Netherlands Geography

Geography Of The Netherlands

The European Netherlands has a total area of 41,543 km2 (16,040 sq mi), including water bodies, and a land area of 33,481 km2 (12,927 sq mi). The Caribbean Netherlands has a total area of 328 km2 (127 sq mi) It lies between latitudes 50° and 54° N, and longitudes 3° and 8° E.

The Netherlands is geographically very low relative to sea level and is considered a flat country, with about 26% of its area and 21% of its population below sea level. The European part of the country is for the most part flat, with the exception of foothills in the far southeast, up to a height of no more than 322 m (1,056 ft) at the Vaalserberg, and some low hill ranges in the central parts. Most of the areas below sea level are caused by peat extraction or achieved through land reclamation. Since the late 16th century, large polder areas are preserved through elaborate drainage systems that include dikes, canals and pumping stations.

Much of the country was originally formed by the estuaries of three large European rivers: the Rhine (Rijn), the Meuse (Maas) and the Scheldt (Schelde), as well as their tributaries. The south-western part of the Netherlands is a river delta of these rivers, the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta.

The European Netherlands is divided into north and south parts by the Rhine, the Waal, its main tributary branch, and the Meuse. These rivers functioned as a natural barrier between fiefdoms and hence historically created a cultural divide, as is evident in some phonetic traits that are recognisable on either side of what the Dutch call their "Great Rivers" (de Grote Rivieren). Another significant branch of the Rhine, the IJssel river, discharges into Lake IJssel, the former Zuiderzee ('southern sea'). Just like the previous, this river forms a linguistic divide: people to the northeast of this river speak Dutch Low Saxon dialects (except for the province of Friesland, which has its own language).

The Netherlands Overview

The Netherlands Sovereign State: Kingdom of the Netherlands
The Netherlands Before Independence: Spanish Netherlands
The Netherlands Act of Abjuration: 26 July 1581
The Netherlands Peace of Münster: 30 January 1648
United Kingdom of the Netherlands 16 March 1815
The Netherlands Liberation Day: 5 May 1945
The Netherlands Kingdom Charter: 15 December 1954
The Netherlands Caribbean Reorganisation: 10 October 2010
The Netherlands Capital and Largest City: Amsterdam
The Netherlands Coordinates: 52°22′N 4°53′E
The Netherlands Government Seat: The Hague
The Netherlands Official Languages: Dutch
The Netherlands Regional Languages:
West Frisian, English
The Netherlands Recognised Languages:
Dutch Low Saxon, Dutch Sign Language, Limburgish, Sinte Romani, Yiddish
The Netherlands Ethnic Groups (2022):
74.0% Dutch
8.4% other Europeans
2.4% Turkish
2.4% Moroccan
2.1% Indonesians
2.1% Surinamese
1.1% Dutch Caribbean
7.6% other
The Netherlands Religion (2023):
58% no religion
30% Christianity
6% Islam
6% other
The Netherlands Demonym(s): Dutch
The Netherlands Government: Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
The Netherlands Monarch: Willem-Alexander
The Netherlands Prime Minister: Dick Schoof
The Netherlands Legislature: States General
The Netherlands Upper House: Senate
The Netherlands Lower House: House of Representatives
European Parliament
The Netherlands Constituency: 31 seats
Area Total: 41,865 km2 (16,164 sq mi) (134th)
The Netherlands Water (%): 18.41
The Netherlands Highest Elevation (Mount Scenery): 887 m (2,910 ft)
The Netherlands Population: Neutral Increase: 18,195,000 (69th)
(2011 census): 16,655,799
The Netherlands Density: 520/km2 (1,346.8/sq mi) (33rd)
The Netherlands GDP (PPP): Increase $1.329 trillion (28th)
The Netherlands Per Capita: Increase $74,158 (11th)
GDP (nominal) 2024 Estimate Total: Increase $1.143 trillion (17th)
The Netherlands Per capita Increase $63,750 (11th)
The Netherlands Currency:
Euro (€) (EUR) United States dollar (US$) (USD)
The Netherlands Time Zone:
UTC+01:00 (CET)UTC−04:00 (AST)
Summer (DST)
UTC+02:00 (CEST)UTC−04:00 (AST)
The Netherlands Driving Side: right
The Netherlands Calling Code: +31, +599
The Netherlands Internet TLD: .nl, .bq