问题描述：
关于比利时的英文简介
越多越好,和比利时朋友谈的话题
越多越好,和比利时朋友谈的话题
问题解答：
我来补答
The Kingdom of Belgium (Dutch: Koninkrijk België; French: Royaume de Belgique; German: Königreich Belgien) is a country in northwest Europe bordered by the Netherlands, Germany, Luxembourg and France and is one of the founding and core members of the European Union. Belgium has a population of over ten million people, in an area of around 30,000 square kilometres (11,700 square miles).
Straddling the cultural boundary between Germanic and Romance Europe, it is linguistically divided. Mainly two languages are spoken in Belgium: Dutch is spoken by the 6 million people in Flanders to the north, French by the 3.3 million Walloons in the south. The capital, Brussels, is officially bilingual, while the majority of its residents speak French. Around 70,000 people live in the German-speaking Community in the east of the country. This linguistic diversity often leads to political and cultural conflict and is reflected in Belgium's complex system of government and political history.
Belgium derives its name from the Latin name of the most northern part of Gaul, Gallia Belgica, named after a group of mostly Celtic tribes, Belgae. Historically, Belgium has been a part of the Low Countries, which also include the Netherlands and Luxembourg and used to cover a somewhat larger region than the current Benelux group of states. From the end of the Middle Ages until the seventeenth century, it was a prosperous centre of commerce and culture. From the sixteenth century until the Belgian revolution in 1830, Belgium, at that time called the Southern Netherlands, was the site of many battles between the European powers, and has been dubbed "the battlefield of Europe"[1] or "the cockpit of Europe".[1] More recently, Belgium was a founding member of the European Union, hosting its headquarters, as well as those of many other major international organisations, such as NATO.
历史
Over the past two millennia, the area that is now known as Belgium has seen significant demographic, political and cultural upheavals. The first well-documented population move was the conquest of the region by the Roman Republic in the 1st century BC, followed in the 5th century by the Germanic Franks. The Franks established the Merovingian kingdom, which became the Carolingian Empire in the 8th century. During the Middle Ages, the Low Countries were split into many small feudal states. Most of them were united in the course of the 14th and 15th centuries by the house of Burgundy as the Burgundian Netherlands. These states gained a degree of autonomy in the 15th century and were thereafter named the Seventeen Provinces.
The history of Belgium can be distinguished from that of the Low Countries from the 16th century. The Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), divided the Seventeen Provinces into the United Provinces in the north and the Southern Netherlands in the south. The southern provinces were ruled successively by the Spanish and the Austrian Habsburgs. Until independence, the Southern Netherlands were sought after by numerous French conquerors and were the theatre of most Franco-Spanish and Franco-Austrian wars during the 17th and 18th centuries. Following the Campaigns of 1794 in the French Revolutionary Wars, the Low Countries—including territories that were never under Habsburg rule, such as the Bishopric of Liège—were overrun by France, ending Spanish-Austrian rule in the region. The reunification of the Low Countries as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands occurred at the end of the French Empire in 1815.
The 1830 Belgian Revolution led to the establishment of an independent, Catholic and neutral Belgium under a provisional government. Since the installation of Leopold I as king in 1831, Belgium has been a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. Between independence and World War II, the democratic system evolved from an oligarchy characterised by two main parties, the Catholics and the Liberals, to a universal suffrage system that has included a third party, the Belgian Labour Party, and a strong role for the trade unions. Originally, French, which was the adopted language of the nobility and the bourgeoisie, was the official language. The country has since developed a bilingual Dutch-French system.
The Berlin Conference of 1885 agreed to hand over Congo to King Leopold II as his private possession, called the Congo Free State. In 1908, it was ceded to Belgium as a colony, henceforth called the Belgian Congo. Belgium's neutrality was violated in 1914, when Germany invaded Belgium as part of the Schlieffen Plan. The former German colonies Ruanda-Urundi—now called Rwanda and Burundi—were occupied by the Belgian Congo in 1916. They were mandated in 1924 to Belgium by the League of Nations. Belgium was again invaded by Germany in 1940 during the blitzkrieg offensive. The country was occupied until the winter of 1944-45 when it was liberated by Allied troops. The Belgian Congo gained its independence in 1960 during the Congo Crisis, and Ruanda-Urundi became independent in 1962.
After World War II, Belgium joined NATO and, together with the Netherlands and Luxembourg, formed the Benelux group of nations. Belgium is also one of the six founding members of the 1951 established European Coal and Steel Community, and the 1957 established European Economic Community and European Atomic Energy Community. Belgium hosts the headquarters of NATO and a major part of the European Union's institutions and administrations, including the European Commission, the Council of the European Union and the extraordinary and committee sessions of the European Parliament, as well as parts of its administration.
