Belgium
Country Name
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium.
Location
Belgium is a country in Western Europe.
It is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east,
Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the southwest, and the North Sea
to the northwest.
Capital
Brussels.
Reason for naming the country
The name "Belgium" is derived from Gallia Belgica, a Roman province in the northernmost part of Gaul that before the Roman invasion in 100 BC, was inhabited by the Belgae, a mix of Celtic and German peoples.
Flag
The Belgium flag was officially adopted on January 23, 1831.
The Belgian flag is composed of vertical tricolor stripes of black, yellow, and red.
The colors of the Belgium flag were derived from the coat of arms used by the Duchy of Brabant.
The vertical tricolor design is though to be taken from the design of
the red, white, and the blue tricolor flag of France.
The red color represents the red lion of Hainaut, Limburg, and Luxembourg.
The yellow color represents the yellow lion of Brabant.
Finally, the black color represents the black lion of Namur and Flanders.
It is also believed that the tricolor design was inspired by the national flag of
France, albeit with different colors.
*Flag Facts:
-The flag of Belgium is similar to the flag of Germany, though the flags do share the same colors, the major difference is that Belgium's stripes are vertical while Germany's are horizontal.
Language
Belgium has three official languages: Dutch, French, and German.
English is widely spoken as a foreign language.
Dutch dialects spoken in Belgium are Brabantian, West Flemish, East Flemish, Antwerp and Limburgish.
A number of non-official minority languages are spoken as well as Berber, Arabic, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish, Greek, Polish, and English. Of these, English is widely spoken.
Some sub-dialects may be quite distant from standard Dutch and not be readily intelligible for other Dutch-speakers.
Religion
The main religion in Belgium is Christianity, in particular, Roman Catholic, which is the largest religion in Belgium.
Belgium officially recognizes three religions: Christianity (Catholic, Protestantism, Orthodox churches and Anglicanism), Islam and Judaism.
Currency
Euro
Time Zone
+02:00 GMT
Government Regime
Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy.
Climate
The climate of Belgium is cool and wet because it is influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, especially on the coast and the plain. In the south-eastern regions (Ardennes), which are located at higher altitudes as well as at a greater distance from the sea, the climate is more continental, and also more unstable in summer.
The best time to visit Belgium is from mid-May to mid-September: the temperatures are mild, the sky is often cloudy, but the percentage of sunshine is not so low. The mid-summer period (July-August) is relatively warm, but it's also the rainiest because of afternoon thunderstorms that can form especially in inland areas.
International Phone Code
+32
Internet Code
.be