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{{Infobox Ethnic group||group=Flemings
(Vlamingen)|image=|caption=
Flanders|poptime=6,550,000 (2006 estimate)|region1=|pop1=6,230,000|ref1={{cite web
|title=Structuur van de bevolking — België / Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest / Vlaams Gewest / Waals Gewest / De 25 bevolkingsrijkste gemeenten (2000–2006)
|date=© 1998/2007
|language=[Dutch language
|publisher=Belgian Federal Government Service (ministry) of Economy — Directorate-general Statistics Belgium
|url=http://statbel.fgov.be/figures/d21_nl.asp#2
|format=asp
|accessdate=2007-05-23
--> — Note: 59% of the Belgians can be considered Flemish, i.e., Dutch-speaking: Native speakers of Dutch living in Wallonia and of French in Flanders are relatively small minorities which furthermore largely balance one another, hence counting all inhabitants of each unilingual area to the area's language can cause only insignificant inaccuracies (99% can speak the language). Dutch: Flanders' 6.079 million inhabitants and about 15% of Brussels' 1.019 million are 6.23 million or 59.3% of the 10.511 million inhabitants of Belgium (2006); German: 70,400 in the German-speaking Community (which has [Municipalities with language facilities for its less than 5% French-speakers), and an estimated 20,000–25,000 speakers of German in the Walloon Region outside the geographical boundaries of their official Community, or 0.9%; French: in the latter area as well as mainly in the rest of Wallonia (3.414 - 0.093 = 3.321 million) and 85% of the Brussels inhabitants (0.866 million) thus 4.187 million or 39.8%; together indeed 100%
|region2= +|pop2=70,200|ref2={{cite web|title=Vlamingen in de Wereld
|publisher=Vlamingen in de Wereld, a foundation offering services for Flemish expatriates, with cooperation of the Flemish government.
|url=http://www.viw.be/intro.html
|accessdate=2007-03-01-->, Canada: http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/products/highlight/ETO/Table1.cfm?Lang=E&T=501&GV=1&GID=0 2001 Canadian Census gives 11,655 respondents stating their ''ethnic origin'' as Flemish. Another 129,780 reported 'Belgian'. See [List of Canadians by ethnicity (2001).{{Failed verification|date=May 2007-->
|region3=|pop3=187,750|ref3=|region4=|pop4=55,200|ref4=|region5=|pop5=15,130|ref5=|langs=Dutch language(Generally as 2nd or 3rd language, 59% of the Flemings can speak
French language, 53% English)'''Main languages of Flemish emigrants:'''
they tend to quickly adopt the local language.
|related-c=(
In alphabetical order)
Afrikaners,
Dutch people.Afrikaners: mainly the descendants of Dutch colonists in South Africa, speak Afrikaans a mutually intelligable Dutch semi-creol; Dutch: share origin, language and much of their history with the Flemish and live adjacent to the them. Note: One can assume a far relation of the Flemish with
Germans of northwestern regions on linguistic and near the common border on historical grounds; with
Frisians only based on an indirect relation via the Dutch and a slightly related Germanic language.] or Atheist/Non-religious-->The terms
Fleming and
Flemings (
Vlaming and
Vlamingen in
Dutch language) denote respectively a person and people, and
the Flemings or
the Flemish (always
de Vlamingen) or
the Flemish people (
het Vlaamse volk) the population forming a community of more than six million people and the majority of all Belgium, of
Flanders, the northern half of the country.
ModernFootnote: Though the usage of 'Flanders' for the area roughly corresponding to the present-day
Flemish Community became more and more common as the twentieth century proceeded, a similar broader usage occasionally occurred already much earlier, for instance, an English-language map dating from c. 1718 of the
Low Countries distinguishes the larger printed "Flanders" encompassing at least (the county of) "Flanders proper", Brabant, Limburg (including their parts of present-day France, the Netherlands, and the Walloon Region) and parts of the Prins-Bishopric of Liège:{{cite web], which included parts of present-day France and the Netherlands and did not include the central and eastern parts of present-day Flanders, which were part of other
Holy Roman Empire fiefs, chiefly the
Duchy of Brabant and the County of Loon. Within proper context, the term 'Fleming' may still refer specifically to a native of West Flanders or
East Flanders, the two provinces in Belgium that were part of the former county, or rarely to a native of other parts of that county who speaks a Dutch dialect from the Flemish county or the standard Dutch language. This original usage may similarly occur for the plural forms.