During the 20th century, and in particular since World War II, the history of Belgium has been increasingly dominated by the autonomy of its two main communities. This period saw a rise in intercommunal tensions, and the unity of the Belgian state has come under scrutiny. Through constitutional reforms in the 1970s and 1980s, regionalisation of the unitary state had led to the establishment of a three-tiered system of federalism, linguistic-community and regional governments, a compromise designed to minimise linguistic tensions. Nowadays, these federal entities uphold more legislative power than the national bicameral parliament.
地理
Belgium, with an area of 30 528 square kilometres (11,787 sq. mi), has three main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the north-west, the central plateau, and the Ardennes uplands in the south-east. The coastal plain consists mainly of sand dunes and polders. Polders are areas of land, close to or below sea level that have been reclaimed from the sea, from which they are protected by dikes or, further inland, by fields that have been drained with canals. The second geographical region, the central plateau, lies further inland. This is a smooth, slowly rising area that has many fertile valleys and is irrigated by many waterways. Here one can also find rougher land, including caves and small gorges.
The third geographical region, called the Ardennes, is more rugged than the first two. It is a thickly forested plateau, very rocky and not very good for farming, which extends into northern France. This is where much of Belgium's wildlife can be found. Belgium's highest point, the Signal de Botrange is located in this region at only 694 metres (2,277 ft).
The climate is maritime temperate, with significant precipitation in all seasons (Köppen climate classification: Cfb; the average temperature is 3 °C (37°F) in January, and 18° C (64 °F) in July; the average precipitation is 65 millimetres (2.6 in) in January, and 78 millimetres (3.1 in) in July).
Because of its high population density and location in the centre of Western Europe, Belgium faces serious environmental problems. A 2003 report suggested that the water in Belgium's rivers was of the lowest quality in Europe, and bottom of the 122 countries studied.
文化
Belgian cultural life has tended to concentrate within each community. The shared element is less important, because there are no bilingual universities, except the royal military academy, no common media, and no single, common large cultural or scientific organisation where both main communities are represented. Aside from these differences, Belgium is well-known for its fine art and architecture.
The region corresponding to today's Belgium has seen the flourishing of major artistic movements that have had tremendous influence over European art. The Mosan art, the Early Netherlandish, the Flemish Renaissance and Baroque painting, and major examples of Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architecture, and the Renaissance vocal music of the Franco-Flemish School developed in the southern part of the Low Countries, are milestones in the history of art. Famous names in this classic tradition are Jan van Eyck, Pieter Brueghel the Elder, Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck.
This rich artistic production, often referred to as a whole as Flemish art, gradually declined during the second half of the 17th century. However, in the 19th and 20th centuries, many original artists appeared. In music, Adolphe Sax invented the saxophone in 1846. Henri Vieuxtemps, Eugène Ysaÿe and Arthur Grumiaux were major 19th- and 20th-century violinists. Perhaps the most famous Belgian composer of this time was César Franck. The first Belgian singer successfully to pursue an international career is the pioneer of varieté and pop music Bobbejaan Schoepen. Jazzmusican Toots Thielemans is world famous. The most famous and important singer is Jacques Brel. In rock Front 242, dEUS are well known (See also Music of Belgium). In architecture, Victor Horta was a major initiator of the Art Nouveau style. Belgium has produced famous romantic, expressionist and surrealist painters; these include Egide Wappers, James Ensor, Constant Permeke and René Magritte. In literature, Belgium has produced several well-known authors, such as the poets Emile Verhaeren and novelists Hendrik Conscience and Georges Simenon. The poet and playwright Maurice Maeterlinck won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1911. The best known Franco-Belgian comics are The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé but many other major authors of comics have been Belgian, including Edgar P. Jacobs, Willy Vandersteen and André Franquin.
More recently, notable Belgian cinema directors have emerged, most of them strongly influenced by French cinema. The absence of a major Belgian cinema company has forced them to emigrate or participate in low-budget productions. Belgian directors include Stijn Coninx, Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne; actors include Jan Decleir, Marie Gillain; and films include Man Bites Dog (film) and The Alzheimer Affair. In the 1980s, Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts has produced the important fashion trendsetters, the Antwerp Six.
Belgium has also contributed to the development of science and technology. The mathematician Simon Stevin, the anatomist Andreas Vesalius and the cartographer Gerardus Mercator are among the most influential scientists from the beginning of Early Modern in the Low Countries. More recently, at the end of the 19th century, in applied science, the chemist Ernest Solvay and the engineer Zenobe Gramme have given their names to the Solvay process and the Gramme dynamo. Georges Lemaître is a famous Belgian cosmologist credited with proposing the Big Bang theory of the origin of the universe in 1927. Three Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine have been awarded to Belgians: Jules Bordet in 1919, Corneille Heymans in 1938, and Albert Claude and Christian De Duve in 1974. Ilya Prigogine was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1977.
