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AR-SSC 107
Language and Culture
Language
Language and culture are closely interlinked as, in fact,
language is a part of culture. When moving to a new country,
the exciting (and sometimes exhausting) part is to get to know
more about the local culture, customs, and the like. Through
language you will gain an additional access to the German
culture and will be able to share your own culture more easily,
too. And, through cultural exchange we learn more about
ourselved, too. So, if you are interested in learning German,
please visit the Language
Center's website. Courses are free to member of and
scholarship holders at the University of Siegen. If your spouse
or partner is interested in taking a German course but is not a
student or researcher at the University of Siegen, please let
us know and we will inform you of the options available.
Culture
Siegen has a lot of cultural sites and events to offer. The Oberes Schloss, for instance, is not only a historic site but also has beautiful castle gardens to relax and meet people in, a small theater area, and is home to the Siegerlandmuseum and the Open Air Cinema in the summer.
Museums and Galleries
Apart from the Siegerlandmuseum there are also a
number of other museums and art galleries in and around
Siegen, many of which focus on local history, be it the
former ruling aristocracy, the history of mining, or
Siegen's role in Nazi Germany. You can find an overview of
museums in Siegen here, and should you want to go
slightly further afield, you could visit one of these
museums in the Kreis
Siegen-Wittgenstein.
Cultural Events
There are many cultural events (e.g. music/concerts,
theater, cabaret etc.) that take place throughout the year
in Siegen and the surrounding towns. Please find the
culture programs for the different places below.
» Siegen
» Kreuztal
» Freudenberg
» Altenkirchen
Cinemas
In Siegen there are several cinemas where you can watch new
and old movies. Here is a selection for cinemas in and
around the city of Siegen:
» CineStar Siegen
» International movie nights of the Language
Center
» Panoptikum - the student cinema
» Open-Air-Cinema
» Viktora-Filmtheater
» Kulturhaus
Lÿz
Religion
In Germany, there
is freedom of religion, which guarantees every individual
the freedom to practice his/her religion, to profess it and
to join a religious community. However, everyone is also
free not to profess any religion, to leave religious
communities or to change to any other religion.
The majority of the German population of Christian faith
and the city of Siegen is the seat of the Evangelical Community Association
Siegerland-Wittgenstein, with over 60 communities and
many Sunday schools. Here you can find an overview of
the upcoming church services. Information and services of
the Catholic Church in Siegen can be found here.
There are a total of seven mosques in Siegen, including
the Ibrahim Alkhalil Mosque, which is also the
largest Muslim community in Siegen. The nearest synagogue
is in the center of Cologne, information can be
found here. In addition, one of more than 80
societies of Christian-Jewish cooperation is
located in Siegen.
There are also various religious university communities, an
overview of which can be found here.