The Netherlands, Host of IOI'95

The Netherlands, officially Kingdom of The Netherlands, (in Dutch Nederland or Koninkrijk der Nederlanden) is located in northwestern Europe. Extending 282 km from north to south and 177 km from east to west, the country is bounded on the north and west by the North Sea, on the east by Germany, and on the south by Belgium.

The national capital is Amsterdam and the seat of government is The Hague (in Dutch: Den Haag). Another big city is Rotterdam, well known for its harbor. Together with Utrecht and Eindhoven, these are the five biggest cities in The Netherlands.

The area of The Netherlands is 41,863 square km, of which almost 20 percent is inland water. Its population was estimated at 15.4 million in December, 1994.

The Netherlands is sometimes (incorrectly) referred to as Holland. North Holland (capital: Haarlem) and South Holland (capital: The Hague) are two provinces of The Netherlands. They dominated the country in the 17th century, its Golden Age.

The adjective of `Netherlands' is not `Netherlandish' but `Dutch', as in Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM). Also the language and the people of The Netherlands are called Dutch.

Pointers to more information on The Netherlands

CBS: Statistics Netherlands: Statistics about The Netherlands are provided by the CBS (Statistics Netherlands, formerly known as Netherlands Central Bureau of Statistics).
DHP: Dutch Home Page: Includes a clickable map leading to other WWW and Gopher servers in The Netherlands
Holland ExxPO: An overview of what The Netherlands has to offer in and outside of the Internet. This includes information about its geography, people, government, and economy.
NBT: Tourist Information: Tourist information about The Netherlands is provided by the NBT (Netherlands Board of Tourism).
NL-menu: The Dutch national entry-pont for public electronic information services in The Netherlands

CIA: Encyclopedic information about The Netherlands from The World Factbook 1995.
City Net: Provides an overview of The Netherlands.
Perry-Casteñeda Library Map Collection: Has a detailed map of The Netherlands.
U.S. State Department: Travel Advisory for The Netherlands.