Culture and identity
The native Flemings descend from Germanic tribes, predominantly
Franks, and mixed Celtic-
Germanic "
Gaulish" tribes who had lived in the same region even before Roman times.Footnote: The Celtic and/or Germanic influences on and origin(s) of the pre-Roman Belgae remains disputed;
Gaius Julius Caesar had called them 'Gauls' but had also distinguished them from these. Further reading e.g.{{cite web|title=Ethnic and Cultural Identity|work=Barbarians on the Greek Periphery? — Origins of Celtic Art|year=1997 |month=May|author=Witt, Constanze Maria|publisher=Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, University of Virginia language, [Dutch language, shared with most people in the
Netherlands, as opposed to the Francophone compatriots within Belgium. Contrary to popular belief, a Flemish literature does exist, though Flemish literary schools are also present within the Dutch literature as a whole. Books written by Flemings and by Dutch people are read by Dutch-speakers worldwide. It does not make a difference that most readers are able to distinguish fine differences, mainly in vocabulary. In a wider sense, Flemings read many books written in other languages: not only English (dominating scientific and professional literature), but also
French language or German language, and reasonable quantities of other literary production.
For students, the intellectual norm in Flanders means learning two or even three foreign languages (at least two are obligatory in most secondary school programs, generally French and English, but also German language and/or a languages chosen from a supplementary list) to a higher standard than in most countries. Cosmopolitanism is a historical constant in Flanders' very open economy, while the mainly Anglo-Saxon orientation is a rather recent phenomenon as, until the 1960s, Flanders was heavily dominated by French culture (as long imposed by the Belgian state), which now only is an honorable second. Proficiency in English language has greatly improved during the last half century, whereas proficiency in French language and
German language has decreased somewhat. Proficiency in other languages widened, and improved, although some companies complain about a seemingly eternal lack of sufficient German-speakers.
Related ethno-linguistic groups
Official language
The official language of Flanders is
Dutch language (at the Belgian - federal - level at par with French, and to a lesser extent German; the language legislation in Belgium is complex and politically extremely sensitive). Though many Flemish people also commonly refer to their language as Flemish (linguistics).
Dialects tended to be very strong, almost particular to every locality. Since World War II, the influence of radio, television, and with more people moving out of their region of birth, the use of the original dialects tends to decrease. Differences between the regional dialects erode and new types of intermediate dialects appear, including a non-standardized mix of standard Dutch with 'cleaned-up' dialect. This is often called
'tussentaal' ('language-in-between') or, derogatorily,
'verkavelingsvlaams' (speech as where Flemish people from diverse locations and dialects become neighbours in a newly built-up out of town quarter). In
Brussels, the local dialect is heavily influenced by French language, both in pronunciation, as in vocabulary. Only a small number (
c. 150,000) of the inhabitants of French Flanders can speak or understand Dutch language or the local Flemish dialect. Dutch/Flemish in the North of France (Hugo Ryckeboer) University of Ghent, Department of Dutch Linguistics
Religion
Approximately 75% of the Flemish people are by baptism assumed Roman Catholic, though a still diminishing minority of less than 8% attends mass on a regular basis. Nearly half of the inhabitants of Flanders are Agnostic or Atheist. Islam, the
Judaism, the Eastern Orthodox Christianity religion,
Protestantism, and
Buddhism are in Belgium recognized religions found mainly among minority ethnic groups. A 2006 inquiry in
Flanders, showed 55% chose to call themselves religious, 36% believe that God created the world.Inquiry by 'Vepec', 'Vereniging voor Promotie en Communicatie' (Organisation for Promotion and Communication), published in Knack magazine
22 November2006 p.14 Dutch language term 'gelovig' is in the text translated as 'religious'; more precisely it is a very common word for believing in particular in any kind of God in a monotheism sense, and/or in some afterlife. (See also [Religion in Belgium.)
Flemish movement
The confrontational nature of Politics of Flanders is related to the communalism between Dutch-speaking Flanders and French-speaking
Wallonia. These ultimately resulted in the federalisation of Belgium, and the
Flemish movement includes secessionist tendencies and groups.For example Vlaams Belang, states that the "Flemish people' have a right to self-determination:
De Vlaamse onafhankelijkheid is een principekwestie voor het Vlaams Belang. Het Vlaamse volk kan en moet zijn recht op zelfbeschikking uitoefenen. Party Programme, . Functions continue to devolve away from the Belgian state to the
Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium.
