Kingdom of Belgium |
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Anthem: "La Brabançonne"
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Location of Belgium (dark green)
– in Europe (green & dark grey) |
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Capital and largest city |
Brussels 50°51′N 4°21′E / 50.850°N 4.350°E |
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Official languages |
Dutch French German |
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Ethnic groups | see Demographics | ||||
Demonym | Belgian | ||||
Government |
Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy |
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• Monarch
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Philippe | ||||
Charles Michel | |||||
Legislature | Federal Parliament | ||||
Senate | |||||
Chamber of Representatives | |||||
Independence from the Netherlands | |||||
• Declared
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4 October 1830 | ||||
19 April 1839 | |||||
1 January 1958 | |||||
Area | |||||
• Total
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30,528 km2 (11,787 sq mi) (140th) | ||||
• Water (%)
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6.4 | ||||
Population | |||||
• 1 January 2016 census
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11,250,585 (75th) | ||||
• Density
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363.6/km2 (941.7/sq mi) (23rd) | ||||
GDP (PPP) | 2016 estimate | ||||
• Total
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$508.598 billion (38th) | ||||
• Per capita
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$44,881 (20th) | ||||
GDP (nominal) | 2016 estimate | ||||
• Total
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$470.179 billion (23rd) | ||||
• Per capita
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$41,491 (17th) | ||||
Gini (2011) | 26.3 low |
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HDI (2014) |
0.890 very high · 21st |
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Currency | Euro (€) (EUR) | ||||
Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||||
• Summer (DST)
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CEST (UTC+2) | ||||
Drives on the | right | ||||
Calling code | +32 | ||||
ISO 3166 code | BE | ||||
Internet TLD | .be | ||||
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Coordinates: 50°50′N 4°00′E / 50.833°N 4.000°E
– in Europe (green & dark grey)
– in the European Union (green)
Belgium (i/ˈbɛldʒəm/; Dutch: België [ˈbɛlɣijə]; French: Belgique [bɛlʒik]; German: Belgien [ˈbɛlɡi̯ən]), officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a sovereign state in Western Europe bordered by France, the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg, and the North Sea. It is a small, densely populated country which covers an area of 30,528 square kilometres (11,787 sq mi) and has a population of about 11 million people. Straddling the cultural boundary between Germanic and Latin Europe, Belgium is home to two main linguistic groups: the Dutch-speaking, mostly Flemish community, which constitutes about 59% of the population, and the French-speaking, mostly Walloon population, which comprises 41% of all Belgians. Additionally, there is a small group of German-speakers who live in the East Cantons located around the High Fens area, and bordering Germany.