Bonn Now the Federal City
A 1994 act in Germany established that Bonn would retain the status as the second official capital of Germany and as the second official home of the Chancellor and of the President of Germany. In addition, six governmental ministries (including defense) were to maintain their headquarters in Bonn.
Bonn is called the "Federal City" for its role as a second capital of Germany. According to the New York Times, as of 2011, "Of the 18,000 officials employed in the federal bureaucracy, more than 8,000 are still in Bonn."
Bonn has a fairly small population (over 318,000) for its significance as the Federal City or second capital city of Germany, a country of more than 80 million (Berlin is home to nearly 3.4 million). Bonn has been jokingly referred to in German as Bundeshauptstadt ohne nennenswertes Nachtleben (Federal capital without noteworthy nightlife). Despite its small size, many (as evidenced by the close vote of the Bundestag) had hoped that the quaint university city of Bonn would become the modern home of reunified Germany's capital city.