Culture of Belgium architecture in Belgium and abroad. Belgian literature was more cohesive in the past but is now divided between a Flemish literature and a Belgian Francophone literature. Until the mid-20th century, Belgian writers more often wrote in French even if they were Flemish, due both to the then-dominant position of that language in worldwide culture and its dominant position within Belgium itself (e.g. Suzanne Lilar, Emile Verhaeren or Maurice Maeterlinck), and many French-speaking individuals come from originally Dutch-speaking families (particularly in Brussels, e.g. Jacques Brel). As the Flemish movement grew in importance, Dutch-penned authors became more and more prominent in Flanders
Royal Academy of Science, Letters and Fine Arts of Belgium an independent solely Dutch-speaking Flemish academy while the Royal Academy of Belgium remained a bilingual institution hosting members both from the north and from the south of the country. The bilingual status of the Royal Academy however caused difficulties over the course of the years which ultimately were resolved in 1971 by splitting the Royal Academy into an independent solely Dutch-speaking entity and an independent solely French-speaking entity. The law of 1 July 1971 put both academies in linguistic equality: henceforth their own lingua franca is used (respectively the French and the Dutch) and they bear the same denomination. In