On December 1, 2005, Father Damien was chosen as the Greatest Belgian of all time by the Flemish VRT, whereas the Walloons chose Jacques Brel.
One could not understand Belgian cultural life without considering the folk festivals, which play a major role in the country's cultural life. Examples are the Carnival of Binche and Aalst, the Ducasse of Ath, the procession of the Holy Blood in Bruges, the 15th-of-August festival in Liège, and the Walloon festival in Namur. A major non-official holiday is the Saint Nicholas Day, which commemorates the festival of the children and, in Liège, of the students.
Belgium is well represented in the world of sport cycling is especially popular. Among the well known cyclists, Eddy Merckx won five Tours de France and is considered the best cyclist ever, due to his numerous victories in other bicycle tours, besides the Tour de France. Belgium also has two current female tennis champions: Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne. Football is also very popular.
Belgium is well known for its cuisine. Many highly ranked restaurants can be found in the high-impact gastronomic guides, such as the Michelin Guide. Brands of Belgian chocolate, like Neuhaus and Côte d'Or, are world renowned and widely sold; even the cheapest and most popular brand, Leonidas, has earned a reputation for its quality. Belgium produces over 500 varieties of beer (see Belgian beer). Belgians have a reputation for loving waffles and French fries, actually both originally from Belgium; the national food is steak (or mussels) with French fries and lettuce.
国名：比利时王国(The Kingdom of Belgium ,Le Royaume de Belgique)
独立日：10月4日（1830年）
国庆日：7月21日（1831年前国王利奥波德一世登基日）
国旗：呈长方形,长与宽之比为15∶13.旗面从左到右由黑、黄、红三个平行相等的竖长方形相连构成.黑色是庄重而具有纪念意义的色彩,表示悼念在1830年独立战争中牺牲的英雄；黄色象征国家的财富和畜牧业与农业的丰收；红色象征爱国者的生命和热血,还象征独立战争取得的伟大胜利.比利时是世袭君主立宪制国家.国王乘坐的汽车悬挂王旗,王旗与国旗不同,为四方形,旗地近似咖啡色,旗中间有比利时国徽,旗地四角处各有一顶王冠和在位国王名字的第一个字母.
国徽： 为斗篷式.整个图案中心为盾面上一只直立的狮子,其后为交叉的君王节杖,象征王权.盾形图案由利奥波德勋章饰带环绕,两侧各有一只举着国旗的狮子,上端为一顶王冠,饰环之下悬挂着一枚利奥波德（比利时第一代君主）勋章,底部的饰带上写着“团结就是力量”.斗篷上端装饰着王冠和代表比利时九个省的九面旗帜.
国歌：《布拉班人之歌》
国花：虞美人.
国鸟：红隼
国家政要：国王阿尔贝二世 (Albert II) ,1993年8月9日登基；首相伏思达（居伊·费尔霍夫施塔特）(Guy Verhofstadt),1999年7月任职,2003年7月连任.
自然地理：面积为3．05万平方公里,位于欧洲西北部,东与德国接壤,北与荷兰比邻,南与法国交界,西临北海.海岸线长66.5公里.全国面积2／3为丘陵和平坦低地,最低处略低于海平面.
比利时王子洛朗和新娘克莱尔·库姆斯在布鲁塞尔市政厅阳台上接受人们的新婚祝贺.
全境分为西北部沿海佛兰德伦平原、中部丘陵、东南部阿登高原三部分.最高点海拨694米.主要河流有马斯河和埃斯考河.属海洋性温带阔叶林气候.
人口：1035.6万（2003年）,其中讲弗拉芒语的弗拉芒大区599.6万,讲法语的瓦隆大区336.8万（包括讲德语的约7.1万）,使用弗法两种语言的布鲁塞尔首都大区99.2万.官方语言为法语和弗拉芒语.80%的居民信奉天主教.
首都：布鲁塞尔 (Bruxelles) ,有人口99. 2万（2003年）.有“欧洲首都”之称,是欧洲联盟、北大西洋公约组织等多个国际组织的总部所在地,每年有众多国际会议在此召开,另有200多个国际行政中心和超过1000个官方团体在此设有办事处.
