Background: Once the seat of Viking raiders and later a major north European power, Denmark has evolved into a modern, prosperous nation that is participating in the general political and economic integration of Europe. It joined NATO in 1949 and the EEC (now the EU) in 1973. However, the country has opted out of certain elements of the EU's Maastricht Treaty, including the European Economic and Monetary Union, European defense cooperation, and issues concerning certain justice and home affairs.

Geographic coordinates: 56 00 N, 10 00 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 43,094 km²
Land: 42,434 km²
Water: 660 km²
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
Rank: 133
Comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts; about two-thirds the size of West Virginia

Land boundaries
Total: 140 km
Border countries: (1) Germany 140 km

Coastline: 7,314 km

Maritime claims
Territorial sea: 12 nm
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Contiguous zone: 24 nm

Climate: temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers

Terrain: low and flat to gently rolling plains

Elevation
Mean elevation: 34 m
Lowest point: Lammefjord -7 m
Highest point: Mollehoj/Ejer Bavnehoj 171 m

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, fish, arable land, salt, limestone, chalk, stone, gravel and sand

Land use
Agricultural land: 63.4% (2011 est.)
Forest: 12.9% (2011 est.)
Other: 23.7% (2011 est.)
Note: highest percentage of arable land: for any country in the world

Irrigated land: 4,350 km² (2012)

Natural hazards: flooding is a threat in some areas of the country (e.g., parts of Jutland, along the southern coast of the island of Lolland) that are protected from the sea by a system of dikes

Geography
Note: composed of the Jutland Peninsula and a group of more than 400 islands (Danish Archipelago); controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen

Population
Distribution: with excellent access to the North Sea, Skagerrak, Kattegat, and the Baltic Sea, population centers tend to be along coastal areas, particularly in Copenhagen and the eastern side of the country's mainland: 5,869,410 (July 2020 est.)
Rank: 115
Growth rate: 0.48% (2020 est.)
Growth rate rank: 156
Below poverty line: 13.4% (2011 est.)
Below poverty line note: excludes students

Nationality
Noun: Dane(s)
Adjective: Danish

Ethnic groups: Danish (includes Greenlandic (who are predominantly Inuit) and Faroese) 86.3%, Turkish 1.1%, other 12.6% (largest groups are Polish, Syrian, German, Iraqi, and Romanian) (2018 est.)
Note: data represent population by ancestry

Languages: Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
Note: English is the predominant second language

Religions: Evangelical Lutheran (official) 74.7%, Muslim 5.5%, other/none/unspecified (denominations of less than 1% each in descending order of size include Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witness, Serbian Orthodox Christian, Jewish, Baptist, Buddhist, Mormon, Pentecostal, and nondenominational Christian) 19.8% (2019 est.)

Age structure
0-14 years: 16.42% (male 494,806/female 469,005)
15-24 years: 12.33% (male 370,557/female 352,977)
25-54 years: 38.71% (male 1,149,991/female 1,122,016)
55-64 years: 12.63% (male 370,338/female 371,149)
65 years and over: 19.91% (male 538,096/female 630,475) (2020 est.)

Dependency ratios
Total dependency ratio: 57.3
Youth dependency ratio: 25.6
Elderly dependency ratio: 31.7
Potential support ratio: 3.2 (2020 est.)

Median age
Total: 42 years
Male: 40.9 years
Female: 43.1 years (2020 est.)
Rank: 38

Population growth rate: 0.48% (2020 est.)
Rank: 156

Birth rate: 11.1 births/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 177

Death rate: 9.5 deaths/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 45

Net migration rate: 2.8 migrant(s)/1000 population (2020 est.)
Rank: 38

Population distribution: with excellent access to the North Sea, Skagerrak, Kattegat, and the Baltic Sea, population centers tend to be along coastal areas, particularly in Copenhagen and the eastern side of the country's mainland

Urbanization
Urban population: 88.1% of total population
Note: (2015-20 est.)
Rate of urbanization: 0.51% annual rate of change

Major urban areas
Population: 1.346 million COPENHAGEN (capital) (2020)

Environment
Current issues: air pollution, principally from vehicle and power plant emissions; nitrogen and phosphorus pollution of the North Sea; drinking and surface water becoming polluted from animal wastes and pesticides; much of country's household and industrial waste is recycled
International agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
International agreements signed but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
0-14 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-24 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
25-54 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
55-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth: 29.2 years (2017 est.)

