St. Pauli (full name: Sankt Pauli) is a district of the German city of Hamburg and a district of the State of Hamburg. Hamburg is Germanys second largest city (after Berlin) and, with the Hamburg Harbour, its principal port. ...

The district has about 27.000 inhabitants (2002) on 2.6 km². It is situated directly at the Elbe river close to the Hamburg port. The Elbe River (Czech Labe   listen?, Sorbian/Lusatian Łobjo, Polish Łaba, German Elbe, Hungarian Elba) is one of the major waterways of central Europe. ... Seaport, a painting by Claude Lorrain, 1638 A port is a facility at the edge of an ocean, river, or lake for receiving ships and transferring cargo and persons to them. ...

At the beginning of the 17th century it developed as a suburb called 'Hamburger Berg' (Hamburg mountain) outside the gates of the nearby city of Hamburg and close to the city of Altona. The name comes from a hill in that area that was planed by Hamburg in 1620 for defence reasons (free field of fire for the artillery). Therefore, settlement was initially allowed there, but soon businesses, which were not desired inside Hamburg, e.g. for their smell or noise, were relegated to 'Hamburger Berg'. Also the rope makers (or 'Reeper' in Low German language) went here because in the city it was hard to find enough space for their work. The name of St. Pauli's most famous street Reeperbahn, or "Roper's Road," harkens back to its rope making past. When people were officially allowed to live in St. Pauli at the end of the 17th century the city government moved workhouses and (pestilence) hospitals out of the city to 'Hamburger Berg,' which later was named after its church, 'St. Pauli' (Saint Paul). (16th century - 17th century - 18th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 17th century was that century which lasted from 1601-1700. ... Altona may refer to various places: Altona, Victoria, a seaside suburb in Melbourne, Australia Altona, Illinois, a village located in Knox County, Illinois Altona, Indiana, a town located in DeKalb County, Indiana Altona, Hamburg, the westmost district in the city of Hamburg This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid... Low German (in Low German, Platt(düütsch) or Nedderdüütsch) is any of a variety of West Germanic languages spoken in northern Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. ... Sign at the Reeperbahn A sexshop The Reeperbahn is a street in Hamburgs St. ... A pestilence is an epidemic or even a pandemic of a virulent and highly contagious disease. ... An early portrait of the Apostle Paul. ...

St. Pauli has a long tradition as a recreation and amusement centre. The big port of Hamburg led many sailors to Hamburg who preferably spent their spare time (as long as their ships were unloaded and loaded again) in this area. Since then there is prostitution in St. Pauli. And still it is best known as Hamburg's red-light district. Prostitution is the sale of sexual services, such as oral sex or sexual intercourse, for money. ... The De Wallen red-light district in Amsterdam. ...

The district is nowadays one of the poorest throughout former West Germany. There have been various social fights during the last decades (examples are Hafenstrasse, Rote Flora and Bambule). The Hafenstrasse is a former squat in St. ... Rote Flora (Red Flora) is a former theatre built in 1855 in Hamburg which was squatted in November 1989 when plans were made to make it a musical theatre. ...

St. Pauli is known as well as a centre for the German punk movement. Punk rock is an anti-establishment music movement beginning around 1976 (although precursors can be found several years earlier), exemplified and popularised by The Ramones, the Sex Pistols, The Clash and The Damned. ...

St. Pauli's most prominent symbol is its eponymous football club, F.C. St. Pauli. In typical game play, players attempt to move towards a goal through individual control of the ball, such as by dribbling (running with the ball close to their feet); by passing the ball from team-mate to team-mate; and by taking shots at the goal. ... F.C. Sankt Pauli e. ...

St. Pauli has a strong music tradition. The Beatles lived in St. Pauli and played there before becoming famous. Singer and actor Hans Albers is strongly associated with St. Pauli, providing the neighbourhood's unofficial anthem, with "Auf der Reeperbahn Nachts um Halb Eins." The Beatles were a British pop and rock group from Liverpool. ... Hans Albers Hans Albers (September 22, 1891 - July 24, 1960) was a German actor and singer, nicknamed Der Blonde Hans (The Blond Hans). ...