布鲁塞尔
市政府前广场
简史：公元前克尔特族的比利其人在此居住.公元前57年起长期为罗马人、高卢人、日尔曼人分割统治.9—14世纪被各诸侯国割据.14—15世纪建立了勃艮第王朝.随后又先后被西班牙、奥地利、法国统治.1815年维也纳会议将比利时并入荷兰.1830年10月4日独立,定为世袭君主立宪王国,并选择了一个德国人、萨克森－科堡－哥达公国的王子利奥波尔德作比利时第一任国王.翌年,伦敦会议确定其中立地位.两次世界大战中均被德国占领.二战后加入北约.1958年加入欧洲共同体,并与荷兰、卢森堡结成经济联盟.1993年完成国家体制改革,正式实行联邦制.比利时是北大西洋公约组织创始国,也是欧洲联盟的成员国.2005年5月,比利时众议院批准《欧盟宪法条约》,这样比利时成为欧盟25个成员国中第10个批准该条约的国家.
一名女子装扮成中世纪的纺线村妇出现在比利时热拿波小镇上.法国国王路易十一曾于1456--1461年在热拿波避难.为此深感荣幸的村民们,每年都要欢度“法国国王路易十一日”,再现当时的民风民俗.
西欧的“奥斯威辛”——比利时布伦东克集中营
政治：1994年2月17日,比利时国王阿尔贝二世正式签署了新宪法文本. 宪法规定,比利时实行世袭君主立宪的联邦制.国王为国家元首,三军最高统帅.国王和议会共同行使立法权,和政府共同行使行政权,实权在政府,政府对议会负责. 议会实行两院制,众议院行使立法权,参议院仅有立法建议和咨询权,只在修宪和国家体制改革方面仍与众议院享受同等权力.同时扩大地区政府的内政和外交权力.议员经普选产生,任期4年.新宪法首次承认女性王室成员的王位继承权.
经济：发达的资本主义工业国家,经济高度对外依赖,80％的原料靠进口,50％以上的工业产品供出口.据估测,煤蕴藏量为37亿吨,其中有开采价值的18亿吨,瓦隆地区的煤层已开采殆尽.此外尚有少量铁、锌、铅、铜等.核电站7座,占总发电量的65%.森林及绿地面积6070平方公里（2002年）.主要工业部门有钢铁、机械、有色金属、化工、纺织、玻璃、煤炭等行业.
2004年2月22日,在比利时维利耶镇,装扮成“公主”的女子
参加狂欢节游行.比法语地区
每年从2月下旬起开始一个月
的狂欢节活动.
天然的地理优势使比利时成为西欧的“十字路口”.历届政府因地制宜,大力发展交通和航运,并以此带动商业和外贸的繁荣,为国家经济的发展奠定了坚实的基础.比利时是世界上第一个在全部高速公路设置照明路灯的国家.比利时铁路网的密度在世界上首屈一指,而且早在十多年前就已全部实现电气化.
比利时是世界十大商品进出口国之一,按人均出口量计算排名世界第一.比利时50％以上的工业产品供出口,其中金属丝线、平板玻璃、梳洗毛线、钻石等的出口量均列世界前茅.
2003年9月28日,在比利时格雷杜瓦索举行的布拉邦特民间艺术节上,真假稻草人在街头游行.比利时的布拉邦特人自14世纪以来,每年9月底都举行自己的民间艺术节大力吸引外国资本的政策为比利时经济带来了活力,也带来了新技术和新兴工业.1998年5月,欧盟首脑会议确定比利时为首批加入欧元区国家.2002年,比利时国内生产总值为2636．5亿欧元,人均国民收入2．63万欧元. 比利时根特国际花卉博览会
新闻出版：1998年有日报30种,周报千余种,其他期刊5000余种,主要用弗拉芒文和法文出版,极少数用德文出版.主要报刊有：《标准报》（弗拉芒语）、《自由比利时报》（法语）、《最新消息报》（法语）、《晚报》（法语）.《标准报》发行量30余万份,居首位,其余10～30万份.
比利时通讯社于1936年创建.国家广播局建于1930年,1960年分为两个独立的广播电视台,分别用法语、弗拉芒语播送广播、电视节目,隶属地区政府领导.
外交：推行积极的欧洲政策,主张加快欧洲一体化建设步伐；支持和参与联合国维和行动与人道主义援助；重视与美国的关系；主张加强与独联体和东欧国家的交往；在积极推动发展中国家民主化进程的同时,注意缓和与它们的关系.
在布鲁塞尔的大广场里,人们在欣赏用70万棵秋海棠摆成的一个大植物花毯.
与中国关系：1971年10月25日,中比两国建交.几十年来,两国关系发展顺利.1998年底,比利时首相德阿纳访华.2000年,比利时王储菲利普亲王率领200多人的大型经贸代表团访华.2002年,比利时首相伏思达访华.2004年5月,温家宝总理对比利时进行正式访问,中比签署关于加强政治对话的联合声明.2005年6月,比利时国王阿尔贝二世对中国进行国事访问.
