1. Development up to the First World War
2. The 1920s
3. Spatial planning in the National Socialist period
4. The early post-war period (1945-1960)
5. Spatial planning in the German Democratic Republic
6. Spatial planning in der Federal Republic of Germany in the 1960s and 1970s: planning optimism and crisis
7. Spatial planning in the Federal Republic of Germany in the 1980s: loss of significance and ecologisation
8. Development since reunification
9. Conclusions

Spatial planning as a political/administrative field of action was first institutionalised predominantly at the municipal level in the 1920s, and at the state level in the 1930s. A comprehensive multi-level system of spatial planning was created in the Federal Republic of Germany in the 1960s and adopted in the new states after reunification.

1. Exploring the German term Wohnen (dwelling, housing)
2. The ideal type of modern dwelling
3. Postmodern transformations of living conditions
4. The transformation of ways of life – consequences for urban dwelling and housing

Based on etymological understandings of the German term Wohnen (dwelling, housing), this article describes the ideal type of dwelling using five socio-historical development strands. Fundamental processes of the post-modern transformation of living conditions are interpreted in terms of their relevance for dwelling and housing today. Reurbanisation and multilocality are explained in depth as central factors influencing urban housing.