Denmark: political system
According to COMPUTERMINUS.COM, Denmark is a parliamentary democracy whose head of state is a king or queen. The head of government is a prime minister elected by parliament. Elections to the 179-member parliament take place every 4 years. Greenland and the Faroe Islands each have 2 members in parliament. See AbbreviationFinder for more information about Denmark politics, and acronyms as well. The official name of the country is:
| Kongeriget Danmark |
National anthem
Denmark has two! National anthems: a “civil” and a “royal”: The text of the “civil” national anthem was written by Adam Oehlenschläger (1779-1850) in 1819, the melody is by Hans Ernst Krøyer (1798-1879) from 1835. For celebrations at which a member of the royal house is present or on military occasions the royal anthem “Kong Kristian stod ved højen mast” is played. The bourgeois hymn is called “Der er et yndigt land”.
| In Danish | In the English translation |
| The heends land, the stårmed brede bøge
nær salten østerstrand The bugter sig i bakke, dal, the hedder gamle Danmark and he Frejas salThe sad i fordums tid de harniskklædte kæmper, udhvilede fra strid Så drog de Fremd til fjenders mén, nu hvile deres bebe bag højens bautastenThe country endnu er skønt, ti blå sig søen bælter, and løvet står så green and ædle kvinder, skønne mø’r and mænd and razke also bebo de danskes øer Hil drot og fædreland! Hel hver en Danneborger, som virker, hvad han can! Before playing in Denmark, it should be possible that the length of the bows should be at the top in the bows |
It is a lovely countryIn the shade of broad beeches
On the salty Baltic Sea beach On rolling hills it dreams, in the valley, Old Denmark o it is called, And is the Freja HallThere sat in the past the helmeted fighters And rested from the fight Then they fended off the enemy, Now their bones rest over by the barrowOh yes, the country is beautiful! So blue the sea of the Belte, The foliage is green here, And beautiful mothers, noble women, men and clever boys inhabit our islands floodplains For the crown and the fatherland! For each individual citizen who works what he can! Our old Denmark forever, as long as the beech tree reflects its crown in the blue water |
The text of the royal anthem “Kong Kristian” comes from Johannes Ewald 1743-1781) from the year 1879; the melody comes from the Bornholm district judge Ditlev Ludvig Rogert (1742-1813) and partly from Johann Ernst Hartmann. The final melody that is still used today dates from 1817 by the Danish composer Friedrich Kuhlau (1786-1832) of German origin.
| In Danish | In the English translation |
| Kong Kristian stod with high mast in red and amp;Hans værge hamrede så fast,
At gotens hjelm og hjerne brast. Since then it sank down the level and mast in red and damp. “Fly”, skreg de, “fly, hvad flygte can! Hvo står for Danmarks Kristian i kamp?” |
King Kristian stood in smoke and smoke at the high mast;His sword hammered so hard it
shattered the Goth’s helmet and brain. Then all enemy aft decks and masts sank in smoke and smoke. “Flee,” they shouted, “flee, whoever can flee! Who can fight against Kristian of Denmark?” |
National flag
According to legend, the national flag of Denmark goes back to the battle of Lyndanisse between pagan Estonia and Christian Denmark under King Waldemar II (1170-1241) on June 15, 1219. The war seemed lost to the Danes when a huge flag fell from the sky and destroyed the Estonians. Scientists attribute the red background of the flag to the Vikings there. Dane is said to have been a tribal name that means “red”. The white cross in the flag comes from the influence of Christianity. The Danes call their flag Dannebrog, whereby “brog” means something like cloth in old Danish (ie: Dannebrog = red cloth). Based on flag descriptions by Countryaah.com, the cloth has been the country’s official flag since 1845.
- Check top-mba-universities for public holidays, sports events, UNESCO world heritage sites and major places to visit in Denmark.
Note
In addition to Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden also use the Nordic cross in their flags. Also the Åland Autonomous Territories and the Faroe Islands.
Denmark: Known People
Musician
Vivi Bach (1939-2013)
Singer, actress and writer. She was married to the German Dietmar Schönherr (1926-2014) from 1965 until her death.
