10 Funny Facts About The Netherlands

1. More than a quarter of the Netherlands is below sea level. In addition to that, 50% of its land lies less than one meter above sea level. Schiphol is actually 4.5 meters below sea level. Luckily, the Netherlands is not in a tsunami-prone part of the world.

2. Dutch people are the tallest in the world
With an average height of 184 cm for men and 170 cm for women, Dutchies are the tallest people in the world. Scientists say it's because of their DNA, nutrition and welfare, others say it's because of their copious consumption of dairy.

3. The Netherlands is the most densely populated nation in Europe
With 487 inhabitants per square kilometer, the Netherlands has the highest population density of any European country with more than 1 million inhabitants.

4. Flat as a pancake
The Netherlands is a very flat country. The Vaalserberg is the highest point in (the European part of) the Netherlands. It's only 322.7 meters high and located in the south-easternmost edge of the country in the province of Limburg.

5. Amsterdam is built entirely on poles
Because Amsterdam's soil consists of a thick layer of fen and clay, all buildings are built on wooden poles that are fixed in a sandy layer that is 11 meters deep on average. The Royal Palace at Dam Square is built on no less than 13,659 wooden poles.

6. Turkish Tulips
Tulips, tulip fields and flower bulbs are typically Dutch. Yet, tulips do not originate from the Netherlands. The first tulip bulbs were imported from Turkey to the Netherlands, where they proved to grow extremely well on Dutch soil.

7. About 30% of all Dutch babies are born at home
Internationally, it's customary to give birth in a hospital. Not in the Netherlands: about 30% of all Dutch births happen at home.

8. Dutchies love their coffee
After Scandinavians, the Dutch are the world's biggest coffee drinkers. They drink no less than 140 liters of coffee a year on average. That's 3.2 cups a day!

9. 86% of Dutchies speak English as a second language
All Dutch kids learn English in school and visitors to Amsterdam are often impressed with the fluency with which the Dutch speak English.

10. The Nederlands is the largest beer exporter in the world
In 2001, Dutch beer companies exported an astonishing volume of 1.3 billion liters of beer abroad. Half of that was shipped to the U.S.!

Bonnefanten Museum Maastricht

The Bonnefanten Museum is a museum of fine art in Maastricht, Netherlands.

History
The museum was founded in 1884 as the historical and archaeological museum of the Dutch province of Limburg. The name Bonnefanten Museum is derived from the French 'bons enfants' ('good children'), the popular name of a former convent that housed the museum from 1951 until 1978.

In 1995, the museum moved to its present location, a former industrial site named 'Céramique'. The new building was designed by the Italian architect Aldo Rossi. With its rocket-shaped cupola overlooking the river Maas, it is one of Maastricht's most prominent modern buildings.

Since 1999, the museum has become exclusively an art museum. The historical and archaeological collections were housed elsewhere. The museum is largely funded by the province of Limburg.

In 2009, the museum celebrated its 125th anniversary with the exhibition Exile on Main Street. In 2012, Stijn Huijts became director.

Collection
The combination of old art and contemporary art under one roof gives the Bonnefanten Museum its distinctive character. The department of old masters is located on the first floor and displays highlights of early Italian, Flemish and Dutch painting. Exhibited on the same floor is the museum's extensive collection of Medieval sculpture. The contemporary art collection is exhibited on the second floor and focuses on American Minimalism, Italian Arte Povera and Concept Art. The second and third floors are also used for temporary exhibitions.

Old Art
The collection old art of the Bonnefanten Museum consist of four main sections:

-Wooden sculptures dating from the 13th till 16th century (notably by Jan van Steffeswert and the Master of Elsloo);
-The so-called Neutelings collection of medieval art, consisting of artifacts made of wood, bronze, marble, alabaster and ivory from the Southern Netherlands, France, England and the German Lower Rhine region;
-Italian paintings from the 14th and 15th centuries: Giovanni del Biondo, Domenico di Michelino, Jacopo del Casentino, Sano di Pietro, Pietro Nelli;
-Flemish and Dutch paintings from the 16th and 17th centuries: Colijn de Coter, Jan Mandyn, Jan Provost, Roelandt Savery, Pieter Coecke van Aelst, Pieter Aertsen, Pieter Brueghel the Younger, David Teniers II, Peter Paul Rubens, Jacob Jordaens, Hendrik van Steenwijk II, Gérard de Lairesse, Wallerant Vaillant, Melchior d'Hondecoeter and Jan Van Goyen.

