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Belgium

This article is about the country. For other uses, see Belgium (disambiguation). "Belgia" redirects here. For the predecessor as an Ancient Roman province, see Gallia Belgica. For the passenger ship, see SS Belgia. "Belgique" and "Bélgica" redirect here. For other uses, see Belgique (disambiguation) and Belgica (disambiguation).

Kingdom of Belgium
  • Koninkrijk België (Dutch)
  • Royaume de Belgique (French)
  • Königreich Belgien (German)
Motto: Eendracht maakt macht (Dutch)
L'union fait la force (French)
Einigkeit macht stark (German)
Anthem: 
La Brabançonne
Dutch version:

French version:
Location of Belgium (dark green)

– in Europe (light green & dark grey)
– in the European Union (light green)

CapitalCity of Brussels
50°51′N 4°21′E / 50.850°N 4.350°E / 50.850; 4.350
Largest cityBrussels-Capital Region
Official languages
Ethnic groups
(2024)[1]
Religion
(2021[2])
Demonym(s)
GovernmentFederal parliamentary constitutional monarchy[3]
• Monarch
Philippe
Alexander De Croo
LegislatureFederal Parliament
• Upper house
Senate
• Lower house
Chamber of Representatives
Independence 
from the Holy Roman Empire and Netherlands
• Declared
4 October 1830
19 April 1839
1970
Area
• Total
30,689[4] km2 (11,849 sq mi) (136th)
• Water (%)
0.64 (2022)[5][6]
Population
• 2024 census
Neutral increase 11,763,650[7]
• Density
383/km2 (992.0/sq mi) (22nd)
GDP (PPP)2024 estimate
• Total
Increase $863.837 billion[8] (37th)
• Per capita
Increase $73,221[8] (20th)
GDP (nominal)2024 estimate
• Total
Increase $662.183 billion[8] (23rd)
• Per capita
Increase $56,128[8] (16th)
Gini (2022)Negative increase 24.9[9]
low inequality
HDI (2022)Increase 0.942[10]
very high (12th)
CurrencyEuro (€) (EUR)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)
UTC+2 (CEST)
Drives onright
Calling code+32
ISO 3166 codeBE
Internet TLD.be and .eu
  1. The flag's official proportions of 13:15 are rarely seen; proportions of 2:3 or similar are more common.
  2. The Brussels region is the de facto capital, but the City of Brussels municipality is the de jure capital.[11]
  3. The .eu domain is also used, as it is shared with other European Union member states.

Belgium,[a] officially the Kingdom of Belgium,[b] is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the south, and the North Sea to the west. It covers an area of 30,689 km2 (11,849 sq mi)[4] and has a population of more than 11.7 million,[7] making it the 22nd most densely populated country in the world and the 6th most densely populated country in Europe, with a density of 383/km2 (990/sq mi). Belgium is part of an area known as the Low Countries, historically a somewhat larger region than the Benelux group of states, as it also included parts of northern France. The capital and largest metropolitan region is Brussels;[c] other major cities are Antwerp, Ghent, Charleroi, Liège, Bruges, Namur, and Leuven.

Belgium is a sovereign state and a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system. Its institutional organization is complex and is structured on both regional and linguistic grounds. It is divided into three highly autonomous regions:[13] the Flemish Region (Flanders) in the north, the Walloon Region (Wallonia) in the south, and the Brussels-Capital Region in the middle.[14] Brussels is the smallest and most densely populated region, as well as the richest region in terms of GDP per capita. Belgium is also home to two main linguistic communities: the Flemish Community (Dutch-speaking), which constitutes about 60 percent of the population, and the French Community (French-speaking),[d] which constitutes about 40 percent of the population. A small German-speaking Community, making up around one percent of the population, exists in the East Cantons. The Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual in French and Dutch,[16] although French is the majority language and lingua franca.[17] Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political conflicts are reflected in its complex system of governance, made up of six different governments.

