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{{Short description|Ethnic group native to the Netherlands}}
{{redirect|The Dutch|other uses|Dutch (disambiguation)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Use British English|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox ethnic group
| group = Dutch
| native_name = {{native name|nl|paren=omit|Nederlanders}}
| native_name_lang = nl
| image =
| caption =
| pop = '''{{Circa|30–35 million}}'''{{ref label|a|a}}<br />
[[Dutch diaspora|Dutch diaspora and ancestry]]: '''{{Circa|14 million}}''' [[File:Dutch people around the world.svg|center|frameless|260x260px]]
| total_ref =
| popplace = Netherlands{{nbsp|5}} {{Round|16365940|-3}}<ref name="CBS Statline">{{cite web | title=Bevolking; geslacht, leeftijd en nationaliteit op 1 januari; 1995–2023 | publisher=[[Statistics Netherlands]] | date=2 June 2023 | url=https://opendata.cbs.nl/statline/#/CBS/nl/dataset/03743/table?fromstatweb | language=nl | access-date=20 December 2023 | archive-date=19 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231219223837/https://opendata.cbs.nl/statline/#/CBS/nl/dataset/03743/table?fromstatweb | url-status=live }}</ref><br />{{small|(self-identified ethnic Dutch and those legally treated as Dutch, e.g. [[Moluccans]] per [[Faciliteitenwet]])<ref name="CBS Statline" />}}
| region1 = [[United States]]{{ref label|b|b}}
| pop1 = {{Round|3083041|-3}}
| ref1 = <ref>{{Cite web |year=2021 |title=Table B04006 – People Reporting Ancestry – 2021 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates |url=https://data.census.gov/table?g=010XX00US,$0400000&tid=ACSDT1Y2021.B04006 |access-date=1 September 2023 |website=[[United States Census Bureau]] |archive-date=1 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230601135230/https://data.census.gov/table?g=010XX00US,$0400000&tid=ACSDT1Y2021.B04006 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| region2 = [[South Africa]]{{ref label|b|b}}{{ref label|d|d}}
| pop2 = {{Round|3000000|-3}}
| ref2 = <ref name="unpo">''"Afrikaners constitute nearly three million out of approximately 53 million inhabitants of the Republic of South Africa, plus as many as half a million in diaspora."'' [http://www.unpo.org/members/8148 Afrikaner] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171128102230/http://unpo.org/members/8148 |date=28 November 2017 }} – Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization. Retrieved 7 January 2020.</ref><ref name="Census 2011">Afrikaners make up approximately 5.2% of the total South African population based on the number of [[white South African]]s who speak Afrikaans as a first language in the [[South African National Census of 2011]].</ref>
| region3 = [[Canada]]{{ref label|b|b}}
| pop3 = {{Round|1111655|-3}}
| ref3 = <ref name="statcan1">{{cite web|url=http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/hlt-fst/imm/Table.cfm?Lang=E&T=31&Geo=01&SO=4D|title=Immigration and Ethnocultural Diversity Highlight Tables|website=Statcan.gc.ca|date=25 October 2017|access-date=7 January 2020|archive-date=27 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171027195802/http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2016/dp-pd/hlt-fst/imm/Table.cfm?Lang=E&T=31&Geo=01&SO=4D|url-status=live}}</ref>
| region5 = [[Australia]]{{ref label|b|b}}
| pop5 = {{Round|381948|-3}}
| ref5 = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.abs.gov.au/census/find-census-data/quickstats/2021/2308_AUS|title=2021 Australian Census|publisher=Australian Bureau of Statistics|year=2021|access-date=8 February 2025|archive-date=22 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190522180357/https://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/Lookup/2071.0main+features902012-2013|url-status=live}}</ref>
| region6 = [[Germany]]
| pop6 = {{Round|257000|-3}}
| ref6 = <ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.destatis.de/DE/Themen/Gesellschaft-Umwelt/Bevoelkerung/Migration-Integration/Tabellen/migrationshintergrund-staatsangehoerigkeit-staaten.html |title= More Than 250,000 Dutch People in Germany |website= Destatis.de |access-date= 31 January 2022 |archive-date= 20 April 2019 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190420232930/https://www.destatis.de/DE/Themen/Gesellschaft-Umwelt/Bevoelkerung/Migration-Integration/Tabellen/migrationshintergrund-staatsangehoerigkeit-staaten.html/ |url-status= live }}</ref>
| region7 = [[Belgium]]{{ref label|b|b}}
| pop7 = {{Round|120970|-3}}
| ref7 = <ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cbs.nl/NR/rdonlyres/564DE063-D369-4042-A502-0F4FF5DFC939/0/2007k4b15p47art.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706133154/https://www.cbs.nl/NR/rdonlyres/564DE063-D369-4042-A502-0F4FF5DFC939/0/2007k4b15p47art.pdf|title=Number of people with the Dutch nationality in Belgium as reported by Statistic Netherlands|archive-date=6 July 2017|access-date=8 March 2022}}</ref>
| region8 = [[New Zealand]]{{ref label|b|b}}
| pop8 = 100,000
| ref8 = <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/dutch/4|title=New Zealand government website on Dutch-Australians|website=Teara.govt.nz|date=4 March 2009|access-date=10 September 2012|archive-date=7 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107004402/https://teara.govt.nz/en/dutch/4%20|url-status=live}}</ref>
| region9 = [[France]]
| pop9 = {{Round|60000|-3}}
| ref9 = <ref name="FrenchDiplomatie">{{cite web | author=res | title=Présentation des Pays-Bas | website=Diplomatie.gouv.fr | url=https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/dossiers-pays/pays-bas/presentation-des-pays-bas/ | language=fr | access-date=19 June 2020 | archive-date=18 June 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200618085514/https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/dossiers-pays/pays-bas/presentation-des-pays-bas/ | url-status=live }}</ref>
| region10 = [[United Kingdom]]
| pop10 = 56,000
| ref10 = <ref name="2013 estimates">{{cite web|url=http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/migration1/migration-statistics-quarterly-report/august-2014/rft-table-2---population-by-cob.xls|title=Estimated overseas-born population resident in the United Kingdom by sex, by country of birth (Table 1.4)|publisher=[[Office for National Statistics]]|date=28 August 2014|access-date=9 April 2015|archive-date=7 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150407023303/http://www.ons.gov.uk/ons/rel/migration1/migration-statistics-quarterly-report/august-2014/rft-table-2---population-by-cob.xls|url-status=live}}</ref>
| region11 = [[Spain]]
| pop11 = 48,000
| ref11 = <ref name="auto" />
| region12 = [[Denmark]]
| pop12 = 30,000
| ref12 = <ref name="joshuaproject.net"/>
| region13 = [[Switzerland]]
| pop13 = 20,000
| ref13 = <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/01/22/publ.Document.88215.pdf|title=Archived copy|access-date=18 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303193114/http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/de/index/themen/01/22/publ.Document.88215.pdf|archive-date=3 March 2016}}</ref>
| region14 = [[Indonesia]]
| pop14 = 17,000
| ref14 = <ref name="joshuaproject.net">{{cite web|author=Joshua Project|url=http://www.joshuaproject.net/peoples.php?rop3=102787|title=Dutch Ethnic People in all Countries|publisher=Joshua Project|access-date=7 August 2012|author-link=Joshua Project|archive-date=7 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107004400/https://joshuaproject.net/people_groups/11659|url-status=live}}</ref>
| region15 = [[Sweden]]
| pop15 = 16,829
| ref15 = <ref>{{cite web|title=Population by country of birth, age and sex. Year 2000-2024|url=https://www.statistikdatabasen.scb.se/pxweb/sv/ssd/START__BE__BE0101__BE0101E/FodelselandArK/|access-date=5 April 2025|publisher=[[Statistics Sweden]]}}</ref>
| region16 = [[Turkey]]
| pop16 = 15,000
| ref16 = <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cbs.nl/nr/exeres/E4FCE219-D72D-47C6-A867-7D7EC9ED0BF0.htm|title=CBS – One in eleven old age pensioners live abroad – Web magazine|publisher=Cbs.nl|date=20 February 2007|access-date=7 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205032945/http://www.cbs.nl/nr/exeres/E4FCE219-D72D-47C6-A867-7D7EC9ED0BF0.htm |archive-date=5 February 2012}}</ref>
| region17 = [[Curaçao]]
| pop17 = 14,000
| ref17 = <ref name="cia.gov">{{Cite web |title=Curacao<!--actual spelling used at the website--> |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/curacao/|access-date=29 December 2019|website=The World Factbook |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency}}</ref>
| region18 = [[Norway]]
| pop18 = 13,000
| ref18 = <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/02/01/10/innvbef_en/arkiv/tab-2009-04-30-05-en.html |title=Table 5 Persons with immigrant background by immigration category, country background and sex. 1 January 2009 |publisher=Ssb.no |date=1 January 2009|access-date=7 August 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111115112242/http://www.ssb.no/english/subjects/02/01/10/innvbef_en/arkiv/tab-2009-04-30-05-en.html|archive-date=15 November 2011}}</ref>
| region19 = [[Italy]]
| pop19 = 13,000
| ref19 = <ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://www.migrationpolicy.org/programs/data-hub/charts/immigrant-and-emigrant-populations-country-origin-and-destination|title=Immigrant and Emigrant Populations by Country of Origin and Destination|access-date=23 February 2021|website=migrationpolicy.org|date=10 February 2014|archive-date=19 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319075252/https://www.migrationpolicy.org/programs/data-hub/charts/immigrant-and-emigrant-populations-country-origin-and-destination|url-status=live}}</ref>
| region20 = [[Portugal]]
| pop20 = {{Round|12066|-3}}
| ref20 = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.sef.pt/pt/Documents/RIFA2022%20vF2a.pdf|title=SEF: Relatório de Imigração, Fronteiras e Asilo 2022|access-date=22 July 2023|archive-date=23 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230723201450/https://www.sef.pt/pt/Documents/RIFA2022%20vF2a.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>
| region21 = [[Israel]]
| pop21 = 5,000
| ref21 = <ref name="auto" />
| region22 = [[Aruba]]
| pop22 = 5,000
| ref22 = <ref name="auto" />
| region23 = [[Luxembourg]]
| pop23 = {{Round|4734|-3}}
| ref23 = <ref name="auto" />
| region25 = [[Hungary]]
| pop25 = 4,000
| ref25 = <ref name="auto" />
| region26 = [[Austria]]
| pop26 = 3,200
| ref26 = <ref name="auto" />
| region27 = [[Poland]]
| pop27 = 3,000
| ref27 = <ref name="auto" />
| region28 = [[Suriname]]
| pop28 = 3,000
| ref28 = <ref name="auto" />
| region29 = [[South Korea]]
| pop29 = 2,676
| ref29 = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.immigration.go.kr/immigration/1569/subview.do?enc=Zm5jdDF8QEB8JTJGYmJzJTJGaW1taWdyYXRpb24lMkYyMjclMkY1ODg3MTIlMkZhcnRjbFZpZXcuZG8lM0ZwYXNzd29yZCUzRCUyNnJnc0JnbmRlU3RyJTNEJTI2YmJzQ2xTZXElM0QlMjZyZ3NFbmRkZVN0ciUzRCUyNmlzVmlld01pbmUlM0RmYWxzZSUyNnBhZ2UlM0QxJTI2YmJzT3BlbldyZFNlcSUzRCUyNnNyY2hDb2x1bW4lM0QlMjZzcmNoV3JkJTNEJTI2|title=2024년 9월 출입국외국인정책 통계월보）|language=ko|date=21 October 2024|access-date=19 November 2024 |trans-title=2024 September Immigration and Foreigner Policy Statistics Monthly Report}}</ref>
| region30 = [[Japan]]
| pop30 = 1,805
| ref30 = <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.e-stat.go.jp/stat-search/files?page=1&layout=datalist&toukei=00250012&tstat=000001018034&cycle=1&tclass1=000001060399&tclass2val=0&metadata=1&data=1|title=在留外国人統計（旧登録外国人統計）|language=ja|date=15 December 2023|access-date=19 November 2024 |trans-title=Statistics on foreign residents (formerly registered statistics on foreigners) }}</ref>
| region31 = [[Greece]]
| pop31 = 1,000
| ref31 = <ref name="auto" />
| region32 = [[Thailand]]
| pop32 = 1,000
| ref32 = <ref name="auto" />
| languages = Primarily [[Dutch language|Dutch]]<br />and [[Languages of the Netherlands|other regional languages]]:<br />[[Dutch Low Saxon]]{{efn|[[Dutch Low Saxon]], a variety of [[Low German]] spoken in northeastern Netherlands, is used by people who ethnically identify as "Dutch" despite perceived linguistic differences.}} <br />[[Limburgish language|Limburgish]]{{efn|[[Limburgish]], a [[Low Franconian]] variety in close proximity to both [[Dutch language|Dutch]] and [[German language|German]], spoken in southeastern Netherlands is used by people who ethnically identify as Dutch or [[Flemings]] and regionally as "Limburgers" despite perceived linguistic differences.}}<ref name="notofficial">{{cite web|url=http://taal.phileon.nl/nedersaksisch.php|title=Taal in Nederland .:. Nedersaksisch|website=taal.phileon.nl|language=nl|access-date=3 January 2020|archive-date=13 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170213155318/http://taal.phileon.nl/nedersaksisch.php}}</ref><br />[[West Frisian language|West Frisian]] ([[Friesland]]){{efn|West Frisian is spoken by the ethnic [[Frisians]], who may or may not also identify as "Dutch".}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0027230/geldigheidsdatum_28-10-2014|title=Regeling – Instellingsbesluit Consultatief Orgaan Fries 2010 – BWBR0027230|website=Wetten.overheid.nl|language=nl|access-date=3 January 2020|archive-date=6 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106091450/http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0027230/geldigheidsdatum_28-10-2014|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://taal.phileon.nl/fries.php|title=Taal in Nederland .:. Fries|website=taal.phileon.nl|language=nl|access-date=3 January 2020|archive-date=13 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170213173522/http://taal.phileon.nl/fries.php}}</ref><br />[[English language|English]] ([[BES Islands]]){{efn|The Caribbean Netherlands are treated as a municipality of the Netherlands and the inhabitants are considered in law and practice to be "Dutch", even if they might not identify as such personally.}}<ref name="taal">{{cite web|url=http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0028063/|title=Regeling – Invoeringswet openbare lichamen Bonaire, Sint Eustatius en Saba – BWBR0028063|website=Wetten.overheid.nl|language=nl|access-date=3 January 2020|archive-date=25 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210225202512/https://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0028063/2021-01-01|url-status=live}}</ref><br />[[Papiamento]] ([[Bonaire]]){{efn|Papiamento, a [[Portuguese-based creole]], is spoken by [[Demographics of Aruba|Arubans]] and [[Curaçaoans]] who may ethnically further also identify as "Dutch".}}<ref name="taal"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0028142/HoofdstukIII/AfdelingVI/2/Artikel111/geldigheidsdatum_28-10-2014|title=Regeling – Wet openbare lichamen Bonaire, Sint Eustatius en Saba – BWBR0028142|website=Wetten.overheid.nl|language=nl|access-date=3 January 2020|archive-date=6 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141106171911/http://wetten.overheid.nl/BWBR0028142/HoofdstukIII/AfdelingVI/2/Artikel111/geldigheidsdatum_28-10-2014|url-status=live}}</ref>
| related = {{hlist|item_style=font-size:90%;
|[[Afrikaners]]|[[Flemings]]|[[Frisians]]}}
| footnotes = {{ubl|{{note|a|a}} Including 16 million<ref name="CBS Statline" /> self-identified ethnically Dutch inhabitants of the Netherlands, 2 million (at most) living abroad, and another 14–15 million who declare Dutch ancestry worldwide, including [[expatriates]].{{notetag|name=n1}}
|{{note|b|b}} Predominantly of Dutch ancestry.
