The Netherlands is a small country in Western Europe, surrounded by the North Sea in the west and north, Belgium in the south, and Germany in the east. It has about 17 million inhabitants (October 2008) Although the government resides in Den Haag, Amsterdam is the capital. The official language is Dutch (Nederlands), although in the northern province Friesland, Fries (Frysian?) is spoken as their mother-language, Dutch being the language they learn in school.