10 Things You Probably Didn't Know Were Belgian

It's time the Belgians get some credit!

1. Fries

SHUTTERSTOCK / Via standaard.be

Contrary to the popular American term French fries, fries were actually created in Belgium and are still incredibly popular there.

2. Saxophone

Phillips Communication / Via smithsonianmag.com

The saxophone was originally created in 1846 by Adolphe Sax, who was Belgian.

3. Tintin

Via wallpapercave.com

Tintin is often seen as a French cartoon character but this is not true. The comic books were indeed originally written in French but French is also one of Belgium's three national languages. (No, Belgian is not one of them) Hergé, the creator of Tintin, was thus a 100% Belgian.

4. Roller skates

Via etsy.com

Where would we be without John Joseph Merlin? He was a Belgian inventor who created the wonderful concept of roller skates in 1760.

5. Beer

Via roughguides.com

It is Belgium, not Germany, that has the most varieties of beer per capita in the world. There are 180 breweries with over 800 kinds of beer in Belgium, most of them were originally (and some still are) part of an abbey. Every type of beer also has a specific glass. Being a bartender in Belgium is thus very hard, as pouring beer in the wrong glass is seen as a big failure.

6. Mercator projection

Via commons.wikimedia.org

The way we create maps today was created by Gerardus Mercator, a Belgian cartographer, in 1569. He was the first to note that the world was slightly round while maps were flat and his concept of drawing maps has been a crucial navigation tool for centuries.

7. Smurfs

Via smurfs.wikia.com

These adorable blue creatures are indeed Belgian. Note: Belgium has the record of most comic makers per square kilometer in the world.

8. Oil paint

Via theredlist.com

Jan van Eyck was the first painter in the world to use oil paint in his art.

9. Big Bang Theory

Via artis.nl

Georges Lemaître, a Belgian astronomer and priest, was the first to propose the hypothesis of the primeval atom or the big bang theory in the 1930s.

10. Pralines

Via labsters.nl

Last but not least, Jean Neuhaus II invented the praline or chocolate bonbon in 1912. Belgium is still known around the world for its high quality chocolate and Brussels National Airport is the world's biggest chocolate selling point.

Let's all take a moment to appreciate Belgium as one of the best countries in the world! Imagine what a horrible place the world would be if Belgian people had not been this awesome and invented all these beautiful things!