|{{note|c|c}} [[Protestant Church in the Netherlands|Dutch Protestants]] are mainly [[Reformed tradition|Reformed (Calvinist)]], with notable [[Lutheran]] minorities. [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholics]] also form a sizable minority, especially in the south on the border with [[Flanders]], a traditional [[Religion in Belgium#Catholic Church|Catholic stronghold]].
|{{note|d|d}} In South Africa, most [[Afrikaners]] and [[Coloureds]] ([[Cape Coloureds]]) trace their ancestry to the Netherlands, being descendants of Dutch colonisers, who established the [[Dutch Cape Colony]]. They speak [[Afrikaans]] as their native language, which is a mutually intelligible sister language of Dutch that developed in the Colony.}}
| religions = Predominantly [[Irreligion|irreligious]]<br>{{small|(particularly [[atheist]] and [[agnostic]])}}<ref name="religieuze-kaart2016">{{cite book|last=Schmeets|first=Hans|title=De religieuze kaart van Nederland, 2010–2015|date=2016|publisher=Centraal Bureau voor der Statistiek|url=https://www.cbs.nl/-/media/_pdf/2016/51/religie-regionaal-2010-2015.pdf|page=5|access-date=12 December 2021|archive-date=15 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171015044705/https://www.cbs.nl/-/media/_pdf/2016/51/religie-regionaal-2010-2015.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="cbs2016">{{cite web|url=https://www.cbs.nl/nl-nl/nieuws/2016/51/helft-nederlanders-is-kerkelijk-of-religieus|title=Helft Nederlanders is kerkelijk of religieus|website=Cbs.nl|date=22 December 2016 |language=nl-NL|access-date=17 October 2017|archive-date=14 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190714153332/https://www.cbs.nl/nl-nl/nieuws/2016/51/helft-nederlanders-is-kerkelijk-of-religieus|url-status=live}}</ref><br />
Historically or traditionally [[Christianity|Christian]]<br />{{small|([[Latin Church|Latin Catholic]] and [[Protestantism|Protestant]])}}{{ref label|c|c}}<ref name=Creationism>{{cite book|last=Numbers|first=Ronald L.|publisher=JHU Press|year=2014|isbn=978-1-4214-1562-8|title=Creationism in Europe|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uSuhBQAAQBAJ&q=netherlands+protestant+country&pg=PA65|access-date=10 November 2020|archive-date=28 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928153944/https://books.google.com/books?id=uSuhBQAAQBAJ&q=netherlands+protestant+country&pg=PA65#v=snippet&q=netherlands%20protestant%20country&f=false|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}
The '''Dutch''', or '''Netherlanders''' ([[Dutch language|Dutch]]: {{Audio-nohelp|Nl-Nederlanders2.ogg|{{lang|nl|Nederlanders|nocat=true}}}}), are an [[ethnic group]] native to the [[Netherlands]]. They share a common ancestry and culture and speak the [[Dutch language]]. Dutch people and their descendants are found in migrant communities worldwide, notably in [[Argentina]], [[Aruba]], [[Australia]],<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite web |url=http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/AD2222ECE5AD4396CA25712500161734/$File/29330_2001.pdf |title=2001CPAncestryDetailed (Final) |access-date=27 August 2010 |archive-date=7 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130907131827/http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/subscriber.nsf/0/AD2222ECE5AD4396CA25712500161734/$File/29330_2001.pdf |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Brazil]], [[Canada]],<ref name="autogenerated7">Based on [[Statistics Canada]], [[Canada 2001 Census]].[http://www.statcan.ca/english/Pgdb/demo26a.htm Link] to Canadian statistics. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050225041540/http://www.statcan.ca/english/Pgdb/demo26a.htm|date=25 February 2005}}</ref> [[Caribbean Netherlands]], [[Curaçao]], [[Germany]], [[Guyana]], [[Indonesia]], [[New Zealand]], [[Sint Maarten]], [[South Africa]],<ref name="Nidi.knaw.nl">{{cite web|title=Dutch-born 2001, Figure 3 in DEMOS, 21, 4. Nederlanders over de grens|first1=Han|last1=Nicholaas|first2=Arno|last2=Sprangers|url=http://www.nidi.knaw.nl/en/output/demos/2005/demos-21-04-nicolaas.pdf |publisher=Nidi.knaw.nl|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070611114005/http://www.nidi.knaw.nl/en/output/demos/2005/demos-21-04-nicolaas.pdf/|archive-date=11 June 2007}}</ref> [[Suriname]], and the [[United States]].<ref name=autogenerated8>According to [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=01000US&-qr_name=ACS_2004_EST_G00_DP2&-ds_name=ACS_2004_EST_G00_&-_lang=en&-_sse=on Factfinder.census.gov] {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20200211183222/http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ADPTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=01000US&-qr_name=ACS_2004_EST_G00_DP2&-ds_name=ACS_2004_EST_G00_&-_lang=en&-_sse=on|date=11 February 2020}}</ref> The [[Low Countries]] were situated around the border of [[France]] and the [[Holy Roman Empire]], forming a part of their respective peripheries and the various territories of which they consisted had become virtually autonomous by the 13th century.<ref>{{lang|nl|Winkler Prins Geschiedenis der Nederlanden}} I (1977), p. 150; I.H. Gosses, {{lang|nl|Handboek tot de staatkundige geschiedenis der Nederlanden}} I (1974 [1959]), 84 ff.</ref> Under the [[Habsburgs]], the Netherlands were organised into a single administrative unit, and in the 16th and 17th centuries the Northern Netherlands gained independence from [[Spain]] as the [[Dutch Republic]].<ref>The actual independence was accepted by in the 1648 treaty of Munster, in practice the Dutch Republic had been independent since the last decade of the 16th century.</ref> The high degree of [[Urbanization|urbanisation]] characteristic of Dutch society was attained at a relatively early date.<ref>D.J. Noordam, "{{lang|nl|Demografische ontwikkelingen in West-Europa van de vijftiende tot het einde van de achttiende eeuw}}", in H.A. Diederiks e.a., {{lang|nl|Van agrarische samenleving naar verzorgingsstaat}} (Leiden 1993), 35–64, esp. 40</ref> During the Republic the first series of large-scale Dutch migrations outside of [[Europe]] took place.
The traditional arts and [[Culture of the Netherlands|culture]] of the Dutch encompasses various forms of [[Music of the Netherlands#Folk|traditional music]], [[Dutch folk dance|dance]]s, [[Architecture of the Netherlands|architectural style]]s and clothing, some of which are globally recognisable. Internationally, Dutch painters such as [[Rembrandt]], [[Vermeer]] and [[Van Gogh]] are held in high regard. The predominant religion among the Dutch is [[Christianity]], encompassing both [[Latin Church|Latin Catholicism]] and [[Dutch Reformed Church|Calvinist Protestantism]]. However, in contemporary times, the majority no longer adhere to a particular Christian denomination. Significant percentages of the Dutch are adherents of [[humanism]], [[agnosticism]], [[atheism]] or [[Spiritual but not religious|individual spirituality]] (including [[ietsism]]).<ref name="CBS statline Church membership">{{cite web |url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?VW=T&DM=SLNL&PA=37944&D1=a&HD=080528-1938&HDR=T&STB=G1 |title=CBS statline Church membership |publisher=Statline.cbs.nl |date=15 December 2009 |access-date=27 August 2010 |archive-date=23 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180923085617/http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?VW=T&DM=SLNL&PA=37944&D1=a&HD=080528-1938&HDR=T&STB=G1 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Religion in the Netherlands">[http://www.rivm.nl/vtv/object_map/o1204n22742.html Religion in the Netherlands] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116014436/http://www.rivm.nl/vtv/object_map/o1204n22742.html |date=16 January 2013 }}. {{in lang|nl}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.trouw.nl/nieuws/wat-maakt-nederland-tot-nederland-over-identiteit-blijken-we-verrassend-eensgezind~bae096a49/ |title= Wat maakt Nederland tot Nederland? Over identiteit blijken we verrassend eensgezind |date= 26 June 2019 |publisher= trouw.nl |access-date= 17 July 2022 }}</ref>
==History==
{{main|History of the Netherlands|History of Belgium|History of Flanders}}
===Emergence===
{{Further|Franks|Old Frankish|Old Dutch}}
[[File:Clovis crop.jpg|thumb|The conversion of the Frankish king [[Clovis I|Clovis]] to Christianity would have great significance in helping shape the identity of the future Dutch people.<ref>"Clovis' conversion to Christianity, regardless of his motives, is a turning point in Dutch history as the elite now changed their beliefs. Their choice would way down its way on the common folk, of whom many (especially in the Frankish heartland of Brabant and Flanders) were less enthusiastic than the ruling class." Taken from {{lang|nl|Geschiedenis van de Nederlandse stam}}, part I: till 1648. Page 203, 'A new religion', by [[Pieter Geyl]]. {{lang|nl|Wereldbibliotheek Amsterdam/Antwerp}} 1959.</ref>]]
The general situation described above is applicable to most if not all modern European ethnic groups with origins among the [[Germanic tribes]], such as the Frisians, Germans, English and the Nordic (Scandinavian) peoples. In the Low Countries, this phase began when the [[Franks]], themselves a union of multiple smaller tribes (many of them, such as the [[Batavians|Batavi]], [[Chauci]], [[Chamavi]] and [[Chattuarii]], were already living in the Low Countries prior to the forming of the Frankish confederation), began to incur the northwestern provinces of the [[Western Roman Empire|Roman Empire]]. Eventually, in 358, the [[Salian Franks]], one of the three main subdivisions among the Frankish alliance,<ref>Britannica: "They were divided into three groups: the Salians, the Ripuarians, and the Chatti, or Hessians."([https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/217113/Frank Link] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150503050633/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/217113/Frank |date=3 May 2015 }})</ref> settled the area's Southern lands as [[foederati]]; Roman allies in charge of border defense.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'History of the Low Countries'. 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140215035711/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries |date=15 February 2014 }};''The Franks, who had settled in Toxandria, in Brabant, were given the job of defending the border areas, which they did until the mid-5th century''</ref>
[[File:Evangeliarum van Egmond.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Egmond Gospels]] contains the oldest known depiction of Dutch individuals, the count [[Dirk II, Count of Holland|Dirk II of Holland]] and his wife [[Hildegard of Flanders]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Arblaster |first1=Paul |title=A History of the Low Countries |date=26 October 2018 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-137-61188-8 |page=39 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WZBKEAAAQBAJ |access-date=3 March 2024}}</ref>]]
Linguistically [[Old Frankish]] gradually evolved into [[Old Dutch]],<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/409930/Dutch-language Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'Dutch language' 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150426092441/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/409930/Dutch-language |date=26 April 2015 }}; "''It derives from Low Franconian, the speech of the Western Franks, which was restructured through contact with speakers of North Sea Germanic along the coast.''"</ref><ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/640154/West-Germanic-languages/74783/Characteristics Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'West Germanic languages'. 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110830053437/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/640154/West-Germanic-languages/74783/Characteristics |date=30 August 2011 }};''restructured Frankish—i.e., Dutch;''</ref> which was first attested in the 6th century,<ref>[http://www.onzetaal.nl/kalender/records/r2308.php W. Pijnenburg, A. Quak, T. Schoonheim & D. Wortel, Oudnederlands Woordenboek]. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119045215/http://www.onzetaal.nl/kalender/records/r2308.php |date=19 January 2016 }}</ref> whereas religiously the Franks (beginning with the [[upper class]]) converted to [[Christianity]] from around 500 to 700. On a political level, the Frankish warlords abandoned tribalism<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'History of the Low Countries'. 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140215035711/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries |date=15 February 2014 }}; "The administrative organization of the Low Countries ... was basically the same as that of the rest of the Frankish empire."</ref> and founded a number of kingdoms, eventually culminating in the [[Frankish Empire]] of [[Charlemagne]].
However, the population make-up of the Frankish Empire, or even early Frankish kingdoms such as [[Neustria]] and [[Austrasia]], was not dominated by Franks. Though the Frankish leaders controlled most of Western Europe, the Franks themselves were confined to the Northwestern part (i.e. the [[Rhineland]], the Low Countries and Northern [[France]]) of the Empire.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'History of the Low Countries'. 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140215035711/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries |date=15 February 2014 }}; "During the 6th century, Salian Franks had settled in the region between the Loire River in present-day France and the Coal Forest in the south of present-day Belgium. From the late 6th century, Ripuarian Franks pushed from the Rhineland westward to the Schelde. Their immigration strengthened the Germanic faction in that region, which had been almost completely evacuated by the Gallo-Romans."</ref> Eventually, the Franks in Northern France were assimilated by the general [[Gallo-Roman]] population, and took over their dialects (which became [[French language|French]]), whereas the Franks in the Low Countries retained their language, which would evolve into Dutch. The current Dutch-French language border has (with the exception of the [[Nord-Pas-de-Calais]] in France and [[Brussels]] and the surrounding municipalities in Belgium) remained virtually identical ever since, and could be seen as marking the furthest pale of [[gallicisation]] among the Franks.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/209945/Fleming Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'Fleming and Walloon'. 12 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090428143941/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/209945/Fleming |date=28 April 2009 }}; "The northern Franks retained their Germanic language (which became modern Dutch), whereas the Franks moving south rapidly adopted the language of the culturally dominant Romanized Gauls, the language that would become French. The language frontier between northern Flemings and southern Walloons has remained virtually unchanged ever since."</ref> A [[dialect continuum]] remaining with more eastern Germanic populations, a distinct identity in relation to these only gradually developed, largely based on socio-economic and political factors. Large parts of the present Netherlands have populations using Saxon and Frisian dialects.
