Denmark

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Denmark

General Information
Geography
Government
Economy
Population
Health
Communications and media
Chronology


GENERAL INFORMATION

National name Kongeriget Danmark/Kingdom of Denmark Area 43,075 sq km/16,631 sq mi Capital Copenhagen Language Danish (official), German Religion Evangelical Lutheran 87% (national church), other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3% Time difference GMT +1 Major holidays 1 January, 5 June, 24–26 December; variable: Ascension Thursday, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Holy Thursday, Whit Monday, General Prayer (April/May)


GEOGRAPHY

Major towns/cities Århus, Odense, Ålborg, Esbjerg, Randers, Kolding, Horsens Major ports Århus, Odense, Ålborg, Esbjerg Physical features comprises the Jutland peninsula and about 500 islands (100 inhabited) including Bornholm in the Baltic Sea; the land is flat and cultivated; sand dunes and lagoons on the west coast and long inlets on the east; the main island is Sjæland (Zealand), where most of Copenhagen is located (the rest is on the island of Amager) Territories the dependencies of Faroe Islands and Greenland Airports one main international airport and 11 major domestic airports, of which three have scheduled flights within Europe; total passengers carried: 5.9 million (2003 est) Railways total length: 2,859 km/1,776 mi; total passenger journeys: 165.3 million (2002) Roads total road network: 71,847 km/44,644 mi, of which 100% paved (2002 est); passenger cars: 424 per 1,000 people (2002 est)


GOVERNMENT

Head of state Queen Margrethe II from 1972 Head of government Anders Fogh Rasmussen from 2001 Political system liberal democracy Political executive parliamentary Administrative divisions 14 counties, one city and one borough Political parties Social Democrats (SD), left of centre; Conservative People's Party (KF), moderate right-of-centre; Liberal Party (V), left of centre; Socialist People's Party (SF), moderate left wing; Radical Liberals (RV), radical internationalist, left of centre; Centre Democrats (CD), moderate centrist; Progress Party (FP), radical antibureaucratic; Christian People's Party (KrF), interdenominational, family values Death penalty abolished in 1978 Armed forces 21,200; plus 129,700 reservists (2006 est) Conscription 4–12 months (up to 24 months in certain ranks) Defence spend (% GDP) 1.4 (2005 est) Education spend (% GDP) 8.5 (2003 est) Health spend (% GDP) 7.5 (2004)


ECONOMY

Currency Danish krone GDP (US$) 254.4 billion (2005 est) Real GDP growth (% change on previous year) 2.4 (2006 est) GNI (US$) 256.8 billion (2005 est) GNI per capita (PPP) (US$) 33,570 (2005 est) Consumer price inflation 2% (2006 est) Unemployment 4.8% (2006 est) Labour force 2.9% agriculture, 23.8% industry, 73.3% services (2005) Major trading partners EU (principally Germany, Sweden, UK, the Netherlands, France), Norway, USA, EU25 Resources crude petroleum, natural gas, salt, limestone Industries mining, food processing, fisheries, machinery, textiles, furniture, electronic goods and transport equipment, chemicals and pharmaceuticals, printing and publishing Exports manufactured goods, fuels, pig meat and pork products, other agricultural products, fish, chemicals, transport equipment. Principal market: Germany 17.6% (2005) Imports food and live animals, machinery, transport equipment, iron, steel, electronics, consumer goods, petroleum, cereals, paper. Principal source: Germany 20.8% (2005) Arable land 52.6% (2006 est) Agricultural products wheat, rye, barley, oats, potatoes, sugar beet, dairy products; livestock production (pigs) and dairy products; fishing


POPULATION

Population 5,446,300 (2006 est) Population growth rate 0.3% (2005–10) Population density (per sq km) 126 (2006 est) Urban population (% of total) 86 (2005 est) Age distribution (% of total population) 0–14 19%, 15–59 60%, 60+ 21% (2005 est) Ethnic groups all Danes are part of the Scandinavian ethnic group, Eskimo, Faroese, German Life expectancy 76 (men); 80 (women) (2005–10) Child mortality rate (under 5, per 1,000 live births) 5 (2004) Education (compulsory years) 10 Literacy rate 99% (men); 99% (women) (2004 est)


HEALTH

Physicians (per 10,000 people) 36.6 (2004 est) Hospital beds (per 1,000 people) 4.1 (2003 est) HIV infection (% of population aged 15–49) 0.2 (2005 est) AIDS deaths <100 (2005 est) Access to drinking-water source (% of total population) 100 (urban); 100 (rural) (2002)


COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA

Landline telephones (per 100 people) 61.7 (2005 est) Mobile phone subscribers (per 100 people) 100.7 (2005 est) Radios (per 1,000 people) 1,400 (2001 est) TV sets (per 1,000 people) 975 (2004 est) Personal computer users (per 100 people) 65.5 (2005 est) Internet users (per 100 people) 52.6 (2005 est)


CHRONOLOGY

5th–6th centuries Danes migrated from Sweden. 8th–10th centuries Viking raids throughout Europe. c. 940–85 Harald Bluetooth unified Kingdom of Denmark and established Christianity. 1014–35 King Canute I created empire embracing Denmark, Norway, and England; empire collapsed after his death. 12th century Denmark re-emerged as dominant Baltic power. 1340–75 Valdemar IV restored order after period of civil war and anarchy. 1397 Union of Kalmar: Denmark, Sweden, and Norway (with Iceland) united under single monarch. 1449 Sweden broke away from union. 1536 Lutheranism established as official religion of Denmark. 1563–70 Unsuccessful war to recover Sweden; two further unsuccessful attempts to reclaim Sweden in 1643–45 and 1657–60. 1625–29 Denmark sided with Protestants in Thirty Years' War. 1665 Frederick III made himself absolute monarch. 1729 Greenland became Danish province. 1780–81 Denmark, Russia, and Sweden formed ‘Armed Neutrality’ coalition to protect neutral shipping during American Revolution. 1788 Serfdom abolished. 1800 France persuaded Denmark to revive Armed Neutrality against British blockade. 1801 First Battle of Copenhagen: much of Danish fleet destroyed by British navy. 1807 Second Battle of Copenhagen: British seized rebuilt fleet to pre-empt Danish entry into Napoleonic War on French side. 1814 Treaty of Kiel: Denmark ceded Norway to Sweden as penalty for supporting France in Napoleonic War; Denmark retained Iceland. 1849 Liberal pressure compelled Frederick VII to grant a democratic constitution. 1914–1919 Denmark neutral during World War I. 1918 Iceland achieved full self-government. 1929–40 Welfare state established under left-wing coalition government dominated by Social Democrat Party. 1940–45 German occupation. 1944 Iceland declared independence. 1949 Denmark a founding member of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). 1960 Joined the European Free Trade Association (EFTA). 1973 Withdrew from EFTA and joined European Community (EC). 1981 Greenland achieved full self-government. 1992–93 Referendums rejected but later approved (after renegotiation) Maastricht Treaty on European union. 1993 Conservative prime minister Poul Schlüter resigned over legal scandal. 1994 New Social Democrat-led coalition under Poul Rasmussen won general election. 2000 Referendum rejected adoption of European single currency (euro). 2001 Right-wing coalition under Liberal Party leader Anders Fogh Rasmussen came to power promising tighter immigration rules. 2005 Rasmussen won second term as prime minister, but needed support of far-right Danish People's Party. 2006 Religious cartoon caricatures originating in Danish press sparked worldwide Muslim protests and boycott of Danish goods.


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