Straddling the cultural boundary between Germanic and Romance Europe, it is linguistically divided. Mainly two languages are spoken in Belgium: Dutch is spoken by the 6 million people in Flanders to the north, French by the 3.3 million Walloons in the south. The capital, Brussels, is officially bilingual, while the majority of its residents speak French. Around 70,000 people live in the German-speaking Community in the east of the country. This linguistic diversity often leads to political and cultural conflict and is reflected in Belgium's complex system of government and political history.
Belgium derives its name from the Latin name of the most northern part of Gaul, Gallia Belgica, named after a group of mostly Celtic tribes, Belgae. Historically, Belgium has been a part of the Low Countries, which also include the Netherlands and Luxembourg and used to cover a somewhat larger region than the current Benelux group of states. From the end of the Middle Ages until the seventeenth century, it was a prosperous centre of commerce and culture. From the sixteenth century until the Belgian revolution in 1830, Belgium, at that time called the Southern Netherlands, was the site of many battles between the European powers, and has been dubbed "the battlefield of Europe"[1] or "the cockpit of Europe".[1] More recently, Belgium was a founding member of the European Union, hosting its headquarters, as well as those of many other major international organisations, such as NATO.
历史
Over the past two millennia, the area that is now known as Belgium has seen significant demographic, political and cultural upheavals. The first well-documented population move was the conquest of the region by the Roman Republic in the 1st century BC, followed in the 5th century by the Germanic Franks. The Franks established the Merovingian kingdom, which became the Carolingian Empire in the 8th century. During the Middle Ages, the Low Countries were split into many small feudal states. Most of them were united in the course of the 14th and 15th centuries by the house of Burgundy as the Burgundian Netherlands. These states gained a degree of autonomy in the 15th century and were thereafter named the Seventeen Provinces.
The history of Belgium can be distinguished from that of the Low Countries from the 16th century. The Eighty Years' War (1568–1648), divided the Seventeen Provinces into the United Provinces in the north and the Southern Netherlands in the south. The southern provinces were ruled successively by the Spanish and the Austrian Habsburgs. Until independence, the Southern Netherlands were sought after by numerous French conquerors and were the theatre of most Franco-Spanish and Franco-Austrian wars during the 17th and 18th centuries. Following the Campaigns of 1794 in the French Revolutionary Wars, the Low Countries—including territories that were never under Habsburg rule, such as the Bishopric of Liège—were overrun by France, ending Spanish-Austrian rule in the region. The reunification of the Low Countries as the United Kingdom of the Netherlands occurred at the end of the French Empire in 1815.
The 1830 Belgian Revolution led to the establishment of an independent, Catholic and neutral Belgium under a provisional government. Since the installation of Leopold I as king in 1831, Belgium has been a constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy. Between independence and World War II, the democratic system evolved from an oligarchy characterised by two main parties, the Catholics and the Liberals, to a universal suffrage system that has included a third party, the Belgian Labour Party, and a strong role for the trade unions. Originally, French, which was the adopted language of the nobility and the bourgeoisie, was the official language. The country has since developed a bilingual Dutch-French system.
The Berlin Conference of 1885 agreed to hand over Congo to King Leopold II as his private possession, called the Congo Free State. In 1908, it was ceded to Belgium as a colony, henceforth called the Belgian Congo. Belgium's neutrality was violated in 1914, when Germany invaded Belgium as part of the Schlieffen Plan. The former German colonies Ruanda-Urundi—now called Rwanda and Burundi—were occupied by the Belgian Congo in 1916. They were mandated in 1924 to Belgium by the League of Nations. Belgium was again invaded by Germany in 1940 during the blitzkrieg offensive. The country was occupied until the winter of 1944-45 when it was liberated by Allied troops. The Belgian Congo gained its independence in 1960 during the Congo Crisis, and Ruanda-Urundi became independent in 1962.
After World War II, Belgium joined NATO and, together with the Netherlands and Luxembourg, formed the Benelux group of nations. Belgium is also one of the six founding members of the 1951 established European Coal and Steel Community, and the 1957 established European Economic Community and European Atomic Energy Community. Belgium hosts the headquarters of NATO and a major part of the European Union's institutions and administrations, including the European Commission, the Council of the European Union and the extraordinary and committee sessions of the European Parliament, as well as parts of its administration.
During the 20th century, and in particular since World War II, the history of Belgium has been increasingly dominated by the autonomy of its two main communities. This period saw a rise in intercommunal tensions, and the unity of the Belgian state has come under scrutiny. Through constitutional reforms in the 1970s and 1980s, regionalisation of the unitary state had led to the establishment of a three-tiered system of federalism, linguistic-community and regional governments, a compromise designed to minimise linguistic tensions. Nowadays, these federal entities uphold more legislative power than the national bicameral parliament.
