Facts & figures about Holland

Dec 17, 2009

Surface area: 41,528 square kilometres, one quarter of which is below sea level

Distance north to south: 300 kilometres

Distance east to west: 170 kilometres

Lowest altitude: 6.76 metres below sea level (near Rotterdam)

Highest altitude: 323 metres (near Maastricht)

Climate: moderate maritime climate

Official name: Kingdom of the Netherlands, commonly referred to as Holland or the Netherlands

Form of government: Constitutional monarchy with a bicameral parliament

Head of state: The hereditary monarch (Queen Beatrix of Orange - Nassau)

Head of government: The prime minister (Mr J.P. Balkenende)

Capital city: Amsterdam

Seat of government: The Hague

Total population: 16,517,084 (June 2009) Holland is the third most densely populated country in the world

Ethnic composition: Of the current population, 19,9% are of recent foreign descent

Religion: 52% identify themselves as Christian, 40% claim no affiliation, 8% belong to other religions

National language: Dutch; Frisian is spoken as a second language by some 400,000 people living in the northern province of Friesland

Currency: 1 Euro = 1.37 US Dollar (June 2009)

Gross domestic product (GDP): 621.2 billion euros (2008)

Per capita GDP: 37,861 euros (2008)

A cup of coffee/tea in a café: 2 euros

A cheese sandwich: 2.50 euros

Dinner in a typical student restaurant: 10 euros

A cinema ticket: 8 euros

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