[Closed] Holland/Netherlands/Dutch/Dykes..

The Netherlands has a number of provinces - including south Holland and north Holland IIRC. So holland is actually only a part of the netherlands. Its a bit like saying English when you mean British or yourksire when you mean English. I don't think they get offended tho. A frieslander might

Dutch is the name for the people and the language I think comes from the same roots as Deutsch (german)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Provinces_of_the_Netherlands

There's a Seinfeld sketch about that somewhere ...

As TJ posts above, South Holland and North Holland are two of several provinces of The Netherlands. People who live in the Netherlands are Dutch. My missus is Dutch and she's from the Netherlands, as opposed to Holland (she's from the province of Limburg). So, in a way, saying she is from Holland is like saying a Scotsman is from England. But they're not really offended by it, it's just not strictly accurate.

Well, except that "Holland" is simply the (an alternative) English word for "Nederland", just as "Greece" is the English for "HELLAS". The fact that "Holland" has a meaning in Dutch is confusing, but beside the point.

So do we play football against The Netherlands or Holland?

And why would the OP not want to google?

Does the word Google when used as a verb require a capital letter, since it's no longer a noun?

DrJ - not sure that's at all the same thing.

Did you know that the word 'Greece' comes from the Turkish 'Grecos' meaning slave?

DrJ - I don't think that is right except as a colloquialism. netherlands is the english for nederland

Did you know that the word 'Greece' comes from the Turkish 'Grecos' meaning slave?

Yes I did actually, as MrsDrJ is Greek ... err ... I mean .. from HELLAS 🙂

So do we play football against The Netherlands or Holland?

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The fact that "Holland" has a meaning in Dutch is confusing, but beside the point.

didnt want to Google as im at work and would rather catch a sneaky peek at your replies. Plus I like the reply based method on here.

My missus is Dutch and she's from the Netherlands, as opposed to Holland (she's from the province of Limburg). So, in a way, saying she is from Holland is like saying a Scotsman is from England.

So why do the public generally all refer to Holland and why are we not aware of the other provinces?

Well, except that "Holland" is simply the (an alternative) English word for "Nederland"

Is that a fact? In which case, it would help explain why I think of people from Netherlands as coming from Holland.

So when we play football against Holland, the rest of the world watches England play The Netherlands? but the BBC refuse to admit it?

So why do the public generally all refer to Holland and why are we not aware of the other provinces?

Because, generally, the British are ignorant of other countries and cultures! 😉

We do have Frisian cows - named after Friesland - the dutch province 🙂

Because, generally, the British are ignorant of other countries and cultures!

It upsets me a bit when I see things like that written as I feel the British are more open to other countries and cultures than pretty much any other place on Earth.
Sure, we have a large working class doing their best to discredit the rest of us on the costa-del-whateva, but for the educated half of Britain - I dont think you speak for them.

We do have Frisian cows - named after Friesland - the dutch province

we dont play Holland we play the netherlands

More than one name is used to refer to the Netherlands, both in English and in other languages. Some of these names refer to different, but overlapping geographical, linguistic and political areas of the country. This is a common source of confusion for outsiders. In English the country is called 'the Netherlands' (or frequently - but inaccurately - 'Holland'), while the people and the language are called 'Dutch'. In Dutch the official (and predominant) terms for these are 'Nederland' for the country, 'Nederlanders' for the people and 'Nederlands' for the language, although they are occasionally (colloquially) called 'Holland', 'Hollanders' and 'Hollands' respectively.

Occasionally the the is incorrectly capitalised: 'the Netherlands' is similar to names such as 'the United States' and 'the Federal Republic of Germany', so the 't' should not be capitalised except at the beginning of a sentence.

Historically the English did not distinguish inhabitants of the Low Countries by 'nationality'. In the 15th and the first half of the 16th century, all persons from Germanic lands were called Flemings, Theotonici, Doch, or sometimes Germani. In the second half of the 16th century, all Germanic speakers or inhabitants of the Holy Roman Empire were called Dutch or Douch.

In strict usage, Holland is the name of a former province of the Netherlands, now split into Noord-Holland and Zuid-Holland. In English (but also in Dutch and German), "Holland" is informally used as a name for the whole of the Netherlands. This informal use is reinforced by the Dutch Tourist Board (VVV) who refer to the Netherlands as Holland in its English Language Literature and on their main website, Holland.com.

Sure, we have a large working class doing their best to discredit the rest of us on the costa-del-whateva, but for the educated half of Britain -

in a post about how tolerant we are, pure class that is a top piece of satire and I salute you

I thank you. I thought that may raise a comment or two.

Let's be honest though, your average med holiday maker is never going to be able to type a response on here, their knuckles are too sore from dragging on the ground.
Im all for tolerance, just hate most of my own kind.

Occasionally the the is incorrectly capitalised: 'the Netherlands' is similar to names such as 'the United States' and 'the Federal Republic of Germany', so the 't' should not be capitalised except at the beginning of a sentence

That bit has just blown me away. I can refer to the United States with a small 't'?. awesome.
I wish I concentrated more during english lessons, hang on, I got an A for GCSE..
I wish I did fewer drugs.

I went on a holiday to Fuengirola a couple of years ago. I had a lively week there. My knuckles are quite a bit off the ground.

you clearly arent the typical Brit abroad. Come on, you know the type.

If its any consolation, ive been to Ibiza 6 times, Costa Del once, Portugal once, etc etc.

Ive got stumpy arms.

I have a theory that the Netherlands is really just one big timeshare facility.....

At any one time, only one third of it's population actually appear to be in residence in the NL.

The remaining two thirds of the Dutch population are in fact, at that same given point in time, clogging up the Autobahn/Autoroute/Autostrada/Motorways of the remaining European countries.

How many roofboxes (in Winter) or caravans (in Summer) do you see that DON'T have an NL sticker on 'em?

A few years ago I was driving through Texas when I was slowed by a tailback behing a caravan. When I eventually passed it, I couldn't help but notice that it was displaying the obligatory NL sticker... Now how the hell did that get there ????

At any one time, only one third of it's population actually appear to be in residence in the NL

Can you blame them? Would you want to live in a crowded swamp?