Until the 1960s the Belgian state was Francophone. Not only the Walloons were Francophone but also the nobility, since Burgundian Netherlands times, and the Flemish bourgeoisie since the early 19th century. Use of French was mandatory in all aspects of public life: government, the courts, academia, and industry. Until the 1930s, for example, the Flemish majority was educated only in French; courts were conducted in French (with notorious examples of Flemish peasants tried and judged in a language they did not comprehend). During the First World War there were tensions between Flemish soldiers and French speaking officers. Since the falling-off of its traditional coal mining and steel industries at the beginning of the 60', Wallonia, the French-speaking southern half of Belgium, which was the leading economic force in Belgium and the strongest contributor to its wealth, has become more and more subsidized by the more economically robust Flemish north, an issue that remains unresolved.
Within the Flemish Movement, the demand for outright independence grew stronger in the last decades. There are two political parties strongly advocating
secession from Belgium: the
Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie (New Flemish Alliance) and the Vlaams Belang. This last party is considered by all other
Flemish political parties in Belgium to be far right. Its identification of the Flemings as a separate 'people' () is controversial. It associates that claim with rejection of a Belgian national identity, and describes itself as a Flemish nationalist party, seeking a separate and sovereign state for the Flemish people, which is claimed to be a nation, and to have its own national identity.Party Programme :
Het Vlaams Belang is een Vlaams-nationalistische partij. Voor ons is het zelfbeschikkingsrecht der volkeren fundamenteel. De soevereiniteit van een natie moet van het volk zelf uitgaan. Elk volk heeft het recht zijn toekomst in te richten zoals het dat wil, bij voorkeur in een eigen staat. Wij vinden dat de identiteit van ons volk, van élk volk, zo waardevol is dat een nationale identiteit speciale bescherming moet genieten. It seeks the dissolution of Belgium.Party Programme :
Vlaanderen moet Europa voorbereiden op een vreedzame opdeling van België. Vlaanderen moet Europa warm maken voor een uitdagend en dynamisch project, voor de komst van een nieuwe, moderne staat in het hart van Europa. The viewpoints of the Vlaams Belang, which is the continuation of the after a court conviction for racism dissolved Vlaams Blok, are not shared by Flemish mainstream parties. With the elected smaller and the French Community parties they continued the
cordon sanitaire around the Vlaams Belang, which is an agreement not to form a coalition or to cooperate at any level with that party. The large Flemish mainstream Christian-Democrat party CD&V forms an alliance with the Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie.
The Flemish Community is one of the three
Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, not identical to the Flemish Region, though both have a single body of parliament, government and administration.
Symbols
The official flag and coat of arms of the
Flemish Community represents a black lion with red claws and tongue on a yellow field (
or a lion rampant sable armed and langued gules). Flemish Authorities - coat of arms
De officiële voorstelling van het wapen van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap, in zwart - wit en in kleur, werd vastgesteld bij de ministeriële besluiten van 2 januari 1991 (BS 2 maart 1991), en zoals afgebeeld op de bijlagen bij deze besluiten. - flag A flag with a completely black lion had been in wide use before 1991 when the current version was officially adopted by the Flemish Community. That older flag was at times recognized by government sources (alongside the version with red claws and tongue).Samples of the black lion without red tongue and claws for the province of East and
West Flanders before the regionalization of Belgian provinces:{{cite book] 1933 by the Belgian governmentArmorial des provinces et des communes de Belgique, Max Servais: pages 217-219, explaining the 1816 origin of the Flags of the provinces of East and West Flanders and their post 1830 modifications Both flags can still be seen in popular use, though only the modern one is recognised by law. The Flemish authorities also use two logos of a highly stylized black lion which show the claws and tongue in either red or black.Flemish authorities show a logo of a highly stylized black lion either with red claws and tongue (sample: 'error' page by ministry of the Flemish Community) or a completely black version.