David Vilhelm Rudolph Bay (1791-1856)
Composer
Jørgen Bentzon (1897-1951)
Composer
Niels Viggo Bentzon (1919-2000)
Composer and pianist
Andreas Peter Berggreen (1801-1880)
Composer and organist
Rudolph Bergh (1859-1924)
Composer
Kristian Blak (born 1947)
Faroese pianist and composer
Axel Ejnar Hakon Børresen (1876-1954)
Composer
Ivar Fredrik Bredal(1800-1864)
conductor and composer
Niels Wilhelm Gade (1817-1890)
Composer and conductor
Gitte Haenning (born 1946)
pop singer
Natural scientist
Per Bak (1948-2002)
Per Bak was an important theoretical physicist.
Niels Henrik David Bohr (1885-1962)
physicist. Niels Henrik David Bohr was born on October 7th, 1885 in Copenhagen and died here on November 18th, 1962.
Most people know Niels Bohr through his “Bohr model of the atom”.
In 1922 he received the Nobel Prize “For his services to research into the structure of atoms and the radiation emitted by them”.
Tycho de Brahe (1546-1601 in Prague)
Brahe is considered one of the most important (observing) astronomers – and not just of his time. He became famous not least in 1572 through the observation of a “stella nova” in the constellation of Cassiopeia, which, according to today’s knowledge, was a supernova. The light phenomenon was visible for about three weeks. In a duel, by the way, he lost part of his nose at the age of 20.
In 1597, at the invitation of a friend, he moved near Hamburg. An important reason for this was that his patron and patron, the King of Denmark and Norway Frederick II (1534-1588), had died and his successor Christian IV (1577-1648) had cut his funds considerably and also his influence “at court” fell sharply. In 1599 he moved to Prague, where Rudolf II (1552-1612) had offered him a position as court mathematician and the construction of a new observatory.
Brahe died on October 24, 1601 under circumstances that have not yet been clarified in Prague, where he was buried in the Gothic Tyn Church. The official name is a burst bladder – but there are also increasing signs that he may have been poisoned.
Politicians and rulers
Anne-Marie Dagmar Ingrid of Denmark (born 1946)
from 1964 to 1973 Queen of the Hellenes
Christian IX. (1863-1906)
King of Denmark
Christian X. (1912-1947)
King of Denmark
Gudfred (804-810)
son of Siegfried, founded Haithabu as the first Danish trading town
Hemming (810-811)
nephew of Gudfred, made peace with Charlemagne and made the Eider the southern border of
Frederick VIII (1906-1912)
King of Denmark
Frederick IX. (1947-1972)
King of Denmark
Princess Alexandra of Denmark (1844-1925)
became Queen of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Writer and poet
Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875)
the most famous poet and writer in Denmark.
Hans Christian Andersen was born on April 2nd, 1805 in Odense and died on August 4th, 1875 in Copenhagen. He is – especially because of his fairy tales – the best known and most popular poet and writer in Denmark.
His work “The Little Mermaid of the Sea” inspired the sculptor Edvard Eriksen to create the now world-famous figure of the same name in Copenhagen.
His fairy tale “The little girl with the sulfur woods ” from 1845 is downright touching.
Jeppe Aakjær (1866-1930)
Writer
Emil Aarestrup (1800-1856)
poet
Peter Adolphsen (born 1972)
Writer
Martin Andersen-Nexø ( 1869-1954)
Writer
Jens Immanuel Baggesen (1764-1826)
Writer
Herman Joachim Bang (1857-1912)
Writer
Peter Høeg (born 1957)
author, and as such one of the most popular of the 1990s
Actresses and Directors
Bille August (born 1948)
film and television director. The film Pelle, the Conqueror won the Palme d’Or in Cannes in 1988 and an Oscar for best foreign film in 1989.
Erik Ballin (born 1924)
screenwriter and director
Brigitte Nielsen (born 1963)
actress and model who lives in Hollywood.
Other personalities from Denmark
Carl Frederic Aagaard (1833-1895)
Painter
Nicolai Abraham Abildgaard (1743-1809)
Painter, sculptor and architect of the neoclassical period.
Anna Ancher (1859-1935)
Impressionist painter
Anja Andersen (born 1969)
The handball player won silver at the World Cup in 1987 and 1993, bronze in 1995 and gold in 1997. In 1996 the Danish handball players won the Olympic gold medal with Anja Andersen as playmaker. In 1998 she was named world handball player of the year.
Christian Ingerslev Baastrup (1885-1950)
Radiologist and namesake for Baastrup’s disease, the back pain he discovered.
