The Federal Republic of Germany and its sixteen Bundesländer

A federal republic is, as the term suggests, a state which is both a federation and a republic. A federation is a state composed of a number of self-governing regions (often themselves referred to as 'states') united by a central, federal government. In a federation, unlike in a unitary state, the self-governing status of autonomous regions is constitutionally entrenched and cannot be revoked by a unilateral decision of the central government. Usage of the term republic is inconsistent but, as a minimum, it means a state that does not have a monarch as head of state.

Three states explicitly describe themselves as federal republics. These are the Federal Republic of Germany, the Federal Republic of Nigeria, and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. A close variant is the term federative republic, which appears in the full official title of Brazil. Not every federation is also a republic. For example, Canada, Australia, and Malaysia are federal kingdoms, each under a form of constitutional monarchy.

Contents

1 List of federal republics 1.1 Contemporary 1.2 Defunct 1.3 Fictional 2 See also

List of federal republics

Contemporary

Federation	Style	Subdivisions	Head of state
Argentina	Republic	Provinces of Argentina	President of Argentina
Austria	Republic	States of Austria	Federal President of Austria
Bosnia and Herzegovina		Divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina	Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Brazil	Federative Republic	States of Brazil	President of Brazil
Comoros	Union		President of Comoros
Ethiopia	F.D.R.	Regions of Ethiopia	President of Ethiopia
Germany	Federal Republic	States of Germany	Federal President of Germany
India	Republic	States of India	President of India
Mexico	United States	States of Mexico	President of Mexico
FS Micronesia	Federated States		President of FS Micronesia
Nigeria	Federal Republic	States of Nigeria	President of Nigeria
Russia	Federation	Subjects of Russia	President of Russia
Serbia and Montenegro		Divisions of Serbia and Montenegro	President of Serbia and Montenegro
Switzerland	Confederation	Cantons of Switzerland	Swiss Federal Council
Tanzania	United Republic	Regions of Tanzania	President of Tanzania
United States		Divisions of the United States	President of the United States
Venezuela	Bolivarian Republic	States of Venezuela	President of Venezuela

Defunct

• Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (nominally a federation)
• United States of Central America

Fictional

• Galactic Republic (Star Wars)
• New Republic (Star Wars)
• United Federation of Planets (Star Trek)

See also

• Form of government