===Convergence===
{{Further|History of urban centers in the Dutch Low Countries|Burgundian Netherlands|Middle Dutch}}
The medieval cities of the Low Countries, especially those of Flanders, Brabant and Holland, which experienced major growth during the 11th and 12th centuries, were instrumental in breaking down the already relatively loose local form of feudalism. As they became increasingly powerful, they used their economic strength to influence the politics of their nobility.<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries Encyclopædia Britannica Online (use fee site); entry 'History of the Low Countries'. 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140215035711/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries |date=15 February 2014 }};''Thus, the town in the Low Countries became a {{lang|la|communitas}} (sometimes called {{lang|la|corporatio}} or {{lang|la|universitas}})—a community that was legally a corporate body, could enter into alliances and ratify them with its own seal, could sometimes even make commercial or military contracts with other towns, and could negotiate directly with the prince.''</ref><ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'History of the Low Countries'. 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140215035711/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries |date=15 February 2014 }};''The development of a town's autonomy sometimes advanced somewhat spasmodically because of violent conflicts with the prince. The citizens then united, forming {{lang|la|conjurationes}} (sometimes called communes)—fighting groups bound together by an oath—as happened during a Flemish crisis in 1127–28 in Ghent and Brugge and in Utrecht in 1159.''</ref><ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'History of the Low Countries'. 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140215035711/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries |date=15 February 2014 }};''All the towns formed a new, non-feudal element in the existing social structure, and from the beginning merchants played an important role. The merchants often formed guilds, organizations that grew out of merchant groups and banded together for mutual protection while traveling during this violent period, when attacks on merchant caravans were common.''</ref> During the early 14th century, beginning in and inspired by the County of Flanders,<ref>[https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries Encyclopædia Britannica Online; entry 'History of the Low Countries'. 10 May. 2009] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140215035711/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/349677/history-of-Low-Countries |date=15 February 2014 }};''The achievements of the Flemish partisans inspired their colleagues in Brabant and Liège to revolt and raise similar demands; Flemish military incursions provoked the same reaction in Dordrecht and Utrecht''</ref> the cities in the Low Countries gained huge autonomy and generally dominated or greatly influenced the various political affairs of the fief, including marriage succession.
While the cities were of great political importance, they also formed catalysts for medieval Dutch culture. Trade flourished, population numbers increased dramatically, and (advanced) education was no longer limited to the clergy. Flanders, Brabant and Holland began to develop a common Dutch [[standard language]]. Dutch epic literature such as {{lang|nl|[[Elegast]]}} (1150), the {{lang|nl|[[Song of Roland|Roelantslied]]}} and {{lang|nl|[[Reynard the Fox|Van den vos Reynaerde]]}} (1200) were widely enjoyed. The various city guilds as well as the necessity of ''[[Water board (Netherlands)|water boards]]'' (in charge of dikes, canals, etc.) in the Dutch delta and coastal regions resulted in an exceptionally high degree of communal organisation. It is also around this time, that ethnonyms such as ''Diets'' and ''Nederlands'' emerge.<ref name="ReferenceA">{{lang|nl|Etymologisch Woordenboek van het Nederlands}}, entry ''"Diets"''. {{in lang|nl}}</ref>
In the second half of the 14th century, the dukes of Burgundy gained a foothold in the Low Countries through the marriage in 1369 of [[Philip the Bold]] of Burgundy to the heiress of the Count of Flanders. This was followed by a series of marriages, wars, and inheritances among the other Dutch fiefs and around 1450 the most important fiefs were under Burgundian rule, while complete control was achieved after the end of the [[Guelders Wars]] in 1543, thereby unifying the fiefs of the Low Countries under one ruler. This process marked a new episode in the development of the Dutch ethnic group, as now political unity started to emerge, consolidating the strengthened cultural and linguistic unity.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}
===Consolidation===
{{Further|Timeline of Burgundian and Habsburg acquisitions in the Low Countries|Dutch Revolt|Early Netherlandish painting}}
[[File:Plakkaat van Verlatinghe.jpg|thumb|upright|The [[Act of Abjuration]], signed on 26 July 1581, was the formal declaration of independence of the Dutch Low Countries.]]
Despite their growing linguistic and cultural unity, and (in the case of [[County of Flanders|Flanders]], [[Duchy of Brabant|Brabant]] and [[County of Holland|Holland]]) economic similarities, there was still little sense of political unity among the Dutch people.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F3cxooRES2sC&q=Johan+Huizinga+1960:62&pg=PA183 |title=J. Huizinga (1960: 62) |access-date=27 August 2010 |isbn=978-90-5589-275-4 |last1=Becker |first1=Uwe |year=2006 |publisher=Het Spinhuis |archive-date=28 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928153951/https://books.google.com/books?id=F3cxooRES2sC&q=Johan+Huizinga+1960:62&pg=PA183 |url-status=live }}</ref>
However, the centralist policies of Burgundy in the 14th and 15th centuries, at first violently opposed by the cities of the Low Countries, had a profound impact and changed this. During [[Charles the Bold]]'s many wars, which were a major economic burden for the Burgundian Netherlands, tensions slowly increased. In 1477, the year of Charles' sudden [[Battle of Nancy|death at Nancy]], the Low Countries rebelled against their new liege, [[Mary of Burgundy]], and presented her with a set of demands.{{cn|date=October 2024}}
The subsequently issued [[Great Privilege]] met many of these demands, which included that Dutch, not French, should be the administrative language in the Dutch-speaking provinces under Burgundian rule (i.e. Flanders, Brabant and Holland) and that the [[States-General of the Netherlands|States-General]] had the right to hold meetings without the monarch's permission or presence. The overall tenor of the document (which was declared void by Mary's son and successor, [[Philip the Handsome|Philip IV]]) aimed for more autonomy for the counties and duchies, but nevertheless all the fiefs presented their demands together, rather than separately. This is evidence that by this time a sense of common interest was emerging among the provinces of the Netherlands. The document itself clearly distinguishes between the Dutch speaking and French speaking provinces.{{cn|date=October 2024}}
Following Mary's marriage to [[Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor]], the Netherlands were now part of the Habsburg lands. Further centralised policies of the Habsburgs (like their Burgundian predecessors) again met with resistance, but, peaking with the formation of the collateral councils of 1531 and the [[Pragmatic Sanction of 1549]] creating the [[Seventeen Provinces]], were still implemented. The rule of [[Philip II of Spain]] sought even further centralist reforms, which, accompanied by religious dictates and excessive taxation, resulted in the [[Dutch Revolt]]. The Dutch provinces, though fighting alone now, for the first time in their history found themselves fighting a common enemy. This, together with the growing number of Dutch intelligentsia and the [[Dutch Golden Age]] in which [[Culture of the Netherlands|Dutch culture]], as a whole, gained international prestige, consolidated the Dutch as an ethnic group.{{cn|date=October 2024}}
===National identity===
[[File:Een uitzinnige menigte verwelkomt de Canadese bevrijders in Utrecht - An ecstatic crowd in Utrecht welcomes the Canadian liberators (4502667274).jpg|thumb|Dutch people celebrating the [[Liberation Day (Netherlands)|liberation of the Netherlands]] at the end of World War II on 7 May 1945]]
By the middle of the 16th century, an overarching, 'national' (rather than 'ethnic') identity seemed in development in the Habsburg Netherlands, when inhabitants began to refer to it as their 'fatherland' and were beginning to be seen as a collective entity abroad; however, the persistence of language barriers, traditional strife between towns, and provincial particularism continued to form an impediment to more thorough unification.<ref>Cf. G. Parker, ''The Dutch Revolt'' (1985), 33–36, and Knippenberg & De Pater, {{lang|nl|De eenwording van Nederland}} (1988), 17 ff.</ref> Following excessive [[taxation]] together with attempts at diminishing the traditional autonomy of the cities and estates in the Low Countries, followed by the religious oppression after being transferred to [[Habsburg Spain]], the Dutch revolted, in what would become the [[Eighty Years' War]]. For the first time in their history, the Dutch established their independence from foreign rule.<ref name="GrNed">Source, the aforementioned 3rd chapter (p3), together with the initial paragraphs of chapter 4, on the establishment of the Dutch Republic.</ref> However, during the war it became apparent that the goal of liberating all the provinces and cities that had signed the [[Union of Utrecht]], which roughly corresponded to the Dutch-speaking part of the Spanish Netherlands, was unreachable. The Northern provinces were free, but during the 1580s the South was recaptured by Spain, and, despite various attempts, the armies of the Republic were unable to expel them. In 1648, the [[Peace of Münster]], ending the [[Eighty Years' War]], acknowledged the independence of the [[Dutch Republic]], but maintained Spanish control of the [[Southern Netherlands]]. Apart from a brief reunification from 1815 until 1830, within the [[United Kingdom of the Netherlands]] (which included the [[Francophone]]s/[[Walloons]]) the Dutch have been separated from the "Flemings" to this day. The border between the Netherlands and Belgium is purely contingent, simply reflecting the 1648 cease-fire line. There is a perfect dialect continuum.
===Dutch Empire===
{{Main|Dutch Empire}}
The Dutch colonial empire ({{langx|nl|Het Nederlandse Koloniale Rijk}}) comprised the overseas territories and trading posts controlled and administered by Dutch chartered companies (mainly the [[Dutch West India Company]] and the [[Dutch East India Company|Dutch United East India Company]]) and subsequently by the Dutch Republic (1581–1795), and by the modern Kingdom of the Netherlands after 1815.{{cn|date=October 2024}}
==Ethnic identity==
[[File:Dutch street.jpg|thumb|upright|A typical November scene in the Dutch town [[Middelburg, Zeeland|Middelburg]], [[Netherlands]]]]
=== Hollander vs. Nederlander ===
Many Dutch people (''Nederlanders'') will object to being called ''Hollanders'' as a national denominator on much the same grounds as many [[Welsh people|Welsh]] or [[Scottish people|Scots]] would object to being called ''[[English people|English]]'' instead of [[United Kingdom|British]],<ref>{{Cite web |last=Oostendorp |first=Marc van |date=1 June 2018 |title=Nederland of Holland? |url=https://neerlandistiek.nl/2018/06/nederland-of-holland/ |access-date=1 September 2023 |website=Neerlandistiek |language=nl-NL |archive-date=1 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230901205308/https://neerlandistiek.nl/2018/06/nederland-of-holland/ |url-status=live }}</ref> as the [[Holland]] region only comprises two of the twelve provinces, and 40% of the Dutch citizens. The same holds for the country being referred to as ''Holland'' instead of ''The Netherlands''. In January 2020, the Dutch government officially dropped its support of the word ''Holland'' for the whole country.<ref>{{Cite web |date=31 December 2019 |title=Wennen aan The Netherlands, want Holland bestaat niet langer |url=https://nos.nl/artikel/2316869-wennen-aan-the-netherlands-want-holland-bestaat-niet-langer |access-date=1 September 2023 |website=nos.nl |language=nl |archive-date=1 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230901205307/https://nos.nl/artikel/2316869-wennen-aan-the-netherlands-want-holland-bestaat-niet-langer |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=margoD |date=3 September 2020 |title=Wat is het verschil tussen Holland en Nederland? |url=https://wheninholland.com/weetjes/het-verschil-tussen-holland-en-nederland/ |access-date=1 September 2023 |website=When in Holland |language=nl-NL |archive-date=1 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230901205312/https://wheninholland.com/weetjes/het-verschil-tussen-holland-en-nederland/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
=== (Multi)cultural identity ===
The ideologies associated with [[Romantic Nationalism|(Romantic) Nationalism]] of the 19th and 20th centuries never really caught on in the Netherlands.{{citation needed|date=June 2023}} The (re)definition of Dutch cultural identity has become a subject of public debate following the increasing influence of the [[European Union]] and the influx of non-Western immigrants in the post-[[World War II]] period. In this debate typically Dutch traditions have been put to the foreground.<ref>Shetter (2002), 201</ref>
In sociological studies and governmental reports, ethnicity is often referred to with the terms ''autochtoon'' and ''[[allochtoon]]''.<ref>J. Knipscheer and R. Kleber, {{lang|nl|Psychologie en de multiculturele samenleving}} (Amsterdam 2005), 76 ff.</ref> These legal concepts refer to place of birth and citizenship rather than cultural background and do not coincide with the more fluid concepts of ethnicity used by cultural anthropologists.
===Greater Netherlands===
As did many European ethnicities during the 19th century,<ref>cf. [[Pan-Germanism]], [[Pan-Slavism]] and many other [[Pan-nationalism|Greater state movements]] of the day.</ref> the Dutch also saw the emerging of various [[Greater Netherlands]]- and [[Pan-nationalism|pan]]-movements seeking to unite the Dutch-speaking peoples across the continent, while trying to counteract [[Pan-Germanic]] tendencies. During the first half of the 20th century, there was a prolific surge in writings concerning the subject. One of its most active proponents was the historian [[Pieter Geyl]], who wrote {{lang|nl|De Geschiedenis van de Nederlandsche stam}} ('The History of the Dutch tribe/people') as well as numerous essays on the subject.
During World War II, when both Belgium and the Netherlands fell to [[Battle of France|German occupation]], fascist elements (such as the [[National Socialist Movement in the Netherlands|NSB]] and [[Verdinaso]]) tried to convince the [[Nazi]]s into combining the Netherlands and [[Flanders]]. The Germans however refused to do so, as this conflicted with their ultimate goal, the {{lang|nl|[[New Order (Nazism)|Neuordnung]]}} ('New Order') of creating a single pan-Germanic racial state.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=SmQ-gj50D4kC&dq=%22nederlanders+en+Vlamingen%22&pg=PA92 {{lang|nl|Het nationaal-socialistische beeld van de geschiedenis der Nederlanden}}] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230427232150/https://books.google.com/books?id=SmQ-gj50D4kC&dq=%22nederlanders+en+Vlamingen%22&pg=PA92 |date=27 April 2023 }} by I. Schöffer. Amsterdam University Press. 2006. Page 92.</ref> During the entire Nazi occupation, the Germans denied any assistance to Greater Dutch [[ethnic nationalism]], and, by decree of [[Hitler]] himself, actively opposed it.<ref>For example he gave explicit orders not to create a voluntary Greater Dutch [[Waffen SS]] division composed of soldiers from the Netherlands and Flanders. ([http://www.gutenberg-e.org/esk01/images/esk02c.html Link to documents] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322031659/http://www.gutenberg-e.org/esk01/images/esk02c.html |date=22 March 2012 }})</ref>
The 1970s marked the beginning of formal cultural and linguistic cooperation between Belgium (Flanders) and the Netherlands on an international scale.
==Statistics==
The total number of Dutch can be defined in roughly two ways. By taking the total of all people with full Dutch ancestry, according to the current CBS definition (both parents born in the Netherlands), resulting in an estimated 16,000,000 Dutch people,{{notetag|name=n1}} or by the sum of all people worldwide with both full and partial [[Dutch diaspora|Dutch ancestry]], which would result in a number around 33,000,000.
