Provinces of Belgium
Most of the provinces take their name from earlier duchies and counties of similar location, while their territory is mostly based on the departments installed during French annexation. At the time of the creation of Belgium in 1830, only nine provinces existed, including the province of Brabant, which held the city of Brussels. In 1995, Brabant was split into three areas: Flemish Brabant, which became a part of the region of Flanders; Walloon Brabant, which became part of the region of Wallonia; and the Brussels-Capital Region, which became a third region. These divisions reflected political tensions between the French-speaking Walloons and the Dutch-speaking Flemish; the Brussels-Capital Region is officially bilingual.
Municipalities of Belgium
The three Regions can amend or replace the existing legislation on the municipalities, most notably the New Municipal Law. In the Flemish Region the Municipal Decree of 15 July 2005 applies. In the Walloon Region the Code of Local Democracy and Decentralization applies. In the Brussels Region several provisions of the New Municipal Law have been modified by ordinance, such as the Ordinance of 17 July 2003. The legal framework in the three Regions is still relatively similar, but that could change in the future.