Denmark by Francis Doherty

Denmark is one of the oldest countries in Europe with the land being united in the 8th century. This means there is a rich historical culture and foundation of the traditions that still stick around to this day. First I will go over the general demographics of the region and the country itself, then the political system and the society as a whole, and finally how the women's movement and similar movements in the country. As we learn more about this country these foundations are important to keep in mind when observing the country itself.

First to go over is the geographical and population demographics of this country. Compared to other countries Denmark is seen to be fairly small and is even smaller than the state of Massachusetts, only spanning 16,638  square miles and including many small islands. (National Geographic) Denmark often has long sunless days and high levels of wind creating a cold and fairly harsh environment that means the only crops tend to be cereal grains like barley, oats, and potatoes.  This means that there are higher levels of importance of produce and fruit from the United States and some of the other “breadbaskets”.  Denmark itself is a peninsula which means that it is surrounded by water which contributes to a mild climate due to the ocean breeze. Another important factor is the population of Denmark which relies on the food and services provided by the country. The total population of Denmark is 5,829,227 people with 90% of Danish descent and the other 10% immigrants. However, 34% of non-Danish citizens are from the west. This is an extremely interesting statistic because Denmark and most of the Scandinavian countries are dealing with high rates of xenophobia.

Finally, I will talk about the political and social system of Denmark. Many of the Scandinavian countries have had a huge push for equality between genders and classes. Denmark has a linear society with the goal that everyone is equal and has open opportunities. These opportunities are quite important and formed the bases of society. The goal is to be a true welfare state that doesn't mean handouts to everyone as Americans sometimes see it. This provides everyone with the ability to have access to health care and healthy living. With a society that is focused on caring for everyone, it is imagined that there would be gaps in providing for everyone. However, this is not the case Denmark ranks highly in almost every regard when measured.  According to the “ Gender Equality Index” Denmark ranks at 77.4 out of 100 and 2 points higher than the European Union. The political system in Denmark is a parliamentary democracy with the Danish Queen as the figurehead however her role is largely just ceremonial. The term for the parliamentary democracy in Denmark is “Folketing” which just means parliament. Another reason this is such an interesting case is that there are 14 parties in the Danish parliament in comparison to the two-party system in the United States. Contradictory to the two-party system that alternates in the U.S one political party hasn’t been in control of the parliament in over 100 years.

Even with all of these positive policies and systems put in place for women Denmark has rated very low for women who consider themselves feminist. When looking at women in politics on a global scale it often comes with the idea that the west is more developed in this way. However, this is very far from the truth women in positions of power mainly come from the other parts of the world. Despite the fact that women in Denmark do not consider themselves “feminist” they are still extremely well represented in the “Folketing” with the rate being 40%. Another positive aspect of Denmark is that it rates very well on the Global Peace Index (GPI). The GPI rates all of the countries in the world and Denmark rates 3/163 which is extremely good. What makes a country “peaceful” is the perceived threats and a lot of internal factors not just external ones. These factors help contribute to the entire perception and ideas surrounding Denmark.

As we learn more about Denmark during this course it will be interesting to dive deeper into these concepts. Despite all the positives that occur in this country there is still the potential to have negative aspects and looking into these aspects will be extremely influential. All things considered, Denmark has been a country that has enjoyed relative peace and happiness due to its own government and location. When studying a country and the systems that create it the global perception and understanding creates an additional layer to the puzzle.

Below is the link for my infographic.

https://www.canva.com/design/DAE-NJSmfJ4/q8VROeLE9wC6wMVFq98r4g/view?utm\_content=DAE-NJSmfJ4&utm\_campaign=designshare&utm\_medium=link2&utm\_source=sharebutton
**Sources**

National Geographic Kids. (2021, February 10). *Denmark Country Profile - National Geographic Kids*. Geography. Retrieved March 27, 2022, from https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/geography/countries/article/denmark

*Denmark - Agriculture*. Encyclopedia of the Nations. (n.d.). Retrieved March 27, 2022, from https://www.nationsencyclopedia.com/Europe/Denmark-AGRICULTURE.html

*Denmark population 2022 (live)*. Denmark Population 2022 (Demographics, Maps, Graphs). (n.d.). Retrieved March 27, 2022, from https://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/denmark-population

*Government and politics*. Denmark.dk. (n.d.). Retrieved March 27, 2022, from https://denmark.dk/society-and-business/government-and-politics

*Gender equality index 2020: Denmark*. European Institute for Gender Equality. (2021, November 15). Retrieved March 27, 2022, from https://eige.europa.eu/publications/gender-equality-index-2020-denmark#:~:text=With%2077.4%20out%20of%20100,by%200.1%20point%20since%202017.

*Global peace index map " The most & least peaceful countries*. Vision of Humanity. (2022, March 3). Retrieved March 28, 2022, from https://www.visionofhumanity.org/maps/#/