Contemporary Art
Since Alexander van Grevenstein became director in 1986, the Bonnefanten Museum has focused mainly on contemporary art. In 2006, an important long-term loan from the Belgian architect Charles Vandenhove and his wife greatly strengthened the museum's collection of postwar art. The main focus of the permanent collection is now on:

-École de Paris, Art informel and COBRA: Roger Bissière, Alfred Manessier, Antonio Saura, Pierre Alechinsky, Christian Dotremont, Asger Jorn, Karel Appel;
-Conceptual art: Jan Dibbets, Marcel Broodthaers, Daniel Buren, Christo, Christian Boltanski, Bernd and Hilla Becher, Joseph Beuys, Bruce Nauman, Gilbert and George, Barry Flanagan;
-Minimal Art: Sol LeWitt, Robert Ryman, Robert Mangold, Richard Serra;
-Arte Povera: Luciano Fabro, Mario Merz, Jannis Kounellis;
-Neo-expressionism: Hermann Nitsch, Arnulf Rainer, Anselm Kiefer, Neo Rauch, Antoni Tàpies, Peter Doig, Gary Hume, Luc Tuymans, Marlene Dumas;

The collection also features video art and room-size installations by younger artists: Atelier Van Lieshout, Francis Alÿs, David Claerbout, Patrick Van Caeckenbergh, Roman Signer, Franz West, Pawel Althamer.

In 2011, a deal was negotiated between the collectors Jo and Marlies Eyck and the province of Limburg. The result was that the Eyck collection of postwar art and the castle of Wijlre and its grounds, are now part of the museum.

http://www.bonnefanten.nl/en

South Holland

South Holland is a province situated on the North Sea in the western part of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is The Hague and its largest city is Rotterdam.

South Holland is one of the most densely populated and industrialised areas in the world. With a population of 3,502,595 (30 November 2009) and an area of 3,403 km², the province has the highest population density in the Netherlands.

HistoryFor more on the history of South Holland in the context of Dutch history, see the article on the "History of the Netherlands". The history of this province can also be found in the articles on its constituent elements (e.g. Rotterdam, the Hague, etc.) The information here pertains just to South Holland itself.

Before 1795
For most of its history, the modern-day province of South Holland was an integral part of Holland.

From the 9th century to the 16th century, Holland was a county of the Holy Roman Empire, and was ruled by the counts of Holland. Some of the counts were powerful magnates who also ruled many other territories, culminating in a period of rule by the House of Habsburg which was terminated by the Dutch Revolt.

From the 16th century to 1795, Holland was the wealthiest and most important province in the United Provinces in the Dutch Republic. As the richest and most powerful province, Holland dominated the union. During this period a distinction was sometimes made between the "North Quarter" (Noorderkwartier) and the "South Quarter" (Zuiderkwartier), areas that roughly correspond to the two modern provinces.

The emergence of a new province (1795 to 1840)
The province of South Holland as it is today has its origins in the period of French rule from 1795 to 1813. This was a time of bewildering changes to the Dutch system of provinces. In 1795 the old order was swept away and the Batavian Republic was established. In the Constitution enacted on 23 April 1798, the old borders were radically changed. The republic was reorganised into eight departments (département) with roughly equal populations. Holland was split up into five departments named "Texel", "Amstel", "Delf", "Schelde en Maas", and "Rijn". The first three of these lay within the borders of the old Holland; the latter two were made up of parts of different provinces. In 1801 the old borders were restored when the department of Holland was created. This reorganisation had been short-lived, but it gave birth to the concept of breaking up Holland and making it a less powerful province.

In 1807, Holland was reorganised once again. This time the two departments were called "Maasland" (corresponding to the modern province of South Holland) and "Amstelland" (corresponding to the modern province of North Holland). This also did not last long. In 1810, all the Dutch provinces were integrated into the French Empire. Maasland was renamed "Monden van de Maas" (Bouches-de-la-Meuse in French). Amstelland and Utrecht were amalgamated as the department of "Zuiderzee" (Zuyderzée in French).

After the defeat of the French in 1813, this organisation remained unchanged for a year or so. When the 1814 Constitution was introduced, the country was reorganised as provinces and regions (landschappen). Monden van de Maas and Zuiderzee were reunited as the province of "Holland".

However, the division was not totally reversed. When the province of Holland was re-established in 1814, it was given two governors, one for the former department of Maasland (i.e. the area that is now South Holland) and one for the former department of Amstelland (i.e. the area that is now North Holland). Even though the province had been reunited, the two areas were still being treated differently in some ways and the idea of dividing Holland remained alive.

When the constitutional amendments were introduced in 1840, it was decided to split Holland once again, this time into two provinces called "South Holland" and "North Holland". The impetus came largely from Amsterdam in North Holland, which still resented the 1838 relocation of the court of appeal to the Hague in South Holland.

