of the population of the then Federal Republic of Germany. In addition, the results of the census play an important role as a basis for decision-making in political and economic action. In the 1970 and 1987 census, the entire population of the former Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) was surveyed (full surveys). The Laws on a Population, Occupational, and Workplace Census of 14th April, 1969, and the Act on a Population, Occupational, Building, Housing, and Workplace Census of 8th November, 1985 served as legal basis for the surveys.
The 1987 census data was still available from the Statistical Offices of the Federal States and could be compiled in its entirety for provision to the Research Data Centres. This was not the case for the census of 1970. For the census of 1970, the „Zentrum für Umfragen, Methoden und Analysen“ (ZUMA), now „Gesellschaft Sozialwissenschaftlicher Infrastruktureinrichtungen“ (GESIS – Leibniz-Institut für Sozialwissenschaften), has kindly provided the Research Data Centres with an anonymised data set and a 10-Percent sample. The state of Saarland containins the entire survey (also anonymised).
The census in the former German Democratic Republic (GDR) served the determination of the most important demographic, social, and economical variables of the population and households. The legal basis for the census was the Law on the Conduct of Population, Occupational, Housing, and Building Census in the GDR of 1st December 1967. Therefore, the GDR census of 1971 and 1981 mainly contain information on the structure of households, income, occupation, buildings and housing.
Available Microdata
There is only metadata in German language available for the census microdata. Hence, you find it and its metadata only on its German website.