In antiquity the region around Belgium was inhabited by the Belgae, and became the Roman province of Gallia Belgica in 22 BC. In the Middle Ages, the region was part of the Carolingian Empire, and much of it was later part of the Holy Roman Empire, and subsequently the Burgundian Netherlands. Belgium's central location has meant that the area has been relatively prosperous, connected commercially and politically to its bigger neighbours. The country as it exists today was established following the 1830 Belgian Revolution, when it seceded from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, which had incorporated the Southern Netherlands (which comprised most of modern-day Belgium) after the Congress of Vienna in 1815. Belgium has been called "the Battlefield of Europe",[18] a reputation reinforced in the 20th century by both world wars.

Belgium was an early participant in the Industrial Revolution,[19][20] and during the course of the 20th century, possessed a number of colonies, notably the Belgian Congo and Ruanda-Urundi.[21][e] These colonies gained independence between 1960 and 1962.[23] The second half of the 20th century was marked by rising tensions between the Dutch-speakers and French-speakers, fueled by differences in political culture and the unequal economic development of Flanders and Wallonia. This continuing antagonism has led to several far-reaching state reforms, resulting in the transition from a unitary to a federal arrangement between 1970 and 1993. Despite the reforms, tensions have persisted: there is particularly significant separatist sentiment among the Flemish; language laws such as the municipalities with language facilities have been the source of much controversy;[24] and the government formation period following the 2010 federal election set a world record at 589 days.[25] Unemployment in Wallonia is more than double that of Flanders, which boomed after the Second World War.[26][27]

Belgium is a developed country, with an advanced high-income economy. The country is one of the six founding members of the European Union, and its capital, Brussels, is the de facto capital of the European Union itself, hosting the official seats of the European Commission, the Council of the European Union, and the European Council, as well as one of two seats of the European Parliament (the other being Strasbourg). Belgium is also a founding member of the Eurozone, NATO, OECD, and WTO, and a part of the trilateral Benelux Union and the Schengen Area. Brussels also hosts the headquarters of many major international organizations, such as NATO.[f]

