Coordinates: 52°30′N 5°30′E / 52.5°N 5.5°E / 52.5; 5.5

The geography of the European part of Netherlands is unusual in that much of its land has been reclaimed from the sea and is below sea level, protected by dikes. Another factor that has influenced its physical appearance is that the country is among the most densely populated on earth. It is ranked 15th overall on that scale, but is behind only three countries having a population over 10 million. Consequently, the Netherlands is highly urbanised.

The country can be split into two areas the low and flat lands in the west and north. These lands, including the reclaimed polders and river deltas, make up about half of its surface area and are less than 1 m (3.2 ft) above sea level, much of it actually below sea level. An extensive range of seawalls and coastal dunes protect the Netherlands from the sea, and levees and dikes along the rivers protect against river flooding.

Geographic coordinates: ca. 51° – 53° N, 4° – 7° E

The Dutch RD coordinate system (Rijksdriehoeksmeting) is also in common use; see [1] (pdf, in Dutch; see little map on p. 1) and converter. There is a west-east coordinate between 0 and 280 km, and a south-north coordinate between 300 and 620 km.

The Netherlands (ⁱ/ˈnɛðərləndz/; Dutch: Nederland [ˈneːdə(r)lɑnt] or [ˈneɪ̯də(r)lɑnt] ( listen); West Frisian: Nederlân; Papiamento: Hulanda) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with some islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders with Belgium, Germany and the United Kingdom. It is a parliamentary democracy organised as a unitary state. The country capital is Amsterdam and the seat of government is The Hague. The Netherlands in its entirety is often referred to as Holland, although North and South Holland are actually only two of its twelve provinces (a case of pars pro toto; see terminology of "the Netherlands").