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Walloon region

Walloon Region
Région wallonne
Wallonische Region
Region of Belgium
Flag of Walloon Region
Flag
Coat of arms of Walloon Region
Coat of arms
Anthem: "Le Chant des Wallons"
Location of Walloon Region
Location of Walloon Region
Country Belgium
Capital Namur
Government
 • Executive Walloon Government
 • Governing parties (2014–2019) PS, cdH
 • Minister-President Paul Magnette (PS)
 • Legislature Walloon Parliament
 • Speaker André Antoine (cdH)
Area
 • Total 16,844 km2 (6,504 sq mi)
Population (January 1, 2015)
 • Total 3,585,214
 • Density 210/km2 (550/sq mi)
Demonym(s) Walloons
Demographics
 • Languages French, German (also Dutch in Municipalities with language facilities)
ISO 3166 code BE-WAL
Celebration Day 3rd Sunday of September
Website www.wallonie.be

Wallonia (French: Wallonie [walɔni], German: Wallonie(n), Dutch: Wallonië [ʋaːˈloːni.ə], Walloon: Walonreye Walloon pronunciation: ​[walɔ̃ʀɛjɜ]; Luxembourgish: Wallounien) is a region of Belgium. Wallonia is primarily French-speaking, and accounts for 55% of the territory of Belgium, and a third of its population. Unlike Flanders, the Walloon Region was not merged with the French Community of Belgium which is the political entity that is responsible for matters related mainly to culture and education. The German-speaking minority in the east forms the German-speaking Community of Belgium, which has its own government and parliament for culture-related issues.

During the industrial revolution, Wallonia was second only to the United Kingdom in industrialization, capitalizing on its extensive deposits of coal and iron. This brought the region wealth, and, from the beginning of the 19th to the middle of the 20th century, Wallonia was the more prosperous half of Belgium. Since World War II the importance of heavy industry has greatly diminished, and the Flemish Region surpassed Wallonia in wealth as Wallonia declined economically. Wallonia now suffers from high unemployment and has a significantly lower GDP per capita than Flanders. The economic inequalities and linguistic divide between the two are major sources of political conflict in Belgium and is a major factor in Flemish separatism.


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Wikipedia

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