{| border="0" align="center" style="text-align: center;"
|- style=vertical-align:top
| {{Pie chart
|caption=Approximate distribution of native Dutch speakers worldwide.
|value1=70.8
|label1=Netherlands
|color1=Orange
|value2=27.1
|label2=Belgium
|color2=Yellow
|value3=1.7
|label3=Suriname
|color3=Green
|value4=0.1
|label4=Caribbean
|color4=Blue
|other-color=grey|other=Other}}
| {{Pie chart
|caption=People of (partial) [[Dutch diaspora|Dutch ancestry]] outside the Netherlands.
|label1=(South) Africa|value1=47|color1=Green
|label2=[[Dutch Americans|USA]]|value2=20|color2=PowderBlue
|label3=[[Dutch Canadians|Canada]]|value3=7|color3=LightCoral
|label4=[[Dutch people in France|France]]|value4=6|color4=White
|label5=[[Dutch Brazilians|Brazil]]|value5=6|color5=Blue
|label6=[[Dutch Indonesians|Indonesia]]|value6=6|color6=FireBrick
|label7=[[Dutch Australians|Australia]]|value7=2|color7=DeepSkyBlue
|label8=[[Dutch people in Germany|Germany]]|value8=2|color8=Black
|label9=[[Dutch people in Belgium|Belgium]]|value9=1|color9=Yellow
|other-color=Gray|other=Other}}
|}
==Linguistics==
===Language===
[[File:WIKITONGUES- Eva speaking Dutch.webm|thumb|A Dutch speaker.]]
{{Main|Dutch language}}
Dutch is the main language spoken by most Dutch people. It is a [[West Germanic languages|West Germanic language]] spoken by around 29 million people. Old Frankish, a precursor of the Dutch standard language, was first attested around 500,<ref>"{{lang|odt|Maltho thi afrio lito}}" is the oldest attested [[Old Dutch|(Old) Dutch]] sentence, found in the Salic Law, a legal text written around 500. (Source: the [https://books.google.com/books?id=8e1HAAAAMAAJ&q=Maltho+thi+afrio+lito Old Dutch dictionary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230427232153/https://books.google.com/books?id=8e1HAAAAMAAJ&q=Maltho+thi+afrio+lito |date=27 April 2023 }}) {{in lang|nl}}</ref> in a Frankish legal text, the {{lang|la|[[Lex salica]]}}, and has a written record of more than 1500 years, although the material before around 1200 is fragmentary and discontinuous.
As a West Germanic language, Dutch is related to other languages in that group such as [[West Frisian language|West Frisian]], [[English language|English]] and [[German language|German]]. Many West Germanic dialects underwent a series of sound shifts. The [[Anglo-Frisian nasal spirant law]] and [[Anglo-Frisian brightening]] resulted in certain early Germanic languages evolving into what are now English and West Frisian, while the [[Second Germanic sound shift]] resulted in what would become (High) German. Dutch underwent none of these sound changes and thus occupies a central position in the [[West Germanic languages]] group.{{cn|date=June 2025}}
Standard Dutch has a sound inventory of thirteen vowels, six [[diphthongs]] and twenty-three consonants, of which the [[voiceless velar fricative]] (''[[hard and soft G in Dutch|hard ch]]'') is considered a well known sound, perceived as typical for the language. Other relatively well known features of the Dutch language and usage are the frequent use of digraphs like [[Oo (digraph)|Oo]], [[Ee (digraph)|Ee]], [[Letter combination of uu|Uu]] and [[Aa (digraph)|Aa]], the ability to form [[Compound (linguistics)|long compounds]] and the use of slang, including [[profanity]].{{cn|date=June 2025}}
The Dutch language has many dialects. These dialects are usually grouped into six main categories; [[Hollandic]], [[West Flemish|West-Flemish]]/[[Zeelandic]], [[East Flemish]], [[Brabantic]] and [[Limburgish]], although Limburgish is reckognized as a regional language under part 2 of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. The Dutch part of [[Low German|Low Saxon]] is sometimes also viewed as a dialect of Dutch as it falls in the area of the Dutch standard language, although it is reckognized as a regional language.<ref>[http://taalunieversum.org/taal/vragen/antwoord/8/ {{lang|nl|Taaluniversum}} website]{{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928153948/https://taalunie.org/ |date=28 September 2023 }} on the Dutch dialects and main groupings. {{in lang|nl}}</ref> Of these dialects, Hollandic and Dutch Low Saxon are solely spoken by Northerners. Brabantic, East Flemish, [[West Flemish|West-Flemish]]/[[Zeelandic]] and Limburgish are cross border dialects in this respect. Lastly, the dialectal situation is characterised by the major distinction between [[Hard and soft G in Dutch|'Hard G' and 'Soft G' speaking areas]] (see also [[Dutch phonology]]). Some linguists subdivide these into approximately 28 distinct dialects.<ref>{{cite web |title=Kaart van de Nederlandse dialecten |website=University of Vienna | last=Hüning | first=Matthias |language=nl |trans-title=Map of Dutch dialects |url=https://www.ned.univie.ac.at/publicaties/taalgeschiedenis/nl/dialkarte.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061210172052/http://www.ned.univie.ac.at/publicaties/taalgeschiedenis/nl/dialkarte.htm |archive-date=10 December 2006}}</ref>
Dutch immigrants also exported the Dutch language. Dutch was spoken by some settlers in the United States as a native language from the arrival of the first permanent Dutch settlers in 1615, surviving in isolated ethnic pockets until about 1900, when it ceased to be spoken except by first generation Dutch immigrants. The Dutch language nevertheless had a significant impact on the region around [[New York City|New York]]. For example, the first language of [[President of the United States|U.S. president]] [[Martin Van Buren]]<!-- Even though he had a "{{lang|nl|tussenvoegsel}}" in his name, he spelled his name with a capital V; the Dutch name style convention does not apply.--> was Dutch.<ref>{{cite book|author=Nicoline Sijs van der|title=Cookies, Coleslaw, and Stoops: The Influence of Dutch on the North American Languages|publisher=Amsterdam University Press|year=2009|quote=Martin van Buren's mother tongue was Dutch|page=50}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|author=Edward L. Widmer|title=Martin Van Buren|publisher=Times Books|year=2005|quote=Van Buren grew up speaking Dutch, a relic of the time before the Revolution when the inland waterways of North America were a polyglot blend of non-Anglophone communities. His family has resisted intermarriage with Yankees for five generations, and Van Buren trumpeted the fact proudly in his autobiography|pages=6–7|series=The American Presidents Series|author-link=Edward L. Widmer}}</ref> Most of the Dutch immigrants of the 20th century quickly began to speak the language of their new country. For example, of the inhabitants of New Zealand, 0.7% say their home language is Dutch,<ref>2006 New Zealand Census.</ref> despite the percentage of Dutch heritage being considerably higher.<ref>[http://www.teara.govt.nz/NewZealanders/NewZealandPeoples/Dutch/4/en As many as 100,000 New Zealanders are estimated to have Dutch blood in their veins] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080501140842/http://www.teara.govt.nz/NewZealanders/NewZealandPeoples/Dutch/4/en |date=1 May 2008 }} (some 2% of the current population of New Zealand).</ref>
Dutch is currently an [[official language]] of the [[Kingdom of the Netherlands]] (Netherlands, [[Aruba]], [[Sint Maarten]], and [[Curaçao]]), Belgium, [[Suriname]], the [[European Union]], and the [[Union of South American Nations]] (due to Suriname being a member). In [[South Africa]] and [[Namibia]], [[Afrikaans]] is spoken, a daughter language of Dutch, which itself was an official language of South Africa until 1983. The Dutch, Flemish and Surinamese governments coordinate their language activities in the {{lang|nl|Nederlandse Taalunie}} ('[[Dutch Language Union]]'), an institution also responsible for governing the Dutch Standard language, for example in matters of [[orthography]].
===Etymology of autonym and exonym===
{{main|Theodiscus}}
The origins of the word ''Dutch'' go back to Proto-Germanic, the ancestor of all Germanic languages, {{lang|gem|*theudo}} (meaning "national/popular"); akin to Old Dutch {{lang|odt|dietsc}}, [[Old High German]] {{lang|goh|diutsch}}, [[Old English]] {{lang|ang|þeodisc}} and [[Gothic language|Gothic]] {{lang|got|þiuda}} all meaning "(of) the common ([[Germanic peoples|Germanic]]) people". As the tribes among the Germanic peoples began to differentiate its meaning began to change. The [[Anglo-Saxons]] of [[England]] for example gradually stopped referring to themselves as {{lang|ang|þeodisc}} and instead started to use {{lang|ang|Englisc}}, after their tribe. On the continent {{lang|gem|*theudo}} evolved into two meanings: {{lang|nl|Diets}} or ''Duuts'' meaning "Dutch (people)" (archaic)<ref>Until World War II, {{lang|nl|Nederlander}} was used synonym with {{lang|nl|Diets}}. However the similarity to {{lang|de|Deutsch}} resulted in its disuse when the [[History of the Netherlands (1939-1945)|German occupiers]] and Dutch [[fascist]]s extensively used that name to stress the Dutch as an ancient Germanic people. (Source: {{lang|nl|Etymologisch Woordenboek}}) {{in lang|nl}}</ref> and {{lang|de|Deutsch}} ([[German language|German]], meaning "German (people)"). At first the English language used (the contemporary form of) ''Dutch'' to refer to any or all of the Germanic speakers on the European mainland (e.g. the Dutch, the Frisians and the Germans). Gradually its [[semantic shift|meaning shifted]] to the Germanic people they had most contact with, both because of their geographical proximity, but also because of the rivalry in trade and overseas territories: the people from the Republic of the Netherlands, the Dutch.
In the [[Dutch language]], the Dutch refer to themselves as {{lang|nl|Nederlanders}}. {{lang|nl|Nederlanders}} derives from the Dutch word {{lang|nl|Neder}}, a cognate of [[English language|English]] ''Nether'' both meaning "''low''", and "''near the sea''" (same meaning in both English and Dutch), a reference to the geographical texture of the Dutch homeland; the western portion of the [[North European Plain]].<ref>See J. Verdam, {{lang|nl|Middelnederlandsch handwoordenboek}} (The Hague 1932 (reprinted 1994)): "{{lang|nl|Nederlant, znw. o. I) Laag of aan zee gelegen land. 2) het land aan den Nederrijn; Nedersaksen, -duitschland.}}" {{in lang|nl}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://users.pandora.be/michel.vanhalme/hermes29.htm|title=Hermes in uitbreiding|website=Users.pandora.be|access-date=7 October 2017|archive-date=7 June 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080607142148/http://users.pandora.be/michel.vanhalme/hermes29.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{lang|nl|neder-}} corresponds with the English ''nether-'', which means "low" or "down".</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=nether |title=Online Etymology Dictionary |access-date=6 November 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206145915/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=nether |archive-date=6 December 2008 }}</ref>{{Excessive citations inline|date=October 2021}} Although not as old as {{lang|nl|Diets}}, the term {{lang|nl|Nederlands}} has been in continuous use since 1250.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
===Names===
{{Main|Dutch name}}
==== Tussenvoegsels ====
Dutch surnames (and surnames of Dutch origin) are generally easily recognisable. Many Dutch surnames feature a {{lang|nl|[[tussenvoegsel]]}} ({{lit|between-joiner}}), which is a [[family name affix]] positioned between a person's [[given name]] and the main part of their [[family name]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Hoitink |first=Y. |date=10 April 2005 |title=Prefixes in surnames |url=https://www.dutchgenealogy.nl/prefixes-in-surnames |access-date=15 August 2019 |publisher=Dutch Genealogy |archive-date=7 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230807144206/https://www.dutchgenealogy.nl/prefixes-in-surnames/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The most common {{lang|nl|tussenvoegsels}} are {{lang|nl|[[van (Dutch)|van]]}} (e.g. A. [[Vincent van Gogh|van Gogh]] "from/of"), {{lang|nl|de / der / den / te / ter / ten}} (e.g. A. [[de Vries]], "the"), {{lang|nl|het / ’t}} (e.g. A. [['t Hart|’t Hart]], "the"), and {{lang|nl|van de / van der / van den}} (e.g. A. [[van den Berg]], "from/of the"). These affixes are not merged, nor capitalised by default. The second affix in a Dutch surname is never capitalised (e.g. '''''V'''an '''d'''en Berg''). The first affix in a Dutch surname is only capitalised if it is not preceded by a first name, initial or other surname.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hoofdletters in namen: Nynke van der Sluis / Nynke Van der Sluis |url=https://onzetaal.nl/taalloket/hoofdletters-namen-nederland |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=Onze Taal |language=nl |archive-date=1 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230201163302/https://onzetaal.nl/taalloket/hoofdletters-namen-nederland |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=DBNL |title=[Nummer 12], Onze Taal. Jaargang 29 |url=https://www.dbnl.org/tekst/_taa014196001_01/_taa014196001_01_0070.php |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=DBNL |language=nl |archive-date=19 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210919141820/https://www.dbnl.org/tekst/_taa014196001_01/_taa014196001_01_0070.php |url-status=live }}</ref> For example ''[[Vincent van Gogh|Vincent '''v'''an Gogh]], V. '''v'''an Gogh, mr. '''V'''an Gogh, '''V'''an Gogh'' and ''V. '''v'''an Gogh-'''v'''an '''d'''en Berg'' are all correct, but ''Vincent '''V'''an Gogh'' is wrong.
Many surnames of [[Dutch diaspora]] (mainly in the [[English-speaking world]] and [[Francophonie]]) are adapted, not only in pronunciation but also in spelling. For example, by merging and capitalising the affixes and main parts of the surnames (e.g. ''A.'' ''van der Bilt'' becomes ''A''. [[Vanderbilt (surname)|''Vanderbilt'']]).
==== Spelling ====
Dutch names can differ greatly in spelling. The surname ''Baks'', for example is also recorded as ''Backs'', ''Bacxs'', ''Bax'', ''Bakx'', ''Baxs'', ''Bacx'', ''Backx'', ''Bakxs'' and ''Baxcs''. Though written differently, pronunciation remains identical. Dialectal variety also commonly occurs, with ''De Smet'' and ''De Smit'' both meaning ''Smith'' for example.{{cn|date=June 2025}}
==== Main types of surnames ====
There are several main types of surnames in Dutch:
*[[Patronymic surname]]s; the name is based on the personal name of the father of the bearer. Historically this has been by far the most dominant form. These type of names fluctuated in form as the surname was not constant. If a man called [[Willem Janszoon|Willem Janssen]] (''William, John's son'') had a son named Jacob, he would be known as [[Jacob Willemszoon de Wet|Jacob Willemsen]] (''Jacob, Williams' son''). Following civil registry, the form at time of registry became permanent. Hence today many Dutch people are named after ancestors living in the early 19th century when civil registry was introduced to the [[Low Countries]]. These names rarely feature {{lang|nl|[[tussenvoegsels]]}}. Similar to English names like Johnson.
