What do GmbH/AB mean?

[Dunmurry]

Sometimes I see companies with names such as
Straight Dope GmbH or Straight Dope AB.
Can someone tell me what these letters after the name mean.

[Crusoe]

GmbH (Gesellschaft mit mit beschränkter Haftung) is the German equivalent of a limited liability company, and predates other LLCs with a first appearance in 1892 (according to sites I’ve been looking at). Also used in Austria and Switzerland.

A/B (Aktiebolag) is roughly the Swedish for Limited Company. I think it may also be used in Finland too.

[Crusoe]

Slight typo above; only one mit in GmbH.

[Absolute]

<semi-hijack>
How about AG?
</semi-hijack>

[Crusoe]

Aktiengesellschaft (AG):

Aktiengesellschaft, translates to Stock Company. All publicly traded companies in Germany must be incorporated under this legal structure, but not all AGs are necessarily publicly-traded. AGs have two sets of boards – the Vorstand, which usually consists of the CEO, CFO and other top management, and an Aufsichtsrat, which translates to “supervisory board,” which has the function of overseeing management and representing the shareholders. German law prohibits individuals from being members of both boards. AGs in Germany require a minimum of DM 100,000 share capital and at least five shareholders at incorporation. Minimum par value for shares is DM 50.

More on GmbH:

Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung. Translates to “Company with limited liability.” A GmbH indicates that a company is incorporated, but is not publicly traded (as public companies must be AGs). GmbHs are essentially partnerships without a legal name, and there usually must be at least two partners, although GmbHs with one partner are possible. There must be nominal capital of at least DM 50,000. Most foreign subsidiaries in Germany are incorporated with this structure.

(from this page)

[flodnak]

*Originally posted by Crusoe *
**A/B (Aktiebolag) is roughly the Swedish for Limited Company. I think it may also be used in Finland too. **

Finland, as you may know, has two official languages: Finnish and Swedish. So both AB and its Finnish equivalent, OY are used, sometimes at the same time. The classic example is the Finnish state wine-and-spirits monopoly, which I swear I’ve seen written as OY Alko AB.