Denmark

Denmark is one of the smaller states of Europe, only slightly larger than Switzerland. All of Denmark is very flat, the highest peak being only 173 meters high.

Denmark is the southernmost of the Nordic countries. Located between the North Sea on the west and the Baltic Sea on the southeast, Denmark is separated from Norway by the Skagerrak and from Sweden by the Kattegat and the Øresund. In the south, it shares a 68 km border with Germany.

It consists of the peninsula of Jutland (Jylland) in the west, and an archipelago of 406 islands in the east, of which the most important ones are Zealand (Sjælland) on which Copenhagen is located, and Funen (Fyn). Denmark is part of Europe's temperate deciduous forest belt. The natural vegetation in most of the country is a mixed forest, with the beech most common tree. However, almost all parts of the country are under cultivation today, and virtually all the existing forests have been planted. Coniferous trees prevail in parts of the former heath areas in western Jutland, and the dune areas have been forested with spruce and pine. Denmark has a 12% forest cover.

Denmark is a member of the European Union, and elects 16 members of the European parliament. The Faroes and Greenland, on the other hand, are outside the EU.

Facts

Name: Kongeriget Danmark / Kingdom of Denmark[ Dk/En ]


Flag: white cross on red background (the "Dannebrog")
Languages: Danish

Area: 43,075 km² / 16,631 sq mi.
Terrain: low and flat to gently rolling plains.
Highest mountain: Yding Skovhøj, 173 m (568 ft).
Land boundaries: Germany

Population: 5,163,955 (1992)
Life expectancy: women 78; men 72 (1992)

Capital: København (Copenhagen) (pop. 467,850) [ pop. of Metropolitan area: 1.4 million ] (1989)
Other major towns: Århus (245,000), Odense (170,000), Ålborg (154,000)

Religion: Evangelic-Lutheran (91%, 1988) (official state-religion)
Currency: krone (Danish crown, DKK)

Climate: temperate sea-climate average temperature in Copenhagen: -3°C - 2°C in Feb., and 14°C - 22°C in June.

Exports: meat, dairy products, fish, machinery, electronics,chemicals, furniture.


This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Lysator article "Denmark".


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