地理
Belgium, with an area of 30 528 square kilometres (11,787 sq. mi), has three main geographical regions: the coastal plain in the north-west, the central plateau, and the Ardennes uplands in the south-east. The coastal plain consists mainly of sand dunes and polders. Polders are areas of land, close to or below sea level that have been reclaimed from the sea, from which they are protected by dikes or, further inland, by fields that have been drained with canals. The second geographical region, the central plateau, lies further inland. This is a smooth, slowly rising area that has many fertile valleys and is irrigated by many waterways. Here one can also find rougher land, including caves and small gorges.
The third geographical region, called the Ardennes, is more rugged than the first two. It is a thickly forested plateau, very rocky and not very good for farming, which extends into northern France. This is where much of Belgium's wildlife can be found. Belgium's highest point, the Signal de Botrange is located in this region at only 694 metres (2,277 ft).
The climate is maritime temperate, with significant precipitation in all seasons (Köppen climate classification: Cfb; the average temperature is 3 °C (37°F) in January, and 18° C (64 °F) in July; the average precipitation is 65 millimetres (2.6 in) in January, and 78 millimetres (3.1 in) in July).
Because of its high population density and location in the centre of Western Europe, Belgium faces serious environmental problems. A 2003 report suggested that the water in Belgium's rivers was of the lowest quality in Europe, and bottom of the 122 countries studied.
文化
Belgian cultural life has tended to concentrate within each community. The shared element is less important, because there are no bilingual universities, except the royal military academy, no common media, and no single, common large cultural or scientific organisation where both main communities are represented. Aside from these differences, Belgium is well-known for its fine art and architecture.
The region corresponding to today's Belgium has seen the flourishing of major artistic movements that have had tremendous influence over European art. The Mosan art, the Early Netherlandish, the Flemish Renaissance and Baroque painting, and major examples of Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architecture, and the Renaissance vocal music of the Franco-Flemish School developed in the southern part of the Low Countries, are milestones in the history of art. Famous names in this classic tradition are Jan van Eyck, Pieter Brueghel the Elder, Peter Paul Rubens and Anthony van Dyck.
This rich artistic production, often referred to as a whole as Flemish art, gradually declined during the second half of the 17th century. However, in the 19th and 20th centuries, many original artists appeared. In music, Adolphe Sax invented the saxophone in 1846. Henri Vieuxtemps, Eugène Ysaÿe and Arthur Grumiaux were major 19th- and 20th-century violinists. Perhaps the most famous Belgian composer of this time was César Franck. The first Belgian singer successfully to pursue an international career is the pioneer of varieté and pop music Bobbejaan Schoepen. Jazzmusican Toots Thielemans is world famous. The most famous and important singer is Jacques Brel. In rock Front 242, dEUS are well known (See also Music of Belgium). In architecture, Victor Horta was a major initiator of the Art Nouveau style. Belgium has produced famous romantic, expressionist and surrealist painters; these include Egide Wappers, James Ensor, Constant Permeke and René Magritte. In literature, Belgium has produced several well-known authors, such as the poets Emile Verhaeren and novelists Hendrik Conscience and Georges Simenon. The poet and playwright Maurice Maeterlinck won the Nobel Prize in literature in 1911. The best known Franco-Belgian comics are The Adventures of Tintin by Hergé but many other major authors of comics have been Belgian, including Edgar P. Jacobs, Willy Vandersteen and André Franquin.
More recently, notable Belgian cinema directors have emerged, most of them strongly influenced by French cinema. The absence of a major Belgian cinema company has forced them to emigrate or participate in low-budget productions. Belgian directors include Stijn Coninx, Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne; actors include Jan Decleir, Marie Gillain; and films include Man Bites Dog (film) and The Alzheimer Affair. In the 1980s, Antwerp's Royal Academy of Fine Arts has produced the important fashion trendsetters, the Antwerp Six.
Belgium has also contributed to the development of science and technology. The mathematician Simon Stevin, the anatomist Andreas Vesalius and the cartographer Gerardus Mercator are among the most influential scientists from the beginning of Early Modern in the Low Countries. More recently, at the end of the 19th century, in applied science, the chemist Ernest Solvay and the engineer Zenobe Gramme have given their names to the Solvay process and the Gramme dynamo. Georges Lemaître is a famous Belgian cosmologist credited with proposing the Big Bang theory of the origin of the universe in 1927. Three Nobel Prizes in Physiology or Medicine have been awarded to Belgians: Jules Bordet in 1919, Corneille Heymans in 1938, and Albert Claude and Christian De Duve in 1974. Ilya Prigogine was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1977.
