Denmark
From Wikipedia, a free encyclopedia written in simple English for easy reading.
Denmark is a country in northern Europe. 5,400,000 people live there. There are a lot of islands, but no mountains. Denmark is on the North Sea.
Denmark is a kingdom. The capital of Denmark is Copenhagen.
In geography, Denmark is the land in northern Europe, where the Danes live. In the political sense, Denmark also includes the Faroe Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, and Greenland in North America. All three parts of the country have distinct languages and culture.
Contents |
[edit] Geography
Denmark is the smallest of the Scandinavian countries. The neighbours are Germany (to the south), Sweden (to the east) and Norway (to the north). The country is surrounded by the sea: To the south-east we have the Baltic Sea, to the west the North Sea, to the north the Skagerrak and to the north-east the Kattegat.
The western part of Denmark is the peninsula of Jutland (pronounced yut-land), bordering Germany. This is the only part of Denmark that is not an island. The rest of Denmark consists of 76 inhabited islands and a lot of quite small islands. To the east is the island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea, which is the only place in Denmark where you can see the bedrock.
The country is rather flat. There are lots of small hills, lakes, creeks, forests and farmland. And you are never far from the coast.
[edit] Climate
The weather in Denmark is quite windy and rainy. In the winter it does not get very cold; in most years we only have a few weeks of snow. Every ten years or so, the sea around the islands freezes over, but in most winters they do not. The climate and topography are not suited for winter sports.
Most summers are not very hot. Your clothing should always be prepared for rain or wind. But, on the other hand, we do have periods with lots of sun. The only thing is: You can never know in advance. The most promising period of the year for outdoor activities is the months of May and June until midsummer.
[edit] Traffic
Because of the many islands, Denmark is the country of bridges. The main parts of the country, and most of the greater islands, are connected by roads and railroads. One of the world's longest bridges connects the eastern and the western parts of the country, and there is a large bridge to Sweden, too. There is still no bridge across the Baltic Sea to Germany, but it will be built in a few years.
There are still a lot of islands with no bridges to the mainland. You have to go by boat or airplane to reach these islands. Many islands will never be reached by bridges because they are too small or too far away.
[edit] Culture
The people of Denmark has always been dependent on the sea. In earlier days you could not travel anywhere, unless you went by boat. Many Danes were fishermen or merchants. Even today many Danes spend a lot of time near or at the sea.
Farming has always been one of the main occupations. Because of the climate and the soil, Denmark is very well suited for agriculture. Export of food to the neighbouring countries is the most important source of income for the country.
Many Danes have made a difference abroad. You could mention the scientist Ole Rømer, who discovered the speed of light, the philosopher Søren Kierkegaard, or the author Hans Christian Andersen.
[edit] Language
The Danes speak Danish. Most Danes speak English, too. In the western and southern parts of the country, German is understood in stores and restaurants.
On the Faroe Islands, Faroese is spoken, and in Greenland the inhabitants speak Inuit. In the southern part of Jutland a German minority speaks German.
The Danish language is very much like the languages that are spoken in Norway and Sweden
[edit] Holidays
To children, anyway, Christmas is the prime feast of the year. Christmas is celebrated on the eve of December 24.
In midwinter fast is celebrated. Children are dressed up, and go from house to house begging for candy. A barrel is smashed with clubs, and the person who hits the last stick is appointed king or queen of cats.
Midsummer is celebrated with a huge bonfire in the evening of June 23.
| Countries and territories of Europe |
|---|
| Albania - Andorra - Austria - Azerbaijan1 - Belarus - Belgium - Bosnia and Herzegovina - Bulgaria - Croatia - Cyprus2 - Czech Republic - Denmark - Estonia - Finland - France - Germany - Georgia1 - Greece - Hungary - Iceland - Ireland - Italy - Latvia - Liechtenstein - Lithuania - Luxembourg - Malta - Moldova - Monaco - Montenegro - Netherlands - Norway - Poland - Portugal - Republic of Macedonia - Romania - Russia1 - San Marino - Serbia - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden - Switzerland - Turkey1 - Ukraine - United Kingdom - Vatican City |
| Dependencies: Akrotiri and Dhekelia2 - Faroe Islands - Gibraltar - Guernsey - Jan Mayen - Jersey - Isle of Man - Svalbard |
| Unrecognised countries: Abkhazia | Nagorno-Karabakh2 | South Ossetia | Transnistria | Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus2 |
| 1. Country partly in Asia. 2. Geographically in Asia, but often counted as part of Europe for cultural and historical reasons. |
| Members of the European Union (EU) |  |
|---|---|
| Austria - Belgium - Cyprus - Czech Republic - Denmark - Estonia - Finland - France - Germany - Greece - Hungary - Ireland - Italy - Latvia - Lithuania - Luxembourg - Malta - Netherlands - Poland - Portugal - Slovakia - Slovenia - Spain - Sweden - United Kingdom | |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
denmark