Origin of the Flemish lion
The first documented use Armorial des provinces et des communes de Belgique, Max Servais of the Flemish lion was on the
Seal (device) of
Philip, count of Flanders, count of Flanders of 1162. As of that date the use of the Flemish coat of arms (
or a lion rampant sable) remained in use throughout the reigns of the d'Alsace, Flanders (2nd) and Dampierre
count of Flanders. After the acquisition of Flanders by the
duke of Burgundy the lion was only used in escutcheons. It was only after the creation of the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands that the coat of arms (surmounted by a chief bearing the
Coat of Arms of the Netherlands) once again became the official symbol of the new province East Flanders.
Flanders the Lion
The motto "Vlaenderen die Leu" (Flanders the lion) was according to Eug. Sanders present on the arms of Pieter de Coninck at the
Battle of the Golden Spurs on July 11,
1302.{{cite web]|publisher=Flags of the World web site|url=http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/be-vlg.html|accessdate=2007-08-26-->{{cite web|title=War-Cries|author=Velde, François R.|date=2000-04-01|author=Olivier, M.|date=[1995-06-13|url=http://jsp.vlaamsparlement.be/docs/stukken/bz1995/g36-1.pdf|format=pdf|accessdate=2007-08-26--> Some three hundred nobles supposedly also used the motto "Vlaenderen den Leeuw" as their [battlecry when they fought in the Flemish ranks to avoid being confused for the enemy. In Spiegel Historiael, Louis van Velthem also refers to the lion in a song describing the battle of Blangys-Guinegatte (which took place in August 1472). Later,
Hendrik Conscience used the motto in his Lion of Flanders.
The Flemish diaspora
The Flemish diaspora consists of Flemish emigrants and their descendants in countries such as the present
Netherlands,
France, the United States,
United Kingdom,
Canada, India (Sri Lanka), Indonesia,
Australia, the
Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Africa and
Latin America.
During the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, when the territory of present-day
Flanders formed the setting for an impressive economic and cultural boom as well as certain internal problems, many artists and craftsmen sought refuge elsewhere. Flemish settlers introduced the first printing presses into Spain and Portugal. The Flemish contribution to the exploitation as well as the population of the Azores was so conspicuous, that for a long time the archipelago was referred to as the Flemish islands.
Following in the wake of the explorers, Flemish missionaries such as
Pieter van Gent in
Mexico, Joos de Rijcke in
Ecuador, Ferdinand Verbiest in China,
Constant Lievens in
India, Pierre-Jean DeSmet in the
United States and Father Damien in Molokai built up a reputation in various overseas countries that continues even to this day.
A combination of a demographic explosion and inadequate economic growth resulted in an
emigration from Flanders that continued up to the
First World War. It was something that every family faced sooner or later. Not only did it involve the so-called lower classes of the population, but also members of the better classes who found a future overseas in teacher-training colleges and colleges of engineering and agriculture. Louis Cruis, for example, was a Flemish engineer who led expeditions to lay down the boundaries of Brazil and the city limits of the capital
Brasilia.
About 400,000 Flemings settled in France. They often had to start afresh in poor villages, from where they breathed new life into agriculture. There are an estimated 1,250,000 people with a Flemish surname in France. The Nord (departement) and Pas-de-Calais departments however, were parts of historic Flanders before France annexed the region in 1656 (and other additions until the last permanent boundary change in the 1790s after the
French Revolution).
Similar to the Netherlands, many Flemish families also emigrated to South Africa due to the relative closeness of culture and language.
In the United States and
Canada today, there are Americans with Flemish roots.
References
See also
{{Infobox Ethnic group||group=Flemings
(Vlamingen)|image=|caption=
Flanders|poptime=6,550,000 (2006 estimate)|region1=|pop1=6,230,000|ref1={{cite web
|title=Structuur van de bevolking — België / Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest / Vlaams Gewest / Waals Gewest / De 25 bevolkingsrijkste gemeenten (2000–2006)
|date=© 1998/2007
|language=[Dutch language
|publisher=Belgian Federal Government Service (ministry) of Economy — Directorate-general Statistics Belgium
|url=http://statbel.fgov.be/figures/d21_nl.asp#2
|format=asp
|accessdate=2007-05-23
--> — Note: 59% of the Belgians can be considered Flemish, i.e., Dutch-speaking: Native speakers of Dutch living in Wallonia and of French in Flanders are relatively small minorities which furthermore largely balance one another, hence counting all inhabitants of each unilingual area to the area's language can cause only insignificant inaccuracies (99% can speak the language). Dutch: Flanders' 6.079 million inhabitants and about 15% of Brussels' 1.019 million are 6.23 million or 59.3% of the 10.511 million inhabitants of Belgium (2006); German: 70,400 in the German-speaking Community (which has [Municipalities with language facilities for its less than 5% French-speakers), and an estimated 20,000–25,000 speakers of German in the Walloon Region outside the geographical boundaries of their official Community, or 0.9%; French: in the latter area as well as mainly in the rest of Wallonia (3.414 - 0.093 = 3.321 million) and 85% of the Brussels inhabitants (0.866 million) thus 4.187 million or 39.8%; together indeed 100%
|region2= +|pop2=70,200|ref2={{cite web|title=Vlamingen in de Wereld
|publisher=Vlamingen in de Wereld, a foundation offering services for Flemish expatriates, with cooperation of the Flemish government.
