39 Facts About Belgium

Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a small and densely populated country located in Western Europe. 

Belgium has an area of 30,528 square km. 

Brussels is capital and largest city of Belgium. 

Dutch, French, and German are all accepted as Belgium’s official languages. 

Belgium's official currency is Euro (€) (EUR). 

Belgium shares four borders with France, Germany, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.

Belgium is one of the European Union's six founding members.

Belgium's national flag was adopted in 1931. It's a tricolour with vertical black, yellow, and red stripes.

Belgium adopted the euro as its currency in 2002, replacing the Belgian franc. The euro is used by most European Union members, while a few EU countries retain their own currencies.

Belgium uses the metric system for all official weights and measures. It is a small but densely populated country, with a population of over eleven million people living in an area of just over 30,000 square kilometers.

The country is divided into three main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the northwest, the central plateau, and the Ardennes uplands in the southeast.

Belgium has three official languages. Dutch is spoken mainly in the north, French in the south, and a small community in the east speaks German. Most residents of Brussels use French as their main language, although the city is officially bilingual.

Belgium is highly industrialized and urbanized, and much of its land is low-lying and flat, with an average elevation of under two hundred meters above sea level.

Because of its strategic location, Belgium has often been a battleground for European powers and is sometimes called the “Battlefield of Europe,” especially due to the two World Wars.

Belgium is linked to major scientific ideas and inventions. The Big Bang theory was proposed by Belgian priest and physicist Georges Lemaître. The saxophone was invented by Adolphe Sax, and the concept of Body Mass Index (BMI) was developed by Belgian statistician Adolphe Quetelet.

Same-sex marriage has been legal in Belgium since 2003, making it one of the first countries in the world to recognize it. Euthanasia under strict legal conditions has also been permitted since 2002.

The Palace of Justice in Brussels is one of the largest court buildings ever constructed in the nineteenth century and remains one of the city’s most imposing landmarks.

Belgium has produced many famous athletes, including former world tennis number one Justine Henin. Cycling is extremely popular, and bicycles are widely used for short-distance travel.

The Belgian Coast Tram (Kusttram) is the world’s longest tram line, running along the entire Belgian coastline from the French border to the Netherlands.

The word “spa” comes from the Belgian town of Spa, which has been known for its mineral springs since Roman times.

Belgium has a long association with castles and fortifications, and thousands of historic castles and manor houses are scattered across the countryside.

Chocolate making has been important in Belgium since the seventeenth century. Today, the country produces large quantities of chocolate and is famous for its pralines and artisan chocolate shops.

Antwerp has been one of the world’s main centers of the diamond trade for centuries and remains one of the largest diamond districts on Earth.

Education in Belgium is compulsory until the age of 18, and literacy levels are very high.

One of the earliest printed newspapers in the world was produced in Antwerp in the early seventeenth century by Abraham Verhoeven, helping shape modern journalism.

Belgium is home to the world’s largest brewing company, and the country produces hundreds of different types of beer, many of them linked to monastic traditions.

Potato fries are widely believed to have originated in Belgium, and they are considered a national food, traditionally served with mayonnaise rather than ketchup.

Brussels Airport is one of the world’s largest retail outlets for chocolate.

Belgium’s flag uses the same colors as Germany’s—black, yellow, and red—but arranged vertically instead of horizontally.

Belgium is one of the smallest countries in the European Union and also one of the most politically important, as Brussels hosts the headquarters of the European Union and NATO.

The famous statue Manneken Pis, depicting a small boy urinating, is one of Brussels’ best-known symbols.

Voting in Belgium is compulsory, a policy designed to encourage high political participation.

Belgium has a very dense network of roads and railways, making its transport system one of the most developed in Europe.

The country is known for waffles, fries, chocolate, and beer, which together form an important part of its national identity and tourism appeal.

In the city of Ghent, there is a local tradition of celebrating new births with special public gestures, reflecting the strong role of community in Belgian culture.

Belgium’s main agricultural products include sugar beets, cereals, flax, chicory, and potatoes.

Coal once played a major role in Belgium’s industrial development, but most coal mines closed by the late twentieth century as reserves were exhausted and energy sources changed.

The Hallerbos, also known as the Blue Forest, becomes famous each spring when its woodland floor is covered with blooming bluebells, drawing visitors from across Europe.

Belgium also has unusual cultural institutions, including the Bibliotheca Wittockiana in Brussels, a museum dedicated to bookbinding and book arts.