1840 to today
Since 1840, South Holland has ceded three municipalities to the province of Utrecht: Oudewater in 1970, Woerden in 1989, and Vianen in 2002.

In the period 2004 to 2006, there was a municipal reorganisation.

On 1 January 2004 the municipalities De Lier, 's-Gravenzande, Monster, Naaldwijk and Wateringen were merged into a new municipality Westland, and Maasland and Schipluiden to another one, Midden-Delfland.
*On 1 January 2006 Sassenheim, Voorhout and Warmond were merged into Teylingen, and Rijnsburg and Valkenburg were merged into Katwijk.
*On 1 January 2007 Ter Aar and Liemeer were merged into Nieuwkoop, Bleiswijk, Berkel en Rodenrijs and Bergschenhoek were merged into a new municipallity Lansingerland and 's-Gravendeel was merged into Binnenmaas.
*On 18 March 2010 Rozenburg was merged into Rotterdam.

Municipalities
South Holland is divided into 72 municipalities. In the Netherlands a municipality (gemeente) may consist of a single city or town or it may consist of a number of smaller towns and villages.

Municipalities
A to H
    Alblasserdam [1]
    Albrandswaard [2]
    Alphen aan den Rijn [3]
    Barendrecht [4]
    Bergambacht [5]
    Bernisse [6]
    Binnenmaas
    Bodegraven-Reeuwijk [7]
    Boskoop [8]
    Brielle [9]
    Capelle aan den IJssel [10]
    Cromstrijen [11]
    Delft [12]
    Den Haag
    Dirksland [13]
    Dordrecht [14]
    Giessenlanden [15]
    Goedereede [16]
    Gorinchem [17]
    Gouda [18]
    Graafstroom
    Hardinxveld-Giessendam [19]
    Hellevoetsluis [20]
    Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht [21]
    Hillegom [22]
J to P
    Kaag en Braassem
    Katwijk [23]
    Korendijk [24]
    Krimpen aan den IJssel [25]
    Lansingerland
    Leerdam [26]
    Leiden [27]
    Leiderdorp [28]
    Leidschendam-Voorburg [29]
    Liesveld
    Lisse [30]
    Maassluis [31]
    Middelharnis [32]
    Midden-Delfland
    Nederlek [33]
    Nieuw-Lekkerland [34]
    Nieuwkoop [35]
    Noordwijk [36]
    Noordwijkerhout [37]
    Oegstgeest [38]
    Oostflakkee [39]
    Oud-Beijerland [40]
    Ouderkerk [41]
    Papendrecht [42]
    Pijnacker-Nootdorp
R to Z
    Ridderkerk [43]
    Rijnwoude [44]
    Rijswijk [45]
    Rotterdam
    Schiedam [46]
    Schoonhoven [47]
    Sliedrecht [48]
    Spijkenisse [49]
    Strijen [50]
    Teylingen
    Vlaardingen [51]
    Vlist [52]
    Voorschoten [53]
    Waddinxveen [54]
    Wassenaar [55]
    Westland [56]
    Westvoorne [57]
    Zederik [58]

North Holland

North Holland is a province situated on the North Sea in the northwest of the Netherlands. The provincial capital is Haarlem and its largest city is Amsterdam.

North Holland is a broad peninsula for the most part, located between the North Sea, Markermeer and the IJsselmeer. More than half of the province consists of reclaimed polder land situated below sea level.

North Holland has four municipalities with 100,000 or more inhabitants. They are, in order of size, Amsterdam (in terms of population this is also the largest municipality in the Netherlands), Haarlem, Zaanstad, and Haarlemmermeer. Another seven municipalities have a population between 50,000 and 100,000 inhabitants (i.e. Hilversum, Amstelveen, Purmerend, Hoorn, Velsen, Alkmaar, and Heerhugowaard.) The island of Texel is also part of North Holland.

Before 1795
For most of its history, the modern-day province of North Holland was an integral part of Holland.

From the 9th century to the 16th century, Holland was a county ruled by the counts of Holland. During this period an area known as West Friesland (now part of North Holland) was conquered and integrated into Holland. For centuries afterwards Holland would be officially called "Holland and West Friesland". The people of West Friesland had (and still have) a strong sense of identity as a region within Holland (and later North Holland).

From the 16th century to 1795, Holland was the wealthiest and most important province in the United Provinces in the Dutch Republic. As the richest and most powerful province, Holland dominated the union. During this period a distinction was sometimes made between the "North Quarter" (Noorderkwartier) and the "South Quarter" (Zuiderkwartier), areas that roughly correspond to the two modern provinces.