|url=http://www.viw.be/intro.html
|accessdate=2007-03-01-->, Canada: http://www12.statcan.ca/english/census01/products/highlight/ETO/Table1.cfm?Lang=E&T=501&GV=1&GID=0 2001 Canadian Census gives 11,655 respondents stating their ''ethnic origin'' as Flemish. Another 129,780 reported 'Belgian'. See [List of Canadians by ethnicity (2001).{{Failed verification|date=May 2007-->
|region3=|pop3=187,750|ref3=|region4=|pop4=55,200|ref4=|region5=|pop5=15,130|ref5=|langs=Dutch language(Generally as 2nd or 3rd language, 59% of the Flemings can speak French language, 53% English)'''Main languages of Flemish emigrants:'''
they tend to quickly adopt the local language.
|related-c=(
In alphabetical order)
Afrikaners, Dutch people.Afrikaners: mainly the descendants of Dutch colonists in South Africa, speak Afrikaans a mutually intelligable Dutch semi-creol; Dutch: share origin, language and much of their history with the Flemish and live adjacent to the them. Note: One can assume a far relation of the Flemish with Germans of northwestern regions on linguistic and near the common border on historical grounds; with
Frisians only based on an indirect relation via the Dutch and a slightly related Germanic language.] or
Atheist/Non-religious-->The terms
Fleming and
Flemings (
Vlaming and
Vlamingen in Dutch language) denote respectively a person and people, and
the Flemings or
the Flemish (always
de Vlamingen) or
the Flemish people (
het Vlaamse volk) the population forming a community of more than six million people and the majority of all Belgium, of Flanders, the northern half of the country.
ModernFootnote: Though the usage of 'Flanders' for the area roughly corresponding to the present-day
Flemish Community became more and more common as the twentieth century proceeded, a similar broader usage occasionally occurred already much earlier, for instance, an English-language map dating from c. 1718 of the Low Countries distinguishes the larger printed "Flanders" encompassing at least (the county of) "Flanders proper", Brabant, Limburg (including their parts of present-day France, the Netherlands, and the Walloon Region) and parts of the Prins-Bishopric of Liège:{{cite web], which included parts of present-day
France and the Netherlands and did not include the central and eastern parts of present-day Flanders, which were part of other Holy Roman Empire fiefs, chiefly the
Duchy of Brabant and the County of Loon. Within proper context, the term 'Fleming' may still refer specifically to a native of
West Flanders or East Flanders, the two provinces in Belgium that were part of the former county, or rarely to a native of other parts of that county who speaks a Dutch dialect from the Flemish county or the standard Dutch language. This original usage may similarly occur for the plural forms.
Culture and identity
The native Flemings descend from Germanic tribes, predominantly
Franks, and mixed
Celtic-Germanic "
Gaulish" tribes who had lived in the same region even before Roman times.Footnote: The Celtic and/or Germanic influences on and origin(s) of the pre-Roman Belgae remains disputed;
Gaius Julius Caesar had called them 'Gauls' but had also distinguished them from these. Further reading e.g.{{cite web|title=Ethnic and Cultural Identity|work=Barbarians on the Greek Periphery? — Origins of Celtic Art|year=1997 |month=May|author=Witt, Constanze Maria|publisher=Institute for Advanced Technology in the Humanities, University of Virginia language, [Dutch language, shared with most people in the Netherlands, as opposed to the Francophone compatriots within Belgium. Contrary to popular belief, a Flemish literature does exist, though Flemish literary schools are also present within the Dutch literature as a whole. Books written by Flemings and by Dutch people are read by Dutch-speakers worldwide. It does not make a difference that most readers are able to distinguish fine differences, mainly in vocabulary. In a wider sense, Flemings read many books written in other languages: not only English (dominating scientific and professional literature), but also French language or
German language, and reasonable quantities of other literary production.
