Belgium may be a relatively small nation, but it is among the most complex linguistic landscapes in Europe. So, what language do they speak in Belgium? Dutch, French, and German, although there are many minority language groups that fill out Belgium’s population.
Rather than unifying under a single tongue, Belgium is divided into distinct language regions. These regions revolve around the official languages of Belgium. Each region enjoys the freedom to preserve its unique traditions and manage its own institutions accordingly. Explore the diverse official and unofficial languages of Belgium like Belgian French, and learn about the history behind the language-rich nation.
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What is Belgium’s official language?
The government of Belgium recognizes three official languages:
- Flemish/Dutch
- French
- German
Not only do Belgians speak one of these three languages as their mother tongue but they often also speak one of them as a second language.
Around 55% of the population speaks Dutch as their mother tongue, 36% speak French, and German is mostly spoken as a second language by around one quarter of the population.
How many languages are spoken in Belgium?
Around 17 languages are spoken in Belgium, consisting of three officially recognized languages, historically native Belgian tongues and dialects, new forms of communication from labor migration and globalism, as well as unique sign languages developed by the Flemish and Wallonian communities.
Historical and native Belgian languages
Several small dialectal communities have historically called Belgium home. These are a combination of religiously centered communities, such as in the case of the Yiddish-speaking Belgians, along with Romantic and Germanic dialects.
- Yiddish
- Luxembourgish
- Walloon
- Picard
- Limburgish
- Champenois
- Lorrain
New, unofficial languages of Belgium
The expansion of globalism has inspired over half the population of Belgium to learn English as a second language to the extent of conversational proficiency. Otherwise, labor immigration from 1940 to 1970 to Belgian industries brought with it the languages of:
- Arabic
- Italian
- Turkish
Belgian Sign Languages
Hearing-impaired citizens of Belgium have formed two of their own sign language systems, tied to the language regions of the nation:
- Vlaamse Gebarentaal (VGT, Flemish Sign Language)
- Langue des Signes Française de Belgique (LSFB, French Belgian Sign Language)
Because of the small community of native German-speaking Belgians, the deaf community in eastern Germanic cantons have not formed their own sign language, opting to use German Sign Language or Flemish Sign Language instead.
The official languages of Belgium
The constitution of Belgium recognizes three official languages: Dutch, which is often referred to as “Flemish,” French, and German.
Flemish/Dutch
It is important to know that the Dutch spoken in Belgium is often referred to as “Flemish,” due to the ways it differs from Standard Dutch.
| Flemish Term | Standard Dutch | English Translation |
| afwas | vaat | dishes |
| bomma | oma | grandma |
| boterham | broodje | sandwich |
| friet | patat | French fries |
| goesting | zin | craving |
| kei | kei | rock |
| plezant | leuk | fun/enjoyable |
| snoepje | lekkernij | candy |
| vuilbak | prullenbak | trash can |
| wafel | wafel | waffle |
You will, however, often see the two terms used interchangeably when learning about Belgian Dutch. Flemish is tied deeply to the cultural roots of the Flanders region of northern Belgium.
Historically, French had the prestige of being the language of choice in Belgium’s elite institutions like government and higher education. It wouldn’t be until social and political movements inspired legislative action in 1898 that would cement Dutch as an official language of Belgium.
French
Belgium is one of the five official French-speaking countries in Europe. The language has long-standing historical ties to the nation, with Belgium having been under French rule from 1795 to 1815. Following Belgium’s founding in 1831, French has retained a strong presence in practical and administrative processes.
The differences between the French dialects spoken in Belgium and Standard French are few. While someone who grew up in Belgium might be able to tell the difference, much like an American southerner hearing the Georgian versus the Cajun accent, foreigners would be hard pressed to notice any variances.
- Some vowels are more clearly pronounced in Belgian French.
- Belgian French speakers pronounce the “w” like English speakers do, rather than as a “v.”
- The stronger, guttural rolled “r” sound is more common within the Belgian French community.
