NetherlandsNeth·er·lands (n?th??r-l?ndz) Often called Hol·land (h?l??nd) A country of northwest Europe on the North Sea. Inhabited by Germanic tribes during Roman times, the region passed to the Franks (4th-8th century), the Holy Roman Empire (10th century), the dukes of Burgundy (14th-15th century), and then to the house of Habsburg. The northern part of the region formed the Union of Utrecht in 1579 and achieved its independence as the United Provinces in 1648 after the Thirty Years’ War. In the 17th century the country enjoyed great commercial prosperity and expanded its territories in the East and West Indies and elsewhere. The kingdom of the Netherlands, proclaimed at the Congress of Vienna (1814-1815), included Belgium until 1830. Amsterdam is the constitutional capital and the largest city; The Hague is the seat of government.Neth?er·land?er adj. & n.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.Netherlands (?n?ð?l?ndz) n (functioning as singular or plural) 1. (Placename) Also called: Holland a kingdom in NW Europe, on the North Sea: declared independence from Spain in 1581 as the United Provinces; became a major maritime and commercial power in the 17th century, gaining many overseas possessions; formed the Benelux customs union with Belgium and Luxembourg in 1948 and was a founder member of the Common Market, now the European Union. It is mostly flat and low-lying, with about 40 per cent of the land being below sea level, much of it on polders protected by dykes. Official language: Dutch. Religion: Christian majority, Protestant and Roman Catholic, large nonreligious minority. Currency: euro. Capital: Amsterdam, with the seat of government at The Hague. Pop: 16 805 037 (2013 est). Area: 41 526 sq km (16 033 sq miles). Dutch name: Nederland 2. (Placename) the kingdom of the Netherlands together with the Flemish-speaking part of Belgium, esp as ruled by Spain and Austria before 1581; the Low CountriesCollins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014Neth?er?lands (?n?ð ?r l?ndz) n. the, (used with a sing. or pl. v.) a kingdom in W Europe, on the North Sea. 15,807,641; 16,033 sq. mi. (41,526 sq. km). Capitals: Amsterdam and The Hague. Also called Holland. Dutch, Nederland. Neth?er?land`er (-?læn d?r, -l?n-) n. Neth?er?land`i?an, adj. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.