For students, the intellectual norm in Flanders means learning two or even three foreign languages (at least two are obligatory in most secondary school programs, generally French and English, but also
German language and/or a languages chosen from a supplementary list) to a higher standard than in most countries. Cosmopolitanism is a historical constant in Flanders' very open economy, while the mainly Anglo-Saxon orientation is a rather recent phenomenon as, until the 1960s,
Flanders was heavily dominated by French culture (as long imposed by the Belgian state), which now only is an honorable second. Proficiency in
English language has greatly improved during the last half century, whereas proficiency in French language and German language has decreased somewhat. Proficiency in other languages widened, and improved, although some companies complain about a seemingly eternal lack of sufficient German-speakers.
Related ethno-linguistic groups
Official language
The official language of
Flanders is Dutch language (at the Belgian - federal - level at par with French, and to a lesser extent German; the language legislation in Belgium is complex and politically extremely sensitive). Though many Flemish people also commonly refer to their language as
Flemish (linguistics).
Dialects tended to be very strong, almost particular to every locality. Since World War II, the influence of radio, television, and with more people moving out of their region of birth, the use of the original dialects tends to decrease. Differences between the regional dialects erode and new types of intermediate dialects appear, including a non-standardized mix of standard Dutch with 'cleaned-up' dialect. This is often called
'tussentaal' ('language-in-between') or, derogatorily,
'verkavelingsvlaams' (speech as where Flemish people from diverse locations and dialects become neighbours in a newly built-up out of town quarter). In
Brussels, the local dialect is heavily influenced by French language, both in pronunciation, as in vocabulary. Only a small number (
c. 150,000) of the inhabitants of
French Flanders can speak or understand Dutch language or the local Flemish dialect. Dutch/Flemish in the North of France (Hugo Ryckeboer) University of Ghent, Department of Dutch Linguistics
Religion
Approximately 75% of the Flemish people are by baptism assumed
Roman Catholic, though a still diminishing minority of less than 8% attends mass on a regular basis. Nearly half of the inhabitants of
Flanders are Agnostic or Atheist.
Islam, the
Judaism, the Eastern Orthodox Christianity religion,
Protestantism, and Buddhism are in Belgium recognized religions found mainly among minority ethnic groups. A 2006 inquiry in Flanders, showed 55% chose to call themselves religious, 36% believe that God created the world.Inquiry by 'Vepec', 'Vereniging voor Promotie en Communicatie' (Organisation for Promotion and Communication), published in Knack magazine 22 November
2006 p.14 Dutch language term 'gelovig' is in the text translated as 'religious'; more precisely it is a very common word for believing in particular in any kind of God in a
monotheism sense, and/or in some afterlife. (See also [Religion in Belgium.)
Flemish movement
The confrontational nature of Politics of Flanders is related to the
communalism between Dutch-speaking Flanders and French-speaking Wallonia. These ultimately resulted in the federalisation of Belgium, and the
Flemish movement includes secessionist tendencies and groups.For example Vlaams Belang, states that the "Flemish people' have a right to self-determination:
De Vlaamse onafhankelijkheid is een principekwestie voor het Vlaams Belang. Het Vlaamse volk kan en moet zijn recht op zelfbeschikking uitoefenen. Party Programme, . Functions continue to devolve away from the Belgian state to the
Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium.
Until the 1960s the Belgian state was
Francophone. Not only the Walloons were Francophone but also the nobility, since Burgundian Netherlands times, and the Flemish
bourgeoisie since the early 19th century. Use of French was mandatory in all aspects of public life: government, the courts, academia, and industry. Until the 1930s, for example, the Flemish majority was educated only in French; courts were conducted in French (with notorious examples of Flemish peasants tried and judged in a language they did not comprehend). During the First World War there were tensions between Flemish soldiers and French speaking officers. Since the falling-off of its traditional coal mining and steel industries at the beginning of the 60', Wallonia, the French-speaking southern half of Belgium, which was the leading economic force in Belgium and the strongest contributor to its wealth, has become more and more subsidized by the more economically robust Flemish north, an issue that remains unresolved.
