The Netherlands does have counties, but the first level of administration of the Netherlands is technically made up of 4 constituent countries, the Netherlands, Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten. Only one of these is located on the continent of Europe (the Netherlands), so it is the only one that is guessed in this video.
What is a First Level Subdivision?
A First Level Subdivision is the first level of administration under the national government. Some examples of this would be the States of the USA (e.g. California or Texas), the Countries of the United Kingdom (e.g. Scotland or England), or the Regions of Italy (e.g. Tuscany or Lombardy)
There is a difference between an Administrative Subdivision and a non-Administrative Subdivision. I am learning the Administrative Subdivisions. Iceland for example has regions, but these are only used for postal codes and census reporting purposes, not for administration. Therefore we go one level further down in subdivisions to municipalities, which are used for administrative purposes.
I named all 190 First Level Subdivisions of Western Europe (Ireland, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Monaco, Italy, San Marino, Malta, Andorra, Spain, Portugal).
This Includes:
3 Cities, 2 City-Counties, and 26 Counties of Ireland
3 Countries, 3 Dependencies, 1 Province, and 1 Territory of the United Kingdom
1 Country of the Netherlands
3 Regions of Belgium
12 Cantons of Luxembourg
13 Regions of France
26 Cantons of Switzerland
11 Municipalities of Liechtenstein
9 Wards of Monaco
20 Regions of Italy
9 Municipalities of San Marino
5 Regions of Malta
7 Parishes of Andorra
16 Communities of Spain
18 Districts and 1 Region of Portugal