The emergence of a new province (1795 to 1840)
The province of North Holland as it is today has its origins in the period of French rule from 1795 to 1813. This was a time of bewildering changes to the Dutch system of provinces. In 1795 the old order was swept away and the Batavian Republic was established. In the Constitution enacted on 23 April 1798, the old borders were radically changed. The republic was reorganised into eight departments (département) with roughly equal populations. Holland was split up into five departments named "Texel", "Amstel", "Delf", "Schelde en Maas", and "Rijn". The first three of these lay within the borders of the old Holland; the latter two were made up of parts of different provinces. In 1801 the old borders were restored when the department of Holland was created. This reorganisation had been short-lived, but it gave birth to the concept of breaking up Holland and making it a less powerful province.

In 1807, Holland was reorganised once again. This time the two departments were called "Amstelland" (corresponding to the modern province of North Holland) and "Maasland" (corresponding to the modern province of South Holland). This also did not last long. In 1810, all the Dutch provinces were integrated into the French Empire. Amstelland and Utrecht were amalgamated as the department of "Zuiderzee" (Zuyderzée in French) and Maasland was renamed "Monden van de Maas" (Bouches-de-la-Meuse in French).

After the defeat of the French in 1813, this organisation remained unchanged for a year or so. When the 1814 Constitution was introduced, the country was reorganised as provinces and regions (landschappen). Zuiderzee and Monden van de Maas were reunited as the province of "Holland". One of the ministers on the constitutional committee (van Maanen) suggested that the old name "Holland and West Friesland" be reintroduced to respect the feelings of the people of that region. This proposal was rejected.

However, the division was not totally reversed. When the province of Holland was re-established in 1814, it was given two governors, one for the former department of Amstelland (i.e. the area that is now North Holland) and one for the former department of Maasland (i.e. now South Holland). Even though the province had been reunited, the two areas were still being treated differently in some ways and the idea of dividing Holland remained alive. (During this reorganisation the islands of Vlieland and Terschelling were returned to Holland and parts of "Hollands Brabant" (including "Land of Altena") went to North Brabant. The borders with Utrecht and Gelderland were definitively set in 1820.)

When the constitutional amendments were introduced in 1840, it was decided to split Holland once again, this time into two provinces called "North Holland" and "South Holland". The need for this was not felt in South Holland or in West Friesland (which feared the dominance of Amsterdam). The impetus came largely from Amsterdam, which still resented the 1838 relocation of the court of appeal to The Hague in South Holland.

1840 to today
After the Haarlemmermeer was drained in 1855 and turned into arable land, it was made part of North Holland. In exchange, South Holland received the greater part of the municipality of Leimuiden in 1864.

In 1942, the islands Vlieland and Terschelling went back to the province of Friesland.

In 1950, the former island Urk was ceded to the province of Overijssel.

In February 2011, North Holland, together with the provinces of Utrecht and Flevoland, showed a desire to investigate the feasibility of a merger between the three provinces.[2] This has been positively received by the Dutch cabinet, for the desire to create one Randstad province has already been mentioned in the coalition agreement.[3] The province of South Holland, part of the Randstad urban area, visioned to be part of the Randstad province,[4] and very much supportive of the idea of a merger into one province, is not named. With or without South Holland, if created, the new province would be the largest in the Netherlands in both area and population.

Regions in North Holland

North Holland has various regions that, for historical or other reasons, have their own identities. Some of these regions are unofficial, ill-defined and sometimes overlapping. Others are official and are part of regional groupings artificially created for various administrative purposes. These regions are not the same as the municipalities.

List of some of these unofficial and official regions in North Holland:

    Amstelland (the area around the Amstel) (prov. North Holland)
    Beemster (North Holland)
    Bollenstreek (the flower areas found in both North Holland and South Holland)
    Het Gooi (usually "Het Gooi" or "'t Gooi", North Holland)
    Groene Hart (North Holland, South Holland and Utrecht)
    Haarlemmermeer (North Holland)
    Holland (North Holland and South Holland)
    IJmond ("The Mouth of the IJ")
    Kennemerland (North Holland)
    Purmer (North Holland)
    Kop van Noord-Holland
    Noorderkwartier ("The North Quarter")
    Noordvleugel ("The North Wing")
    Randstad (North Holland, South Holland, Utrecht and Flevoland)
    Schermer (North Holland)
    De Streek (North Holland)
    Texel (North Holland)
    Utrechtse Heuvelrug (Utrecht and North Holland)
    Vechtstreek ("The Vecht Area") (Utrecht and North Holland)
    Waterland (now effectively the municipality of Waterland, North Holland)
    West-Friesland (North Holland)
    Wieringen (North Holland)
    Wieringermeer (North Holland)
    Wijdewormer (De Wormer, North Holland)
    Zaanstreek ("The Zaan Area") (North Holland)