The Netherlands, Europe.
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|
Year |
Head of state |
Queen Beatrix |
|
Head of government |
Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende |
|
System of government |
Constitutional monarchy |
|
National language |
Dutch |
|
Capital city |
Amsterdam |
|
Population |
743.000 |
2006 |
Seat of government |
The Hague |
|
Population |
475.000 |
2006 |
Number of municipalities |
458 |
2006 |
Number of provinces |
12 |
|
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Provinces |
Provincial capital |
|
Noord-Brabant |
's-Hertogenbosch |
|
Drenthe |
Assen |
|
Flevoland |
Lelystad |
|
Friesland |
Leeuwarden |
|
Groningen |
Groningen |
|
Gelderland |
Arnhem |
|
Zuid-Holland |
Den Haag (The Hague) |
|
Noord-Holland |
Haarlem |
|
Limburg |
Maastricht |
|
Overijssel |
Zwolle |
|
Utrecht |
Utrecht |
|
Zeeland |
Middelburg |
|
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2. Geography
Geography |
Value |
Year |
Total area |
41.500 km² |
2004 |
Land |
33.800 km² |
2004 |
Water |
7.700 km² |
2004 |
Land below sea level |
26 % |
2005 |
National parks |
2,8 % of total surface area |
2005 |
Geografical position |
Western Europa |
|
Highest point above Amsterdam |
Vaalserberg (Limbourg) |
323 m |
Lowest point below Amsterdam |
Nieuwerkerk aan den Ijssel (South Holland) |
- 6.7 m |
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Climate |
temperate maritime |
|
Average temperature |
July |
17,4 °C |
Average temperature |
January |
2,8 °C |
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3. Population
Demographics |
Value |
Year |
Population |
16.336.000 |
2006 |
Population per km 2 of land |
484 |
2006 |
|
|
|
Increase in population |
0,2 % |
2004 |
Average life expectancy: men |
76,9 ans |
2006 |
Average life expectancy: women |
81,2 ans |
2006 |
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Immigration from: |
94.000 |
2004 |
Germany |
8.700 |
|
Turkey |
4.700 |
|
the Dutch Antilles and Aruba |
5.200 |
|
the United Kingdom |
5.400 |
|
Belgium |
5 300 |
|
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Emigration (destination) |
75.000 |
2004 |
Germany |
9.600 |
|
Belgium |
9.500 |
|
The United Kingdom |
8.900 |
|
the Dutch Antilles and Aruba |
6.800 |
|
the United States |
4.200 |
|
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Persons born in the Netherlands who have remigrated |
19.400 |
2004 |
Belgium |
3.100 |
|
Germany |
2.800 |
|
from the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba |
1.600 |
|
from the United States |
1 500 |
|
from the United Kingdom |
1 300 |
|
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Population by age |
|
2006 |
0-19 |
24,3 % |
|
20-49 |
26,9 % |
|
40-64 |
34,5 % |
|
65 and older |
14,3 % |
|
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Religion |
|
2004 |
Catholic |
30 % |
|
Protestant |
21 % |
|
Muslim |
6 % |
|
Hindu |
1 % |
|
Other religions |
2 % |
|
None |
41 % |
|
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Educational attainment among the population aged 15-64 |
|
2004 |
primary only |
9 % |
|
junior general secondary |
10 % |
|
pre-vocational |
14 % |
|
senior general secondary / pre-university |
11 % |
|
secondary vocational |
29 % |
|
higher professional |
16 % |
|
university |
9 % |
|
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Population born abroad or with one or both parents born abroad |
19,3 % |
2006 |
Indonesia |
2,4 % |
|
Germany |
2,4 % |
|
Turkey |
2,2 % |
|
Suriname |
2,0 % |
|
Morocco |
2,0 % |
|
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Persons with a computer at home |
82 % |
2004 |
Persons with an Internet connection at home |
73 % |
2004 |
Home owners |
54 % |
2002 |
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The Dutch language
Dutch is the mother tongue of more than 22 million people in the Netherlands and Belgium. In northwestern France, around 60,000 people speak a Dutch dialect.
Dutch is used widely in government and education in the former colony of Suriname and in Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles, which are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In Indonesia, many lawyers and historians speak Dutch owing to historical ties. Afrikaans, which is spoken in South Africa, is an offshoot of Dutch. Dutch has also influenced other languages, especially in shipping, waterworks and agriculture.
Dutch is taught at around 250 universities around the world. In French-speaking Belgium, northern France and Germany, many pupils choose Dutch as their second language. In 1980, the Netherlands and Flanders founded the Nederlandse Taalunie (Dutch Language Union), which promotes Dutch worldwide and draws up rules for spelling and grammar.
In the province of Friesland, they speak a separate language: Frisian. This officially recognized language is the mother tongue of around 400,000 people. It is similar in some ways to English and the Scandinavian languages. Dutch is used in schools throughout the country, including Friesland.
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