Helena Christensen (born 1968)
photo model and top model.
Søren Aabye Kierkegaard (1813-1855)
Søren Aabye Kierkegaard was a Danish philosopher, theologian and author of religious writings.
He was born on May 5th, 1813 in Copenhagen and died here on November 11th, 1855. He is considered the most important Danish philosopher and one of the most important representatives of the Danish Golden Age
Bjarne Riis (born 1964)
Danish professional cyclist. Riis won the Tour de France in 1996 as the first and so far only Dane and also Scandinavian. In 2007, he confessed to being doped. But after 8 years the title could not be revoked. He commented on his doping confession with the words: “The yellow jersey is in a cardboard box in my garage. You can pick it up there.” He expressed his outrage in a mirror interview on July 7th, 2008 quite violently!
Nobel Prize Winner
The Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prize is considered to be the highest honor given to scientists, writers and peacemakers (individuals, politicians or organizations).
The award goes back to the Swedish chemist, inventor and industrialist Alfred Nobel (1833–1896).
Nobel had stipulated in his will that a foundation should be set up with his fortune, whose interest profits in the form of a prize should benefit the people who had rendered the greatest benefit to mankind in the past year.
The money should be divided equally for special achievements in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine as well as literature and for peace efforts.
The Nobel Foundation was established – following Nobel’s request – on June 29, 1900 and in 1901 the first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901.
The winners will be announced in October, while the official award ceremony will take place on December 10 – the anniversary of Nobel’s death – with the exception of the Nobel Peace Prize in Stockholm.
The Nobel Peace Prize is presented in Oslo.
In 1866 Alfred Nobel developed the explosive “dynamite”. There is evidence that his conscience, because of the use of explosives as a weapon of war, had led him to write his will to establish the Nobel Foundation.
However, there is no reliable evidence for this interpretation.
Note
Only those Nobel Prize winners are listed here who were Danish citizens at the time of the award.
Nobel Prize in Chemistry
| Award winner | Year of award | Reason for the award |
| Jens Christian Skou(born 1918) | 1997 | Together with the American Paul D. Boyer and the British John E. Walkerfor his discovery of the ion-transporting enzyme sodium-potassium-ATPase |
Nobel Peace Prize
| Award winner | Year of award | Reason for the award |
| Fredrik Bajer(1837-1922) | 1908 | Together with the Swedes Klas Pontus Arnoldsonfor an activity as honorary president of the permanent international peace office |
Nobel Prize in literature
| Award winner | Year of award | Reason for the award |
| Karl Gjellerup(1857-1919) | 1917 | For his many-sided, rich poetry carried by high ideals |
| Henrik Pontoppidan(1857-1943) | 1917 | For his rich presentation of today’s Danish life |
Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
| Award winner | Year of award | Reason for the award |
| Niels Kaj Jerne(1911–1994) | 1984 | Together with the German Georges JF Köhler and the Briton of Argentine origin César Milsteinfor theories about the specific structure and control of
the immune system and for the discovery of the principle of the production of monoclonal antibodies |
| Henrik Dam(1895–1976) | 1943(awarded in 1944) | Together with the American Edward Adelbert Doisyfor his discovery of the chemical nature of vitamin K |
| Johannes Fibiger(1867–1928) | Awarded in 1926 in 1927 | For his discovery of spiroptera carcinoma |
| Schack August Steenberg Krogh(1874–1949) | 1920 | For the discovery of the capillary motor regulation mechanism |
| Niels Ryberg Finsen(1860-1904) | 1903 | In recognition of his contribution to the treatment of diseases,particularly lupus vulgaris, by means of concentrated rays of light,
through which he opened a new avenue for medical science |
Nobel Price for physics
| Award winner | Year of award | Reason for the award |
| Aage Niels Bohr(1922–2009)
(son of Niels Bohr) |
1975 | Together with his compatriot Ben Mottelson and the American James Rainwaterfor the discovery of the connection between collective and particle movement in atomic nuclei
and the development of the theory of the structure of atomic nuclei based on this connection |
| Ben Mottelson(born 1938) | 1975 | Together with his compatriot Niels Bohr and the American James Rainwaterfor the discovery of the connection between collective and particle movement in atomic nuclei
and the development of the theory of the structure of atomic nuclei based on this connection |
| Niels Bohr(1885–1962) | 1922 | For his contribution to research into the structure of atoms and the radiation emitted by them |
Alfred Nobel Memorial Prize for Economics
Note
The Alfred Nobel Memorial Prize for Economics does not go back directly to Alfred Nobel’s will, but was donated by the Swedish Reichsbank in 1968 on the basis of the Nobel Prizes on the occasion of its 300th anniversary. The prize was awarded for the first time in 1969 to the Norwegian Ragnar AK Frisch (1895–1973) and the Dutchman Jan Tinbergen (1903–1994).
