Holland is famous all over the world for some of the weirdest facts. Not all of the crazy facts are true, however. Here are some of the myths about Amsterdam that are popular. Find out if they are true or not in this list of Myths about Holland.
1. Prostitution is legal in Amsterdam
True.
Since 2000 prostitution is officially legal in Amsterdam and The Netherlands. Discussions, plans, and ideas to regulate prostitution had been going around since the 1950s.
According to Dutch law, women may sell their body and services for money when:
- They voluntarily choose the profession
- They are over 18 years
- They have a work permit
- They pay taxes over their income
- The women need to have a work permit and pay taxes.
The law was instated to protect the prostitutes and fight forced prostitution. Brothels and window prostitutes need a license to do their profession. This license system made it possible for Amsterdam to close many prostitution windows in the Red Light District of Amsterdam.
2. Amsterdam is below sea level
True. Parts of Amsterdam are 4 meters below sea levels!
In fact, most of the western part of the Netherlands (Holland, read the difference between Holland and the Netherlands) is below sea level.
The lowest part in Holland is 6 meters below sea level!
Still, the Dutch aren’t worried about flooding. The Dutch have an innovative system of dikes, dunes, canals, and barrages to protect them from the water.
Specially elected ‘water boards’ (Waterschappen) check the level of water. They adjust the levels by pumping out water to the higher canals and rivers that run to the sea.
3. Amsterdam will flood due to global warming
Global warming will cause the ice on the North Pole to melt. Sea levels will rise, also in the Netherlands. If nothing is done, Amsterdam will flood because of climate change.
From 2050 onwards, sea levels will rise 2 to 4 meters. Current dikes in Holland are meant to withstand a rise of 1 meter in 2100. The Netherlands is thinking about ways how to prevent flooding: by building higher dikes and bigger pumps.
4. A little boy stopped a flood in Holland by putting his finger in a dike.
False. Hans Brinker is not a real boy, he is a fictional character in a book.
Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates is a children’s book about all kinds of adventures that take place in Holland. It was written in 1865 by the American author Mary Mapes Dodges.
In one of the adventures, a little boy living near Haarlem finds out that the dike that protects the land from the sea is leaking water. By putting his finger in the dike, a potential disaster is avoided. Unfortunately, nobody is aware of the heroic act and so the boy stays there, in the cold winter night all the time keeping his finger in place. Only the next day a clergy finds the little boy.
Interestingly, that little boy is not really named Hans Brinker, but the story is remembered that way. Also, the author had never even been to Holland and so many historic facts from the book are incorrect. The book, however, was a big hit in the United States and made people very interested in Holland.
The story was also translated into Dutch and published in The Netherlands, but the story about the little boys who put his finger in the dyke is not as well known in Holland as it is in America.
5. The Dutch invented slavery
False. Slavery has been known to exist in all times and in all civilizations.
The Romans famously enslaved entire populations, using them for fun (gladiators, sex slaves) and labor. In the Middle Ages, the slave trade was big business, with Arabs, Greek and Jewish merchants all involved in buying and selling slaves. In North-Africa slavery was very common from the 11th to the 14th century. White Christians were captured during raids in Europe and black people were purchased or captures in Africa and transported to major slave markets in Algeria and Morocco.
In many parts of Africa, it was common to enslave a large part of the population. Upon conquering a tribe, the population would be enslaved to the other tribe. The Ashanti, for example, is known to have captured many slaves.
When the Europeans showed an interest in the African slaves, the hunt for slaves became even more lucrative. Arab traders would take the captured slaves to the coastal cities and sell them to the Portuguese and Spanish from the 15th century onwards.
When the Dutch conquered Brazil from the Portuguese in 1630, the Dutch needed strong men to work on the sugar plants and started with the large scale shipping of African slaves. The Dutch transported over 500.000 Africans to the Americas. This is about 5 % of the total amount of the Atlantic slave trade.
Read more about Slavery in Amsterdam
5. The Dutch wear wooden shoes
True. Dutch farmers wear clogs made of out of wood.
The benefits of wooden shoes are great. They protect the foot against falling objects or the treading of animal hoofs. They also have great isolation qualities: your feet stay warm in winter and cool in summer.
Wooden shoes date back to the Middle-ages when clogs were popular all over Europe. In the 15th century, the clog was made out of one piece of wood. The wooden shoes were strong and kept the feet dry while walking in the muddy streets and in marshy lands, like in Holland. Clog making is a real skill that’s still practiced by professional clog makers in Holland.
Nowadays, clogs and clog makers have become a tourist attraction and are mostly produced as a souvenir, but I can recommend you wearing your Dutch wooden shoes at home.
It takes some getting used to (wear thick socks!) but then you have a pair of shoes that’ll last you a lifetime.
6. When a cop stops you in Amsterdam, they have no right to search you
Partly true. Like they said in the film Pulp Fiction, a cop in Amsterdam does not have the right to search you if he doesn’t have a specific reason to suspect you of doing anything illegal.
In the same way, a police officer in Amsterdam cannot search your bag, your car or your house without permission from you or from a judge.
However, since 2011 it’s possible for a mayor to name a specific area as a ‘safety risk areas’.
The centre of Amsterdam is considered a ‘safety risk area’. This means in the centre of Amsterdam, a cop can actually search you and your bag without your permission. The police will specifically look for any arms you might carry.