Belgium
Name
| Official name | Kingdom of Belgium |
|---|---|
| In the three languages | Koninkrijk België (Dutch) · Royaume de Belgique (French) · Königreich Belgien (German) |
| Demonym | Belgian |
| Meaning of the name | From the Belgae, the tribes of the region Julius Caesar described in 57 BC as the bravest of the Gauls |
| Regions | Flanders in the north, Wallonia in the south, Brussels-Capital between them |
Quick facts
| Capital | Brussels — the City of Brussels in law; the Brussels-Capital Region of 19 municipalities the largest urban area, about 1.25 million; seat of the European Commission and Council and of NATO |
|---|---|
| Official languages | Dutch (about 60%), French (about 40%) and German (under 1%) — four language areas fixed in law |
| Currency | Euro (EUR, €), since 1999 — notes and coins from 2002; the Belgian franc before it |
| Time zone | Central European Time, UTC+1; summer time UTC+2 |
| Calling code | +32 |
| Internet domain | .be |
| ISO 3166 codes | BE · BEL · 056 |
| Vehicle registration code | B |
| Driving side | Right |
| Electricity | 230 V, 50 Hz; plug types C and E |
| Independence | Declared 4 October 1830, from the Netherlands; recognized by the Treaty of London, 19 April 1839 |
| National day | 21 July — Leopold I's oath to the Constitution in 1831; the communities keep their own feast days, 11 July in Flanders, 27 September in the French Community, 15 November in the German-speaking Community |
| Constitution | 7 February 1831 — among the oldest in force; revised into a federal constitution, coordinated text of 17 February 1994 |
| Population | About 11.9 million — 11.86 million (Statbel, 1 January 2025); 11.96 million (CIA World Factbook, 2025 est.) |
| Area | 30,528 km² (11,787 sq mi) by the Factbook; 30,689 km² by Belgium's own survey — about the size of Maryland |
Flag & national symbols
| National flag | Three vertical bands of black, yellow and red — the colors of the lion of Brabant — in a near-square 13:15, black at the hoist; the horizontal flag of the revolution of 1830 set upright by the decrees of 1831.Flag of Belgium |
|---|---|
| Coat of arms | The gold lion of Brabant on black, crowned, with the scepter and the hand of justice, the motto on a red ribbon — adopted 17 May 1837 |
| National anthem | "La Brabançonne" — written in the revolution of 1830; the official French text of 1921, with Dutch and German versions |
| National motto | "L'union fait la force" · "Eendracht maakt macht" · "Einigkeit macht stark" — unity makes strength |
| National colors | Black, yellow and red |
| National animal | The lion — the Leo Belgicus of the arms; heraldic, not designated |
| National bird | The common kestrel — widely cited, not designated |
| National flower | The red poppy, for the fields of Flanders — widely cited, not designated |
| National dishes | Moules-frites and frites — the fries Belgium claims as its own; waterzooi, carbonnade — widely cited |
| Beer | Belgian beer culture — UNESCO intangible cultural heritage since 2016; some 1,500 beers |
| Symbol status | The flag, arms, anthem and motto are fixed by law and decree; the animal, bird, flower and dishes are widely cited, none designated |
Geography
| Location | Western Europe, on the North Sea — between France, Luxembourg, Germany and the Netherlands |
|---|---|
| Coastline | 66.5 km (41 mi) of sandy beach and dune, from De Panne to Knokke |
| Land borders | 1,297 km (806 mi) with four countries |
| Border with France | 556 km (345 mi) |
| Border with the Netherlands | 478 km (297 mi) — with the Baarle enclaves, 22 pieces of Belgium inside Dutch territory |
| Border with Germany | 133 km (83 mi) |
| Border with Luxembourg | 130 km (81 mi) |
| Highest point | The Signal de Botrange, 694 m (2,277 ft), in the High Fens — a tower of 1923 lets visitors stand at 700 m |
| Lowest point | The North Sea, 0 m; the polder of De Moeren about 3 m (10 ft) below sea level |
| Mean elevation | 181 m (594 ft) |
| Major rivers | The Scheldt (Escaut), about 200 km in Belgium, to Antwerp and the sea; the Meuse through Namur and Liège; the Sambre, the Lys, the Ourthe |
| Terrain | The coastal plain and polders; the low central plateau of Flanders and Brabant; the Ardennes forests and gorges in the southeast |
| The High Fens | The Hautes Fagnes — a raised bog and nature reserve on the German border, Belgium's largest |
| Climate | Temperate maritime — mild winters, cool summers, rain in every month |
| Natural hazards | River floods — the Vesdre valley in July 2021, with 39 dead |
| Natural resources | Construction materials, silica sand, carbonates; the coal of the Sambre–Meuse valley, mined out by 1992 |
| Land use | Agricultural land about 44%; forest about 22% |