So far no Dane has been awarded this prize!
Denmark: animals
Mammals
There is a lot of red deer and fallow deer in the forests of Denmark, but otherwise hardly any other larger wild animals.
One can, for example, on large ungulates such as deer, red – Dam meet and sika -. The latter are originally from Japan and China, but are widespread because they can adapt well to different weather conditions.
They are about 125 – 145 cm long, 80 – 90 cm high and the males have antlers that are only weakly branched. The chestnut-brown summer fur with the clear speckles and the dark eel line differs greatly from the winter fur, which is more dark brown in color and has hardly any visible spots. The day and nocturnal animals are mainly found in light deciduous and mixed forests.
Other mammals include red foxes, badgers, raccoons and the naturalized raccoon dog, as well as hares, hedgehogs and squirrels. The raccoon dog from the wild dog family is 65 – 80 cm tall and can easily be confused with the raccoon due to its gray-brown color. The main difference is the lack of a black tail band. The raccoon dog originally comes from East Asia. It is omnivorous and its menu includes rodents, amphibians, insects, fish, young birds and eggs as well as plant-based food such as berries, fruit, mushrooms and acorns.
The raccoon dog prefers open terrain and often hides in fox and badger burrows. Of the different species of marten that exist in Denmark, the pine marten is the rarest.
Birds
Denmark has a rich bird life.
These include water dwellers such as seagulls, owls, ducks, geese, waders, loons and terns.
Rare tail birds in the Raabjerg Mile, one of the largest shifting dunes in Europe, are the curlew, the curlew and the crane.
Underwater world
The marine fish in Denmark in the Baltic Sea and North Sea include cod, salmon, cod as well as herrings and plaice.
You can admire seals on both the North and Baltic Sea coasts.
Denmark: plants
rees
The reforestation with conifers has displaced original deciduous forests. Today’s deciduous forests consist mainly of beech, oak and ash, elm and linden, with beeches being the most common trees. They are particularly common in East Jutland and on the island of Møn.
Spruce and pine dominate the coniferous forests. Birch and alder grow mainly in Greenland. The silver fir has become a rarity as it is very sensitive to climate changes, air pollution and drought. It can grow up to 65 m, a trunk diameter of 2 m and an age of 500 – 600 years.
This makes it the tallest tree in Europe. It also has a strong root system that can reach a total length of 270 m by the age of 100.
The silver fir prefers to grow in humid areas with at least 600 mm of precipitation per year and does not bloom until the age of 50. Unfortunately, it is also the fir whose population has declined the most in the last 20 years, which is not least due to its sensitivity. The island of Bornholm is characterized by plants that are normally not native to these latitudes, such as fig, mulberry, almond, apricot and peach trees.
Wild cherry trees also grow on the edges of the forest and on meadows.
Rowan berries thrive on Bornholm in autumn.
This tree, which is also native to West Asia and is up to 1 m high, is also known under the names mountain ash, quitsche, blackberry or blackberry.
It owes its name to its orange to red colored fruits, which birds like to eat, especially Krammetsvögel and juniper thrushes. Contrary to popular belief, the fruits are not poisonous for humans, but they are inedible because their taste is determined by malic acid and tannins.
Despite the around 400 different plant species on the Faroe Islands, trees are very rare here.
Crops
The wood of the silver fir is used in many ways. It is used as building and construction wood, as resonance wood for musical instruments, for interior fittings and for furniture. One of the most important vegetable plants on the Faroe Islands is that which is also a medicinal plant.
Medicinal plants
The angelica has conspicuously large umbels and loves sunny to partially shaded and moist locations. It strengthens the physical and psychological resistance, fights cramps and prevents depression. Furthermore, it has a diuretic, digestive and appetizing effect. However, it should be handled with care during pregnancy as it stimulates the uterus. Overdosing and direct skin contact can also cause skin irritation.
