Belgium | Wikipedia audio article

This is an audio version of the Wikipedia Article:
Belgium


00:04:08 1 History
00:04:17 1.1 Pre-independent Belgium
00:06:25 1.2 Independent Belgium
00:10:15 2 Geography
00:13:48 2.1 Provinces
00:14:11 3 Politics
00:15:32 3.1 Political culture
00:20:30 3.2 Communities and regions
00:23:09 3.3 Locus of policy jurisdiction
00:25:22 3.4 Foreign relations
00:25:55 3.5 Armed forces
00:27:20 4 Economy
00:32:52 4.1 Science and technology
00:34:59 5 Demographics
00:36:27 5.1 Migration
00:38:23 5.2 Functional urban areassup[133]/sup
00:38:33 5.3 Languages
00:40:27 5.4 Religion
00:44:32 5.5 Health
00:46:15 5.6 Education
00:47:32 6 Culture
00:48:19 6.1 Fine arts
00:51:53 6.2 Folklore
00:53:00 6.3 Cuisine
00:54:01 6.4 Sports
00:56:03 7 See also



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"The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing."
- Socrates



SUMMARY
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Belgium officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Western Europe bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the southwest, and the North Sea to the northwest. It covers an area of 30,528 square kilometres (11,787 sq mi) and has a population of more than 11.4 million. The capital and largest city is Brussels; other major cities are Antwerp, Ghent, Charleroi and Liège.
The sovereign state of Belgium is a federal constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. Its institutional organisation is complex and is structured on both regional and linguistic grounds. It is divided into three highly autonomous regions: Flanders in the north, Wallonia in the south, and the Brussels-Capital Region. Brussels is both the smallest and richest region in terms of GDP per capita. It is also the most densely populated area in Belgium.
Belgium is home to two main linguistic groups or Communities: the Dutch-speaking, mostly Flemish Community, which constitutes about 59 percent of the population, and the French-speaking Community, which comprises about 40 percent of all Belgians. Additionally, a small German-speaking Community, numbering around one percent, exists in the East Cantons. The Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual (French and Dutch), although French is the dominant language of the population. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political conflicts are reflected in its political history and complex system of governance, made up of six different governments.
Historically, Belgium was part of an area known as the Low Countries, a somewhat larger region than the current Benelux group of states that also included parts of northern France and western Germany. Its name is derived from the Latin word Belgica, after the Roman province of Gallia Belgica. From the end of the Middle Ages until the 17th century, the area of Belgium was a prosperous and cosmopolitan centre of commerce and culture. Between the 16th and early 19th centuries, Belgium served as the battleground between many European powers, earning the moniker the "Battlefield of Europe", a reputation strengthened by both world wars. The country emerged in 1830 following the Belgian Revolution when it seceded from the Netherlands.
Belgium participated in the Industrial Revolution
and, during the course of the 20th century, possessed a number of colonies in Africa. The second half of the 20th century was marked by rising tensions between the Dutch-speaking and the French-speaking citizens fueled by differences in language and culture and the unequal economic development of Flanders and Wallonia. This continuing antagonism has led to several far-reaching reforms, resulting in a transition from a unitary to a federal arrangement during the period from 1970 to 1993. Despite the reforms, tensions between the groups have remained, if not increased; there is significant separatism particularly among the Flemish; controversial language laws exist such as the municipalities with language facilities; and the formation of a coalition government took 18 months following the June 2010 federal election, a world record. Unemployment in Wallonia is more than do ...