On December 1, 2005, Father Damien was chosen as the Greatest Belgian of all time by the Flemish VRT, whereas the Walloons chose Jacques Brel.
One could not understand Belgian cultural life without considering the folk festivals, which play a major role in the country's cultural life. Examples are the Carnival of Binche and Aalst, the Ducasse of Ath, the procession of the Holy Blood in Bruges, the 15th-of-August festival in Liège, and the Walloon festival in Namur. A major non-official holiday is the Saint Nicholas Day, which commemorates the festival of the children and, in Liège, of the students.
Belgium is well represented in the world of sport cycling is especially popular. Among the well known cyclists, Eddy Merckx won five Tours de France and is considered the best cyclist ever, due to his numerous victories in other bicycle tours, besides the Tour de France. Belgium also has two current female tennis champions: Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne. Football is also very popular.
Belgium is well known for its cuisine. Many highly ranked restaurants can be found in the high-impact gastronomic guides, such as the Michelin Guide. Brands of Belgian chocolate, like Neuhaus and Côte d'Or, are world renowned and widely sold; even the cheapest and most popular brand, Leonidas, has earned a reputation for its quality. Belgium produces over 500 varieties of beer (see Belgian beer). Belgians have a reputation for loving waffles and French fries, actually both originally from Belgium; the national food is steak (or mussels) with French fries and lettuce.
国名：比利时王国(The Kingdom of Belgium ,Le Royaume de Belgique)
独立日：10月4日（1830年）
国庆日：7月21日（1831年前国王利奥波德一世登基日）
国旗：呈长方形,长与宽之比为15∶13.旗面从左到右由黑、黄、红三个平行相等的竖长方形相连构成.黑色是庄重而具有纪念意义的色彩,表示悼念在1830年独立战争中牺牲的英雄；黄色象征国家的财富和畜牧业与农业的丰收；红色象征爱国者的生命和热血,还象征独立战争取得的伟大胜利.比利时是世袭君主立宪制国家.国王乘坐的汽车悬挂王旗,王旗与国旗不同,为四方形,旗地近似咖啡色,旗中间有比利时国徽,旗地四角处各有一顶王冠和在位国王名字的第一个字母.
国徽： 为斗篷式.整个图案中心为盾面上一只直立的狮子,其后为交叉的君王节杖,象征王权.盾形图案由利奥波德勋章饰带环绕,两侧各有一只举着国旗的狮子,上端为一顶王冠,饰环之下悬挂着一枚利奥波德（比利时第一代君主）勋章,底部的饰带上写着“团结就是力量”.斗篷上端装饰着王冠和代表比利时九个省的九面旗帜.
国歌：《布拉班人之歌》
国花：虞美人.
国鸟：红隼
国家政要：国王阿尔贝二世 (Albert II) ,1993年8月9日登基；首相伏思达（居伊·费尔霍夫施塔特）(Guy Verhofstadt),1999年7月任职,2003年7月连任.
自然地理：面积为3．05万平方公里,位于欧洲西北部,东与德国接壤,北与荷兰比邻,南与法国交界,西临北海.海岸线长66.5公里.全国面积2／3为丘陵和平坦低地,最低处略低于海平面.
比利时王子洛朗和新娘克莱尔·库姆斯在布鲁塞尔市政厅阳台上接受人们的新婚祝贺.
全境分为西北部沿海佛兰德伦平原、中部丘陵、东南部阿登高原三部分.最高点海拨694米.主要河流有马斯河和埃斯考河.属海洋性温带阔叶林气候.
人口：1035.6万（2003年）,其中讲弗拉芒语的弗拉芒大区599.6万,讲法语的瓦隆大区336.8万（包括讲德语的约7.1万）,使用弗法两种语言的布鲁塞尔首都大区99.2万.官方语言为法语和弗拉芒语.80%的居民信奉天主教.
首都：布鲁塞尔 (Bruxelles) ,有人口99. 2万（2003年）.有“欧洲首都”之称,是欧洲联盟、北大西洋公约组织等多个国际组织的总部所在地,每年有众多国际会议在此召开,另有200多个国际行政中心和超过1000个官方团体在此设有办事处.
