Information about Belgium

BELGIUM

The Kingdom of Belgium is a country in northwest Europe bordered by the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg and France and is one of the founding and core members of the European Union. Belgium has a population of over ten million people, in an area of around 30,000 square kilometres.

NAME

Belgium derives its name from the Latin name of the most northern part of Gaul, Gallia Belgica, named after a group of mostly Celtic tribes, Belgae.

LANGUAGE

Mainly two languages are spoken in Belgium: Dutch is spoken by 58% of the whole Belgian population, in Flanders to the north, that is to say by 6 million people ; French is spoken by 42% of the entire Belgian population, thus 4.2 million French-speaking people : 3.3 million people in the Walloon Region in the south and about 0.9 million people in Brussels out of 1 million inhabitants. The Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual, with an estimated 85-90% of its residents speaking French. Less than 1% of the Belgian people, around 70,000 citizens, live in the German-speaking Community in the east of the country.

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

Belgium is a constitutional popular monarchy and parliamentary democracy that evolved after World War II from a unitary state to a federation. The bicameral parliament is composed of a Senate and a Chamber of Representatives. The former is a mix of directly elected senior politicians and representatives of the communities and regions; while the latter represents all Belgians over the age of eighteen in a proportional voting system.
The federal government, formally nominated by the king, must have the confidence of the Chamber of Representatives. It is led by the Prime Minister. The numbers of Dutch- and French-speaking ministers are equal as prescribed by the Constitution. The King or Queen is the head of state, though he has limited prerogatives. Actual power is vested in the Prime Minister and the different governments, who govern the country. The judicial system is based on civil law and originates from the Napoleonic code. The Court of Appeals is one level below the Court of Cassation, an institution based on the French Court of Cassation.
Belgium's political institutions are complex; most political power is organized around the need to represent the main language communities.

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS

The country's constitution was revised on 14 July 1993 to create a unique federal state, based on three levels:
1. The federal government, based in Brussels.
2. The three language communities:
• The Flemish (i.e., Dutch-speaking) Community;
• The French (i.e., French-speaking) Community;
• The German-speaking Community.
3. The three regions (which differ from the language communities with respect to the German-speaking community and the Brussels region):
• The Flemish region;
• The Walloon Region; and
• Brussels-Capital Region.
Conflicts between the bodies are resolved by the Court of Arbitration. The setup allows a compromise so distinctly different cultures can live together peacefully.

GEOGRAPHY, CLIMATE

Belgium, with an area of 30 528 square kilometres (11,787 sq. mi), has three main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the north-west, the central plateau, and the Ardennes uplands in the south-east.
The climate is maritime temperate, with significant precipitation in all seasons (Köppen climate classification: Cfb; the average temperature is 3 °C (37°F) in January, and 18° C (64 °F) in July; the average precipitation is 65 millimetres (2.6 in) in January, and 78 millimetres (3.1 in) in July).

ECONOMY

Densely populated, Belgium is located at the heart of one of the world's most highly industrialised regions. Currently, the Belgium economy is heavily service-oriented and shows a dual nature with a dynamic Flemish part with Brussels as its main multilingual and multi-ethnic centre and a GNP/person which is one of the highest from the European union, and a Walloon economy that lags roughly one quarter behind (in GNP/person).
Belgium has a particularly open economy. It has developed an excellent transportation infrastructure of ports, canals, railways and highways to integrate its industry with that of its neighbours. The main imports are food products, machinery, rough diamonds, petroleum and petroleum products, chemicals, clothing and accessories, and textiles. The main exports are automobiles, food and food products, iron and steel, finished diamonds, textiles, plastics, petroleum products, and nonferrous metals.

DEMOGRAPHICS

The population density (342 per km² or 886 per sq. mi) of Belgium is one of the highest in Europe. Almost all of the population is urban (97.3% in 1999). The main cities and their populations are Brussels (1,006,749), Antwerp (457,749), Ghent (230,951), Charleroi (201,373), and Liège (185,574).
The vast majority of Belgians are either Flemish and Walloon. Together, they constitute a little over 85 percent of the population. The remaining 15% is largely made up of ((in order of size) Italians, Moroccans, French, Turks and Dutch.

RELIGION

The laicist constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the government generally respects this right in practice. According to the 2001 Survey and Study of Religion, about 47 percent of the population identify themselves as belonging to the Catholic Church. According to these figures, the Muslim population is the second-largest religious community, at 3.5 percent (see Religion in Belgium). Since independence, Catholicism, counterbalanced by strong freethought and especially freemason movements, has had an important role in Belgium's politics, in particular via the Christian trade union (CSC/ACV) and the Christian Democrat parties (CD&V, CDH).

EDUCATION

An estimated 98 percent of the adult population is literate. Education is compulsory from the ages of six to 18, but many Belgians continue to study until the age of about 23.
Mirroring the historical political conflicts between the freethought and Catholic segments of the population, the Belgian educational system in each communities is split into a laïque branch controlled by the communities, the provinces, or the municipalities, and a subsidised religious – mostly Catholic – branch controlled by both the communities and the religious authorities – usually the dioceses. It should however be noted that – at least for the Catholic schools – the religious authorities have very limited power over these schools.

CULTURE

Belgian cultural life has tended to concentrate within each community. The shared element is less important, because there are no bilingual universities, except the royal military academy, no common media, and no single, common large cultural or scientific organisation where both main communities are represented. Aside from these differences, Belgium is well-known for its fine art and architecture.
Famous names in this classic tradition are Jan van Eyck, Pieter Brueghel the Elder, Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck.
In music, Adolphe Sax invented the saxophone in 1846. Henri Vieuxtemps, Eugène Ysaÿe and Arthur Grumiaux were major 19th- and 20th-century violinists. Perhaps the most famous Belgian composer of this time was César Franck.
In literature, Belgium has produced several well-known authors, such as the poets Emile Verhaeren and novelists Hendrik Conscience and Georges Simenon. The poet and playwright Maurice Maeterlinck won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1911.
The mathematician Simon Stevin, the anatomist Andreas Vesalius and the cartographer Gerardus Mercator are among the most influential scientists from the beginning of Early Modern in the Low Countries.
One could not understand Belgian cultural life without considering the folk festivals, which play a major role in the country's cultural life. Examples are the Carnival of Binche and Aalst, the Ducasse of Ath, the procession of the Holy Blood in Bruges, the 15th-of-August festival in Liège, and the Walloon festival in Namur. A major non-official holiday is the Saint Nicholas Day, which commemorates the festival of the children and, in Liège, of the students.

SPORT

Cycling is especially popular. Among the well known cyclists, Eddy Merckx won five Tours de France and is considered the best cyclist ever because of his numerous victories the Tour as well as other bicycle tours.
Belgium has two current female tennis champions: Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne. Football is also very popular.

CUISINE

Belgium is well known for its cuisine. Many highly ranked restaurants can be found in the high-impact gastronomic guides, such as the Michelin Guide. Brands of Belgian chocolate, like Neuhaus and Côte d'Or, are world renowned and widely sold; even the cheapest and most popular brand, Leonidas, has earned a reputation for its quality. Belgium produces over 500 varieties of beer (see Belgian beer). Belgians have a reputation for loving waffles and French fries, actually both originally from Belgium; the national food is steak (or mussels) with French fries and lettuce.

More information about Belgium.