Denmark+-+Luis



Denmark:

Total Population - 5.731 million CBR 10.4 CDR 10.3 NIR .01% IMR 4.01 TFR 1.73 Life Expectancy - 79.39 years Male 76.95 years Female 81.96 years GNI PPP/capita $51,040

Denmark is currently in Stage 4 of the demographic transition.



Denmark's population pyramid between now and 2050 is not very different. They will remain in stage 4 and not have moved onto stage 5 because there is still a pretty significant amount of young people in the population. A population pyramid in stage 4 looks like this because population growth is gradual. There aren't as many kids being born, yet people are still living pretty long lives due to a stable economy.

https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2016/01/denmark-refugees-immigration-law/431520/

This article focuses on the harsh policies that the Danish government has passed recently toward immigrants. Although more welcoming of immigrants in the past, Denmark is currently one of the most unwelcoming Western European countries toward immigrants. The country is sandwiched between two of the most welcoming countries in Europe which are Germany and Sweden. The welcome of immigrants poses many issues for the Danish government since they provide a lot of public services for its citizens. As a result, they have cut a lot of spending on immigrants and focus more on setting the immigrants aside rather than have them assimilate. The only reason why they haven't just completely cut off immigration into the country is because they are part of the European Union. They have even advertised the difficulty of migrating to Denmark in Lebanon to discourage people from going there.

Which factors could help Denmark return to their old policies of being more welcoming to immigrants? Do you think it is ethical for them to make it so tough for refugees to enter their country?

http://denmark.dk/en/meet-the-danes/traditions/

This website is really cool in that it shows the folk traditions mostly known only to the people of Denmark. Although many of their festivals and ceremonies are centered around the Christian religion, arguably one of the most influential aspects of popular culture around the world, many of these are unique to Denmark in that they celebrate certain dates in a unique way. For example, a week before lent, they celebrate Shrovetide, a festival where children dress up in costume and go around collecting money in tin cans. Another example is their celebration of their flag on June 15th. It is said that the Danish flag fell from the sky in 1219 while their king, King Valdemar II was crusading in Estonia. In order to commemorate this they wave around small flags and sell them everywhere to decorate the streets with it. A picture of Valdemar Day in 2015

http://www.dazzlingwallpapers.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/denmark1.jpg

Why do you think that although Christianity defines many countries' ideologies they create separate celebrations than other and not just stick to the traditional Christian holidays and traditions?


 * Language**

Danish is the most widely used language in Denmark with about 5,380,000 speakers. Most people who speak Danish also speak English. Danish is spoken in Germany, Greenland, Norway, Sweden, and the Faroe Islands. It is also considered the national language although there are many different dialects of it. Danish is a North Germanic language and is also spoken widely in parts of Germany. Faroese is the language spoken by the people of the Faroe Islands which are self-governing, yet they are still considered as part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It has strong influences from Old Norse and languages of Scandinavia. Although a Danish territory, the Faroe Islands lie north of Scotland and are influenced by the diffusion of Northern Explorers and settlers. Greenlandic is another language spoken although not as widely in mainland Denmark (only about 7,000). Similarly to the Faroe Islands, Greenland is also self-governing yet considered a part of Denmark. Speakers of this language are mostly Inuits in which an estimated 54,000 people speak it. Aside from these languages, English is the most widely spoken foreign language followed by German and then Swedish. 86% of people in Denmark speak English, 47% speak German and 13% speak Swedish.

Article: http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/758445/Denmark-migrants-learn-danish-language-not-receive-benefits

Video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m64WfHTWZps

Question:

Do you think that although very similar to many other North or West Germanic languages that Danish would be easier understood orally or written down by another speaker of another language of this family branch?

Religion in Denmark https://qph.ec.quoracdn.net/main-qimg-3075cd518c1be0b374f4f8ed64557371

Denmark’s state religion is the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Denmark. Denmark is not a secular state and about three fourths of its population identify as an adherents to the Church. Aside from that denomination, there is a small minority of Roman Catholics as well as a small minority of other Protestant denominations. Aside from Christianity, the next largest religion is Islam which makes up about 3% of the population.

Although Denmark allows religious freedom and does not persecute any minority, the Evangelical Lutheran Church is the most dominant. However, the greater majority of the population used to be Roman Catholic before the Protestant Reformation. However, after 1563, Protestantism took the majority religion over Roman Catholicism during the Reformation.

It makes sense that Denmark quickly switched over from Catholicism to Protestantism as Denmark borders Germany. The Reformation began in Germany by the German monk Martin Luther. The Lutheran movement gained favor through Denmark pretty rapidly. Many students would study at German schools and return with Lutheran ideas. Finally, it gained favor with the monarch.

Luckily, Denmark has not had any religious conflict. They are tolerant to many faiths and they’re fairly good about respecting the minorities.

Why do some states favor Protestant forms of Christianity while others remain strong adherents to Roman Catholicism? What may be some pros and cons between one or another?