| UNESCO World Heritage | 16 — among them the Grand-Place of Brussels, the belfries of Belgium and France, the Flemish béguinages, the historic center of Bruges, Victor Horta's town houses, the Neolithic flint mines of Spiennes, the Plantin-Moretus museum, the Stoclet House, the Walloon mining sites, the Funerary and Memory Sites of the Western Front (2023) |
| Administrative divisions | 3 regions — Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels-Capital — and 3 communities — Flemish, French and German-speaking; 10 provinces; 565 municipalities since the Flemish mergers of 2025 |
People
| Population | 11.86 million (Statbel, 1 January 2025); 11.96 million (Factbook, 2025 est.) |
|---|---|
| Population density | About 390 per km² (1,000 per sq mi) — among the highest in Europe |
| Population growth | About 0.5% a year, from immigration |
| Median age | About 42 years |
| Life expectancy | About 82 years |
| Fertility rate | About 1.5 births per woman |
| Urban population | About 98% |
| Adult literacy | About 99% |
| Ethnic groups | Belgian about 75%; Italian, Moroccan, French, Turkish and Dutch communities among the rest (2012 est.) |
| Languages | Dutch about 60%, French about 40%, German under 1% — official in their areas; English widely spoken |
| Religion | Roman Catholic about 57%, no religion about 30%, Muslim about 7%, Protestant and others (2018 est.) |
| Largest cities | Brussels (region), Antwerp, Ghent, Charleroi, Liège, Bruges, Namur, Leuven |
| Human Development Index | 0.951 (2023 data, 2025 report) — very high; among the top 15 |
| Foreign-born | About 18% of residents born abroad |
Government
| Form of government | Federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy — federal since the state reform of 1993 |
|---|---|
| King | Philippe, since 21 July 2013; the heir Princess Elisabeth, Duchess of Brabant |
| Prime Minister | Bart De Wever (N-VA), since 3 February 2025 — the first Flemish nationalist in the office; formerly mayor of Antwerp |
| The government | The "Arizona" coalition of five parties — N-VA, CD&V and Vooruit (Flemish), MR and Les Engagés (Francophone) — with 81 of 150 seats, formed almost eight months after the election of 9 June 2024 |
| Parliament | The Chamber of Representatives (150) and the Senate (60), in the Palace of the Nation |
| The federated entities | Three regions and three communities, each with its own parliament and government; the Flemish region and community merged |
| Legal system | Civil law on the Napoleonic model; the Court of Cassation; a Constitutional Court |
| Provinces | 10 — Antwerp, East Flanders, Flemish Brabant, Limburg, West Flanders; Hainaut, Liège, Luxembourg, Namur, Walloon Brabant |
| European Union | A founding member — the Coal and Steel Community of 1951, the Treaty of Rome of 1957; the Commission, the Council and the Parliament's committees sit in Brussels |
| NATO | A founding member, 1949; headquarters in Brussels since 1967 |
| Other memberships | Benelux (1944), the United Nations (1945), the Council of Europe (1949), the OECD, Schengen, the eurozone |
| Voting | Compulsory since 1893 — the oldest such law in the world still in force |
Economy
| GDP (nominal) | About US$690 billion (2025, IMF) — among the 25 largest economies |
|---|---|
| GDP per capita | About US$57,000 (2025) |
| GDP per capita (PPP) | About US$75,000 (2025) |
| GDP growth | About 1% (2024–25) |
| Economy by sector | Services about 78%, industry about 21%, agriculture under 1% |
| Currency | Euro (EUR) |
| Trade | Exports about US$500 billion a year — among the most trade-dependent economies; Germany, France, the Netherlands and the United States the partners |
| Antwerp | The Port of Antwerp-Bruges, the second largest in Europe; Antwerp handles some 80% of the world's rough diamonds |
| Chemicals and pharmaceuticals | The leading industries — Antwerp's petrochemical cluster is the largest in Europe; Janssen, UCB, Solvay |
| Chocolate | Some 600,000 metric tons a year — Godiva, Neuhaus, Leonidas and Côte d'Or |
| Public debt | About 105% of GDP |
| Income classification | High income (World Bank) |
Transport & infrastructure
| Main airport | Brussels Airport at Zaventem; Charleroi for low-cost carriers; Liège for freight |
|---|---|
| Airline | Brussels Airlines, since 2007 — the successor of Sabena (1923–2001) |
| Main port | Antwerp-Bruges — Antwerp and Zeebrugge merged in 2022; Ghent within North Sea Port |
| Railways | About 3,600 km (2,240 mi), run by SNCB/NMBS — among the densest networks in the world; the first railway on the European continent opened between Brussels and Mechelen on 5 May 1835 |
| High speed | Brussels-Midi the hub of Eurostar and Thalys services to Paris, London, Amsterdam and Cologne |
