Religion
Holland has a rich religious history. The year 500 began the Great Migration of Franks and Saxons and along with it came the Christian faith. In the 14th and 15th century the Dutch began to reform from the Catholic church. By the end of the middle ages, Geert Grote founded the Brethren of Common Life, this started the shift in Dutch culture “theocentric to anthropocentric in worldview.” During the Eighty Years War much of the Dutch revolt was started because of religious preferences. At that time, many Dutch were already converting to Lutheranism, Calvinism, Mennonite and other Anglo-Saxon influenced religious influences. The Spanish repressed all of these movements and so when the Dutch became victorious over them, they named Calvinism their official unofficial state religion. Later in the 16th centuries, many Jewish and non protestant refugees were welcomed into the Netherlands. In the 17th century the Dutch Reformed Church and the Reformed Church of the Netherlands arose to power, though similar in name they are different in doctrine. Catholics were not allowed to practice their religion openly until the 19th century when they were liberated by forming their own communities through pillarisation. In 1947, 44.3 % belonged to the Protestant church, 38.7% were Roman Catholic and 17.1% did not affiliate with a church. During World War 11, 75-80% of Dutch Jews were murdered in the Holocaust. Today, 50% of Dutch claim no religious affiliation, 43 % are Christians ; 23.7% Catholic and 15.5% Protestants, Islam is 4.9% and other religions such as Buddhism or Hinduism make up 1.1% of the population.
Culture
The word Dutch originated from the German word Deutch because Holland did not become independent from Germany until seventeenth century. There are two prominent cultures in Holland being the Randstand and Non-Randstand Cultures. The Randstand culture refers to an urbanized culture situated in North Holland, South Holland and Utrecht. The Non-Randstand culture represents the folks in the Protestant north and the Catholic south, in between the Rhine River.
The Friesian culture heavily influenced the north of Holland and parts of the south. Limburg and Brabant of the south were known for their discriminatory practices, which is what sparked the Catholic liberation spoken of in the religious section.
Holland has been known as a safe haven for refugees for many centuries and each of these cultures has left its influence on the country. Jews from Spain and Portugal came to the Netherlands in the 16th century. By the twentieth century Holland had migrants from Dutch colonies and war torn countries taking refuge.
Many Dutch would reject the idea of nationalism. They would say they champion cultural diversity and tolerance to difference. Cycling also is major part of Dutch culture. Statistics say that 37% of Dutch claim the bicycle as their primary mode of transportation and 27% of all trips across Holland, urban and rural, are made on the bike alone. Because of this Holland has a growing number of protected inter-city bike paths, called Feitstraats. Dutch children are trained to ride bikes in the streets at age 12 and have to take a traffic exam , which is pretty significant considering 75% of school children bicycle to school. Drivers are also trained to interact with bikers during their motorist exam.
References
Religion. (2017, February 06). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://www.studyinholland.nl/about-holland/religion
The Netherlands. (n.d.). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from http://www.everyculture.com/Ma-Ni/The-Netherlands.html
Religion in the Netherlands. (2017, October 24). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_the_Netherlands
Cycling in the Netherlands. (2017, October 09). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycling_in_the_Netherlands
The Friesian culture heavily influenced the north of Holland and parts of the south. Limburg and Brabant of the south were known for their discriminatory practices, which is what sparked the Catholic liberation spoken of in the religious section.
Holland has been known as a safe haven for refugees for many centuries and each of these cultures has left its influence on the country. Jews from Spain and Portugal came to the Netherlands in the 16th century. By the twentieth century Holland had migrants from Dutch colonies and war torn countries taking refuge.
Many Dutch would reject the idea of nationalism. They would say they champion cultural diversity and tolerance to difference. Cycling also is major part of Dutch culture. Statistics say that 37% of Dutch claim the bicycle as their primary mode of transportation and 27% of all trips across Holland, urban and rural, are made on the bike alone. Because of this Holland has a growing number of protected inter-city bike paths, called Feitstraats. Dutch children are trained to ride bikes in the streets at age 12 and have to take a traffic exam , which is pretty significant considering 75% of school children bicycle to school. Drivers are also trained to interact with bikers during their motorist exam.
References
Religion. (2017, February 06). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://www.studyinholland.nl/about-holland/religion
The Netherlands. (n.d.). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from http://www.everyculture.com/Ma-Ni/The-Netherlands.html
Religion in the Netherlands. (2017, October 24). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_the_Netherlands
Cycling in the Netherlands. (2017, October 09). Retrieved October 26, 2017, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cycling_in_the_Netherlands