Infant mortality rate
Total: 3.2 deaths/1000 live births
Male: 3.6 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 2.7 deaths/1000 live births (2020 est.)
Rank: 209

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 81.2 years
Male: 79.3 years
Female: 83.3 years (2020 est.)
Rank: 35

Total fertility rate: 1.78 children born/woman (2020 est.)
Rank: 150

Drinking water source
Urban: 0% of population
Rural: 0% of population
Total: 0% of population (2017 est.)

Current health expenditure: 10.1% (2017)

Physicians density: 4.01 physicians/1000 population (2016)

Hospital bed density: 2.6 beds/1000 population (2017)

Sanitation facility access
Urban: 0% of population
Rural: 0% of population
Total: 0% of population (2017 est.)

Hivaids
Adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2018 est.)
Adult prevalence rate rank: 121
People living with hivaids: 6,200 (2018 est.)
People living with hivaids rank: 117
Deaths note: <100 (2018 est.)

Obesity adult prevalence rate: 19.7% (2016)
Rank: 109

Education expenditures: 7.8% of GDP (2017)
Rank: 6

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Total: 18 years
Male: 19 years
Female: 19 years (2018)

Country name
Conventional long form: Kingdom of Denmark
Conventional short form: Denmark
Local long form: Kongeriget Danmark
Local short form: Danmark
Etymology: the name derives from the words Dane(s) and mark; the latter referring to a march (borderland) or forest

Government type: parliamentary constitutional monarchy

Capital
Name: Copenhagen
Geographic coordinates: 55 40 N, 12 35 E
Time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October; note - applies to continental Denmark only, not to its North Atlantic components: etymology: name derives from the city's Danish appellation Kobenhavn, meaning 'Merchant's Harbor'

Administrative divisions: metropolitan Denmark - 5 regions (regioner, singular - region); Hovedstaden (Capital), Midtjylland (Central Jutland), Nordjylland (North Jutland), Sjaelland (Zealand), Syddanmark (Southern Denmark)

Independence: ca. 965 (unified and Christianized under HARALD I Gormsson); 5 June 1849 (became a parliamentary constitutional monarchy)

National holiday: Constitution Day, 5 June (1849); note - closest equivalent to a national holiday

Constitution
History: several previous; latest adopted 5 June 1953
Amendments: proposed by the Folketing with consent of the government; passage requires approval by the next Folketing following a general election, approval by simple majority vote of at least 40% of voters in a referendum, and assent of the chief of state; changed several times, last in 2009 (Danish Act of Succession)

Legal system: civil law; judicial review of legislative acts

International law organization participation: accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship
Citizenship by birth: no
Citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Denmark
Dual citizenship recognized: yes
Residency requirement for naturalization: 7 years

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 on 26 May 1968)
Head of government: Prime Minister Mette FREDERIKSEN (since 27 June 2019)
Cabinet: Council of State appointed by the monarch
Electionsappointments: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually appointed prime minister by the monarch

Legislative branch
Description: unicameral Peoples Assembly or Folketing (179 seats, including 2 each representing Greenland and the Faroe Islands; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms unless the Folketing is dissolved earlier)
Elections: last held on 5 June 2019 (next to be held on June 2023)
Election results: percent of vote by party - SDP 25.9%, V 23.4%, DF 8.7%, SLP 8.6%, SF 7.7%, EL 6.9%, C 6.6%, A 3.0%, NB 2.4%, LA 2.3%; seats by party - SDP 48, V 43, DF 16, SLP 16, SF 14, EL 13, C 12, A 5, NB 4, LA 4; composition - men 109, women 70 (includes 2 from Greenland), percent of women 39.1%

Judicial branch
Highest courts: Supreme Court (consists of the court president and 18 judges)
Judge selection and term of office: judges appointed by the monarch upon the recommendation of the Minister of Justice, with the advice of the Judicial Appointments Council, a 6-member independent body of judges and lawyers; judges appointed for life with retirement at age 70
Subordinate courts: Special Court of Indictment and Revision; 2 High Courts; Maritime and Commercial Court; county courts

Political parties and leaders: The Alternative A or AP (vacant)Conservative People's Party or DKF or C [Soren PAPE POULSEN]Danish People's Party or DF or O [Kristian THULESEN DAHL]Liberal Alliance or LA [Alex VANOPSLAGH]Liberal Party (Venstre) or V [Jakob ELLEMAN-JENSEN]New Right Party or D or NB [Pernille VERMUND]Red-Green Alliance (Unity List) or EL [collective leadership, Pernille SKIPPER, spokesperson]Social Democrats or A or SDP [Mette FREDERIKSEN]Social Liberal Party or B or SLP [Sofie CARSTEN]Socialist People's Party or SF [Pia OLSEN DYHR]

