Brussels (French: Bruxelles, Dutch: Brussel; is the capital city of Belgium. As headquarters of many European institutions, Brussels might also be considered something of a capital for the European Union. Lying at the crossroads of cultures (the Germanic in the North and the Romance in the South) and playing an important role in Europe Brussels fits the definition of the archetypal "melting pot", but still retains its own unique character. Population of the Brussels metropolitan area is just over 2 million.