*[[Toponymic surname]]s; the name is based on the ___location on which the bearer lives or lived. In Dutch this form of surname nearly always includes one or several {{lang|nl|tussenvoegsels}}, mainly {{lang|nl|van}}, {{lang|nl|van de}} and variants where ''van'' is translated as ''from''. Many emigrants removed the spacing and capitalised these words, leading to derived names for well-known people like [[Cornelius Vanderbilt]].<ref>See the history section of the [[Vanderbilt family]] article, or visit this [http://longislandgenealogy.com/vanderbilt/surnames.htm link]. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060520223532/http://longislandgenealogy.com/vanderbilt/surnames.htm |date=20 May 2006 }}</ref> {{lang|nl|Van}} translated as ''of'' (Dutch language does not distinguish between "of" and "from" both indicated by "van"), Dutch surnames can sometimes refer to [[upper class]] or aristocratic titles (e.g. [[William the Silent|William, Prince of Orange]]). However, in Dutch {{lang|nl|van}} mostly reflects the place of origin of the family and not any aristocratic claim to a holding (''Van der Bilt'' – one who comes from [[De Bilt]]).<ref>"It is a common mistake of Americans, or [[English-speaking world|anglophones]] in general, to think that the '{{lang|nl|van}}' in front of a Dutch name signifies nobility." ('''[http://www.last-names.net/Articles/Place.asp Source.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070611142832/http://www.last-names.net/Articles/Place.asp |date=11 June 2007 }}'''); "{{lang|de|Von}} may be observed in German names denoting nobility while the {{lang|nl|van}}, {{lang|nl|van der}}, {{lang|nl|van de}} and {{lang|nl|van den}} (whether written separately or joined, capitalized or not) stamp the bearer as Dutch and merely mean 'at', 'at the', 'of', 'from' and 'from the'" ('''[http://www.genealogy.com/18_smith.html Source: Genealogy.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070622103344/http://www.genealogy.com/18_smith.html |date=22 June 2007 }}'''), ([http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nfd/component.php?act=detail&naam=van+de+/+den+/+der Institute for Dutch surnames] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071108232636/http://www.meertens.knaw.nl/nfd/component.php?act=detail&naam=van+de+/+den+/+der |date=8 November 2007 }}, in [[Dutch language|Dutch]])</ref>
*[[Occupational surname]]s; the name is based on the occupation of the bearer. Well known examples include ''Molenaar'', ''Visser'' and ''Smit''. This practice is similar to English surnames (the example names translate perfectly to [[Miller]], [[Fisher (surname)|Fisher]] and [[Smith (surname)|Smith]]).<ref>Most common names of occupational origin. Source 1947 Dutch census. {{in lang|nl}}</ref>
*[[Cognominal surname]]s; based on nicknames relating to [[Human physical appearance|physical appearance]] or other [[physical feature|feature]]s, on the appearance or character of the bearer (at least at the time of registration). For example {{lang|nl|De Lange|italics=}} ('the tall one'), {{lang|nl|De Groot|italics=}} ('the big one'), {{lang|nl|De Dappere|italics=}} ('the brave').
*Other surnames may relate to animals. For example; {{lang|nl|De Leeuw|italics=}} ('The Lion'), {{lang|nl|Vogels|italics=}} ('Birds'), {{lang|nl|Koekkoek|italics=}} ('Cuckoo') and {{lang|nl|Devalck|italics=}} ('The Falcon'); to a desired social status; e.g., {{lang|nl|Prins|italics=}} ('Prince'), {{lang|nl|De Koninck/Koning|italics=}} ('King'), {{lang|nl|De Keyzer/Keizer|italics=}} ('Emperor'); or to colour; e.g. {{lang|nl|Rood|italics=}} ('red'), {{lang|nl|Blauw/Blaauw|italics=}} ('blue'), {{lang|nl|De Wit|italics=}} ('the white'). There is also a set of made up or descriptive names; e.g. {{lang|nl|Naaktgeboren}} ('born naked').
==Culture==
[[File:Pieter Brueghel the Elder - The Dutch Proverbs - Google Art Project.jpg|thumb|The Dutch Proverbs, Bruegel the Elder]]
{{Main|Dutch culture (disambiguation){{!}}Dutch culture}}
{{Further|Dutch architecture|Dutch customs and etiquette|Dutch cuisine|Dutch festivities|Dutch literature|Dutch music|Dutch art|Folklore of the Low Countries}}
===Religion===
{{Main|History of Dutch religion}}
{{Further|Religion in the Netherlands}}
Prior to the arrival of Christianity, the ancestors of the Dutch adhered to a form of [[Germanic paganism]] augmented with various [[Celtic polytheism|Celtic elements]]. At the start of the 6th century, the first ([[Hiberno-Scottish mission|Hiberno-Scottish]]) missionaries arrived. They were later replaced by [[Anglo-Saxon Christianity|Anglo-Saxon missionaries]], who eventually succeeded in converting most of the inhabitants by the 8th century.<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01505a.htm The Anglo-Saxon Church] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170512105643/http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01505a.htm |date=12 May 2017 }} – [[Catholic Encyclopedia]] article</ref> Since then, Christianity has been the dominant religion in the region.
In the early 16th century, the Protestant [[Reformation]] began to form and soon spread in the [[Westhoek (region)|Westhoek]] and the County of Flanders, where secret open-air sermons were held, called {{lang|nl|hagenpreken}} ('[[Hedge (barrier)|hedgerow]] [[oration]]s') in Dutch. The ruler of the Dutch regions, [[Philip II of Spain]], felt it was his duty to fight Protestantism and, after [[Beeldenstorm|the wave of iconoclasm]], sent troops to crush the rebellion and make the Low Countries a Catholic region once more.<ref name=autogenerated5>The Dutch Republic Its Rise, Greatness, and Fall 1477–1806, {{ISBN|0-19-820734-4}}</ref> The Protestants in the southern Low Countries fled North ''[[en masse]]''.<ref name=autogenerated5 /> Most of the Dutch Protestants were now concentrated in the free Dutch provinces north of the river [[Rhine]], while the Catholic Dutch were situated in the Spanish-occupied or -dominated South. After the [[Peace of Westphalia]] in 1648, Protestantism did not spread South, resulting in a difference in religious situations.
[[File:Nederlandgodsdienst1849.PNG|thumb|Religion in the Netherlands in 1849.
{{legend|#008000|[[Catholic Church|Roman Catholicism]]}}
{{legend|#FF0000|[[Protestantism]] ([[Calvinism|Calvinist]])}}]]
Contemporary Dutch, according to a 2017 study conducted by Statistics Netherlands, are mostly irreligious with 51% of the population professing no religion. The largest Christian denomination with 24% are the [[Roman catholicism in the Netherlands|Roman Catholics]], followed by 15% [[Protestantism in the Netherlands|Protestants]]. Furthermore, there are 5% [[Muslims]] and 6% others (among others Buddhists).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cbs.nl/nl-nl/nieuws/2018/43/meer-dan-de-helft-nederlanders-niet-religieus|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706150521/https://www.cbs.nl/nr/rdonlyres/775b8373-86f8-4a17-8872-c4ecfbcb2766/0/2006a3pub.pdf|title=Meer dan de helft Nederlanders niet religieus|archive-date=6 July 2017|website=Cbs.nl|access-date=8 March 2022}}</ref> People of Dutch ancestry in the United States, Canada, and South Africa are generally more religious than their European counterparts; for example, the numerous Dutch communities of [[western Michigan]] remain strongholds of the [[Reformed Church in America]] and the [[Christian Reformed Church in North America|Christian Reformed Church]], both descendants of the [[Dutch Reformed Church]].
===Cultural divergences===
One cultural division within Dutch culture is that between the formerly Protestant North and the nowadays Catholic South, which encompasses various cultural differences between the Northern Dutch on one side and the Southern Dutch on the other. This subject has historically received attention from historians, notably [[Pieter Geyl]] (1887–1966) and Carel Gerretson (1884–1958). The historical pluriformity of the Dutch cultural landscape has given rise to several theories aimed at both identifying and explaining cultural divergences between different regions. One theory, proposed by A.J. Wichers in 1965, sees differences in mentality between the southeastern, or 'higher', and northwestern, or 'lower' regions within the Netherlands, and seeks to explain these by referring to the different degrees to which these areas were feudalised during the Middle Ages.<ref>A.M. van der Woude, {{lang|nl|Nederland over de schouder gekeken}} (Utrecht 1986), 11–12. {{in lang|nl}}</ref> Another, more recent cultural divide is that between the ''Randstad'', the urban agglomeration in the West of the country, and the other provinces of the Netherlands.
[[File:Map of the Netherlands highlighting the Great Rivers.svg|thumb|208x208px|The ''[[grote rivieren]]'' ("Great Rivers") of the Netherlands mark the cultural division between north and south]]
In Dutch, the cultural division between North and South is also referred to by the [[colloquialism]] "''[[Grote rivieren|below/above the great rivers]]''" as the rivers [[Rhine]] and [[Meuse]] roughly form a natural boundary between the Northern Dutch (those Dutch living North of these rivers), and the Southern Dutch (those living South of them). The division is partially caused by (traditional) religious differences, with the North used to be predominantly Protestant and the South still having a majority of Catholics. Linguistic (dialectal) differences (positioned along the Rhine/Meuse rivers) and to a lesser extent, historical economic development of both regions are also important elements in any dissimilarity.{{cn|date=June 2025}}
On a smaller scale cultural pluriformity can also be found; be it in local architecture or (perceived) character. This wide array of regional identities positioned within such a relatively small area, has often been attributed to the fact that many of the current Dutch provinces were de facto independent states for much of their history, as well as the importance of local Dutch dialects (which often largely correspond with the provinces themselves) to the people who speak them.<ref>Dutch Culture in a European Perspective; by D. Fokkema, 2004, Assen.</ref>
====Northern Dutch culture====
[[File:NorthernDutch.png|thumb|Northern Dutch cultural area.<ref name="nl.wikipedia.org">This image is based on the rough definition given by in the 2005 " number 3" edition of the magazine "Neerlandia" by the [[:nl:Algemeen Nederlands Verbond|ANV]]; it states the dividing line between both areas lies where "the great rivers divide the Brabantic from the Hollandic dialects and where Protestantism traditionally begins".</ref>]]Northern Dutch culture is marked by [[Protestantism]], especially [[Calvinism]]. Though today many do not adhere to Protestantism anymore, or are only nominally part of a congregation, Protestant-(influenced) values and customs are present. Generally, it can be said that the Northern Dutch are more [[pragmatism|pragmatic]], favor a direct approach, and display a less-exuberant lifestyle when compared to Southerners.<ref name=autogenerated2>{{lang|nl|Voor wie Nederland en Vlaanderen wil leren kennen}}. 1978 By J. Wilmots</ref> On a global scale, the Northern Dutch have formed the dominant vanguard of the Dutch language and culture since the [[Fall of Antwerp (1584–1585)|fall of Antwerp]], exemplified by the use of "Dutch" itself as the [[demonym]] for the country in which they form a majority; the [[Netherlands]]. Linguistically, Northerners speak any of the [[Hollandic]], [[Zeelandic]], and [[Dutch Low Saxon]] dialects natively, or are influenced by them when they speak the Standard form of Dutch. Economically and culturally, the traditional centre of the region have been the provinces of [[North Holland|North]] and [[South Holland]], or today; the [[Randstad]], although for a brief period during the 13th or 14th century it lay more towards the east, when various eastern towns and cities aligned themselves with the emerging [[Hanseatic League]]. The entire Northern Dutch cultural area is located in the [[Netherlands]], its ethnically Dutch population is estimated to be just under 10,000,000.{{notetag|name=n2}} Northern Dutch culture has been less under French influence than the Southern Dutch culture area.<ref name="Fred M. Shelley 2013, page 97">Fred M. Shelley, Nation Shapes: The Story Behind the World's Borders, 2013, page 97</ref>
=====Frisians=====
{{Main|Frisians|Friesland|West Frisian language}}
Frisians, specifically [[West Frisians]], are an ethnic group present in the north of the Netherlands, mainly concentrated in the province of [[Friesland]]. Culturally, modern Frisians and the (Northern) Dutch are rather similar; the main and generally most important difference being that Frisians speak West Frisian, one of the three sub-branches of the [[Frisian languages]], alongside Dutch, and they find this to be a defining part of their identity as Frisians.<ref name="ynterfryske">{{cite web |title=Ynterfryske ferklearring (Inter-Frisian Declaration) |url=https://fryskerie.frl/ynterfryske-ferklearring/ |website=De Fryske Rie (The Frisian Council) |access-date=5 January 2020 |language=fy |quote=Wy wolle ús taal, dy't foar ús identiteit beskiedend is, befoarderje en útbouwe. (We want to promote and develop our language, which is defining for our identity) |archive-date=27 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180927170559/https://fryskerie.frl/ynterfryske-ferklearring/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
According to a 1970 inquiry, West Frisians identified themselves more with the Dutch than with [[East Frisians]] or [[North Frisians]].<ref>Frisia. 'Facts and fiction' (1970), by D. Tamminga. {{in lang|nl}}</ref> A study in 1984 found that 39% of the inhabitants of Friesland considered themselves "primarily Frisian," although without precluding also being Dutch. A further 36 per cent claimed they were Dutch, but also Frisian, the remaining 25% saw themselves as only Dutch.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Mahmood|first1=Cynthia|last2=Armstrong|first2=Sharon L K|date=January 1992|title=Do Ethnic Groups Exist?: A Cognitive Perspective on the Concept of Cultures|journal=Ethnology|volume=31|issue=1|pages=1–14|jstor=3773438|doi=10.2307/3773438}}</ref> A 2013 study showed that 45% of the population of Friesland saw themselves as "primarily Frisian", again without precluding the possibility of also identifying as Dutch.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Betten|first1=Erik|date=June 2013|title=De Friezen: Op syk nei de Fryske identiteit|page=168}}</ref> Frisians are not disambiguated from the Dutch people in Dutch official [[statistics]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Bevolking (Population) |url=https://opendata.cbs.nl/statline/#/CBS/nl/dataset/37325/table?fromstatweb |website=CBS Statline |publisher=cbs.nl |access-date=2 January 2020 |archive-date=18 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180818214744/https://opendata.cbs.nl/statline/#/CBS/nl/dataset/37325/table?fromstatweb |url-status=live }}</ref>
In the Netherlands itself "West-Frisian" refers to a Hollandic region of the province of North-Holland known as [[West Friesland (region)|West-Friesland]], which was conquered by the counts of Holland in 1297. The surviving dialect, West Frisian, with a Frisian substrate, remains used and "West-Frisians" refers to its speakers.