- Belgian French adopts a streamlined numerical system, avoiding the “four-twenty-ten” issues that Standard French faces.
| Belgian French Term | Standard French | English Translation |
| camion | poids lourd | truck |
| chouette | sympa | cool |
| dépôt | consigne | deposit (bottle or container) |
| gaufre | waffle | waffle |
| magasin | boutique | shop |
| monnaie | petite monnaie | coins |
| nonant | quatre-vingt-dix | ninety |
| octante | quatre-vingt | eighty |
| savonette | savon | bar of soap |
| septant | soixante-dix | seventy |
German
One of six German-speaking countries, Belgium hosts a relatively small population of native Germans. Following the Treaty of Versailles at the end of World War I, Belgium obtained the cantons of Eupen, Malmédy, and Sankt Vith, all of which primarily spoke, and continue to speak, German dialects.
To appease and recognize the German-speaking cantons in the far east side of Belgium, near the border of Germany, Belgium recognized German as an official language of Belgium alongside French and Dutch in 1970.
Belgian German resembles the northern Rhineland Germanic dialects, but those who speak it are fully literate in Standard High German as it is taught in their schools and used in their media and government.
| Belgian German Term | Standard High German | English Translation |
| Babb | Baby | baby |
| Dier | Tier | animal |
| Fott | Fuß | foot |
| Kinner | Kinder | children |
| Liew | Leben | life |
| Maahlzeit | Mahlzeit | mealtime/greeting |
| Pann | Pfanne | pan |
| Schpeel | Spiel | game |
| Stroß | Straße | street |
| zeen | sehen | to see |
The four language areas of Belgium
Belgium has been divided into four language areas in an effort to honor each of its official languages and the regions that support them. This allows each region to operate with its own language, institutions, and cultural identity and avoids erasure of minority language groups. The four language areas are enshrined in Article 4 of the Belgian constitution, making the language areas a matter of law, rather than only cultural presence.
The Belgian constitution states that the Flanders area is a region of Dutch-speaking institutions, Wallonia is composed of French-speaking Belgians, German-speaking in the far east, and a bilingual capital of Brussels. You might be wondering, “What does bilingual mean?” Bilingual means “speaking two languages.” Brussels recognizes both French and Dutch as institutional languages, another effort to appease the two communities native to the city.
Indigenous and historical languages of Belgium
Other minority language groups within the borders of Belgium represent historical ties to the land. These include:
- Yiddish
- Luxembourgish
- Wallon
- Picard
- Limburgish
- Champenois
- Lorrain
Yiddish
The city of Antwerp in Northern Belgium hosts a Hasidic Jewish population who represent the largest European native Yiddish-speaking community of around 600 families, which has resided in Belgium since the 13th century.
Luxembourgish
The small community of Luxembourgish-speaking Belgians, around 0.2% of all Belgians, reside close to the borders of Belgium and Luxembourg and represent centuries of cross-border migration and historical changes of national borders. The dialect of Luxembourgish spoken in Belgium is known as the Arelerland dialect.
Walloon
Walloon is a Romance language that evolved side-by-side with French, rather than stemming from French itself.
Younger generations in the Wallonia region of Belgium are increasingly less likely to learn Walloon, pushing the language to the state of “definitely endangered” by UNESCO. Its reputation as a dialect of the working class, along with the expansion of French in Belgium, has discouraged the population of Wallonia from its usage.
Picard
The Romance language of Picard closely resembles Standard French and is spoken in the western part of the Hainaut province in Wallonia.
An estimated 200,000 people speak Picard today in Belgium, though this number is declining with time as French gains more popularity in media and daily conversation.
Limburgish
Limburgish is a dialect of Western Germanic spoken in Belgium and recognized by the nation as an indigenous regional language in 1990.
You’ll hear Limburgish spoken in Limburg, an eastern province of the Flanders region of Belgium. Though this language shares a linguistic family with Dutch, it differs notably in vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation.
Champenois
Spoken near the southern border of Belgium and France, Champenois is a Romance language. It is considered a severely endangered language, with neighboring languages like French, English, and German incorporating the minority language community.
Though Belgium does not gather language census information on Champenois, far less than 1% of all Belgians are estimated to communicate in the language on a regular basis.
Lorrain
Lorrain is known locally in Belgium as Gaumais. This is because it’s spoken in the Gaume region in southeastern Belgium. As another language that is declining in usage within Belgium in favor of French, Lorrain currently has no standardized system of writing.
