Holland or the Netherlands? The official name is the Kingdom of
the Netherlands. It consists of the Netherlands itself and the
six islands of Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles in the
Caribbean Sea. The country’s formal name is Nederland, meaning
'low country'. This refers to the fact that much of the land is
at or below sea level. The Netherlands is also called 'Holland'.
Strictly speaking, North and South Holland are only a part of
the Netherlands; there are eleven other provinces, of which
Groningen (where the main town is also called Groningen) is one.
With 16 million inhabitants on 41,000 square kilometres, the
Netherlands is one of the most densely populated countries in
the world. The Dutch society is multi-cultural. Groups of people
with Dutch backgrounds have been living in Holland for decades
as a result of historical ties with other parts of the world.
There is also a huge religious diversity. The country is a
constitutional monarchy. It is politically stable and always has
coalition governements.