Central Europe
Central Europe is the region of Europe between Eastern and Western Europe, frequently taken to include Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, and Slovenia. Because its border is the Danube, the northern part of Serbia, Vojvodina, is also in Central Europe. The list of countries that are sometimes included in this region is much larger, however, and it often includes Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and Romania. The German term "Mitteleuropa" is sometimes used for states that came into existence after the Habsburg monarchy dissolved.
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Political map in 2004 - 
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| See also: World map |
Sometimes countries that consider themselves part of Central Europe consider states to their east as Eastern Europe. Thus, it is common in Germany to speak about Poland as being part of Eastern Europe, and in Poland to speak the same way about Ukraine.
Some used to joke that Central Europe is that part of the continent that is considered Eastern by Western Europe and Western by Eastern Europe. Another definition of Central Europe includes those parts of Europe that are Western in culture and history, but that were conquered by the Soviet Union during World War II.
See also
Historical regions of Central Europe