At a Glance

Official Name: Kingdom of Denmark

Continent: Europe

Area: 16,368 square miles (42,394 sq km)

Population: 5,352,815

Capital City: Copenhagen

Largest City: Copenhagen (1,353,333)

Unit of Money: Danish krone

Major Languages: Danish (official), Faroese

Literacy: 99%

Land Use: 61% arable land, 6% meadow, 12% forest, 21% other

Natural Resources: crude oil, natural gas, fish, salt

Government: Constitutional monarchy

Defense: 3.1 billion

The Place

Denmark is in northern Europe. It is made up of Jutland, the main peninsula, and 482 other islands. Denmark is almost completely surrounded by water, and has 4,545 miles (7,314 km) of coastline. Greenland, about 1,300 miles (2,090 km) to the west, is a province of Denmark.

Denmark can be split into five physical land regions. The largest region in Denmark is the East-Central Hills. This rolling landscape makes up most of Jutland and many nearby islands. Narrow fiords (inlets) occur along the steep-cliffed coastline.

The Western Dune Coast is made up mainly of sandy beaches and covers almost the entire west coast. The Western Sand Plain is flat and sandy. The Northern Flat Plains at the top of the country consist mainly of farmland. To the east, Bornholm and its surrounding islands are made mostly of granite.

Denmark has a mild and damp climate. Winter temperatures average 32° F (0° C), and summers average 63° F (17° C). The country gets about 24 inches (61 cm) of rainfall annually.

The People

More than half of the Danish population lives on the islands surrounding Jutland. About one-quarter of the Danes live in the Copenhagen area on the island of Sjaelland. There are many manufacturing plants near Copenhagen, and industry employs about 19% of the work force.

About 85% of Danes live in urban areas. City dwellers often reside in apartment buildings. People living in the suburbs and in rural areas usually live in single-family houses. Most rural residents are farmers who operate their own small farms.

Denmark has one of the world's highest standards of living. The social welfare system has prevented the development of slums. Higher education is free, and the national health service provides free medical care. Life expectancy is 77 years.