====Southern Dutch culture====
[[File:SouthernDutch.png|thumb|Southern Dutch cultural area.<ref name="nl.wikipedia.org"/>]]
The Southern Dutch sphere generally consists of the areas in which the population was traditionally Catholic. During the early [[Middle Ages]] up until the [[Dutch Revolt]], the Southern regions were more powerful, as well as more culturally and economically developed.<ref name="autogenerated2"/> At the end of the Dutch Revolt, it became clear the [[Habsburg]]s were unable to reconquer the North, while the North's military was too weak to conquer the South, which, under the influence of the [[Counter-Reformation]], had started to develop a political and cultural identity of its own.<ref>Cf. Geoffrey Parker, ''The Dutch Revolt'': "Gradually a consistent attitude emerged, a sort of 'collective identity' which was distinct and able to resist the inroads, intellectual as well as military, of both the Northern Dutch (especially during the crisis of 1632) and the French. This embryonic 'national identity' was an impressive monument to the government of the archdukes, and it survived almost forty years of grueling warfare (1621–59) and the invasions of Louis XIV until, in 1700, the Spanish Habsburgs died out." (Penguin edition 1985, p. 260). See also J. Israel, ''The Dutch Republic, 1477–1806'', 461–463 (Dutch language version).</ref> The Southern Dutch, including Dutch Brabant and Limburg, remained Catholic or returned to Catholicism. The Dutch dialects spoken by this group are [[Brabantic]], [[Kleverlandish]], [[Limburgish]] and [[East Flemish|East]] and [[West Flemish]]. In the Netherlands, an oft-used adage used for indicating this cultural boundary is the phrase ''boven/onder de rivieren'' (Dutch: above/below the rivers), in which 'the rivers' refer to the [[Rhine]] and the [[Meuse]]. Southern Dutch culture has been influenced more by French culture, as opposed to the Northern Dutch culture area.<ref name="Fred M. Shelley 2013, page 97"/>
=====Flemings=====
{{Main|Flemings}}
Within the field of [[ethnography]], it is argued that the Dutch-speaking populations of the Netherlands and Belgium have a number of common characteristics, with a mostly shared [[language]], some generally similar or identical [[customs]], and with no clearly separate [[ancestry|ancestral origin]] or [[origin myth]].<ref>National minorities in Europe, W. Braumüller, 2003, page 20.</ref>
However, the popular perception of being a single group varies greatly, depending on subject matter, locality, and personal background. Generally, the Flemish will seldom identify themselves as being Dutch and vice versa, especially on a national level.<ref>Nederlandse en Vlaamse identiteit, Civis Mundi 2006 by S.W Couwenberg. {{ISBN|90-5573-688-0}}. Page 62. Quote: "Er valt heel wat te lachen om de wederwaardigheden van Vlamingen in Nederland en Nederlanders in Vlaanderen. Ze relativeren de verschillen en beklemtonen ze tegelijkertijd. Die verschillen zijn er onmiskenbaar: in taal, klank, kleur, stijl, gedrag, in politiek, maatschappelijke organisatie, maar het zijn stuk voor stuk varianten binnen één taal-en cultuurgemeenschap." The opposite opinion is stated by L. Beheydt (2002): "Al bij al lijkt een grondiger analyse van de taalsituatie en de taalattitude in Nederland en Vlaanderen weinig aanwijzingen te bieden voor een gezamenlijke culturele identiteit. Dat er ook op andere gebieden weinig aanleiding is voor een gezamenlijke culturele identiteit is al door Geert Hofstede geconstateerd in zijn vermaarde boek ''Allemaal andersdenkenden'' (1991)." L. Beheydt, "Delen Vlaanderen en Nederland een culturele identiteit?", in P. Gillaerts, H. van Belle, L. Ravier (eds.), ''Vlaamse identiteit: mythe én werkelijkheid'' (Leuven 2002), 22–40, esp. 38. {{in lang|nl}}</ref> This is partly caused by the popular stereotypes in the Netherlands as well as Flanders, which are mostly based on the "cultural extremes" of both Northern and Southern culture, including in religious identity. Though these stereotypes tend to ignore the transitional area formed by the Southern provinces of the Netherlands and most Northern reaches of Belgium, resulting in overgeneralisations.<ref>Dutch Culture in a European Perspective: Accounting for the past, 1650–2000; by D. Fokkema, 2004, Assen.</ref>
In the case of Belgium, there is the added influence of [[nationalism]] as the Dutch language and culture [[Taalstrijd|were oppressed]] by the [[French language|francophone]] government. This was followed by a [[Flemish movement|nationalist backlash]] during the late 19th and early 20th centuries that saw little help from the Dutch government (which for a long time following the [[Belgian Revolution]] had a reticent and contentious relationship with the newly formed Belgium and a largely indifferent attitude towards its Dutch-speaking inhabitants)<ref>{{lang|nl|Geschiedenis van de Nederlanden}}, by J.C.H Blom and E. Lamberts, {{ISBN|978-90-5574-475-6}}; page 383. {{in lang|nl}}</ref> and, hence, focused on pitting "Flemish" culture against French culture, resulting in the forming of the Flemish [[nation]] within Belgium, a consciousness of which can be very marked among some Dutch-speaking Belgians.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BNnm-Bog4awC&q=Flemish+monolinguals&pg=PA50 |title=Languages in contact and conflict ... – Google Books |date=1 January 1995 |access-date=27 August 2010 |isbn=978-1-85359-278-2 |last1=Wright |first1=Sue |last2=Kelly-Holmes |first2=Helen |publisher=Multilingual Matters |archive-date=28 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928153950/https://books.google.com/books?id=BNnm-Bog4awC&q=Flemish+monolinguals&pg=PA50#v=snippet&q=Flemish%20monolinguals&f=false |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Page needed|date=December 2024}}
==Genetics==
{{see also|Genetic history of Europe}}
[[File:NL PCs abdellaoui.jpg|thumb|The three largerst patterns of genome-wide [[Single-nucleotide polymorphism|SNP]] variation in the Netherlands]]
The largest patterns of [[human genetic variation]] within the Netherlands show strong correlations with geography and distinguish between: (1) North and South; (2) East and West; and (3) the middle-band and the rest of the country. The distribution of gene variants for eye colour, metabolism, brain processes, body height and immune system show differences between these regions that reflect [[Natural selection|evolutionary selection pressures]].<ref name="ReferenceB">{{cite journal|last1=Abdellaoui|first1=Abdel|last2=Hottenga|first2=Jouke-Jan|last3=de Knijff|first3=Peter|last4=Nivard|first4=Michel|last5=Xiangjun|first5=Xiao|last6=Scheet|first6=Paul|last7=Brooks|first7=Andrew|last8=Ehli|first8=Erik|last9=Hu|first9=Yueshan|last10=Davies|first10=Gareth|last11=Hudziak|first11=James|last12=Sullivan|first12=Patrick|last13=van Beijsterveldt|first13=Toos|last14=Willemsen|first14=Gonneke|last15=de Geus|first15=Eco|last16=Penninx|first16=Brenda|last17=Boomsma|first17=Dorret|title=Population structure, migration, and diversifying selection in the Netherlands|journal=European Journal of Human Genetics|date=27 March 2013|volume=21|issue=11|pages=1277–1285|doi=10.1038/ejhg.2013.48|pmid=23531865|pmc=3798851}}</ref>
The largest genetic differences within the Netherlands are observed between the North and the South (with the three [[Grote rivieren|major rivers]] – Rijn, Waal, Maas – as a border), with the [[Randstad]] showing a mixture of these two ancestral backgrounds. The European North-South cline correlates highly with this Dutch North-South cline and shows several other similarities, such as a correlation with height (with the North being taller on average), blue/brown eye colour (with the North having more blue eyes), and genome-wide homozygosity (with the North having lower [[Homozygous|homozygosity]] levels). The correlation with genome-wide homozygosity likely reflects the [[serial founder effect]] that was initiated with the ancient successive out-of-Africa migrations. This does not necessarily mean that these events (north-ward migration and evolutionary selection pressures) took place within the borders of the Netherlands; it could also be that Southern Europeans have migrated more to the South of the Netherlands, and/or Northern Europeans more to the Northern parts.<ref name="ReferenceB"/>
The north–south differences were likely maintained by the relatively strong [[Pillarisation|segregation]] of the [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] South and the [[Protestantism|Protestant]] North during the last centuries. During the last 50 years or so there was a large increase of [[Irreligion|non-religious]] individuals in the Netherlands. Their spouses are more likely to come from a different genetic background than those of religious individuals, causing non-religious individuals to show lower levels of genome-wide [[Homozygous|homozygosity]] than Catholics or Protestants.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Abdellaoui|first1=Abdel|last2=Hottenga|first2=Jouke-Jan|last3=Xiangjun|first3=Xiao|last4=Scheet|first4=Paul|last5=Ehli|first5=Erik|last6=Davies|first6=Gareth|last7=Hudziak|first7=James|last8=Smit|first8=Dirk|last9=Bartels|first9=Meike|last10=Willemsen|first10=Gonneke|last11=Brooks|first11=Andrew|last12=Sullivan|first12=Patrick|last13=Smit|first13=Johannes|last14=de Geus|first14=Eco|last15=Penninx|first15=Brenda|last16=Boomsma|first16=Dorret|title=Association Between Autozygosity and Major Depression: Stratification Due to Religious Assortment|journal=Behavior Genetics|date=25 August 2013|volume=43|issue=6|pages=455–467|doi=10.1007/s10519-013-9610-1|pmc=3827717|pmid=23978897}}</ref>
==Height==
The Dutch are the [[Average human height by country|tallest people in the world]], by nationality,<ref name="Science 2015-04-07">{{cite news |last=Enserink |first=Martin |date=7 April 2015 |title=Did natural selection make the Dutch the tallest people on the planet? |newspaper=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |___location=Amsterdam |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/did-natural-selection-make-dutch-tallest-people-planet |access-date=9 April 2015 |quote=The study suggests that sexual selection is at work in the Dutch population, Stearns says }}</ref> with an average [[Human height|height]] of {{convert|1.81|m|ftin|1|abbr=out}} for men and {{convert|1.67|m|ftin|1|abbr=out}} for women in 2009.<ref>{{cite web |title=Reported health and lifestyle |url=http://statline.cbs.nl/StatWeb/publication/?VW=T&DM=SLNL&PA=03799&D1=242,254,267-270&D2=0-17&HD=081103-1603&HDR=T.&STB=G1 |access-date=12 August 2012 |publisher=Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek}}</ref> The average height of young men in the Netherlands increased from 5 feet, 4 inches to approximately 6 feet between the 1850s until the early 2000s.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Fogel |first=Robert |title=The Escape from Hunger and Premature Death, 1700—2100 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2004 |pages=41 |language=English}}</ref>
The rapid increase in height is attributed partly to [[natural selection]] and partly to environmental factors.<ref name="BBC Travel">{{cite web | url=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20200823-why-are-the-dutch-so-tall | title=Why are the Dutch so tall? | date=24 August 2020 }}</ref> Natural or [[sexual selection]] appears to play a role, with taller men having more children.<ref name="Fisher Scientific">https://www.fishersci.com/us/en/education-products/publications/headline-discoveries/2015/issue-3/why-are-dutch-people-so-tall.html {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2025}}</ref><ref name="Science 2015-04-07"/> The role of evolution is disputed, however.<ref name="Stulp">{{cite journal |last1=Stulp |first1=Gert |last2=Bonnell |first2=Tyler |last3=Barrett |first3=Louise |title=Simulating the evolution of height in the Netherlands in recent history |journal=The History of the Family |date=3 April 2023 |volume=28 |issue=2 |pages=434–456 |doi=10.1080/1081602x.2023.2192193 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/1081602X.2023.2192193 |access-date=26 December 2024 |issn=1081-602X}}</ref>
In the 21st century, average height in the Netherlands has started to decrease. This trend is partly due to immigration, but is also present in "people without a [[migration background]]".<ref name="Guardian Boffey">{{cite news |last1=Boffey |first1=Daniel |title=Dutch are world's tallest people – but they're shrinking, study shows |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/sep/17/dutch-are-worlds-tallest-people-but-theyre-shrinking-study-shows |access-date=26 December 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=17 September 2021}}</ref>
==Dutch diaspora==
{{Main|Dutch diaspora}}
[[File:Dutch people around the world.svg|thumb|Distribution of the Dutch and their descendants around the world.
<br />
{{Legend|#000000|Netherlands}}
{{Legend|#68121d|+ 1,000,000}}
{{Legend|#a00a2b|+ 100,000}}
{{Legend|#ff3b4e|+ 10,000}}
{{Legend|#ffaeae|+ 1,000}}|300x300px]]
Since World War II, Dutch [[Emigration|emigrants]] have mainly departed the Netherlands for Canada, the Federal Republic of Germany, the United States, Belgium, Australia, and South Africa, in that order. Today, large Dutch communities also exist in the United Kingdom, France, Spain, Turkey, and New Zealand.<ref name="Nidi.knaw.nl" />
===Central and Eastern Europe===
During the [[Ostsiedlung|German eastward expansion]] (mainly taking place between the 10th and 13th century),<ref>Taschenatlas Weltgeschichte, part 1, by H. Kinder and W. Hilgemann. {{ISBN|978-90-5574-565-4}}, page 171. (German)</ref> a number of Dutchmen moved as well. They settled mainly east of the [[Elbe]] and [[Saale]] rivers, regions largely inhabited by [[Polabian Slavs]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://oit.boisestate.edu/sknox/thesis/chapt4.html |title=Boise State University thesis by E.L. Knox on the German Eastward Expansion ('Ostsiedlung') |publisher=Oit.boisestate.edu |access-date=27 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227210804/http://oit.boisestate.edu/sknox/thesis/chapt4.html |archive-date=27 December 2008 }}</ref> After the capture of territory along the Elbe and Havel Rivers in the 1160s, Dutch settlers from flooded regions in [[Holland]] used their expertise to build dikes in [[Brandenburg]], but also settled in and around major German cities such as [[Bremen]] and [[Hamburg]] and German regions of [[Mecklenburg]] and Brandenburg.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://home.planet.nl/~artrako/Historie/NedKoloniesDld-NL.html|title=Nederlandse Kolonies in Duitsland|website=Home.planet.nl|access-date=8 March 2022|archive-date=28 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230928153950/http://home.planet.nl/~artrako/Historie/NedKoloniesDld-NL.html|url-status=live}}</ref> From the 13th to the 15th centuries, the [[Teutonic Order]] invited several waves of Dutch and Frisians to settle throughout [[Prussia (region)|Prussia]], mainly along the [[Baltic Sea]] coast.<ref>{{cite journal|jstor=2763957|title=Dutch and Flemish Colonization in Mediaeval Germany|first=James Westfall|last=Thompson|date=7 October 2017|journal=American Journal of Sociology|volume=24|issue=2|pages=159–186|doi=10.1086/212889|s2cid=145644640}}</ref> The first place in modern [[Poland]] where Dutch immigrants settled was [[Pasłęk]] in 1297, once renamed ''Holąd'' after the settlers.<ref>{{cite book|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich, Tom III|year=1882|language=pl|___location=Warszawa|page=96}}</ref>
In the early-to-mid-16th century, Dutch [[Mennonites]] began to move from the [[Low Countries]] (especially [[Friesland]] and [[Flanders]]) to the [[Vistula]] delta region, seeking religious freedom and exemption from military service.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pgsa.org/Inter/dutch_populace.php |title=Article on Dutch settlers in Poland published by the Polish Genealogical Society of America and written by Z. Pentek |publisher=Pgsa.org |access-date=27 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101118060115/http://www.pgsa.org/Inter/dutch_populace.php |archive-date=18 November 2010 }}</ref> The territories which they settled were located in the regions of [[Pomerelia]] and [[Powiśle (region)|Powiśle]] in northern Poland, and later also in [[Masovia]] in central Poland.<ref>{{cite book|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Słownik geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i innych krajów słowiańskich, Tom VI|year=1885|language=pl|___location=Warszawa|page=256}}</ref> These communities became known as the [[Olęders]], a Polish rendering of the term ''Hollander''.<ref>{{cite book |author=Andrzej Chwalba |author2=Krzysztof Zamorski |date=2020 |title=The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. History, Memory, Legacy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mq73DwAAQBAJ |___location=London |publisher=Routledge – Taylor & Francis |isbn=978-1-000-20399-8 |access-date=20 March 2023 |archive-date=11 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230411154334/https://books.google.com/books?id=mq73DwAAQBAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> After the [[partitions of Poland]], the [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussian]] authorities took over and its government eliminated exemption from military service on religious grounds.