Within the Flemish Movement, the demand for outright independence grew stronger in the last decades. There are two political parties strongly advocating secession from Belgium: the Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie (New Flemish Alliance) and the
Vlaams Belang. This last party is considered by all other
Flemish political parties in Belgium to be far right. Its identification of the Flemings as a separate 'people' () is controversial. It associates that claim with rejection of a Belgian national identity, and describes itself as a Flemish nationalist party, seeking a separate and sovereign state for the Flemish people, which is claimed to be a nation, and to have its own national identity.Party Programme :
Het Vlaams Belang is een Vlaams-nationalistische partij. Voor ons is het zelfbeschikkingsrecht der volkeren fundamenteel. De soevereiniteit van een natie moet van het volk zelf uitgaan. Elk volk heeft het recht zijn toekomst in te richten zoals het dat wil, bij voorkeur in een eigen staat. Wij vinden dat de identiteit van ons volk, van élk volk, zo waardevol is dat een nationale identiteit speciale bescherming moet genieten. It seeks the dissolution of Belgium.Party Programme :
Vlaanderen moet Europa voorbereiden op een vreedzame opdeling van België. Vlaanderen moet Europa warm maken voor een uitdagend en dynamisch project, voor de komst van een nieuwe, moderne staat in het hart van Europa. The viewpoints of the Vlaams Belang, which is the continuation of the after a court conviction for racism dissolved Vlaams Blok, are not shared by Flemish mainstream parties. With the elected smaller and the French Community parties they continued the
cordon sanitaire around the Vlaams Belang, which is an agreement not to form a coalition or to cooperate at any level with that party. The large Flemish mainstream Christian-Democrat party CD&V forms an alliance with the Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie.
The
Flemish Community is one of the three Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium, not identical to the Flemish Region, though both have a single body of parliament, government and administration.
Symbols
The official flag and coat of arms of the
Flemish Community represents a black lion with red claws and tongue on a yellow field (
or a lion rampant sable armed and langued gules). Flemish Authorities - coat of arms
De officiële voorstelling van het wapen van de Vlaamse Gemeenschap, in zwart - wit en in kleur, werd vastgesteld bij de ministeriële besluiten van 2 januari 1991 (BS 2 maart 1991), en zoals afgebeeld op de bijlagen bij deze besluiten. - flag A flag with a completely black lion had been in wide use before 1991 when the current version was officially adopted by the Flemish Community. That older flag was at times recognized by government sources (alongside the version with red claws and tongue).Samples of the black lion without red tongue and claws for the province of East and West Flanders before the regionalization of Belgian provinces:{{cite book]
1933 by the Belgian governmentArmorial des provinces et des communes de Belgique, Max Servais: pages 217-219, explaining the 1816 origin of the Flags of the provinces of East and West Flanders and their post 1830 modifications Both flags can still be seen in popular use, though only the modern one is recognised by law. The Flemish authorities also use two logos of a highly stylized black lion which show the claws and tongue in either red or black.Flemish authorities show a logo of a highly stylized black lion either with red claws and tongue (sample: 'error' page by ministry of the Flemish Community) or a completely black version.
Origin of the Flemish lion
The first documented use Armorial des provinces et des communes de Belgique, Max Servais of the Flemish lion was on the Seal (device) of
Philip, count of Flanders,
count of Flanders of 1162. As of that date the use of the Flemish coat of arms (
or a lion rampant sable) remained in use throughout the reigns of the d'Alsace, Flanders (2nd) and Dampierre
count of Flanders. After the acquisition of Flanders by the duke of Burgundy the lion was only used in escutcheons. It was only after the creation of the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands that the coat of arms (surmounted by a chief bearing the
Coat of Arms of the Netherlands) once again became the official symbol of the new province East Flanders.
