| GEOGRAPHY |
| Country name: |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Denmark
conventional short form: Denmark
local long form: Kongeriget Danmark
local short form: Danmark |
| Capital: |
Copenhagen |
| Location: |
Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, on a peninsula north of Germany (Jutland); also includes two major islands (Sjaelland and Fyn) |
| Geographic
Coordinates: |
56 00 N, 10 00 E |
| Area: |
total: 43,094 sq km
land: 42,394 sq km
water: 700 sq km
note: includes the island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea and the rest of metropolitan Denmark (the Jutland Peninsula, and the major islands of Sjaelland and Fyn), but excludes the Faroe Islands and Greenland |
| Area
Comparative: |
slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts |
| Land
Boundaries: |
total: 68 km
border countries: Germany 68 km |
| Coastline: |
7,314 km |
| Maritime
Claims: |
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation |
| Climate: |
temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers |
| Terrain: |
low and flat to gently rolling plains |
| Elavation
Extremes: |
lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
highest point: Yding Skovhoej 173 m |
| Natural
Resources: |
petroleum, natural gas, fish, salt, limestone, chalk, stone, gravel and sand |
| GOVERNEMENT |
| Governement
Type: |
constitutional monarchy |
| Administratives
Divisions: |
metropolitan Denmark - 14 counties (amter, singular - amt) and 2 boroughs* (amtskommuner, singular - amtskommune); Arhus, Bornholm, Frederiksberg*, Frederiksborg, Fyn, Kobenhavn, Kobenhavns*, Nordjylland, Ribe, Ringkobing, Roskilde, Sonderjylland, Storstrom, Vejle, Vestsjalland, Viborg
note: see separate entries for the Faroe Islands and Greenland, which are part of the Kingdom of Denmark and are self-governing overseas administrative divisions |
| Independence |
first organized as a unified state in 10th century; in 1849 became a constitutional monarchy |
| National
Holiday: |
none designated; Constitution Day, 5 June is generally viewed as the National Day |
| Constitution: |
5 June 1849 adoption of original constitution; a major overhaul of 5 June 1953 allowed for a unicameral legislature and a female chief of state |
| Legal
System; |
civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
| Suffrage |
18 years of age; universal |
| Executive
Branch: |
chief of state: Queen MARGRETHE II (since 14 January 1972); Heir Apparent Crown Prince FREDERIK, elder son of the monarch (born 26 May 1968)
head of government: Prime Minister Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN (since 27 November 2001)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch |
| Legislative
Branch: |
unicameral Parliament or Folketing (179 seats, including 2 from Greenland and 2 from the Faroe Islands; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 November 2001 (next to be held 8 February 2005)
election results: percent of vote by party - Liberal Party 31%, Social Democrats 29%, Danish People's Party 12%, Conservative Party 9%, Socialist People's Party 6%, Social Liberal Party 5%, Christian People's Party (now Christian Democrats) 2%, Unity List 2%; seats by party - Liberal Party 56, Social Democrats 52, Danish People's Party 22, Conservative Party 16, Socialist People's Party 12, Social Liberal Party 9, Christian People's Party (now Christian Democrats) 4, Unity List 4; note - does not include the 2 seats from Greenland and the 2 seats from the Faroe Islands |
| Judicial
Branch: |
Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life) |
| Political
parties and Leaders: |
Center Democratic Party [Mimi JAKOBSEN]; Christian Democrats (was Christian People's Party) [Marianne KARLSMOSE]; Conservative Party (sometimes known as Conservative People's Party) [Bendt BENDTSEN]; Danish People's Party [Pia KJAERSGAARD]; Liberal Party [Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN]; Social Democratic Party [Mogens LYKKETOFT]; Social Liberal Party (sometimes called the Radical Left) [Marianne JELVED, leader; Soren BALD, chairman]; Socialist People's Party [Holger K. NIELSEN]; Red-Green Unity List (bloc includes Left Socialist Party, Communist Party of Denmark, Socialist Workers' Party) [collective leadership] |
| PEOPLE |
| Population: |
5,413,392 (July 2004 est.) |
| Age structure: |
0-14 years: 18.9% (male 523,888; female 497,420)
15-64 years: 66.2% (male 1,808,376; female 1,774,388)
65 years and over: 15% (male 344,113; female 465,207) (2004 est.) |
| Median age: |
total: 39.2 years
male: 38.3 years
female: 40.2 years (2004 est.) |
| Nationality: |
noun: Dane(s)
adjective: Danish |
| Ethnic groups: |
Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, German, Turkish, Iranian, Somali |
| Religions: |
Evangelical Lutheran 95%, other Protestant and Roman Catholic 3%, Muslim 2% |
| Languages: |
Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
note: English is the predominant second language |
| COMUNICATIONS |
| Telephones - main
lines in use: |
3,610,100 (2003) |
| Telephones - mobile
cellular: |
4,785,300 (2003) |
| Telephone system: |
general assessment: excellent telephone and telegraph services
domestic: buried and submarine cables and microwave radio relay form trunk network, 4 cellular mobile communications systems
international: country code - 45; 18 submarine fiber-optic cables linking Denmark with Canada, Faroe Islands, Germany, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and UK; satellite earth stations - 6 Intelsat, 10 Eutelsat, 1 Orion, 1 Inmarsat (Blaavand-Atlantic-East); note - the Nordic countries (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden) share the Danish earth station and the Eik, Norway, station for worldwide Inmarsat access (1997) |
| Radio broadcast
stations: |
AM 2, FM 355, shortwave 0 (1998) |
| Television broadcast
stations: |
26 (plus 51 repeaters) (1998) |
| Internet country
code: |
.dk |
| Internet hosts: |
1,219,925 (2004) |
| Internet users: |
2.756 million (2002) |
| TRANSPORT |
| Railways: |
total: 3,002 km
standard gauge: 3,002 km 1.435-m gauge (595 km electrified) (2003) |
| Highways: |
total: 71,591 km
paved: 71,591 km (including 880 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
| Waterways: |
417 km (2001) |
| Pipelines: |
condensate 12 km; gas 3,892 km; oil 455 km; oil/gas/water 2 km; unknown (oil/water) 64 km (2004) |
| Ports and harbors: |
Aabenraa, Aalborg, Aarhus, Copenhagen, Esbjerg, Fredericia, Frederikshavn, Hirtshals, Kolding, Odense, Roenne (Bornholm), Vejle |
| Merchant marine: |
total: 276 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,952,473 GRT/9,030,444 DWT
by type: bulk 4, cargo 77, chemical tanker 36, container 83, liquefied gas 15, livestock carrier 5, petroleum tanker 27, rail car carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 8, roll on/roll off 11, short-sea/passenger 5, specialized tanker 4
foreign-owned: Germany 1, Greece 1, Indonesia 2, Norway 5
registered in other countries: 284 (2004 est.) |
| Airports: |
99 (2003 est.) |
| Airports - with
paved runways: |
total: 28
over 3,047 m: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 12
under 914 m: 3 (2004 est.) |
| Airports - with
unpaved runways: |
total: 69
914 to 1,523 m: 6
under 914 m: 63 (2004 est.) |
| Heliports: |
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