Belgium is a small European country that is known for its quintessential beauty. We all have heard about the famous Belgian waffles, or the famous Belgian chocolate, or the famous Belgian beer. But this country is lot more than that. Belgium has occupied a special place in the bucket list of travelers from all across the world for long. Once you visit this place the historical cities are going to enchant you. There is also a fun and interesting side of Belgium which we would like to show.
In this blog we have listed some of the most fun and most bizarre facts about Belgium that we bet you must not know about. So if you are planning to visit this beautiful country, or just want to prepare for a trivia night here are the facts about Belgium you need to know.
1 – Belgium didn’t had any government twice
Belgium had withstood itself without a government twice. Yes this means that there was no government in the country for two time periods. Belgium do have a parliamentary system and also a federal constitutional monarchy. But in year 2010, it went through without a government for 541 days, and then in year 2019-2020 it again went through without a government for straight 562 days.
2 – Belgium has three official languages
Belgium has three official language, Dutch, French and German. Majority of the Belgian folks speak French and German. So apparently Belgium has no language of its own.
3 – Belgian cities have two names
Most of the Belgian cities have two names. Yes one in Dutch and one in French. It can get confusing at times, but the names do not vary, they are just changed in the language spoken in that region.
4 – Five Belgian cities have well preserved walls
Belgium is home to five cities that still have well preserved city walls. They were made back in history to protect the city from invaders. In present day they also have the status of being UNESCO World Heritage sites. These five cities are Antwerp, Bruges, Brussels, Ghent, and Leuven.
5 – Brussels have worlds biggest legal court
Palace of Justice which is located in Brussels is the world’s biggest court. It is also called as Law Court of Brussels. It has Greco Roman architecture and is a must visit site when here.
6 – Karl Marx wrote communist manifesto while living in Belgium
The communist manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels was written while they were living in Belgium. Their idea was clear to over throw the capitalist governments. At that time their base was Brussels, which is now home to many organizations like NATO, and EU.
7 – First ever french fries stand was opened in Belgium
The first ever French Fries stand of the world was opened in Belgium in 1863. Interestingly, the Belgian people eat French fries with mayonnaise instead of ketchup.
8 – French Fries were invented in Belgium
Belgium was the country where French fries were invented. It happened during the battle of Waterloo. The most popular dish of Belgians is Fries which is served with mussels, and eaten along with mayonnaise. It is even their national dish and is called Moules Frites.
9 – Belgium has highest per capita consumption of french fries
Belgian people are the world’s biggest consumer of French fries. Yes apart from inventing them, loving them, they also eat a lot of them. On an average every Belgian eats around 25 kilograms of fries every year.
10 – Belgium is home to more than 500 varieties of chocolate
We all know that Belgium is known for its chocolates, and every year it produces more than 200,000 tons of chocolate. It is also noteworthy that Belgium is home to more than 2000 chocolate brands. Belgium is also known to have more than 500 varieties of chocolate.
11 – There are no Christmas Holidays in Belgium
Belgian people do not have Christmas holidays. They do celebrate Christmas but as a religious event. For them it is not Santa Claus but Saint Nicholas that brings gift for the children on 5th of December.
12 – Antwerp is the diamond capital of the world
Belgium’s second largest city, Antwerp is the diamond capital of the world. It is estimated that entire world’s 85% of rough diamonds are cut and polished here before making it to stores.
13 – Brussels Sprout was an accidental invention
The popular Brussels sprout were accidently invented by a Flemish farmer in 1720. He threw the seeds and they automatically started to grow, resulting in sprouts.
14 – There are more than 1500 types of beers in Belgium
Belgium is home to more than 1500 types of beers. There is a saying that a Belgian will drink a glass of beer every day that sums to 20 gallons per year. The love of beer by Belgians is also protected by UNESCO. There are many breweries in Belgium that do tours and have become tourist spots.
15 – Belgian people love football
Belgian people love football. They call their national team as Belgian Red Devils. Belgium was also the first European country to have team sent in the Football world cup back in 1904.
16 – Tin Tin and smurfs were created in Belgium
Tin Tin the popular comic character was created in Belgium. The country also boasts of having the maximum professional comic creators per kilometer. Along with Tin Tin, smurfs was also created in Belgium. The capital city Brussels is also home to world’s largest comic book museum. Even Ghent also has a museum dedicated to comics with collection of over 9000 pieces.
17 – More than 97% of the belgians live in the city
Belgium also boasts to have some of highest density of urban population. More than 97% of the Belgians live in a city. It is one of the most urbanized countries of Europe.
18 – Worlds smallest town is in Belgium
Durbuy, a town in Belgium is the world’s smallest town. The geographical area of this town is spread across 0.82 square kilometers. Despite being small, it houses, castles, chapels, and abbeys.
19 – There is a Belgian town named Spa
There is a town named spa in Belgium. This was the place where ancient Romans used to come to soak and bathe in thermal springs. It was from this place the name spa originated and gave birth to an entire wellness and spa industry.
20 – Belgians celebrate a flower carpet event
Belgians also have flower carpet event, in which they create a carpet of colorful begonias, at the Grand palace in Brussels. This event happens in August.
21 – University of Ghent is one of worlds oldest
The University of Ghent in Belgium is one of the oldest University in Europe. It was founded in 1817.
22 – Belgium is a leading producer of Billiard Balls
Belgium is also known to produce 80% of the entire world’s supply of Billiard Balls. From 1923, Saluc AC has a chemical plant that specializes in producing phenolic resin used to make the balls.
23 – Audrey Hepburn was born in Brussels
Audrey Hepburn the popular British actress was born in Brussels Belgium. She had known to even star in many of the Hollywood films along side biggest actors of her time.
24 – Saxophones were invented in Belgium
Adolphe Sax a Belgian was the man who invented Saxophone. In city of Dinant there is also a museum dedicated to Adolphe Sax and the rich history of Saxophones in the country.
25 – Europe’s oldest graveyard is in Belgium
St. Peters church in Belgium is home to the Europe’s oldest graveyard. Its history dates back to 900 AD. The church is located near Brussels in Halle.
26 – Belgium has highest number of castles per square kilometer
Belgium has most number of castles per square kilometer than any country in the world.
27 – Big Bang Theory was originated in Belgium
Big Bang theory is believed to be originated in Belgium. The history dates back to 1927. The man behind it was Georges Lemaitre, who was a priest and a physicist. But it was in 1960’s when The Big Bang Theory was accepted by scientists. Back in the day, Einstein even commented on this theory by saying, ‘This is the most detailed and satisfactory explanation of creation which I’ve ever listened to.’
28 – Belgium has one of the highest income tax rates in Europe
The income tax rates in Belgium are around 42%, which is one of the highest in Europe. This is despite the high cost of living in Belgium. But easy and affordable access to groceries, housing, and government programs makes it easy for Belgians to live a good life.
29 – There are more than 40 chocolate stores alone in Brussels Airport
Brussels airport is regarded as the biggest chocolate outlet in the world. It houses more than 40 chocolate stores. It is estimated that every day 2 tons of chocolate are sold here.
30 – 15 percent of the Belgian population is consisted of immigrants
Belgium is also known to grant most number of citizenships per capita in the world. It is estimated that around 15% of the Belgian population is consisted of immigrants.
31 – Europe’s oldest shopping arcade is located in Brussels
Galeries St Hubert which is located in Brussels, is the Europe’s oldest shopping arcade. IT was built around 1847. It was built to protect the traders from snow and rain. It is the reason why it has glass ceiling. In present times there are more than 100 stores in this arcade.
Travel to the land of chocolates and waffles!