布鲁塞尔
市政府前广场
简史：公元前克尔特族的比利其人在此居住.公元前57年起长期为罗马人、高卢人、日尔曼人分割统治.9—14世纪被各诸侯国割据.14—15世纪建立了勃艮第王朝.随后又先后被西班牙、奥地利、法国统治.1815年维也纳会议将比利时并入荷兰.1830年10月4日独立,定为世袭君主立宪王国,并选择了一个德国人、萨克森－科堡－哥达公国的王子利奥波尔德作比利时第一任国王.翌年,伦敦会议确定其中立地位.两次世界大战中均被德国占领.二战后加入北约.1958年加入欧洲共同体,并与荷兰、卢森堡结成经济联盟.1993年完成国家体制改革,正式实行联邦制.比利时是北大西洋公约组织创始国,也是欧洲联盟的成员国.2005年5月,比利时众议院批准《欧盟宪法条约》,这样比利时成为欧盟25个成员国中第10个批准该条约的国家.
一名女子装扮成中世纪的纺线村妇出现在比利时热拿波小镇上.法国国王路易十一曾于1456--1461年在热拿波避难.为此深感荣幸的村民们,每年都要欢度“法国国王路易十一日”,再现当时的民风民俗.
西欧的“奥斯威辛”——比利时布伦东克集中营
政治：1994年2月17日,比利时国王阿尔贝二世正式签署了新宪法文本. 宪法规定,比利时实行世袭君主立宪的联邦制.国王为国家元首,三军最高统帅.国王和议会共同行使立法权,和政府共同行使行政权,实权在政府,政府对议会负责. 议会实行两院制,众议院行使立法权,参议院仅有立法建议和咨询权,只在修宪和国家体制改革方面仍与众议院享受同等权力.同时扩大地区政府的内政和外交权力.议员经普选产生,任期4年.新宪法首次承认女性王室成员的王位继承权.
经济：发达的资本主义工业国家,经济高度对外依赖,80％的原料靠进口,50％以上的工业产品供出口.据估测,煤蕴藏量为37亿吨,其中有开采价值的18亿吨,瓦隆地区的煤层已开采殆尽.此外尚有少量铁、锌、铅、铜等.核电站7座,占总发电量的65%.森林及绿地面积6070平方公里（2002年）.主要工业部门有钢铁、机械、有色金属、化工、纺织、玻璃、煤炭等行业.
2004年2月22日,在比利时维利耶镇,装扮成“公主”的女子
参加狂欢节游行.比法语地区
每年从2月下旬起开始一个月
的狂欢节活动.
天然的地理优势使比利时成为西欧的“十字路口”.历届政府因地制宜,大力发展交通和航运,并以此带动商业和外贸的繁荣,为国家经济的发展奠定了坚实的基础.比利时是世界上第一个在全部高速公路设置照明路灯的国家.比利时铁路网的密度在世界上首屈一指,而且早在十多年前就已全部实现电气化.
比利时是世界十大商品进出口国之一,按人均出口量计算排名世界第一.比利时50％以上的工业产品供出口,其中金属丝线、平板玻璃、梳洗毛线、钻石等的出口量均列世界前茅.
2003年9月28日,在比利时格雷杜瓦索举行的布拉邦特民间艺术节上,真假稻草人在街头游行.比利时的布拉邦特人自14世纪以来,每年9月底都举行自己的民间艺术节大力吸引外国资本的政策为比利时经济带来了活力,也带来了新技术和新兴工业.1998年5月,欧盟首脑会议确定比利时为首批加入欧元区国家.2002年,比利时国内生产总值为2636．5亿欧元,人均国民收入2．63万欧元. 比利时根特国际花卉博览会
新闻出版：1998年有日报30种,周报千余种,其他期刊5000余种,主要用弗拉芒文和法文出版,极少数用德文出版.主要报刊有：《标准报》（弗拉芒语）、《自由比利时报》（法语）、《最新消息报》（法语）、《晚报》（法语）.《标准报》发行量30余万份,居首位,其余10～30万份.
比利时通讯社于1936年创建.国家广播局建于1930年,1960年分为两个独立的广播电视台,分别用法语、弗拉芒语播送广播、电视节目,隶属地区政府领导.
外交：推行积极的欧洲政策,主张加快欧洲一体化建设步伐；支持和参与联合国维和行动与人道主义援助；重视与美国的关系；主张加强与独联体和东欧国家的交往；在积极推动发展中国家民主化进程的同时,注意缓和与它们的关系.
在布鲁塞尔的大广场里,人们在欣赏用70万棵秋海棠摆成的一个大植物花毯.
与中国关系：1971年10月25日,中比两国建交.几十年来,两国关系发展顺利.1998年底,比利时首相德阿纳访华.2000年,比利时王储菲利普亲王率领200多人的大型经贸代表团访华.2002年,比利时首相伏思达访华.2004年5月,温家宝总理对比利时进行正式访问,中比签署关于加强政治对话的联合声明.2005年6月,比利时国王阿尔贝二世对中国进行国事访问.
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