POV: you wake up on the morning of King’s Day. You think you see an army of Oompa Loompas marching down the city streets. After squinting your eyes hard enough, you realise it’s actually a bunch of Dutch people wearing orange! 🇳🇱
You’d think the Dutch would be wearing the colours of their flag: red, white, and blue. But you’ll notice that the Dutch actually have quite a taste for the colour orange.
Oranje for the win! 🧡
What is it?
If you’ve ever been in the Netherlands during a national celebration like King’s Day, you couldn’t have possibly missed the tremendous amount of orange T-shirts, baseball caps, and fedoras everywhere.
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And, it’s not only the Dutch who turn orange!
Whenever there’s a football game or national holiday coming up, Dutch supermarkets will miraculously have many of their products take on the hue.
From Heineken beer crates, tompoucen, soesjes to M&M packaging, Dutch supermarkets turn into an orange wonderland.
The Dutch and the colour orange — name a better duo. We’ll wait. 😉
Why do they do it?
Wearing orange during national holidays is the Dutch way of expressing feelings of national pride and patriotism.
That’s no surprise since the national colour of the Netherlands is, in fact, orange. 🧡
Orange has been the national colour of the Netherlands for hundreds of years.
It’s a reference to the royal Dutch family, particularly to William of Nassau-Dillenburg, also known as William of Orange. 🍊
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William of Orange was the commander of the Dutch rebellion against Spain in the 16th century and was given the name “Prince of Orange” in 1544 after he inherited the commune of Orange in the south of France.
And, as a result, orange has become a firm favourite when it comes to celebrating the Dutch!
For example, on King’s Day, the entire nation celebrates the King’s birthday day and night. 🥳
You’ll hear crowds of patriotic Dutchies singing: “Oranje boven, oranje boven, leve de koning!” (Orange above all, orange above all, long live the king!)
During Dutch football matches or Formula 1 races, there’s a high chance that hundreds of Dutch fans will show up in all-orange attire.
Orange is a VIBE 🟧
— Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) September 5, 2021
The Dutch fans have this place bouncing in time for the race 🇳🇱#HaasF1 #DutchGP pic.twitter.com/b5cOK41Xmw
Why is it quirky?
The colour orange initially seems far off from what you’d expect the Dutch to wear during national holidays. After all, the colour isn’t even present on the Dutch flag.
They also really dedicate themselves to the wearing of orange during national holidays or sports events.
Unlike other countries where you might see the occasional flash of a patriotic colour during festive celebrations, you can be guaranteed to see a sea of orange on King’s Day.
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That’s not to say the Dutch wear orange clothes year-round however, orange you glad about that? 😉
Should you join in?
Absolutely! Even if you’re not from the Netherlands, it’s still a nice way to participate in times of national pride like a true orange-wearing Dutchie!
If you’re ever planning on attending a Dutch national event, make sure to find your best orangey-tinted clothing. 🩳
What do you think of this Dutch quirk? Have you experienced it? Tell us in the comments below!