Partition of Belgium Belgian identity was not defined on racial, ethnic or linguistic lines, but in the civilizational community of the Belgian people. Supporters of a partition of Belgium argue that the synchronized attempts to forge a national identity and culture have been unable to forestall ethno-linguistic rivalries. French was the only official language of Belgium until 1898, even though Flanders was and still is predominantly Dutch-speaking. The government's long refusal to acknowledge Dutch as an official language led to hostilities between Flanders and the French-speaking bourgeoisie who held both political and economic power. These hostilities gave rise to the Flemish movement, which
Swedish-speaking population of Finland number of reasons such as geographic and linguistic among others Sweden has traditionally been the number one destination for Swedish-speaking emigrants and about 65 000 Finland-Swedes live in Sweden, according to "". Swedish-speaking population of Finland The Swedish-speaking population of Finland (whose members are often called Swedish-speaking Finns, Finland-Swedes, Finland Swedes, Finnish Swedes, or Swedes of Finland—see below; ; ; the term Swedo-Finnish—; —can be used as an attribute) is a linguistic minority in Finland. They maintain a strong identity and are seen either as a separate ethnic group, while still being Finns, or as a distinct nationality. They speak