a few words about Denmark
Denmark is a small country, located in northern Europe. It is part of Scandinavia, along with Norway and Sweden. The country consists of Jutland Peninsula, which is connected to Germany in the south, and an archipelago with 443 islands! All of these are named, and two of these islands make up the other major parts of the country; Zealand and Funen, with other notable islands being Bornholm, Lolland and Falster.
The population of Denmark is around 5.700.000
At close to 43.000 square meters, Denmark is by far the smallest of the three Scandinavian countries. In general, Denmark is a very flat and green country – if you look out the window while driving, you are very likely to either be looking at trees, or agricultural fields.
Weather-wise, Denmark lays in the temperate zone, making the climate quite mild. During winter, the mean temperature is around 0 ⁰C, and in summer, it is around 16 ⁰C. The country is quite windy, and gets 121 days of precipitation on average per year. The amount of sunlight per day varies greatly from winter to summer (from 7 to 16 hours approx.).
Denmark has the oldest monarchy in Europe still in existence, and the 4th oldest in the world. The current monarchy was formed in the 10th century by Gorm the old and Harald Bluetooth (yes, this is where the name for the wireless technology comes from!). The current reigning monarch is Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II. Today, the monarchy has very little legislative power – although the Queen technically has executive authority over the government of Denmark, in practice these powers are not actually used.
The Kingdom of Denmark includes the countries of Greenland and Faroe Islands, although both these countries have autonomous rule. In the past, both Norway and Sweden have been under Danish rule – this was known as the Kalmar Union.
Denmark is a member of the European Union, although the country has not adopted the Euro as its official currency – instead, the currency in Denmark is Danish Kroner (DKK).
The capital of Denmark is Copenhagen, which is also the largest city in the country. Copenhagen houses close to a fifth of the total population, with 1.2 million people living there (including suburbs). Founded as a fishing village in the 10th century by Vikings, Copenhagen is today a busy metropolis, with the service industry being the largest by far. Copenhagen is also one of the most bike-friendly cities in the world, with an estimated 36% of all commuter trips being done on a bicycle.