1. Region W central Germany N of Baden-Württemberg, divided into Hesse-Darmstadt (in the S) and Hesse-Cassel(in the N), the latter being united with Prussia in 1866 as part of the province of Hesse-Nassau along with the duchy of Nassau and the city of Frankfurt am Main.
2. State of the Weimar Republic, equivalent to Hesse-Darmstadt.
3. State of Germany and formerly of West Germany including larger part of Hesse-Darmstadt and part of Hesse-Nassau capital Wiesbaden area 8151 square miles (21,111 square kilometers).

(1877-1962) German writer, a Swiss citizen from 1923. A conscientious objector in World War I and a pacifist opponent of Hitler, he published short stories, poetry, and novels, including Peter Camenzind 1904, Siddhartha 1922, and Steppenwolf 1927. Later works, such as Das Glasperlenspiel/The Glass Bead Game 1943, show the influence of Indian mysticism and Jungian psychoanalysis. Nobel Prize for Literature 1946.