Groningen

Groningen (ancient Cruoninga), the north-eastern province of Holland, bounded N. by the North Sea and E. by Hanover, with an area of 887 sq. m. The surface lies low; the soil is fertile, particularly in the north; in the south-east there are several marshes, though they are being rapidly drained and cultivated (as the Bourtanger). Farming and grazing are the chief pursuits of the people. Shipbuilding is extensively followed; much butter is exported, and some woollen hosiery, cloth, linen, paper, pottery, and potato-meal are manufactured. The people, 285,780 in 1894, are almost entirely of the Frisian race, and belong chiefly to the Reformed Church.