The Dutch [[Russian Mennonite|Mennonites]] also migrated as far as the [[Russian Empire]], where they were offered land along the [[Volga River]]. Some settlers left for [[Siberia]] in search for fertile land.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.mercator-education.org/research-projects/endangered-languages/immigrants-from-the-netherlands-in-siberia|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140102193737/http://www.mercator-education.org/research-projects/endangered-languages/immigrants-from-the-netherlands-in-siberia|title=Article published by the Mercator Research center on Dutch settlers in Siberia|archive-date=2 January 2014|access-date=8 March 2022}}</ref> The Russian capital itself, [[Moscow]], also had a number of Dutch immigrants, mostly working as craftsmen. Arguably the most famous of which was [[Anna Mons]], the mistress of [[Peter I of Russia|Peter the Great]].
Historically Dutch also lived directly on the eastern side of the German border, most have since been assimilated (apart from ~40,000 recent border migrants), especially since the establishment of Germany itself in 1872. Cultural marks can still be found though. In some villages and towns a [[Dutch Reformed]] church is present, and a number of border districts (such as [[Kleve (district)|Cleves]], [[Borken (district)|Borken]] and [[Viersen (district)|Viersen]]) have towns and village with an etymologically Dutch origin. In the area around [[Cleves]] ([[German language|German]] {{lang|de|Kleve}}, [[Dutch language|Dutch]] {{lang|nl|Kleef}}) [[Kleverlandish|traditional dialect]] is Dutch, rather than surrounding [[High German|(High/]] [[Low German|Low) German]]. More to the South, cities historically housing many Dutch traders have retained Dutch [[Exonym and endonym|exonyms]] for example [[Aachen]] ({{lang|nl|Aken}}) and Cologne/Köln ({{lang|nl|Keulen}}) to this day.
===Southern Africa===
[[File:Dutcharchitecture2.png|thumb|Traditional [[Cape Dutch architecture]] ([[Swellendam]])]]
{{Main|Afrikaner|Cape Dutch|Boer|Afrikaans speaking population in South Africa}}
Although [[Portuguese people|Portuguese]] explorers made contact with the [[Cape of Good Hope]] as early as 1488, much of present-day [[South Africa]] was ignored by Europeans until the [[Dutch East India Company]] (VOC) established its first outpost at [[Cape Town]], in 1652.<ref name="vaque1989">{{cite book |editor1-first=Charles C. |editor1-last=Thomas McGhee |editor2-first=N/A |editor2-last=N/A |title=The plot against South Africa |year=1989|edition=2nd |publisher=Varama Publishers |___location=Pretoria |isbn=0-620-14537-4}}</ref><ref name="swapo">{{cite book |last=Fryxell|first=Cole|title=To Be Born a Nation|pages=9–327}}</ref> Dutch colonisers began arriving shortly thereafter, making the Cape home to the oldest Western-based civilisation south of the [[Sahara Desert|Sahara]].<ref name="zastudy">{{cite book|last=Kaplan|first=Irving|title=Area Handbook for the Republic of South Africa|pages=42–591}}</ref> Some of the earliest mulatto communities in the country were subsequently formed through unions between colonists, enslaved people, and various [[Khoikhoi]] tribes.<ref name="zimstudy">{{cite book|last=Nelson|first=Harold|title=Zimbabwe: A Country Study|pages=237–317}}</ref> This led to the development of a major South African ethnic group, [[Cape Coloureds]], who adopted the Dutch language and culture.<ref name="swapo"/> As the number of Europeans—particularly women—in the Cape swelled, [[White South Africans|South African whites]] closed ranks as a community to protect their privileged status, eventually marginalising Coloureds as a separate and inferior racial group.<ref name="roskinstudies">{{cite book|last=Roskin|first=Roskin|title=Countries and concepts: an introduction to comparative politics|pages=343–373}}</ref>
Since VOC employees proved inept farmers, tracts of land were granted to married Dutch citizens who undertook to spend at least twenty years in South Africa.<ref name=Hunt1>{{cite book|last=Hunt|first=John|editor-last=Campbell|editor-first=Heather-Ann|title=Dutch South Africa: Early Settlers at the Cape, 1652–1708|date=2005|pages=13–35|publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press|___location=Philadelphia|isbn=978-1-904744-95-5}}</ref> Upon the revocation of the [[Edict of Nantes]] in 1685, they were joined by [[French people|French]] [[Huguenots]] fleeing religious persecution at home, who interspersed among the original freemen.<ref name="vaque1989"/> Between 1685 and 1707 the company also extended free passage to any Dutch families wishing to resettle at the Cape.<ref name="Keegan">{{cite book | last = Keegan| first = Timothy| title = Colonial South Africa and the Origins of the Racial Order| year = 1996| url = https://archive.org/details/colonialsouthafr0000keeg| url-access = registration|edition= 1996|pages= [https://archive.org/details/colonialsouthafr0000keeg/page/15 15–37] | publisher = David Philip Publishers (Pty) Ltd| isbn = 978-0-8139-1735-1}}</ref> At the beginning of the eighteenth century there were roughly 600 people of Dutch birth or descent residing in South Africa, and around the end of Dutch rule in 1806 the number had reached 13,360.<ref name="Britannica1933">Entry: Cape Colony. ''Encyclopedia Britannica Volume 4 Part 2: Brain to Casting''. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. 1933. James Louis Garvin, editor.</ref>
[[File:Charles Edwin Fripp00.jpg|thumb|Boer {{lang|af|[[Great Trek|Voortrekkers]]}} in South Africa]]
Some {{lang|nl|vrijburgers}} eventually turned to cattle ranching as {{lang|af|[[trekboers]]}}, creating their own distinct sub-culture centered around a semi-nomadic lifestyle and isolated patriarchal communities.<ref name="zastudy"/> By the eighteenth century there had emerged a new people in Africa who identified as {{lang|af|[[Afrikaner]]s}}, rather than Dutchmen, after the land they had colonised.<ref name="Dowden">{{cite book| author = Dowden, Richard| title = Africa: Altered States, Ordinary Miracles| year = 2010| pages = [https://archive.org/details/africaalteredsta00rich/page/380 380–415]| publisher = Portobello Books| isbn = 978-1-58648-753-9| url = https://archive.org/details/africaalteredsta00rich/page/380}}</ref>
Afrikaners are dominated by two main groups, the [[Cape Dutch]] and [[Boer]]s, which are partly defined by different traditions of society, law, and historical economic bases.<ref name="zastudy"/> Although their language ([[Afrikaans]]) and religion remain undeniably linked to that of the Netherlands,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dutchtoday.com/content/view/20/25/ |title=Is Afrikaans Dutch? |publisher=DutchToday.com |access-date=10 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120624025204/http://www.dutchtoday.com/content/view/20/25/ |archive-date=24 June 2012 }}</ref> Afrikaner culture has been strongly shaped by three centuries in South Africa.<ref name="Dowden"/> Afrikaans, which developed from [[Dutch language#Modern Dutch (15th century–present)|Early Modern Dutch]], has been influenced by English, [[Portuguese-based creole languages#Southeast Asia|Malay-Portuguese creole]], and various African languages. Dutch was taught to South African students as late as 1914 and a few upper-class Afrikaners used it in polite society, but the first Afrikaans literature had already appeared in 1861.<ref name="zastudy"/> The [[Union of South Africa]] granted Dutch official status upon its inception, but in 1925 Parliament openly recognised Afrikaans as a separate language.<ref name="zastudy"/> It differs from Standard Dutch by several pronunciations borrowed from Malay, German, or English, the loss of case and gender distinctions, and in the extreme simplification of grammar.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/8437/Afrikaans-language |title=Afrikaans language – Britannica Online Encyclopedia |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |access-date=10 September 2012 |archive-date=31 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100831105055/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/8437/Afrikaans-language |url-status=live }}</ref> The dialects are no longer considered quite mutually intelligible.<ref name="kwintessential.co.uk">{{cite web|url=http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/language/about/afrikaans.html |title=The Afrikaans Language | about | language |publisher=Kwintessential.co.uk |access-date=10 September 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120907035914/http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/language/about/afrikaans.html |archive-date=7 September 2012 }}</ref>
During the 1950s, Dutch immigration to South Africa began to increase exponentially for the first time in over a hundred years. The country registered a net gain of around 45,000 Dutch immigrants between 1950 and 2001, making it the sixth most popular destination for citizens of the Netherlands living abroad.<ref name="Nidi.knaw.nl" />
===Southeast Asia===
{{Main|Indo people|Totok|Burgher people}}
[[File:COLLECTIE TROPENMUSEUM W.L. Harmsen met familie en gasten in de tuin van zijn huis te Tjikadongdong TMnr 60052275.jpg|thumb|Dutch family in [[Java]] c. 1903]]
Since the 16th century, there has been a Dutch presence in [[Southeast Asia]], Taiwan, and [[Japan]]. In many cases, the Dutch were the first Europeans whom the people living there encountered. Between 1602 and 1796, the VOC sent almost a million Europeans to work in its territories in Asia.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/files/22635/11546101681netherlands_voc_archives.doc/netherlands+voc+archives.doc |title=Data |website=portal.unesco.org |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20081217030156/http://portal.unesco.org/ci/en/files/22635/11546101681netherlands_voc_archives.doc/netherlands+voc+archives.doc |archive-date=17 December 2008 }}</ref> The majority died of disease or made their way back to Europe, but some of them made the Indies their new home.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dutchmalaysia.net/press/Easternization.html |title=Easternization of the West: Children of the VOC |publisher=Dutchmalaysia.net |access-date=27 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090814022910/http://www.dutchmalaysia.net/press/Easternization.html |archive-date=14 August 2009 }}</ref> Interaction between the Dutch and the indigenous populations mainly took place in [[Dutch period in Ceylon|Sri Lanka]] and the [[List of islands of Indonesia|modern Indonesian Islands]]. Most of the time, Dutch soldiers married local women and settled in the colonies. Through the centuries, there developed a relatively large Dutch-speaking population of mixed Dutch and Indonesian descent, known as [[Indo people|Indos]] or Dutch-Indonesians. The expulsion of Dutchmen following the [[Indonesian National Revolution|Indonesian Revolt]] means that currently{{when|date=September 2020}} the majority of this group lives in the Netherlands. Statistics show that Indos are the largest minority group in the Netherlands and number close to half a million (excluding the third generation).<ref>{{in lang|nl}} Willems, Wim, '{{lang|nl|De uittocht uit Indie}} ''1945–1995''<nowiki/>' (Uitgeverij Bert Bakker, Amsterdam, 2001) {{ISBN|90-351-2361-1}}</ref>
{{See also|Dutch East Indies}}
===West Africa===
{{main|White Ghanaian}}
Though many [[Ghanaians]] of European origin are of British origin, there are a small number of Dutch people in Ghana. The forts in Ghana have a small number of Dutch people. Most of the Dutch population is in [[Accra]], where the Netherlands has its embassy.{{cn|date=June 2025}}
{{See also|Dutch Gold Coast}}
===Australia and New Zealand===
[[File:Dutch Migrant 1954 MariaScholte=50000thToAustraliaPostWW2.jpg|thumb|Dutch [[Immigration|migrants]] arriving in [[Australia]] in 1954]]
{{main|New Zealand European|Dutch Australian|Dutch New Zealander}}
Though the Dutch were the first [[Europe]]ans to visit Australia and New Zealand, colonisation did not take place and it was only after [[World War II]] that a sharp increase in Dutch emigration to Australia occurred. Poor economic prospects for many Dutchmen as well as increasing demographic pressures, in the post-war Netherlands were a powerful incentive to emigrate. Due to Australia experiencing a shortage of [[agriculture|agricultural]] and [[metal industry]] workers it, and to a lesser extent New Zealand, seemed an attractive possibility, with the Dutch government actively promoting emigration.<ref name="nederland-australie2006.nl">[http://www.nederland-australie2006.nl/geschiedenis/au/html/landverhuizers_index.html Nederland-Australie 1606–2006 on Dutch emigration]. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100628051331/http://www.nederland-australie2006.nl/geschiedenis/au/html/landverhuizers_index.html |date=28 June 2010 }}</ref>
The effects of Dutch migration to Australia can still be felt. There are many Dutch associations and a Dutch-language newspaper continues to be published. The Dutch have remained a tightly knit community, especially in the large cities. In total, about 382,000 people of Dutch ancestry live in Australia whereas New Zealand has some 100,000 Dutch descendants.<ref name="nederland-australie2006.nl"/>
===North America===
{{Main|Dutch Americans|Dutch Canadians}}
[[File:Dutch ancestry per 2021 US Census by County (white background).jpg|thumb|Population of [[Dutch Americans]] per U.S. county according to the [[2020 United States census|2020 U.S. census]]]]
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Dutch-Americans.jpg|thumb|A Dutch family in New York <sup>(c.1880)<br />(in attire typical of the [[South Beveland]] island of [[Zeeland|Zealand]])</sup>]] -->
The Dutch had settled in North America long before the establishment of the United States of America.<ref>The U.S. declared its independence in 1776. The first Dutch settlement was built in 1614: Fort Nassau, where presently Albany, New York is positioned.</ref> For a long time the Dutch lived in Dutch colonies ([[New Netherland settlements]]), owned and regulated by the Dutch Republic, which later became part of the [[Thirteen Colonies]].
