Philological information on "Dutch" was prepared by the translation studies division of Dijital Tercüme.
 
Flemish or Dutch belongs to the Latin alphabet language group and is a part of the Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages. It is spoken by approximately 24 million people in the world (Netherlands: the whole population of 17 million, Belgium: approx. 6 million of the 10 million population, Suriname: the whole of the 450,000 population, Netherlands Antilles: the whole of the 200,000 population, Aruba: the whole of the 100,000 thousand population). It has different dialects such as Dutch and Flanders which are very close in written form but are separated by small differences in nuance. The Dutch spoken in the Netherlands and Belgium are very minor and can be considered as two dialects of the same language. To generalize, the dialect spoken in Belgium is called Flemish, and the one spoken in the Netherlands is called Hollandic. In Belgium it is spoken mostly in the Flanders region in the north. Hollandic is closer to the Low German and Frisian languages.
 
In our country, it is possible to get undergraduate education at Ankara University in the Western Languages and Literatures Division, as well as the Department of Dutch Language and Literature. In addition to this, Dutch can also be learned through private courses. However, a university education provides many additional benefits as well. The goal of the Dutch language and literature program is to provide education on the features of the Dutch language, Dutch culture and literature, the similarities of the Dutch language with other languages, and also to teach courses on the grammatical structure of Dutch, the origin of its words, its relations with other languages, the style and thematic features of Dutch literary works. In order to succeed in the Dutch language and literature program, good verbal skills, a good memory, and enthusiasm for learning foreign languages, and an interest in literature are necessary.
 
Those who have graduated from the Dutch language and literature program are given the title "Philologist". However, graduates work with different titles. Their responsibilities may vary depending on their titles. Those who have graduated from the Dutch language and literature program can work as translators and interpreters in institutions that are engaged in commercial or cultural relations with the Netherlands. Dutch native speakers are inclined to learn English and German due to the similarities shared by their languages. It is similar to English and German in terms of sentence structure and vocabulary.
 
Dutch is an official language in the Netherlands, Belgium, Suriname, and the Republic of South Africa. Dutch, which is known as a very close language to German, is used in the Dutch and Flemish regions of Northern Holland or the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and also in the colonies of the Netherlands (St. Martin, Suriname, Aruba, Guyana, Netherlands Antilles, and Virgin Islands). It is also still common in Indonesia, which is historically the biggest Dutch colony, and it had a significant influence on the local languages. As a result of the distance from the native language, geographic separation and disconnects, South Africans (Boer people) who have migrated to South Africa starting from the 17th century, speak a differentiated dialect of Dutch called "Akrikaneer". There are various dialects used in different regions in the Netherlands. Some of these are: Southern Dutch, Gronings, Brabantian, and Netherlands Limburgish.
 
Flemish, is the dialect of Dutch spoken in the Flanders region of Belgium. It is also known as Belgian Flemish. In Belgium, the region where Flemish is spoken constitutes the Flemish community in general terms. Historically, the language has been under heavy French influence, during this process it has developed a unique tradition, literature and dialects, yet over time it has again had common words with Dutch. Flemish people prefer Flemish dialect in their daily lives when they use their local dialects, and prefer Dutch when they use an educational, scientific, and managerial language. Because of the differences in the accents and the use of certain words, a Dutch can easily understand when dealing with a Flemish. Moreover, because each region has its own characteristic speaking manner, which city or village somebody is from can be determined. The reason for this is that, although Flemish is a language spoken in a small region, communities are very close and tight-knit together. Thus, the language has a very heterogeneous spread in the region irrespective of the official borders. According to the official resources, in Flanders region, 26 different types of Flemish is spoken, which can be considered dialects. Primary ones among these are: Eastern Flemish, Western Flemish, Antwerp dialect, Limburgish, and French Flemish.
 
In general, although each region speaks in its unique accent and dialect, in education, media, publications, radio, TV, writings and state affairs, a standardized common official language is used. However, similar to our country, people consider their regional accent and dialect as cultural values and therefore, nurture and protect them. In addition to the official language, they publish newspapers and magazines in their dialects and in local radio and TV stations broadcast using their own dialects.
 
Looking at the regions, the differences between the dialects are very strong. Because of this, state televisions usually broadcast general public addresses with official Dutch subtitles.