Belgium Languages

Dutch, French, and German are the official languages of the Kingdom of Belgium. Several minority languages including English are also spoken. Dutch is considered the official language of the Flemish community and region. Both French and Dutch are the official languages of the Brussels-Capital Region. French is the second most used language, as it is used by about 40% of the population It is mostly used by the French community and as a second language by the Flemish people. German is considered a national language although it is used by less than one percent of Belgians. Dutch is a West Germanic language, with five vowels and twenty-one consonants.

A majority of Belgians (59%) are Flemish, 40% are French, and 1% are German. The Dutch dialects used in Belgium are Limburgish, West and East Flemish, and Brabantian. Some of the dialects are distant from the standard Dutch that they are non-intelligible to other Dutch speakers. The original Brabantian dialect used in Brussels has been diluted by the French language and is only used by a minority of the capital dwellers. A majority of German speakers in the parts seceded to Belgium by Germany under the Treaty of Versailles.

Much of the Dutch spoken in Belgium is not standard Dutch but instead dialects of the language. Brabantian is the most common dialect used. Brabantian contributed to the development of the standard Dutch. Some words such as houdoe ("take care"), were replaced by doei ("bye"). Belgian French is also slightly different from standard French, words such as septante for "seventy" and nonante for "ninety," in place of soixante-dix and quatre-vingt-dix.

Several minority languages are used in Belgium. Most of the minority languages are used as second and third languages. English is the largest minority language; it is used by 38% of Belgians as the second language while about 5% use Spanish as the second language. Italian is used by 1% as is Arabic and Yiddish.

This page was last modified on May 1st, 2018

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Published on 2019-11-06


Capital	Brussels
Languages	Dutch (official) 60%, French (official) 40%, German (official) less than 1%
Ethnic Groups	Belgian 75%, Italian 4.1%, Moroccan 3.7%, French 2.4%, Turkish 2%, Dutch 2%, other 12.8% (2011 est.)
Religion	Roman Catholic 50%, Protestant and other Christian 2.5%, Jewish 2.5%, Muslim 5%, Buddhist 0.3%, atheist 9.2%, none 32.6% (2009 est.)
Government	Federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy
Independance	4 October 1830 (a provisional government declared independence from the Netherlands); 21 July 1831 (King LEOPOLD I ascended to the throne)
Area	30,528.00 km²
Water Area	250.00 km²
Land Area	30,278.00 km²
Population	11,409,077.00 Most of the population concentrated in the northern two-thirds of the country; the southeast is more thinly populated; considered to have one of the highest population densities in the world; approximately 97% live in urban areas
Location	Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the Netherlands
No. Bordering Countries	4
Bordering Countries	France 556 km, Germany 133 km, Luxembourg 130 km, Netherlands 478 km
GDP(PPP)	$509,000,000,000.00 (USD)
GDP (Per Capita)	$44,900.00 (USD)
Export Partners	Its major export partners are Germany, France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom.
Export Commodities	Its main exports are chemicals, machinery and equipment, and finished diamonds.
Import Partners	Its major import partners are the Netherlands, Germany, and France.
Import Commodities	Its major imports include raw materials, machinery and equipment, and chemicals.
Climate	Temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy
Terrain	Flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast
Learn More	Belgium

Belgium Languages

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