@pikipupiba – I agree. In Germany language skills and general knowledge are now required when applying for citizenship. Here’s some information and a sample test (in English!)
http://www1.spiegel.de/active/quiztool/fcgi/quiztool.fcgi?id=32516
Do You Have What It Takes to Become German?
Do you know how many federal states Germany has? What is the capital of North Rhine-Westphalia? And why did Willy Brandt sink to his knees in Warsaw in 1970? Try the sample questions from Germany’s new citizenship test and see if you have what it takes to become a Kraut.
To pass the citizenship test, people applying to become a German national will have to answer at least 17 out of 33 questions correct. To pass the sample test, you will need to get at least four out of the seven questions right.
Question 1 of 7
How many federal states does Germany have?
* 14
* 15
* 16
* 17
Question 2 of 7
The opposition in Germany’s national parliament, the Bundestag, ...
* ... keeps a check on the government.
* ... decides who becomes a federal minister.
* ... decides who sits in the upper house of the German parliament, the Bundesrat.
* ... proposes the governors of the federal states.
What message did former Chancellor Willy Brandt want to send when he knelt down in the former Jewish ghetto in Warsaw in 1970?
* He was showing his submission to the former Allied forces.
* He was asking Poland’s Jews and Poles for forgiveness.
* He was demonstrating his respect for the Warsaw Pact.
* He was saying a prayer at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
and so forth.
Can you answer any of them?