International organization participation: ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CD, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Lone Dencker WISBORG (since 17 September 2015)
In the us chancery: 3,200 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 234-4,300
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 328-1470
In the us consulate: Chicago, Houston, New York, Palo Alto (CA)
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Carla SANDS (since 15 December 2017)
From the us telephone: [45] 33 41 71 00
From the us embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Alle 24, 2,100 Copenhagen 0
From the us mailing address: Unit 5,280 ODC, DPO AE 9,716
From the us FAX: [45] 35 43 02 23

Flag description: red with a white cross that extends to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side; the banner is referred to as the Dannebrog (Danish flag) and is one of the oldest national flags in the world; traditions as to the origin of the flag design vary, but the best known is a legend that the banner fell from the sky during an early-13th century battle; caught up by the Danish king before it ever touched the earth, this heavenly talisman inspired the royal army to victory; in actuality, the flag may derive from a crusade banner or ensign
Note: the shifted cross design element was subsequently adopted by the other Nordic countries of Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden

National symbols: lion, mute swan; national colors: red, white

National anthem
Name: Der er et yndigt land (There is a Lovely Country); Kong Christian (King Christian)
Lyricsmusic: Adam Gottlob OEHLENSCHLAGER/Hans Ernst KROYER; Johannes EWALD/unknown
Note: Denmark has two national anthems with equal status; 'Der er et yndigt land,' adopted 1844, is a national anthem, while 'Kong Christian,' adopted 1780, serves as both a national and royal anthem; 'Kong Christian' is also known as 'Kong Christian stod ved hojen mast' (King Christian Stood by the Lofty Mast) and 'Kongesangen' (The King's Anthem); within Denmark, the royal anthem is played only when royalty is present and is usually followed by the national anthem; when royalty is not present, only the national anthem is performed; outside Denmark, the royal anthem is played, unless the national anthem is requested

Real gdp purchasing power parity
Real:
Real note: data are in 2010 dollars

Real gdp growth rate:
Rank: 102

Real gdp per capita:
Note: data are in 2010 dollars
Rank: 14

Gross national saving:
Rank: 35

Gdp composition by end use
Household consumption: 48% (2017 est.)
Government consumption: 25.2% (2017 est.)
Investment in fixed capital: 20% (2017 est.)
Investment in inventories: -0.2% (2017 est.)
Exports of goods and services: 54.5% (2017 est.)
Imports of goods and services: -47.5% (2017 est.)

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 1.3% (2017 est.)
Industry: 22.9% (2017 est.)
Services: 75.8% (2017 est.)

Agriculture products: barley, wheat, potatoes, sugar beets; pork, dairy products; fish

Industries: wind turbines, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, shipbuilding and refurbishment, iron, steel, nonferrous metals, chemicals, food processing, machinery and transportation equipment, textiles and clothing, electronics, construction, furniture and other wood products

Industrial production growth rate: 2.5% (2017 est.)
Rank: 116

Labor force: 2.736 million (2020 est.)
Rank: 107
By occupation agriculture: 2.4%
By occupation industry: 18.3%
By occupation services: 79.3% (2016 est.)

Unemployment rate:
Rank: 40

Population below poverty line: 13.4% (2011 est.)
Note: excludes students

Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 9%
Highest 10: 23.4% (2016 est.)

Budget
Revenues: 172.5 billion (2017 est.)
Expenditures: 168.9 billion (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit: 1.1% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Surplus or deficit rank: 30

Taxes and other revenues: 53% (of GDP) (2017 est.)
Rank: 12

Public debt:
Note: data cover general government debt and include debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities; the data include debt issued by subnational entities, as well as intra-governmental debt; intragovernmental debt consists of treasury borrowings from surpluses in the social funds, such as for retirement, medical care, and unemployment; debt instruments for the social funds are not sold at public auctions
Rank: 151

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices:
Rank: 52

Current account balance:
Rank: 12

Exports:
Rank: 33
Partners: Germany 15.5%, Sweden 11.6%, UK 8.2%, US 7.5%, Norway 6%, China 4.4%, Netherlands 4.4% (2017)
Commodities: wind turbines, pharmaceuticals, machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, dairy products, fish, furniture and design

Imports:
Rank: 35
Commodities: machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, chemicals, grain and foodstuffs, consumer goods
Partners: Germany 21.3%, Sweden 11.9%, Netherlands 7.8%, China 7.1%, Norway 6.3%, Poland 4% (2017)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
Rank: 30

Debt external:
Rank: 25

Exchange rates:

Electricity
Access electrification total population: 100% (2020)
Production: 29.84 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Production rank: 65
Consumption: 33.02 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Consumption rank: 59
Exports: 9.919 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Exports rank: 20
Imports: 14.98 billion kWh (2016 est.)
Imports rank: 14
Installed generating capacity: 14.34 million kW (2016 est.)
Installed generating capacity rank: 52
Generation sources fossil fuels: 46% of total installed capacity (2016 est.)
Generation sources fossil fuels rank: 157
Generation sources nuclear: 0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources nuclear rank: 77
Generation sources hydroelectricity: 0% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources hydroelectricity rank: 167
Generation sources other renewable sources: 54% of total installed capacity (2017 est.)
Generation sources other renewable sources rank: 3

Petroleum
Petroleum total petroleum production: 115,000 bbl/day (2018 est.)
Petroleum total petroleum production rank: 41
Crude oil exports: 82,980 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Crude oil exports rank: 36
Crude oil imports: 98,240 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Crude oil imports rank: 44
Crude oil proven reserves: 439 million bbl (1 January 2018 est.)
Crude oil proven reserves rank: 46

Refined petroleum
Products production: 183,900 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products production rank: 55
Products consumption: 158,500 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products consumption rank: 64
Products exports: 133,700 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products exports rank: 38
Products imports: 109,700 bbl/day (2017 est.)
Products imports rank: 51

Natural gas
Production: 4.842 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Production rank: 52
Consumption: 3.115 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Consumption rank: 73
Exports: 2.237 billion m³ (2017 est.)
Exports rank: 37
Imports: 509.7 million m³ (2017 est.)
Imports rank: 65
Proven reserves: 12.86 billion m³ (1 January 2018 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 77

Carbon dioxide emissions
From consumption of energy: 37.45 million Mt (2017 est.)
From consumption of energy rank: 70

Telephones
Fixed lines total subscriptions: 1,017,009
Fixed lines subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 17.41 (2019 est.)
Fixed lines rank: 74
Mobile cellular total subscriptions: 7,331,110
Mobile cellular subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 125.5 (2019 est.)
Mobile cellular rank: 102

Internet
Country code: .dk
Users total: 5,672,398
Users percent of population: 97.64% (July 2018 est.)
Users rank: 79

Broadband fixed subscriptions
Total: 2,534,348
Subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 44 (2018 est.)
Rank: 48

Military expenditures:
Rank: 89

Military and security forces:

Military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscripts serve an initial training period that varies from 4 to 12 months depending on specialization; former conscripts are assigned to mobilization units; women eligible to volunteer for military service; in addition to full time employment, the Danish Military offers reserve contracts in all three branches (2016)

Terrorist groups: Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps/Qods Force (2019)
Note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in a title='Appendix-T' href='../appendix/appendix-t.html'>Appendix-T/a>

National air transport system
Number of registered air carriers: 10 (2020)
Inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 76
Annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers: 582,011 (2015)
Annual freight traffic on registered air carriers: 0
Note: mt-km (2015)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix: OY (2016)

Airports: 80 (2013)
Rank: 68
With paved runways total: 28 (2017)
With paved runways over 3047 m: 2 (2017)
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 7 (2017)
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 5 (2017)
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 12 (2017)
With paved runways under 914 m: 2 (2017)
With unpaved runways total: 52 (2013)
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 5 (2013)
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 47 (2013)

Pipelines: 1536 km gas, 330 km oil (2015)

Railways
Total: 3,476 km (2017)
Standard gauge: 3,476 km
Note: 1.435-m gauge (1756 km electrified) (2017)
Rank: 57

Roadways
Total: 74,558 km (2017)
Paved: 74,558 km
Note: (includes 1205 km of expressways) (2017)
Rank: 67

Waterways: 400 km (2010)
Rank: 87

Merchant marine
Total: 682
By type: bulk carrier 7, container ship 149, general cargo 59, oil tanker 77, other 390 (2019)
Rank: 32

Ports and terminals
Major seaport: Baltic Sea - Aarhus, Copenhagen, Fredericia, Kalundborg
Cruise port: Copenhagen
River port: Aalborg (Langerak)
Dry bulk cargo port: Ensted (coal): North Sea - Esbjerg,

Disputes international: Iceland, the UK, and Ireland dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm; sovereignty dispute with Canada over Hans Island in the Kennedy Channel between Ellesmere Island and Greenland; Denmark (Greenland) and Norway have made submissions to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) and Russia is collecting additional data to augment its 2001 CLCS submission

Refugees and internally displaced persons
Refugees: 20,046 (Syria), 5,320 (Eritrea) (2019)
Stateless persons: 8,672 (2019)