What Do You Know About The Netherlands? (Part 1) Quiz

Answer: Water

For centuries The Netherlands have been known to safeguard their marine borders with the help of dykes and they have been surfacing the bottom of the sea as well. The greatest engineering projects in The Netherlands concern those designed to keep the water from exceeding the country's marine borders.
Dutch engineers are very much sought throughout the world due their experience in similar projects.

Answer: Rotterdam

Amsterdam has a port, but is not specifically famous for it.
Rotterdam is the largest port in Europe. Until 2002 it was also the busiest port in the world. Ports located in Asia have since taken over however expansion started in 2008 to accommodate the increased activity. Rotterdam airport harbours mainly cargo transshipments and depends largely on the petrochemical industry.

Answer: Willem Alexander

Johan Friso and Constantijn are the two brothers of the Crown Prince. Maurits is a cousin of the Crown Prince. Willem Alexander (born 1967) married Maxima Zorreguieta (born 1971, daughter of Jorge Horacio Zorreguieta and Maria del Carmen Cerruti, in February 2002). Maxima marrying into the royal family gave a big boost to the national popularity of the Dutch royal family.

Answer: Twelve

For a long time The Netherlands used to have eleven provinces, however there are now twelve because of the artificially created province of Flevoland, which was drained from the sea.

Answer: Germany and Belgium

There is Germany in the east and Belgium in the south. To the west there is the North Sea that separates the UK from The Netherlands. And Denmark borders with Germany.

Answer: Five

The isles are situated in the north and consist of: Texel, Vlieland, Terschelling, Ameland and Schiermonnikoog. They are part of the Frisian Islands (west) -- the remainder of the Frisian Islands to the east belong to Germany and Denmark.

Answer: As the last Director-General of the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam ( New York)

As Director General, Peter Stuyvesant wanted houses to be flat-walled to permit a better defense of the fort in the case of an attack by Native Americans. The Dutch commissary of the fort refused this request. However, Stuyvesant went ahead with it anyway. Stuyvesant was called back to The Netherlands for this, but he refused to go.

He was not endeared by the population of New Amsterdam and when the British came and seized the Dutch colony in 1664, the Dutch colonists were relieved to be rid of him.

The city was renamed New York. As an aside, Stuyvesant planted a pear tree imported from The Netherlands which remained standing at the corner of Thirteenth Street and Third Avenue until 1867.

Answer: Holland used to be the most famous province of The Netherlands

The word Holland literally means 'woodland' (holtland), as that part of The Netherlands used to have a lot of woodlands. It's common to believe that Holland means nether- or lowland, but this is incorrect. Neither is it the reason that people internationally refer to it as Holland.

The familiarity with the name Holland started in the Dutch 'Golden Age' when the country was faring well economically and plied a lot of international trade with China, Africa and India etc. Since the ships all sailed from Amsterdam at that time, which is in the province of Holland, the name of the province became a synonym for the Kingdom of The Netherlands.

Answer: Orange

The orange colour can be admired mainly during the European and World Soccer cup games. The first King of Holland was William of Orange (France), hence orange being the national colour.

Answer: I will maintain

"I will maintain", has been the motto, representing the Dutch Royal Family since the first King of Orange. Since the Orange family was from Orange in France, one should not be surprised that the motto too is pronounced in French 'Je maintiendrai'. It was also written on the side of coins until the introduction of the EURO currency in The Netherlands.