The alkaloids of the highly poisonous deadly nightshade act on the central nervous system and are sometimes used for nausea and vomiting. A certain alkaloid is also used to dilate the pupil. In homeopathy it is used for febrile illnesses. However, all drugs require a prescription.
The fir resin of the silver fir is sold as “Alsatian turpentine and is also contained in plasters and ointments. The active ingredients of the primrose family, which grows in meadows and on the edges of forests, improve the human organism’s ability to absorb other active plant ingredients. These so-called saponins work nerve-soothing and, above all, expectorant, so they are used to make it easier to cough up with bronchitis.
The most famous medicinal plant is chamomile, which thrives on Bornholm. The characteristic flower of the 10 – 50 cm tall plant, from which teas and tinctures are made, consists of yellow tubular flowers and white ray flowers and has a very strong scent. Chamomile has anti-inflammatory, calming, wound-healing, anticonvulsant, drying and flatulence effects. It continues to be used for menstrual cramps. However, you should never get close to the eyes with the chamomile, as the fine hairs of the flower can be very irritating to the eyes.
The rowanberry (mountain ash) is also considered a medicinal plant, as its fruits are used as an effective remedy for diarrhea when dried. However, when eaten raw, large amounts of the red fruits cause stomach problems.
The roots of the sweet flag, which belongs to the arum family, are often used for stomach problems, flatulence and cramps. It grows in the bank zone of water bodies, in swamp areas and prefers sunny locations.
Its sword-shaped leaves, which can be up to 1.50 m long, as well as the piston-like inflorescence are striking.
The goat’s foot, which likes to grow under bushes, on the edges of forests and river banks, is also one of the medicinal plants. Its crushed leaves are said to relieve pain after insect bites. It is also one of the oldest wild vegetables and was also used for gout and rheumatism in the Middle Ages.
Poisonous plants
The poisonous peony was previously used as an antispasmodic and against epilepsy. However, this effect has not been proven. It can allegedly also be used for skin and mucous membrane inflammations, fissures, gout, rheumatism and diseases of the respiratory tract. However, the effectiveness has not been proven in these areas of application either. In homeopathy, it is used for hemorrhoids.
Besides Denmark, the home of the deadly nightshade is also all of Europe, the Balkans, Iran, North Africa as well as Sweden and Ireland. It becomes 1 – 2 m high and blooms from June to August with purple and bell-shaped flowers. The cherry-sized fruits are still green at the beginning, but turn black over time. Due to the alkaloids contained in all parts of the plant, this plant is very poisonous, so that even small amounts can be fatal. However, deadly nightshade is also used in medicine.
The giant hogweed is also dangerous because everything about it is poisonous, but especially the sap. The toxins have a damaging effect on the skin, which can lead to skin inflammation and severe blistering. If there is contact in strong sunlight, the consequences are much worse. Skin changes occur like after 3rd degree burns and so-called “bullous meadow dermatitis” can develop. This plant from the umbelliferae family is also called Hercules herb because it can reach a height of 3.5 m.
More plants
The quaking grass and the hill carnation only grow on Helgenæs in Denmark and do not occur otherwise. Also rare are the beach andel, salt rush, beach wormwood and the strawberry clover. You can often find these plants in the Rønnerne area. The interesting thing about the strawberry clover is that it is a step-resistant plant. Even if the stem is trampled, a new plant will grow on the rooting node.
The samphire grows on the outer sand and mud surfaces, but only occurs between April and October. It grows to between 5 and 30 cm tall and, with its thick, fleshy leaves, is a salt plant. No other plant can withstand higher levels of salt. Just before it dies in September, the green samphire turns red. Silt grass, sea lavender and salt aster also grow here.
Along the west coast the plant community consists of seaweed, rushes, black wild berries, dwarf willows and also sea mustard, beach rye, beach grass, beach salt chickweed, dune roses, beach thistle and beach peas.
Bornholm has a special climate, because vines also grow here, although the grapes do not ripen every year. In the east of the island you can find anemones.
Other plants on the island include cowslips, yellow and blue anemones, primrose, butterwort and chamomile.
The bright yellow rapeseed thrives in early summer.
The lion’s tail, lovage, goat’s foot, waterweed, silt grass, giant hogweed from the Caucasus and sweet flag from East Asia are not native plants.