Nevertheless, many Dutch American communities remained virtually isolated towards the rest of North America up until the [[American Civil War]], in which the Dutch fought for the North and adopted many American ways.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://library.thinkquest.org/C005615/data/english_text/vanraalte8.html |title=How the Dutch became Americans, American Civil War. (includes reference on fighting for the North) |publisher=Library.thinkquest.org |access-date=27 August 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120516103243/http://library.thinkquest.org/C005615/data/english_text/vanraalte8.html |archive-date=16 May 2012 }}</ref>
Most future waves of Dutch immigrants were quickly assimilated. There have been five U.S. presidents of Dutch descent: [[Martin Van Buren]] (8th, first president who was not of British descent, first language was Dutch), [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] (32nd, elected to four terms in office, he served from 1933 to 1945, the only U.S. president to have served more than two terms), [[Theodore Roosevelt]] (26th), as well as [[George H. W. Bush]] (41st) and [[George W. Bush]] (43rd), the latter two descendant from the [[Schuyler family]].
The first Dutch people to come to Canada were [[Dutch Americans]] among the [[United Empire Loyalist]]s. The largest wave was in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when large numbers of Dutch helped settle the [[Western Canada|Canadian west]]. During this period significant numbers also settled in major cities like [[Toronto]].
While interrupted by World War I, this migration returned in the 1920s, but again halted during the [[Great Depression]] and World War II. After the war a large number of Dutch immigrants moved to Canada, including a number of [[war bride]]s of the Canadian soldiers who liberated the Netherlands. There were officially 1,886 Dutch war brides emigrating to Canada, ranking second after British war brides.<ref>{{cite book |last=Ganzevoort |first=Herman |url=http://www.ourfutureourpast.ca/loc_hist/page.aspx?id=3765239 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130708191805/http://www.ourfutureourpast.ca/loc_hist/page.aspx?id=3765239 |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 July 2013 |title=Dutch immigration to North America |publisher=Multicultural History Society of Ontario |year=1983 |isbn=0-919045-15-4 |___location=Toronto |page=192 }}</ref> During the war Canada had sheltered [[Juliana of the Netherlands|Crown Princess Juliana]] and her family. Due to these [[Canada–Netherlands relations|close links]] during and after the war, Canada became a popular destination for Dutch immigrants.<ref>{{Cite web |last=NTR |title=Emigratie naar Canada |url=https://anderetijden.nl/aflevering/542/Emigratie-naar-Canada |access-date=12 September 2023 |website=Andere Tijden |language=nl |archive-date=4 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230304213036/https://anderetijden.nl/aflevering/542/Emigratie-naar-Canada |url-status=live }}</ref>
=== Caribbean ===
{{Main|Dutch West Indies}}
Most Dutch settlement in the [[Caribbean]] occurred on the [[Dutch Caribbean]] islands of [[Aruba]], [[Bonaire]], [[Curaçao]] and to a lesser extent [[Sint Maarten]], [[Saba (island)|Saba]] and [[Sint Eustatius]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Dutch Caribbean and Guianas |url=https://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/display/document/obo-9780199730414/obo-9780199730414-0211.xml |access-date=2025-06-08 |website=obo |language=en}}</ref>
Both the Leeward ([[Alonso de Ojeda]], [[1499]]) and Windward ([[Christopher Columbus]], [[1493]]) island groups were discovered and initially settled by the [[Iberian Union|Spanish]]. In the [[17th century]], the islands were conquered by the [[Dutch West India Company]] after the defeat of Spain to the Netherlands in [[Eighty Years' War]], with the largest island [[Curaçao]] being used as a regional slave trading hub and free port.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Slavery |url=https://www.canonvannederland.nl/en/slavernij |access-date=2025-06-08 |website=Canon van Nederland |language=en}}</ref>
Dutch settlement was relatively limited in the Caribbean during the [[European colonization of the Americas|colonial era]], although there are sizable minorities of Dutch people on the Dutch Caribbean islands in [[Modern era|modern times]]. There are also significant populations of partial Dutch or [[Multiracial people|mixed-race]] descent on the islands, on [[Aruba]] mixed-race people make up the majority of the population with many having significant Dutch heritage.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Facts about Aruba (1957) |url=https://dn790004.ca.archive.org/0/items/BNA-DIG-ARUBIANA-0211/BNA-DIG-ARUBIANA-0211.pdf}}</ref>
=== South America ===
{{Main|Dutch Brazilians|Dutch Argentines|Dutch Surinamese}}
[[File:O reflexo.jpg|thumb|220x220px|View of the Carambeí Historical Park in [[Carambeí]], [[Paraná (state)|Paraná]], Brazil. Mill and houses in Dutch architecture on the left]]
In South America, the Dutch settled mainly in [[Brazil]], [[Argentina]] and [[Suriname]].<ref name="reg3">{{cite web|title=Imigração Holandesa no Brasil. Glossário. História, Sociedade e Educação no Brasil – HISTEDBR – Faculdade de Educação – UNICAMP<!-- Bot generated title -->|url=https://www.histedbr.fe.unicamp.br/navegando/glossario/verb_c_imigr_holandesa.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130806223321/http://www.histedbr.fae.unicamp.br/navegando/glossario/verb_c_imigr_holandesa.htm|archive-date=6 August 2013|access-date=30 August 2017|website=Histedbr.fae.unicamp.br}}</ref><ref name="holanda">{{cite web|author=Embajada del Reino de los Países Bajos en Buenos Aires, Argentina|title=Holandeses en Argentina|url=http://argentina.nlembajada.org/you-and-netherlands/holandeses-en-argentina.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120814160220/http://argentina.nlembajada.org/you-and-netherlands/holandeses-en-argentina.html|archive-date=14 August 2012|access-date=7 August 2014|language=Spanish}}</ref>
The Dutch were among the first [[Ethnic groups in Europe|Europeans]] settling in Brazil during the 17th century. They controlled the [[Northeast Region, Brazil|northern]] coast of Brazil from 1630 to 1654 ([[Dutch Brazil]]). A significant number of Dutch immigrants arrived in that period. The state of [[Pernambuco]] (then [[Captaincy of Pernambuco]]) was once a colony of the [[Dutch Republic]] from 1630 to 1661. There are a considerable number of people who are descendants of the Dutch colonists in [[Paraíba]] (for example in Frederikstad, today [[João Pessoa, Paraíba|João Pessoa]]), Pernambuco, [[Alagoas]] and [[Rio Grande do Norte]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Brasileiros na Holanda -|url=http://www.brasileirosnaholanda.com/entrevista/eduardofonseca.htm|access-date=30 August 2017|website=Brasileirosnaholanda.com|archive-date=27 February 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180227043647/http://www.brasileirosnaholanda.com/entrevista/eduardofonseca.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Agência CT – Ministério da Ciência & Tecnologia<!-- Bot generated title -->|url=http://agenciact.mct.gov.br/index.php/content/view/21496.html?toPrint=yes|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160507080309/http://agenciact.mct.gov.br/index.php/content/view/21496.html?toPrint=yes|archive-date=7 May 2016|access-date=30 August 2017|website=Agenciat.mct.gov.br}}</ref> During the 19th and 20th century, Dutch immigrants from the [[Netherlands]] immigrated to the Brazil's [[Centro-Sul|Center-South]], where they founded a few cities.<ref>{{cite web|title=Holandeses no Brasil – Radio Nederland, a emissora internacional e independente da Holanda – Português<!-- Bot generated title -->|url=http://www.parceria.nl/Holanda/sp050428Beatrix_reinado/do05032_Beatrix_Brasil/es030402comunidade_holandes.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090223193108/http://www.parceria.nl/Holanda/sp050428Beatrix_reinado/do05032_Beatrix_Brasil/es030402comunidade_holandes.html|archive-date=23 February 2009|access-date=30 August 2017|website=Parceria.nl}}</ref> The majority of Dutch Brazilians reside in the states of [[Espírito Santo]], [[Paraná (state)|Paraná]],<ref name="reg1">{{cite web|date=20 September 2007|title=Cidades preservam tradições dos colonos|trans-title=Cities preserve traditions of colonists|url=http://www.bemparana.com.br/noticia/43266/cidades-preservam-tradicoes-dos-colonos|access-date=14 April 2016|publisher=Bem Paraná|language=pt|archive-date=23 April 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160423134314/http://www.bemparana.com.br/noticia/43266/cidades-preservam-tradicoes-dos-colonos|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Rio Grande do Sul]], [[Pernambuco]] and [[São Paulo]].<ref name="reg2">{{cite web|title=Imigrantes: Holandeses<!-- Bot generated title -->|url=http://www.terrabrasileira.net/folclore/influenc/holanda.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080429195910/http://www.terrabrasileira.net/folclore/influenc/holanda.html|archive-date=29 April 2008|access-date=30 August 2017|url-status=usurped|website=Terrabrasileira.net}}</ref> There are also small groups of Dutch Brazilians in [[Goiás]], [[Ceará]], [[Rio Grande do Norte]], [[Mato Grosso do Sul]], [[Minas Gerais]] and [[Rio de Janeiro]].<ref>FIGUEIREDO, Raquel de Freitas. Estudo de SNPs do cromossomo Y na população do Estado do Espirito Santo, Brasil. 2012. 66 f. Dissertação (mestrado) – Universidade Estadual Paulista, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas, 2012.</ref><ref>{{cite journal|title=Estudo de SNPs do cromossomo Y na população do Estado do Espirito Santo, Brasil|url=http://base.repositorio.unesp.br/handle/11449/87818|access-date=30 August 2017|website=Base.repositorio.unesp.br|date=20 April 2012 |archive-date=14 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141214015029/http://base.repositorio.unesp.br/handle/11449/87818|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="reg3"/>
In [[Argentina]], Dutch immigration has been one of many migration flows from Europe in the country, although it has not been as numerous as in other cases (they failed to account for 1% of total migration received). However, Argentina received a large contingent of Dutch since 1825. The largest community is in the city of [[Tres Arroyos]] in the south of the [[Buenos Aires Province|province of Buenos Aires]].<ref name="holanda"/>
In [[Suriname]], the Dutch migrant settlers in search of a better life started arriving in the 19th century with the ''boeroes'', poor farmers arriving from the [[Provinces of the Netherlands|Dutch provinces]] of [[Gelderland]], [[Utrecht]], and [[Groningen (province)|Groningen]].<ref>''America Desde Otra Frontera. La ''Guayana Holandesa'' – Surinam : 1680–1795'', Ana Crespo Solana.</ref> Furthermore, the Surinamese ethnic group, the [[Creole peoples|Creoles]], persons of mixed [[Mulatto|African-European]] ancestry, are partially of Dutch descent. Many Dutch settlers left Suriname after independence in 1975, which diminished the white Dutch population in the country. Currently there are around 1000 [[Dutch Surinamese|Boeroes]] left in Suriname, and 3000 outside Suriname. Inside Suriname, they work in several sectors of society and some families still work in the agricultural sector.<ref name="mitrasing">{{cite book|author=F.E.M. Mitrasing|title=Suriname, Land of Seven Peoples: Social Mobility in a Plural Society, an Ethno-historical Study|year=1979|page=35}}</ref>
==See also==
{{Commons|Notable Dutch people over the ages}}
{{Wikiquote|Dutch proverbs}}
*[[Afrikaner]]
*[[Dutch Brazil]]
*[[Dutch Chilean]]
*[[Dutch Mexicans]]
*[[Dutch customs and etiquette]]
*[[Dutch Surinamese]]
*[[Flemish people]]
*[[List of Dutch people]]
*[[List of Germanic peoples]]
*[[Netherlands (terminology)]]
*[[Netherlands Antilles]]
*[[New Netherlands]]
*[[Dutch American]]
*[[Dutch cuisine]]
*[[Dutch culture (disambiguation)|Dutch culture]]
==Notes==
{{notefoot|refs=
{{notetag|name=n1|In the 1950s (the peak of traditional emigration) about 350,000 people left the Netherlands, mainly to [[Australia]], [[New Zealand]], [[Canada]], the [[United States]], [[Argentina]] and [[South Africa]]. About one-fifth returned. The maximum Dutch-born emigrant stock for the 1950s is about 300,000 (some have died since). The maximum emigrant stock (Dutch-born) for the period after 1960 is 1.6 million. Discounting pre-1950 emigrants (who would be about 85 or older), at most around 2 million people born in the Netherlands are now living outside the country. Combined with the 13.2 million ethnically Dutch inhabitants of the Netherlands (both parents born in the Netherlands),<ref name="CBS Statline" /> there are about 16 million people who are Dutch (of Dutch ancestry), in a minimally accepted sense. ''Autochtone population at 1 January 2006, Central Statistics Bureau, Integratiekaart 2006'', {{in lang|nl}}}}
{{notetag|name=n2|Estimate based on the population of the Netherlands, without the southern provinces and non-ethnic Dutch.}}
}}
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}
==References==
{{reflist}}
==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* Blom, J. C. H. and E. Lamberts, eds. ''History of the Low Countries'' (2006) 504pp [https://www.amazon.com/dp/1845452720 excerpt and text search] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224154737/https://www.amazon.com/dp/1845452720 |date=24 February 2020 }}; also [https://www.questia.com/read/1379132 complete edition online] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628222754/https://www.questia.com/read/1379132 |date=28 June 2011 }}
* Bolt, Rodney.''The Xenophobe's Guide to the Dutch''. Oval Projects Ltd 1999, {{ISBN|1-902825-25-X}}
* Boxer. Charles R. ''The Dutch in Brazil, 1624–1654''. By The Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1957, {{ISBN|0-208-01338-5}}
* Burke, Gerald L. ''The making of Dutch towns: A study in urban development from the 10th–17th centuries'' (1960)
*De Jong, Gerald Francis. ''The Dutch in America, 1609–1974''.Twayne Publishers 1975, {{ISBN|0-8057-3214-4}}
*Hunt, John. ''Dutch South Africa: early settlers at the Cape, 1652–1708''. By John Hunt, Heather-Ann Campbell. Troubador Publishing Ltd 2005, {{ISBN|1-904744-95-8}}.
* Koopmans, Joop W., and Arend H. Huussen Jr. ''Historical Dictionary of the Netherlands'' (2nd ed. 2007)[https://www.amazon.com/Historical-Dictionary-Netherlands-Dictionaries-Europe/dp/0810856271/ excerpt and text search] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224154727/https://www.amazon.com/Historical-Dictionary-Netherlands-Dictionaries-Europe/dp/0810856271/ |date=24 February 2020 }}
*Kossmann-Putto, J. A. and E. H. Kossmann. ''The Low Countries: History of the Northern and Southern Netherlands'' (1987)
*Kroes, Rob. ''The Persistence of Ethnicity: Dutch Calvinist pioneers''. By University of Illinois Press 1992, {{ISBN|0-252-01931-8}}
* Stallaerts, Robert. ''The A to Z of Belgium'' (2010), a historical encyclopedia
*White & Boucke. ''[[The UnDutchables]]''. {{ISBN|978-1-888580-44-0}}.
{{refend}}
==External links==
*{{Wikiquote-inline}}
{{Ethnic groups in the Netherlands}}
{{Netherlands topics}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dutch People}}
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