Odd facts but true

Belgium style:

Why is there a language border running through the country?  (hint: it's there for a good 1800 years without moving many kilometers)

Here is Wiki quote:

Antagonism between speakers of French and Dutch increased after the independence of Belgium in 1830, when residents of the Southern Netherlands rebelled against the newfound hegemony of the northern provinces of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. Major European powers were divided in opinion over the fallout of the revolution. Ultimately, the state of Belgium, composed of provinces of both French-speaking and Dutch-speaking people, gained independence as a buffer statebetween France and the Netherlands. French became the sole official language. Dutch speakers demanded equal rights beginning in the late 19th century, but these were only introduced gradually throughout the 20th century. While postage stamps became bilingual in 1893, it was not until 1967 that an official Dutch version of the Constitution was accepted.^[6] Since independence, socio-economic imbalances have fueled resentment between the two communities.^[7][8]

Since the 1960s, separate regions have been created based on the country's linguistic division. As a result, minorities in certain areas (in and around Brussels and along the language border) claim to be disenfranchised in local government and services. Along with the usual left–right political division, there is also a linguistic division, causing a double party system which complicates coalition creation on the national level. The recent crisis over the formation of a coalition government in the aftermath of the 2007 elections, coupled with the unsolved problem of the Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde electoral district and the rise of extremist political parties, has given a fresh impetus to the issue, with recent opinion polls showing sizable support for a partition. However, support for a unified state remains among the majority of Belgium's people.^[9] Unitarists claim that the monarchy, strong national institutions, and the geopolitical importance of the linguistically and ethnically mixed Brussels serve as unifying elements, while separatists rather claim these factors (and the considerable state debt) serve merely as obstacles to an inevitable partition. Some political observers have suggested that a possible partition of Belgium may be a blow to the European Union model of diverse cultures working together.

So it is part Dutch and part French!

Clem

Yes, but how comes that there are two languages , and that there's an almost clean cut between the two language areas, for more than one and a half millennium?

Vlaams (Flemish) spoken in Belgium, Zeeland-Holland, and parts of Northern France sounds similar to Dutch but different enough that both parties need subtitles for movies (similar situation as Swiss German and "High" German). 

Wallonie French is quite close to the Northern dialect of French (Yes, there are dialects in France as well as several other languages in France).  I used to live on a farm in Corroy-le-Grand which was roughly 50% Flemish and 50% Wallonie 40 years ago. 

In eastern Belgium, you will find people speaking German (E.g. municipality of Eupen on the German border).  If you attempt to speak Flemish or French, they will probably answer in English!  All over Europe, you can find that the historic dynamic country borders have caused a mix of languages spoken on both sides of the borders. 

Jan Cumps As it was explained to me by "both sides of the Belgian aisle", Caesar conquered Belgae in 57 AD.  When this happened as it happened all over the Roman Empire, Romans and Latin were brought to Belgae (just like in Gaul).  Eventually, these native Latin-speakers and those who adopted Latin evolved into several forms of French.  Some of the Flemish speakers in Belgae resisted and preserved their also evolving language.

So, blame Caesar.  (-:

I found an interesting map from "Belgae" in Wikipedia depicting pre-Roman "Belgica".

Very close. There's a slight difference:

<Simplified version>

Before the Romans, there was no dutch spoken here. The population was celtic.

Even though the empire reached farther east than current Belgium, the last border fortifications were where the language border is now.

When the Roman empire fell, and the germanic tribes (bringing dutch as one of their languages) broke through and settled in the old Roman regions,

everything slipped through the borders, except the language. When they were entering the old Roman empire and settling there,

they adapted to the local spoken language.

</simplified version>

The first royals of those germanic tribes had two names. A latin one and a germanic one.

We know the Frankish king/emperor Clovis / Clodovech.

Clovis is the latin version. You can hear Louis in that

Clodovech is the germanic version - as in the dutch name Lodewijk (German version: Ludwig).

Our kings still have that till this day (and you can still spot the Clovis/Clodovech version in his name).

Our current one is called Philippe / Filips

Full name

French: Philippe Léopold Louis Marie de Belgique

Dutch: Filips  Leopold Lodewijk Maria van België

Thanks for the correction.  Appreciated.

Thanks for the correction.  Appreciated.