Belgium
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| Kingdom of Belgium
Koninkrijk België (nl)
Royaume de Belgique (fr) Königreich Belgien (de) |
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| Motto: Eendracht maakt macht (Dutch) L'union fait la force (French) Einigkeit macht stark (German) "Strength through Unity" (lit. "Unity makes strength") |
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| Anthem: The "Brabançonne" instrumental version:  |
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![Location of Belgium (dark green)– — [Legend]](/wiki/File:EU-Belgium.svg) Location of Belgium (dark green)
– — [Legend] |
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| Capital | Brussels 50°51′N 4°21′E / 50.85°N 4.35°E |
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| Largest metropolitan area | Brussels | |||||
| Official language(s) | Dutch French German |
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| Ethnic groups | see Demographics | |||||
| Demonym | Belgian | |||||
| Government | Federal parliamentary democracy and Constitutional monarchy[1] | |||||
| - | King | Albert II | ||||
| - | Prime Minister | Elio Di Rupo | ||||
| Legislature | Federal Parliament | |||||
| - | Upper House | Senate | ||||
| - | Lower House | Chamber of Representatives | ||||
| Independence | ||||||
| - | Declared from the Netherlands | 4 October 1830 | ||||
| - | Recognised | 19 April 1839 | ||||
| Area | ||||||
| - | Total | 30,528 km2 (139th) 11,787 sq mi |
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| - | Water (%) | 6.4 | ||||
| Population | ||||||
| - | 2011 estimate | 11,007,020[1] (76th) | ||||
| - | 2001 census | 10,296,350 | ||||
| - | Density | 354.7/km2 (33rd) 918.6/sq mi |
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| GDP (PPP) | 2010 estimate | |||||
| - | Total | $394.346 billion[2] | ||||
| - | Per capita | $36,100[2] | ||||
| GDP (nominal) | 2010 estimate | |||||
| - | Total | $465.676 billion[2] | ||||
| - | Per capita | $42,630[2] | ||||
| Gini (2005) | 28[1] (low) | |||||
| HDI (2010) | ▲ 0.867[1] (very high) (18th) | |||||
| Currency | Euro (€)1 (EUR) |
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| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | |||||
| - | Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||||
| Drives on the | right | |||||
| Internet TLD | .be2 | |||||
| Calling code | 32 | |||||
| 1 | Before 1999: Belgian franc (BEF). | |||||
| 2 | The .eu domain is also used, as it is shared with other European Union member states. | |||||
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Belgium (officially called as Kingdom of Belgium) (België in Dutch, Belgique in French and Belgien in German) is a country in Western Europe. It is next to France, Luxembourg, Germany, and the Netherlands. The name 'Belgium' comes from 'Gallia Belgica', a Roman region in the northernmost part of Gaul where the Belgae lived, a combination of Celtic and Germanic peoples.
The capital city of Belgium is Brussels.
There are three regions in Belgium: Flanders (where the Flemish speak Dutch) in the northern half of Belgium, Wallonia (where most Walloons speak French) in the southern half and the Brussels-Capital Region in the middle (where Dutch and French are spoken).
Inside Wallonia is the area of the German-speaking Community of Belgium. The community has its own parliament and government, but they are not yet as powerful as the Flemish and Walloon bodies.
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[change] Geography
Belgium is next to France (620 km), Germany (167 km), Luxembourg (148 km) and the Netherlands (450 km). Its total area, with surface water area, is 33,990 square kilometers, the land area alone is 30,528 km². Belgium has three main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the north-west and the central plateau are part of the Anglo-Belgian Basin; the Ardennes uplands in the south-east are part of the Hercynian orogenic belt. The Paris Basin reaches a small fourth area at Belgium's southernmost tip, Belgian Lorraine. The coastal plain is made up of mainly of sand dunes and polders. Further inland lies a smooth, slowly rising landscape watered by many waterways, with fertile valleys and the northeastern sandy plain of the Campine (Kempen). The hills with many forests and plateaus of the Ardennes are more rough and rocky with caves and small, narrow valleys. Extending to the west into France, this area is eastwardly linked to the Eifel in Germany by the High Fens plateau, on which the Signal de Botrange forms the country's highest point at 694 metres (2,277 ft).
[change] Politics and Government
Belgium is a federal country. There are three regions, the Dutch-speaking Flemish Region, the French-speaking Walloon Region and the Brussels capital region. Although Brussels is surrounded by the Flemish Region its importance as the national capital means it is a special bilingual (two-language) zone. There is a fourth language group, the German speaking community of the Walloon Region, with an elected assembly and its own Minister President.
The regions are divided into ten provinces:
- Antwerp
- East Flanders
- Flemish Brabant
- Hainaut
- Liege
- Limburg
- Luxembourg
- Namur
- Walloon Brabant
- West Flanders.
The provinces are divided into 589 communes.
[change] Other pages
[change] References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Government of Belgium". The World Factbook. CIA. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/be.html.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Belgium". International Monetary Fund. http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2011/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=70&pr.y=8&sy=2008&ey=2011&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=124&s=NGDPD%2CNGDPDPC%2CPPPGDP%2CPPPPC%2CLP&grp=0&a=. Retrieved 20 April 2011.
[change] Other websites
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The Simple English Wiktionary has a definition for: Belgium. |
Media related to Belgium at Wikimedia Commons- Official website of Belgian monarchy
- Official website of the Belgian federal government
- Belgian Telephone directory
- Belgium Travel Guide
- Brussels map
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