Religions: Roman Catholic 75%, Protestant or other 25%
Languages: Dutch 56%, French 32%, German 1%, legally bilingual 11%
(divided along ethnic lines)
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1980 est.)
total population: 99%
male: NA%
female: NA%
Government —————
Name of country:
conventional long form: Kingdom of Belgium
conventional short form: Belgium
local long form: Royaume de Belgique
local short form: Belgique
Data code: BE
Type of government: constitutional monarchy
Capital: Brussels
Administrative divisions: 9 provinces (French: provinces, singular - province; Flemish: provincien, singular - provincie); Antwerpen, Brabant, Hainaut, Liege, Limburg, Luxembourg, Namur, Oost-Vlaanderen, West-Vlaanderen note: constitutional reforms passed by Parliament in 1993 increased the number of provinces to 10 by splitting the province of Brabant into two new provinces, Flemish Brabant and Walloon Brabant
Independence: 4 October 1830 (from the Netherlands)