Pimsleur Dutch

Dutch () is a West Germanic language spoken by over 22 million people as a native language, and over 5 million people as a second language."1% of the EU population claims to speak Dutch well enough in order to have a conversation." (page 153) Outside the European Union the number of second language speakers of Dutch is relatively small. Most native speakers live in the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, with smaller groups of speakers in parts of France, Germany and several former Dutch colonies. It is closely related to other West Germanic languages (e.g., English, West Frisian and German) and somewhat more remotely to the North Germanic languages.

From a perspective of political correctness, to avoid national bias or chauvinism, there is a modern or more or less progressive tendency to consider "Nederlands Nederlands" ("Dutch Dutch"), "Surinaams Nederlands" ("Surinam Dutch") and "Vlaams Nederlands" ("Flemish Dutch") as three equal natiolects.

Dutch is the parent language of several creole languages as well as of Afrikaans, one of the official languages of South Africa and the most widely understood in Namibia. Dutch and Afrikaans are to a very large extent mutually intelligible, although they have separate spelling standards and dictionaries and have separate language regulators. The Dutch Language Union coordinates actions of the Dutch, Flemish and Surinamese authorities in linguistic issues, language policy, language teaching and literature.The Nederlandse Taalunie

Amsterdam (; Dutch ) is the capital and largest city of the Netherlands, located in the province of North Holland in the west of the country. The city, which had a population (including suburbs) of 1.36 million on 1 January 2008, comprises the northern part of the Randstad, the sixth-largest metropolitan area in Europe, with a population of around 6.7 million.

Its name is derived from Amstellerdam,Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, Vol 1, p896-898. indicative of the city's origin: a dam in the river Amstel. Settled as a small fishing village in the late 12th century, Amsterdam became one of the most important ports in the world during the Dutch Golden Age, a result of its innovative developments in trade. During that time, the city was the leading center for finance and diamonds.[http://www.cambridge.org/catalogue/catalogue.asp?isbn=9780521845359&ss=exc] Capitals of Capital -A History of International Financial Centres - 1780?2005, Youssef Cassis, ISBN 978-0521845359 In the 19th and 20th centuries, the city expanded and many new neighbourhoods and suburbs were formed.

The city is the financial and culturalAfter Athens in 1985 and Florence in 1986, Amsterdam was in 1986 chosen as the European Capital of Culture, confirming its eminent position in Europe and the Netherlands. See here [http://ec.europa.eu/culture/our-programmes-and-actions/doc443_en.htm] for an overview of the European cities and capitals of culture over the years. capital of the Netherlands. Many large Dutch institutions have their headquarters there, and 7 of the world's top 500 companies, including Philips and ING, are based in the city.[http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/18/biz_2000global08_The-Global-2000-Netherlands_10Rank.html] Forbes Global 2000 Largest Companies - Dutch rankings. The Amsterdam Stock Exchange, the oldest stock exchange in the world is located in the city centre. Amsterdam's main attractions, including its historic canals, the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, Hermitage Amsterdam, Anne Frank House, its red-light district, and its many cannabis coffee shops draw more than 3.66 million international visitors annually, .

The Hague is the seat of government, but not the capital of the Netherlands, a role set aside by the Dutch constitution for Amsterdam.

The Hague is the home of the States-General of the Netherlands. Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands lives and works in The Hague. All foreign embassies and government ministries are located in the city, as well as the Hoge Raad der Nederlanden (Supreme Court), the Raad van State (Council of State) and many lobbying organisations.

The Hague is also the de facto judicial capital of the United Nations, being the location of its primary judicial institutions.