The history, geography, demographics, and government and politics of the Kingdom of Denmark.

1. Denmark

2. Background
 Formerly a settlement of Viking raiders and later a key northern
European power, Denmark has developed into a modern, thriving
nation that is contributing to the general political and economic
integration of Europe.
 It joined NATO in 1949 and the European Economic Community (now
the European Union) in 1973.
 Nevertheless, the country has declined to participate in specific
components of the EU's Maastricht Treaty, including the European
Economic and Monetary Union, European defense cooperation, and
issues relating to certain justice and home matters.

3. Entrance to Denmark; this border
sign is on the border with Germany

4. Geography
 Location: Northern Europe,
bordering the Baltic Sea and the
North Sea, on the peninsula of
Jutland, north of Germany; also
includes numerous major islands
 Geographic coordinates: 56 00 N,
10 00 E
 Map references: Europe
 Area:
 Total: 43,094 sq. km
 Land: 42,434 sq. km
 Water: 660 sq. km
 Note: includes the island of
Bornholm in the Baltic Sea and the
rest of metropolitan Denmark (the
Jutland Peninsula and the major
islands of Sjaelland and Fyn), but
excludes the Faroe Islands and
Greenland
 Country comparison to the world:
134

5. Geography (cont.): Physical map

6. Geography (cont.)
 Area – comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts
 Land boundaries:
 Total: 140 km
 Border countries (1): Germany 140 km
 Coastline: 7,314 km
 Maritime claims:
 Territorial sea: 12 nm
 Contiguous zone: 24 nm
 Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
 Continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
 Climate: temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers
 Terrain: low and flat to gently rolling plains
 Elevation:
 Mean elevation: 34 m
 Elevation extremes: lowest point is Lammefjord (-7 m); highest point is Møllehøj (171
m)

7. Geography (cont.)
Lammefjord, lowest
point Møllehøj, highest point

8. Geography (cont.)
 Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, fish, arable land, salt, limestone,
chalk, stone, gravel and sand
 Land use:
 Agricultural land: 63.4% (arable land 58.9%; permanent crops 0.1%; permanent pasture
4.4%)
 Forest: 12.9%
 Other: 23.7%
 Note: highest percentage of arable land for any country in the world (2011 est.)
 Irrigated land: 4,350 sq. km (2012)
 Population – distribution: with convenient access to the North Sea, Skagerrak,
Kattegat, and the Baltic Sea, population centers incline to be along coastal
areas, mainly in Copenhagen and the eastern side of the country's interior
 Natural hazards: flooding is a danger in some areas of the country (e.g., parts of
Jutland, along the southern coast of the island of Lolland) that are sheltered from
the sea by use of dikes
 Environment – current issues: air pollution, primarily from vehicle and power
plant radiations; nitrogen and phosphorus pollution of the North Sea; drinking and
surface water becoming polluted from animal wastes and insecticides; much of
Denmark's household and manufacturing waste is reutilized

9. Geography (cont.)
 Environment – international agreements: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-
Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-
Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic
Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate
Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
 Signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
 Geography – note: made up of the Jutland Peninsula and a cluster of over 400
islands (Danish Archipelago); controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat)
connecting Baltic and North Seas; almost one-quarter of the population resides in
greater Copenhagen

10. People and Society
 Population: 5,605,948 (July 2017 est.; country comparison to the world:
116)
 Nationality:
 Noun: Dane(s)
 Adjective: Danish
 Ethnic groups: Danish (includes Greenlandic, who are predominantly Inuit,
and Faroese) 86.7%, Turkish 1.1%, other 12.2% (largest groups are Polish,
Syrian, German, Iraqi, and Romanian)
 Note: Figures represent population by ancestry (2017 est.)
 Languages: Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small
minority)
 Note: English is the main second language
 Religion: Evangelical Lutheran (official) 76%, Muslim 4%, other
(denominations of less than 1% each, includes Roman Catholic, Jehovah's
Witnesses, Serbian Orthodox, Jewish, Baptist, and Buddhist) 20% (2017
est.)