  1. ^ "Diverity according to origin in Belgium". STATBEL.
  2. ^ "Data.europa.eu".
  3. ^ "Government type: Belgium". The World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
  4. ^ a b "Land use according to the land register". Statbel. 16 November 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
  5. ^ "Land use". Statbel. 15 September 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
  6. ^ "Surface water and surface water change". Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Archived from the original on 24 March 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  7. ^ a b "Structure of the Population". Statbel. 4 June 2024. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
  8. ^ a b c d "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2024 Edition. (Belgium)". www.imf.org. International Monetary Fund. 22 October 2024. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
  9. ^ "Gini coefficient of equivalised disposable income – EU-SILC survey". ec.europa.eu. Eurostat. Archived from the original on 9 October 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  10. ^ "Human Development Report 2023/24" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme. 13 March 2024. p. 288. Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 March 2024. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  11. ^ The Belgian Constitution (PDF). Brussels, Belgium: Belgian House of Representatives. May 2014. p. 63. Archived (PDF) from the original on 10 August 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  12. ^ "Statbel the Belgian statistics office". Archived from the original on 16 May 2021. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  13. ^ Pateman, Robert and Elliott, Mark (2006). Belgium. Benchmark Books. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-7614-2059-0
  14. ^ The Belgian Constitution (PDF). Brussels, Belgium: Belgian House of Representatives. May 2014. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 August 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2015. Article 3: Belgium comprises three Regions: the Flemish Region, the Walloon Region and the Brussels Region. Article 4: Belgium comprises four linguistic regions: the Dutch-speaking region, the French-speaking region, the bilingual region of Brussels-Capital and the German-speaking region.
  15. ^ "Belgium - French speaking community". portal.cor.europa.eu. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  16. ^ Janssens, Rudi (2008). "Language use in Brussels and the position of Dutch". Brussels Studies. Brussels Studies [Online]. doi:10.4000/brussels.520. ISSN 2031-0293. Archived from the original on 17 July 2018. Retrieved 17 July 2018.
  17. ^ Leclerc, Jacques (18 January 2007). "Belgique • België • Belgien—Région de Bruxelles-Capitale • Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest". L'aménagement linguistique dans le monde (in French). Host: Trésor de la langue française au Québec (TLFQ), Université Laval, Quebec. Archived from the original on 9 June 2007. Retrieved 18 June 2007. C'est une région officiellement bilingue formant au centre du pays une enclave dans la province du Brabant flamand (Vlaams Brabant)
    *"About Belgium". Belgian Federal Public Service (ministry) / Embassy of Belgium in the Republic of Korea. Archived from the original on 2 October 2008. Retrieved 21 June 2007. the Brussels-Capital Region is an enclave of 162 km2 within the Flemish region.
    *"Flanders (administrative region)". Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia. Microsoft. 2007. Archived from the original on 15 June 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2007. The capital of Belgium, Brussels, is an enclave within Flanders.
    *McMillan, Eric (October 1999). "The FIT Invasions of Mons" (PDF). Capital translator, Newsletter of the NCATA, Vol. 21, No. 7, p. 1. National Capital Area Chapter of the American Translators Association (NCATA). Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 June 2007. Retrieved 21 June 2007. The country is divided into three autonomous regions: Dutch-speaking Flanders in the north, mostly French-speaking Brussels in the center as an enclave within Flanders and French-speaking Wallonia in the south, including the German-speaking Cantons de l'Est.
    *Van de Walle, Steven. "Language Facilities in the Brussels Periphery". KULeuven—Leuvens Universitair Dienstencentrum voor Informatica en Telematica. Archived from the original (PDF) on 31 October 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2007. Brussels is a kind of enclave within Flanders—it has no direct link with Wallonia.
  18. ^ Haß, Torsten (17 February 2003). Rezension zu (Review of) Cook, Bernard: Belgium. A History (in German). FH-Zeitung (journal of the Fachhochschule). ISBN 978-0-8204-5824-3. Archived from the original on 9 June 2007. Retrieved 24 May 2007. die Bezeichnung Belgiens als "the cockpit of Europe" (James Howell, 1640), die damals noch auf eine kriegerische Hahnenkampf-Arena hindeutete—The book reviewer, Haß, attributes the expression in English to James Howell in 1640. Howell's original phrase "the cockpit of Christendom" became modified afterwards, as shown by:
    *Carmont, John. "The Hydra No.1 New Series (November 1917)—Arras And Captain Satan". War Poets Collection. Napier University's Business School. Archived from the original on 11 May 2008. Retrieved 24 May 2007.—and as such coined for Belgium:
    *Wood, James (1907). "Nuttall Encyclopaedia of General Knowledge—Cockpit of Europe". Archived from the original on 9 August 2011. Retrieved 24 May 2007. Cockpit of Europe, Belgium, as the scene of so many battles between the Powers of Europe. (See also The Nuttall Encyclopaedia)
  19. ^ Fitzmaurice, John (1996). "New Order? International models of peace and reconciliation—Diversity and civil society". Democratic Dialogue Northern Ireland's first think tank, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK. Archived from the original on 13 May 2011. Retrieved 12 August 2007.
  20. ^ "Belgium country profile". EUbusiness, Richmond, UK. 27 August 2006. Archived from the original on 7 October 2009. Retrieved 12 August 2007.
  21. ^ Karl, Farah; Stoneking, James (1999). "Chapter 27. The Age of Imperialism (Section 2. The Partition of Africa)" (PDF). World History II. Appomattox Regional Governor's School (History Department), Petersburg, Virginia, US. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 September 2007. Retrieved 16 August 2007.
  22. ^ Gerdziunas, Benas (17 October 2017). "Belgium's genocidal colonial legacy haunts the country's future". The Independent. Archived from the original on 25 July 2021. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
  23. ^ Braeckman, Colette (1 June 2021). "Belgium's role in Rwandan genocide". Le Monde Diplomatique. Archived from the original on 20 January 2022. Retrieved 20 January 2022.
  24. ^ Buoyant Brussels. "Bilingual island in Flanders". UCL. Archived from the original on 24 May 2016. Retrieved 5 June 2016.
  25. ^ "Belgian government sworn in, ending 18-month crisis". Expatica. 6 December 2011. Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
  26. ^ Robinson, Duncan (3 November 2015). "Belgium: A nation divided by more than two languages". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 9 August 2017. Retrieved 19 July 2017.
  27. ^ ""Werkgelegenheid en werkloosheid"". Archived from the original on 10 August 2023. Retrieved 9 August 2023.


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