German orthography
Compound words, including nouns, are written together, e.g. "Haustür" (Haus+Tür; house door), "Tischlampe" (Tisch+Lampe; table lamp), "Kaltwasserhahn" (Kalt+Wasser+Hahn; cold water tap/faucet). This can lead to long words: the longest word in regular use, "Rechtsschutzversicherungsgesellschaften" ("legal protection insurance companies"), consists of 39 letters; while the longest German word ever published ("Donaudampfschiffahrtselektrizitätenhauptbetriebswerkbauunterbeamtengesellschaft", "Association for subordinate officials of the head office management of the Danube steamboat electrical services") has 79 letters.
Taxation in Germany
Taxes in Germany are levied by the federal government ("Bund"), the states ("Länder") as well as the municipalities ("Städte/Gemeinden"). Many direct and indirect taxes exist in Germany; income tax and VAT are the most significant. The German word for tax is "die Steuer" which originates from the Old High German word "stiura" meaning "help". The Financial Secrecy Index ranks Germany as the 8th safest tax haven in the world, ahead of Jersey but behind Lebanon.