Denmark Languages

Although there are many languages spoken in Denmark, the official and state language is Danish. It is a North Germanic dialect that is used by about 6 million individuals, mainly Danes. Danish is among the three main Scandinavian languages. There are 29 letters in the Danish alphabet, 26 of which are used in the English alphabet, along with three additional vowels at the end. These three added vowels are Æ, Ø, and Å. At the regional level, inhabitants of the Faroe Islands, a self-governing area, speak Faroese. Greenland, an equally self-governing zone of Denmark speaks Greenlandic.

The three Scandinavian languages of Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish are closely related. A native speaker of one of these languages might understand the other two to some degree. However, Danish is unique from the other two essentially because there is a large incongruence between written and verbalized language. For example, the written “af’’ sounds like “ow.” Verbally, the words are condensed, and the consonants softened.

Danish can be a difficult language to learn, but knowing a few simple phrases can go a long way. In Danish, "Velkommen" means "welcome", and "hej" means "hello". To say "how are you?" one would say "hvordan har du det?"

Besides Danish being the official regional language, there are other minority languages used in Denmark, including German. It is the formal minority language of a group of people living in the region of Southern Denmark, previously known as the South Jutland County. This population of German minority also runs their primary schools where German is the main language used to teach. English is another minority language spoken by a majority of Danes as a second dialect. The language is compulsory for Danes and is taught until the fifth grade after which it becomes optional. Swedish is also a minority language spoken in Denmark.

This page was last modified on May 1st, 2018

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Published on 2019-11-06


Capital	Copenhagen
Languages	Danish, Faroese, Greenlandic (an Inuit dialect), German (small minority)
Ethnic Groups	Scandinavian, Inuit, Faroese, Turkish, Polish, Syrian, German, Iraqi (2017 est.)
Religion	Evangelical Lutheran (official) 76%, Muslim 4%, other (denominations of less than 1% each, includes Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witness, Serbian Orthodox Christian, Jewish, Baptist, and Buddhist) 20% (2017 est.)
Government	Parliamentary constitutional monarchy
Independance	Ca. 965 (unified and Christianized under HARALD I Gormson); 5 June 1849 (became a parliamentary constitutional monarchy)
Area	43,094.00 km²
Water Area	660.00 km²
Land Area	42,434.00 km²
Population	5,593,785.00 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
Location	Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, on a peninsula north of Germany (Jutland); also includes several major islands (Sjaelland, Fyn, and Bornholm)
No. Bordering Countries	1
Bordering Countries	Germany 140 km
GDP(PPP)	$265,000,000,000.00 (USD)
GDP (Per Capita)	$46,600.00 (USD)
Export Partners	Its major export partners are Germany, Sweden, Norway, and the United Kingdom.
Export Commodities	Its main exports are machinery and instruments, meat and meat products, and dairy products.
Import Partners	Its major import partners are Germany, Sweden, and the Netherlands.
Import Commodities	Its major imports include machinery and equipment, raw materials and semimanufactures for industry, and chemicals.
Climate	Temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers
Terrain	Low and flat to gently rolling plains
Learn More	Denmark

Denmark Languages

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