Flanders the Lion
The
motto "Vlaenderen die Leu" (Flanders the lion) was according to Eug. Sanders present on the arms of Pieter de Coninck at the
Battle of the Golden Spurs on
July 11, 1302.{{cite web]|publisher=Flags of the World web site|url=http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/be-vlg.html|accessdate=2007-08-26-->{{cite web|title=War-Cries|author=Velde, François R.|date=2000-04-01|author=Olivier, M.|date=[1995-06-13|url=http://jsp.vlaamsparlement.be/docs/stukken/bz1995/g36-1.pdf|format=pdf|accessdate=2007-08-26--> Some three hundred nobles supposedly also used the motto "Vlaenderen den Leeuw" as their [battlecry when they fought in the Flemish ranks to avoid being confused for the enemy. In Spiegel Historiael, Louis van Velthem also refers to the lion in a song describing the battle of Blangys-Guinegatte (which took place in August 1472). Later, Hendrik Conscience used the motto in his Lion of Flanders.
The Flemish diaspora
The Flemish
diaspora consists of Flemish emigrants and their descendants in countries such as the present
Netherlands, France, the
United States, United Kingdom,
Canada,
India (
Sri Lanka), Indonesia,
Australia, the
Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Africa and Latin America.
During the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, when the territory of present-day
Flanders formed the setting for an impressive economic and cultural boom as well as certain internal problems, many artists and craftsmen sought refuge elsewhere. Flemish settlers introduced the first printing presses into
Spain and Portugal. The Flemish contribution to the exploitation as well as the population of the
Azores was so conspicuous, that for a long time the archipelago was referred to as the Flemish islands.
Following in the wake of the explorers, Flemish missionaries such as Pieter van Gent in
Mexico, Joos de Rijcke in Ecuador, Ferdinand Verbiest in
China, Constant Lievens in India, Pierre-Jean DeSmet in the
United States and
Father Damien in Molokai built up a reputation in various overseas countries that continues even to this day.
A combination of a demographic explosion and inadequate economic growth resulted in an emigration from Flanders that continued up to the First World War. It was something that every family faced sooner or later. Not only did it involve the so-called lower classes of the population, but also members of the better classes who found a future overseas in teacher-training colleges and colleges of engineering and agriculture. Louis Cruis, for example, was a Flemish engineer who led expeditions to lay down the boundaries of
Brazil and the city limits of the capital Brasilia.
About 400,000 Flemings settled in
France. They often had to start afresh in poor villages, from where they breathed new life into agriculture. There are an estimated 1,250,000 people with a Flemish surname in France. The Nord (departement) and Pas-de-Calais departments however, were parts of historic Flanders before France annexed the region in 1656 (and other additions until the last permanent boundary change in the 1790s after the
French Revolution).
Similar to the Netherlands, many Flemish families also emigrated to South Africa due to the relative closeness of culture and language.
In the
United States and Canada today, there are Americans with Flemish roots.
References
See also
Flemish people - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The terms Fleming and Flemings (Vlaming and Vlamingen in Dutch) denote respectively a person and people, and the Flemings or the Flemish (always de Vlamingen) or the Flemish people ...
Flemish - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
... a number of varieties of the Dutch language as spoken in Belgium. The East Flemish and West Flemish dialects of the Dutch language. Flemish community. Flemish people.
Flemish - definition of Flemish by the Free Online Dictionary ...
the Flemish people from Flanders or Flemish-speaking Belgium. Thesaurus Legend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms. Noun: 1. Flemish - an ethnic group speaking Flemish and living in northern ...
Flemish language
As recently as 1900 the everyday language of people in maritime Flanders was Flemish - "flamand", a dialect of Dutch - rather than French. (see map ...
People’s power on march to save Belgium - Times Online
... spoken at work or at home has little to do with ABN, or the academic way of speaking Ducth. Laws are protecting language usage and are in general in favour of Flemish people, e.g ...
Flemish people
2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Peoples. The term Flemings (Dutch: Vlamingen) is currently mostly used to refer to the ethnic group native to Flanders (the ...
Flemish definition |Dictionary.com
adjective . 1. of or pertaining to Flanders, its people, or their language. 2. pertaining to or designating the style of art, esp. painting, as developed principally in Flanders ...
BBC NEWS | The Reporters | Mark Mardell
This hatred of certain Flemish people (often lefties) for Flanders (as an independent entity) is remarkable. It's as if English people would claim that they would not want to live ...
The Flemish Republic - Friends of Flemish Independence
It is untrue to say that the Flemish people do not contribute to so-called ‘national solidarity’. Annually, between 5 tot 12 billion Euros flow from Flanders to Wallonia ...
Why is it called 'Flemish'?
For many reasons, some of which go back several centuries, the Flemish don’t like to think that they are speaking another people’s language.
