A German-speaking community in Belgium

Today is the official day celebrating the German-speaking community of Belgium. A lot is said about the two major communities, the Flemish one and the Walloon-Brussels one, but so many people forget about our German community, which is also officially recognized, with German being the third official language in this beautiful country. I've spent a lot of time in that area so that I can tell you a little more about it.

But please people, don't go too quickly on it thinking this is just a couple of Germans who wanted to find shelter in Belgium, not at all. Actually, their history is a bit more intricate...

First of all, let's make a difference between what's called East Cantons ("Ostbelgien" in German) and the German-speaking community, which is part of East Cantons. Also two Walloon cities (Malmedy and Waimes) are part of East Cantons and tolerate the use of German for official purposes. East Cantons were actually part of Germany until 1920, but they were annexed by Belgium after World War I. Then, they were German again in World War II before becoming Belgian for good after it.

In 1973, the country was divided into three communities (Flemish, French speakers - including the two Walloon cities of East Cantons - and German speakers). So, nine cities are currently part of the German-speaking community, which is itself divided in two areas: the Belgian Eifel (the continuation of a large countryside/forest area starting in Germany) and the Land of Eupen (closer to Flemish Limburg). The capital of this community is Eupen.

 Official flag of the community

Also, there are three official regions (Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels area), BUT no German-speaking region, so that nowadays a Belgian German speaker has different identities :
- German speaker
- part of Wallonia (but not a "Walloon" in the ethnic sense), namely the Province of Liège
- Belgian
Also, there are German speakers (or people who speak a German dialect) in other parts of the country, like the Province of Luxembourg, but they usually have French as a main language.
 
These people are often called Germans by ignorants (including Belgians)... So, just because they speak German doesn't mean they're German (in the same way as Walloons are no French and Flemish are no Dutch). Rather they have this triple identity and consider themselves to be Belgians, although they have affinities with surrounding cities such as Cologne and Aachen. Usually, they are bilingual (German-French) like fifty-fifty. They often get a superior education in Liège in French. When they speak French, their accent is very similar to people from Liège but with a German feeling to it. Oh and by the way, if you speak French, you will think that those who say "une fois" (once) in all their sentences are from Brussels, but nowadays German-speaking Belgians are those who use this expression most frequently (e.g. "passe-moi une fois le sel" for "bring me the salt, please"). And last but not least, nearly all these people don't want to be independent from Belgium, they just want a German-speaking region.

This area is quiet, not very populated and full of nature, countryside and forests. You can also find two enjoyable lakes (Butgenbach and Robertville) where to go on caravaning in the summer and it is also the best place in Belgium to ski, because the snow is so thick in comparison to the rest of Belgium, which is at a lower altitude. In these places, you will find peaceful hospitable people who are happy to live in such nice land and a lot of Dutch and Flemish tourists...

 Isn't that charming?

 

 

Share your impressions of this beautiful area in the comments below!