11. Government
 Official name: Kingdom of Denmark (Kongeriget Danmark)
 Etymology: the name Denmark originates from Dane(s) and mark; the latter refers to
a march (borderland) or forest
 Government type: Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
 Capital (and largest city): Copenhagen
 Administrative divisions: metropolitan Denmark consists of five regions (regioner,
singular - region): Hovedstaden (Capital), Midtjylland (Central Jutland),
Nordjylland (North Jutland), Sjælland (Zealand), Syddanmark (Southern
Denmark)
 Note: a general local government reform unified 271 municipalities into ninety-eight
municipalities and thirteen counties into five regions, effective 1 January 2007
 Independence: ca. 965 (unified and Christianized under King Harald Gormsson); 5
June 1849 (became a parliamentary constitutional monarchy)
 National holiday: Constitution Day, 5 June (1849); note - closest equivalent to a
national holiday
 Constitution:
 History: several previous; most recent adopted 5 June 1953
 Amendments: proposed by the Folketing with approval of the government; passage requires
support by the next Folketing after a general election, approval by simple majority vote of at
least 40% of voters in a referendum, and assent by the chief of state; changed numerous times,
most recently in 2009 (Danish Act of Succession) (2016)

12. Government (cont.): Folketing, the
Danish parliament
Exterior Interior

13. Government (cont.)
 Monarch: Margrethe II
 Prime Minister: Lars Løkke Rasmussen
 Legal system: civil law; judicial review of legislative acts
 International law organization participation: accepts obligatory ICJ jurisdiction
with uncertainties; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
 Citizenship:
 Citizenship by birth: no
 Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent has to be a citizen of Denmark
 Dual citizenship recognized: yes
 Residency requirement for naturalization: seven years
 Suffrage: eighteen years of age; universal

14. Government (cont.)
 International organization participation: ADB (nonregional member), AfDB
(nonregional member), Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CD, CE,
CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), ESA, EU, FAO,
FATF, G-9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM,
IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA,
NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris
Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNMIL, UNMISS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
 Danish Ambassador to the U.S.: Lars Gert Lose (since 17 September 2015)
 U.S. Ambassador to Denmark: Carla Sands (since 15 December 2017)

15. Government (cont.)
 Flag description: red with a white cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the
perpendicular part of the cross is moved to the hoist side; the banner is referred to as the
Dannebrog (“Danish flag”) and is one of the oldest national flags in the world; folklores
regarding the source of the flag design differ, but the best known is a legend that the banner
fell from the sky during an early 13th century battle; caught up by the Danish king before it
ever touched the earth, this divine object instigated the royal army to victory
 Note: the altered cross pattern element was later assumed by the other Nordic countries
of Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden
 National symbol(s): lion, mute swan; national colors: red, white
 National anthem: “Der er et yndigt land” (There is a Lovely Country), “Kong Christian”
(King Christian)
 Lyrics/music:
 “Der er et yndigt land”: Adam Oehlenschläger (1819) and Hans Ernst Krøyer (1835)
 “Kong Christian”: Johannes Ewald (1778); composer unknown
 Note: Denmark has two national anthems with equal prominence; “Der er et yndigt land”, adopted 1844,
is a national anthem, while “Kong Christian”, adopted 1780, serves as both a national and royal anthem;
“Kong Christian” is also known as “Kong Christian stod ved hojen mast” (King Christian Stood by the
Lofty Mast) and “Kongesangen” (The King's Anthem); within Denmark, the royal anthem is played only
when the royal family is in attendance and is normally followed by the national anthem; when royal
family is not present, only the national anthem is played; outside Denmark, the royal anthem is played,
unless the national anthem is requested

16. Sources
 https://www.cia.gov/library/publicatio
ns/the-world-factbook/geos/da.html
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denmar
k
 YouTube links:
 “Der er et yndigt land ”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=oSwV-DJivQU
 “Kong Christian ”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=SdRLCu0doNY
 Visit Denmark: What You
Should Know Before You Visit
Denmark:
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Tif0CoZfKMs
 Life in Denmark:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=ymTYPpxp00w