Brussels hosts several of the EU's official seats as well as the headquarters of many major international elements such as NATO. Although the country is famous for its bureaucracy, getting married in Belgium is relatively easy. The translator does not need to be a certified professional but should be competent. However, the rain doesn't stop the country's population and they happily go about their daily business whether there's dating traditions in belgium or sunshine. Retrieved 31 May 2007. The processes, ceremonies and rights for same-sex couples are nearly identical to those for heterosexual couples, so unless otherwise stated the information below applies to both. However, it is usually, but not always possible for same-sex caballeros to get married in Belgium, even if their new status will not be recognised in their home country. Discoveries of coal in the hills of northern Wallonia led to the early industrialization of the area. This customary etiquette matches perfectly with the European style of. Archived from PDF on 14 Una 2007. After walking up the aisle, she gives the first to her own mother, and embraces her. The nation's cultural diversity has been enriched by international and local immigration.
Gallia Belgica was the Romans' name for the northern part of Gaul, the northern limit of their empire. In early modern times, the name was used as an erudite synonym for the Low Countries. After the 1830 revolution and the establishment of an independent kingdom, Belgium became the official name of the country. The country is located at the western end of the northern European plain, covering an area of 11,780 square miles 30,510 square kilometers ; the neighboring states are France, Luxembourg, Germany, and the Netherlands. The two main rivers are the Schelde and the Meuse, both of which begin in France and flow toward the Netherlands. The land rises progressively toward the south. Flanders northern part of the country is less hilly than Wallonia southern part. The German-speaking population lives at the borders with Germany and Luxembourg. Discoveries of coal in the hills of northern Wallonia led to the early industrialization of the area. Belgium is one of the most urbanized and densely inhabited countries in the world with about 97 percent of the 10 million inhabitants living in cities in 2000. Brussels, the capital, has approximately 1 million residents, and the second city, Antwerp, has half a million. The central and northern parts of the country are covered by a dense network of medium-size and small cities, and people may live in one city and work in another. Around 55 percent of the population lives in Flanders, 35 percent in Wallonia, and 10 percent in Brussels. The nation's cultural diversity has been enriched by international and local immigration. The high numbers of Flemish names in the south and Walloon names in the north indicate long time internal mobility. In the last hundred years the most important immigrant groups were Jews who form a sizable community in Antwerp; Poles, who came in the early 1930s and after the fall of communism; Italians in the 1930s and 1950s ; and North Africans and Turks, who arrived in the 1960s. There are many recent immigrants from other countries in the European Union as well as many expatriates working in or around European Union institutions and NATO headquarters. The percentage of noncitizens in the population is high at 15 percent nationally and 28 percent in Brussels. The main languages are Dutch and French; they are also the joint official languages. Although German is also recognized as the third national language, it is not used frequently in the national administration. French was introduced as the language of the political elite by feudal lords of French origin, particularly the dukes of Burgundy, who choose Brussels as their main city of residence. In the eighteenth century, French was widely adopted by the bourgeoisie, and in 1830, it was adopted as the official language. Through education and social promotion, French replaced the local dialects in Wallonia and Brussels, but it was not as widely adopted in Flanders. In Wallonia, a series of Romance dialects rather than a single language were widely spoken but never had official status. Brussels was originally a Flemish city, but the influence of French has always been strongest here, and only a tenth of the population speak Dutch. The language spoken in Flanders is Dutch, which is commonly called Flemish. The Taalunie, an official institution, guarantees the international unity of the Dutch language. There is a great diversity of Flemish dialects which differ in vocabulary and pronunciation. French is still spoken in Flanders by some people in the upper and upper middle Belgium classes as well as along the linguistic border and around Brussels. The presence of important Francophone minorities in some parts of Flanders has been the source of political conflicts and led in the 1980s to the resignation of several central governments. Political symbolism differs with the region and the sociopolitical environment. The strongest national symbols are the Monarchy and the national soccer team. The national anthem, the Brabançonne , is not taught in schools and not widely known. It was later changed to a milder version that placed obedience to king and law on the same footing as liberty. Symbols are more numerous and more powerful in the Flemish political culture than in the other parts of the country or the nation as a whole. Much of the mythology in Flanders involves the Lion of Flanders. The lion has been the symbol of the counts of Flanders since the Crusades, and became the symbol of Flemish emancipation since independence. The Flemish national day celebrates the victory of the Flemish militias over the royal French army at the Battle of the Golden Spurs, named after the trophies collected from slain French knights. The Flemish national anthem the Vlaamse leeuw was composed in 1847. It was adopted as the Flemish movement's anthem in 1900 and became the official anthem of the Flemish community in 1973. Other strong Flemish symbols are the National Song Feast ANZ held annually in Antwerp since the early 1930s, in which Flemish songs are mixed with modern expressions of culture. On the last Sunday of August, the Flemish movement gathers in a pilgrimage at World War I battlefields. Because of the Christian roots of the Flemish movement, the main slogan associated with this has a strong religious connotation. The Walloon movement borrowed the rooster from France as a cultural symbol. The Francophone commu