| Roads | About 155,000 km (96,000 mi); the motorways long lit end to end at night |
| Brussels Metro | Opened 1976 |
| Waterways | About 2,000 km (1,240 mi) — the Albert Canal, the Scheldt and the Meuse |
History in dates
| 57 BC | Caesar conquers the Belgae |
|---|---|
| 843 | The Treaty of Verdun divides the Belgian lands between West Francia and Lotharingia |
| 1384 | The Burgundian dukes begin uniting the Low Countries |
| 1585 | The fall of Antwerp; the southern Netherlands remain Spanish and Catholic |
| 1713 | The Austrian Netherlands, by the Treaty of Utrecht |
| 1795 | Annexed by revolutionary France |
| 1815 | Waterloo, 18 June; union with the Netherlands under William I |
| 1830 | The revolution begins at the Monnaie, 25 August; independence declared, 4 October |
| 1831 | The Constitution, 7 February; Leopold I takes the oath, 21 July |
| 1839 | The Treaty of London — independence and neutrality recognized |
| 1885 · 1908 | Leopold II's Congo Free State; annexed as the Belgian Congo |
| 1914 | Germany invades, 4 August |
| 1940 | The second invasion, 10 May |
| 1949 · 1957 | A founding member of NATO and of the European Economic Community |
| 1960 | Congolese independence, 30 June |
| 1993 | Belgium becomes a federal state |
| 2010–2011 | 541 days without a full government — a world record |
| 2013 | Philippe becomes king, 21 July |
| 2016 | The Brussels attacks, 22 March |
| 2025 | Bart De Wever sworn in, 3 February |
Records & firsts
| The continent's first railway | Brussels to Mechelen, 5 May 1835 |
|---|---|
| 541 days | The longest a democracy has gone without an elected government, 2010–11 |
| The oldest compulsory voting | Since 1893 |
| The diamond capital | Antwerp — most of the world's rough diamonds pass through it |
| The saxophone | Adolphe Sax of Dinant, patented 1846 |
| Bakelite | Leo Baekeland's first fully synthetic plastic, 1907 |
| The Big Bang | Georges Lemaître of Leuven proposed the expanding universe, 1927 |
| The Mercator projection | Gerardus Mercator of Rupelmonde, 1569 |
| Comics | Hergé's Tintin, Peyo's Smurfs, Lucky Luke — the comic-strip capital of Europe |
| Eddy Merckx | The most successful cyclist in history — 525 victories, five Tours de France |
| Two headquarters | The European Union and NATO, both in Brussels |
| The Atomium | The 102-meter iron crystal of the 1958 World's Fair |
Frequently asked questions
What is the official name of Belgium?
The Kingdom of Belgium — Koninkrijk België in Dutch, Royaume de Belgique in French, Königreich Belgien in German, its three official languages. The name goes back to the Belgae, the tribes Julius Caesar fought in 57 BC and called the bravest of the Gauls.
What is the capital of Belgium?
Brussels — the City of Brussels is the capital in law, and the Brussels-Capital Region of 19 municipalities is the country's largest urban area with about 1.25 million people. It is also the seat of the European Commission and Council and of NATO, and, informally, the capital of the European Union.
How big is Belgium, and how many people live there?
About 30,528 km² (11,787 sq mi) by the CIA World Factbook — Belgium's own survey gives 30,689 — roughly the size of Maryland, with about 11.9 million people: 11.86 million by Statbel on 1 January 2025, 11.96 million by the Factbook. At nearly 390 per km² it is among the most densely populated countries in Europe, and about 97 percent of Belgians live in towns.
What are the highest and lowest points of Belgium?
The Signal de Botrange in the High Fens of the Ardennes, 694 m (2,277 ft) — a six-meter tower on it lets visitors stand at 700 — is the highest point; the North Sea coast is the lowest, and the reclaimed polder of De Moeren lies about 3 m below sea level. Belgium runs from 66.5 km of sandy coast through the flat plains of Flanders to the rolling Ardennes.
What languages does Belgium speak?
Dutch, spoken by about 60 percent in Flanders and the language of the Flemish Community; French, by about 40 percent in Wallonia and much of Brussels; and German, by fewer than one percent in the east around Eupen. The country is divided into four language areas, and the language question shaped its federal constitution of 1993.
Who governs Belgium?
King Philippe, on the throne since 21 July 2013, is head of state; Prime Minister Bart De Wever of the New Flemish Alliance has led the federal government since 3 February 2025, heading the five-party "Arizona" coalition — N-VA, CD&V and Vooruit from Flanders, MR and Les Engagés from Wallonia — formed almost eight months after the election of 9 June 2024. Belgium is a federal state of three regions and three language communities.
World knowledge, A to Z — the flags of every country, the sciences, places, people and more.
We Value Your Opinion Comments