We know about Dutch painting, but we get our visa to the Netherlands. Why? “Mandry” explains:
In fact, you cannot put an equals sign between Holland and the Netherlands. Moreover, there are two Hollands: North and South. They are only two of the 12 provinces of the Netherlands.
Therefore, the Dutch nationality doesn’t exist either, and all indigenous people should be correctly called Netherlanders. However, in colloquial Russian, both variants are acceptable. As for the language, it is Dutch, while Hollandic is one of its dialects.
The reason for such confusion is historical. Back in the 17th century, ships from North and South Holland sailed to Arkhangelsk. Being natives of these provinces, merchants introduced themselves as Hollanders in Russia. Peter I added even more confusion. In 1697-1698, during a diplomatic mission to Western Europe, he visited the Netherlands, more precisely, the most developed regions of the country – both Hollands. Upon returning, he began telling stories not about the Netherlands, but about Holland, which only strengthened the Russians’ incorrect perception of the country’s name.
Now these provinces are no less important in the life of the Netherlands than before. Amsterdam, located in North Holland, serves as the financial and cultural capital.
In The Hague, which is the center of South Holland, the residence of the Dutch government and parliament is located. At the same time, the monarch takes the oath in Amsterdam. Even the official travel website is called holland.com. This was done to maintain a more friendly image of the state and simultaneously get into the top search queries.
By the way, the Holland vs Netherlands confusion exists not only in the Russian language. For example, in Greece, the country is colloquially called Ollandia (Ολλανδία), but the official name remains Kato-Chores (Κάτω Χώρες), which literally translates as “lower lands,” essentially the same as Netherlands. The British and Americans have it even more complicated, since this country has been called at different times the Dutch Republic, the United States of Belgium, and the Kingdom of Holland.
However, calling the Netherlands Holland, meaning the state, is as absurd as calling the USA, for example, Florida or Texas.
