Introduction
The Kingdom of Denmark is composed of Denmark proper, the Faroe Islands, and Greenland. The Faroe Islands have been a self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1948. Greenland has been a self-governing overseas administrative division of Denmark since 1979. Denmark itself consists of the Jutland peninsula and approximately 400 islands. The capital, Copenhagen, is located on Zealand, the largest island.
Demography
Denmark is a largely urban country with almost 85 percent of the population living in urban centers. Of these urban dwellers, close to 40 percent reside in Denmark's four largest cities, Copenhagen (the capital city), Alborg, Odense and Arhus. In recent years, Denmark has had a very low population growth rate, at .29 percent. Today, Denmark has an estimated population of approximately 5.5 million. The Faroe Islands had approximately 45,000 inhabitants; Greenland had about 56,000.
Ethnicity
Since prehistoric times, the Danes have inhabited Denmark. For the most part, Danes are an ethnically homogenous people, consisting of Nordic Scandinavians. There are, however, several other important resident ethnic groups. First, in southern Jutland, there are German-speaking communities. Second, the Faroe Islands have a distinctive ethnic population with an interesting and complicated history. Third, Inuit are the predominant indigenous ethnic group in Greenland, very likely to be genealogically related to the Inuit of North America.
Languages
While Danish is the principal and official language, Faroese (derived from Old Norse) and Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect) are also spoken in the Faroe Islands and Greenland, respectively. In these areas, these two indigenous languages have equal status with Danish. School students, however, must also study Danish.
Religion
An estimated 95 percent of the Danish population is affiliated with the state-supported Evangelical Lutheran Church, which is the official church of Denmark and was established in 1536. Freedom of religion, speech, and assembly are protected in Denmark, however, and other religious groups are active. Thousands of Muslims, Roman Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, Danish Baptists, members of Pentecostal churches, Mormons, and Jews reside in Denmark. Roman Catholicism tends to be the largest minority religion. There are also numerous smaller religious groups including, but not limited to, Anglicans, Bahais, Buddhists, Catholic Apostolics, Methodists, Seventh-Day Adventists and Russian Orthodox. Faroese and Greenlanders are predominantly Evangelical Lutheran.
Education
In terms of education, the state of Denmark mandates compulsory primary education. As such, Denmark has one of the highest literacy rates in the world with almost 100 percent of its population being literate. A comprehensive pre-university education is provided to the population, followed by three years of what is called "gymnasium education" to prepare for university entrance examinations. There are also alternative secondary education schools called "folk high schools," which offer coursework in Danish history and culture. At the post-secondary school level, there are five universities and a number of technical schools.
Social Welfare
Denmark is home to a sophisticated social welfare infrastructure, which includes free medical care to workers temporarily unable to work due to illness, disabilities or pregnancy. Indeed, pregnant women and children also receive additional special benefits. These sorts of benefits have helped to maintain a very low childhood mortality rate in Denmark (noted below). The cost of this social welfare infrastructure on the national budget was very high, but a system of assessment was established to control costs and ensure that benefits were made available to those most in need.
Life Expectancy and Mortality Rates
According to estimates in the last few years, Danes have an average life expectancy at birth of 77 years of age (79.6 for women and 74.3 for men) and an infant mortality rate of 4.9 deaths per 1,000 live births. Estimates suggest that these statistics have remained almost constant over the course of the last few years.
Compared to the Danes, the Faroese, with an estimated total population of slightly more than 45,000, have a higher average life expectancy at birth of 78.43 years (74.96 years for males, 81.92 years for females). They also have a higher infant mortality rate of 6.94 deaths per 1,000 live births.
Greenlanders, with an estimated total population of slightly more than 56,000, have a lower average life expectancy at birth than both the Danes and the Faroese - 68.07 years (64.52 years for males, 71.69 years for females), and an even higher infant mortality rate of 18.26 deaths per 1,000 live births.
Quality of Life and Human Development
About seven percent of GDP is spent on health expenditures in this country; about 7.8 percent of GDP is spent on educational expenditures. Access to education, sanitation, water, and health is regarded to be excellent.
One notable measure used to determine a country's quality of life is the Human Development Index (HDI), which has been compiled annually since 1990 by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The HDI is a composite of several indicators, which measure a country's achievements in three main arenas of human development: longevity, knowledge and education, as well as economic standard of living. In recent rankings of 169 countries, the HDI placed has Denmark in the very high human development category, at 19th place.
Editor's Note: Although the concept of human development is complicated and cannot be properly captured by values and indices, the HDI, which is calculated and updated annually, offers a wide-ranging assessment of human development in certain countries, not based solely upon traditional economic and financial indicators.
Cultural Legacy
Denmark's rich intellectual heritage includes a number of scientific achievements and cultural contributions and to the modern world. In the realm of science, this intellectual heritage is exemplified by the astronomical discoveries of Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) and the contributions to atomic physics of Niels Bohr (1885-1962). The fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen (1805-75), the philosophical essays of Soren Kierkegaard (1813-55), and the short stories of Karen Blixen (penname Isak Dinesen, 1885-1962) have earned international recognition, as have the symphonies of Carl Nielsen (1865-1931). Georg Jensen (1866-1935) is known worldwide for outstanding modern design in silver, and "Royal Copenhagen" is among the finest porcelains. The Royal Danish Porcelain Factory as well as Bing and Grondahl, renowned for their quality ceramics and porcelain, export their creations internationally. Denmark is also home to a number of cultural arts institutions, such as the Royal Da nish ballet, the Copenhagen Jazz Festival, the North Jutland Art Museum, the State Museum of Art, the Glyptotek, and the Museum of Applied art and Industrial Design.
Written by Dr. Denise Youngblood Coleman, Editor in Chief,
www.countrywatch.com; see Bibliography for research sources. Supplementary sources include: The Royal Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.