Languages of Belgium of Versailles, which concluded World War I. In 1940, Nazi Germany re-annexed the region following its invasion of Belgium during World War II; after the war it was returned to Belgium. In national politics, politicians can freely choose to speak in any of the three official languages. In turn, the Belgian parliament provides simultaneous interpretation for those who require it to assist in communication. Education is provided by the Communities, Dutch in the Flemish Community (Flanders and Brussels), French in the French Community (Wallonia and Brussels), German in the German-speaking community. Instruction in other languages is prohibited in government-funded schools
The Sorrow of Belgium The Sorrow of Belgium The Sorrow of Belgium () is a major novel first published in 1983 by the Belgian author Hugo Claus (1929–2008). It is widely considered Claus' major work and "the most important Dutch-language novel of the twentieth century". "The Sorrow of Belgium" explores the childhood and youth of Louis Seynaeve, a Flemish schoolboy living in the region of Kortrijk during World War II when Belgium was under German occupation. The novel itself is a "bildungsroman" formed from two sections: The work was first published in an English translation by Arnold J. Pomerans in 1994. It was also