Newly-introduced, unofficial languages of Belgium
Modern changes to Belgium’s role on the global stage have introduced new languages to the already rich list of those spoken in the nation. These tongues do not have historical ties to the nation, and are not considered official Belgian languages, but nevertheless contribute to the number of languages spoken in Belgium.
English is a common second language in Belgium
Though English is not an official or native language of the citizens of Belgium, it’s commonplace as a learned second language. A total of 49% of Belgians speak English as a second language well enough to hold a conversation, and Belgium ranks 7th out of 113 nations for English proficiency.
Due to English’s importance in higher education, global media, and international business, Belgians naturally gravitate towards the foreign language.
Different language regions of Belgium vary notably in their English proficiency. Dutch-speaking Belgians from the Flanders region score in English proficiency an average of 654 out of 800, which is considered “very high.” Compared to the region of Wallonia achieving a level of “moderate proficiency,” averaging at 543 points. This is largely attributed to schools in Flanders starting English education in earlier grades than schools in Wallonia.
Languages from labor migration
Communities like Arabic, Italian, and Turkish primarily immigrated to Belgium between 1940 and 1970 to fill essential labor roles in industries like coal mining, steel, transportation, and construction.
Through a combination of family reunification and these languages being taught to children in the homes of these communities, these languages persist in small groups in today’s Belgium.
| Unofficial Language of Belgium | Percentage of Total Population |
| Arabic | 3% |
| Italian | 2% |
| Turkish | 1% |
Belgian Sign Languages
Belgium’s rich linguistic diversity reaches beyond spoken language to include two sign languages that are officially recognized.
Just like Belgium’s spoken language, these sign languages are tied to the language regions within the country. They reflect a commitment to regional autonomy, forming distinct vocabularies and grammar systems.
Flemish Sign Language
Vlaamse Gebarentaal (VGT, Flemish Sign Language) is used by 6,000 native Belgians worldwide. Hearing-impaired citizens of the Flanders region in Belgium rely on this form of non-verbal communication in daily life.
VGT became popular in the late 1990’s, being chosen over the historically-present Signed Dutch system. It wasn’t until 1998, however, that VGT was taught as a first language for the deaf in Belgian schools.
French Belgian Sign Language
With a larger population than Flemish Sign Language at 11,000 users, the Langue des Signes Française de Belgique (LSFB, French Belgian Sign Language) is considered stable in its communal usage.
It shares roots with Standard French Sign Language due to their educational ties, but has since evolved into its own communication system.
Why is there no Belgian German Sign Language?
There is no Belgian German sign language due to the small size of the German-speaking population in Belgium.
Those hearing-impaired individuals who reside in the Belgian-German region opt to either use Standard German Sign Language or the Flemish Sign language. This gives them wider access to larger communities with whom they can communicate.
Belgium no longer conducts language censuses
Research into the exact population statistics can be difficult and yield only approximate results. Why? Belgium has chosen not to conduct language censuses within its borders anymore.
In 1947, the government of Belgium abolished language censuses in an attempt to “freeze” the borders of the four language areas at the time. This would work to lessen tensions between the different language-centered communities of Belgium and promote the multilingualism for which the nation is known.
Frequently asked questions about languages spoken in Belgium
Belgium is a nation rich in linguistic history and diversity. Here are the most frequently asked questions about the languages spoken in Belgium:
Do most Belgians speak more than one language?
Yes, according to a study by the Directorate-General for Statistics and Economic Information, 58% of Belgian survey respondents claimed to speak at least one foreign language.
The varied linguistic landscape of Belgium’s three official languages, combined with the rise of globalism and multiculturalism, heavily incentivizes the Belgian population to learn languages outside of their native tongue.
What language is taught in Belgian schools?
The language taught in a given Belgian school depends entirely on which of the four language areas that school resides in.
Belgian schools in the northern Flanders region teach in Flemish, a dialect of Dutch, while schools in the southern region of Wallonia teach in French. The capital of Belgium, Brussels, is bilingual, so schools are more of a case-by-case basis. Finally, the far eastern cantons of Eupen, Malmédy, and Sankt Vith teach in German, as is the region’s protected language.
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