[freez-luh
nd; Du. frees-lahnt] 
| a province in the N Netherlands. 592,061; 1431 sq. mi. (3705 sq. km). Capital: Leeuwarden. |
| Fries·land (frēz'lənd, -lānd', frēs'-) A region of northern Europe on the North Sea between the Scheldt and Weser rivers. The Frisians, a Germanic people, were conquered by the Franks in the eighth century. A portion of the area is now a province, also called Friesland, of the northern Netherlands. |
Friesland
coastal provincie, northern Netherlands, extending inland from the IJsselmeer and the North Sea (west and north) and including four of the West Frisian Islands (see Frisian Islands) off the north coast. The province is drained by a vast system of canals, waterways, and lakes, particularly in the north and west; the principal lakes are Tjeukemeer, Slotermeer, Fluessen, and Sneekermeer. Its area is 1,295 square miles (3,353 square km), rarely exceeding 50 feet (15 m) above sea level, and the population density is less than half the national average. The predominantly Protestant Frisians have maintained both their own language and their own literature to a considerable degree
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