Talk:Culture of Denmark/Archive 1

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Archive 1

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Danes are smug? I have never met a Dane who was anything but warm and friendly. This incorrect generalization needs to be removed.

-Regarding smug Danes: My family is half danish, with most of them still living over there. Some come over here (Canada) regularly and I've been over there several times. I don't see the specific smugness being referred to either; instead, what I believe the author of that particular statement might be referring to is that peculiar inscrutability of people raied in northern european countries. It's not a coldness or rudeness, or smugness, but it can comes across that way sometimes. Maybe a touch of that stereotypical German standoffishness misattributed to Danes due to their geographic proximity? Dunno. I could see it being perceived as more of a disconcerting frankness and sarcasm if someone is not used to it.


Im doing a history on denmark's culture im from denmark buti dont know much ab out it? What should i put?

Science?

Are scientific contributions appropriate on a cultural achievement page? They are achievements of members of this culture (demographically defined) but not culture-specific (athropologically defined). 70.57.137.163 06:00, 8 Apr 2005 (UTC) [Dpr]

I think it might be appropirate, it shows the academic, technology driven nature of the Danish culture. --Commander Keane 13:10, 13 July 2005 (UTC)

Technology driven nature of culture? What went through your head as you wrote that?--Kappel 11:31, 23 March 2006 (UTC)

Cultural radicalism. The idea that culture and art should be useful and serve a purpose. This is similar in nature to design art now showing up in New York and other places, but has been a central piece of Danish culture for more than a century, and the corner stone of Scandinavian design. 85.235.250.110 (talk) 09:39, 4 April 2008 (UTC)

-I'll assume that your level of ignorance is not commensurate with the respect you show to others, so I'll keep it quick. First off, dunno if you're Danish or not, but comparatively speaking Danish culture is not at all conservative and doesn't hold on to meaningless traditions nearly so much as others. What bearing does this have on technology? I would submit that this danish character reflects itself in the willingless to adopt new ideas. What is technology other than new ideas manifested as improved capabilities and material goods? Danish goods are held up as great examples of design in many areas: audio equipment, furniture, computer science, etc.

Danish first names

Why no mention of the strict control of first names in Denmark? I found this facinating, and would like to know more about it. --Commander Keane 13:41, 14 July 2005 (UTC)

What the hell are you talking about?

The Christophpher case, the family Satan? The phph name was made legal in 1996, though. I don't know if it would fit in with this piece of cultural advertising (missing a historical scope, though), maybe in an article on Danish naming customs? Poulsen 11:13, 29 November 2005 (UTC)

In general, it is my impression that Denmark and the other Scandinavian countries, perhaps European countries in general, have more laws describing all kinds of practical aspects of the people's daily life than, say, the United States.--C960657 13:02, 22 September 2006 (UTC)

Denmark does have strict laws on naming yeah, it is actually priests of the national church(folkekirken) who decide whether or not a name can be used. While this may sound very religious etc. like many things about the national church the procedure is very secular and the decisions about whether or not a name is appropriate are based primarily on concerns about how it will affect the child while growing up. 80.163.51.149 13:41, 23 August 2007 (UTC)

Please! A piece of work carried out by priests in the context of the Christian Church is not, and can not be, secular. As it is the opposite of secular, that is religious, it can certainly not be considered "very secular" clsc (talk) 22:50, 21 April 2017 (UTC)

About sport

I have found following numbers of the most popular sport in Denmark (number of practioners):

1. (292.973) Soccer 2. (148.384) Gymnastics 3. (134.782) Team handball 4. (128.297) Badminton 5. (122.924) Svimming 6. (104.006) Golf 7. (73.268) Tennis 8. (72.856) Equestrian 9. (55.351) Sailing 10. (46.999) Sport shooting


Following sports mentioned in the article have only very few practioners, Australian Rules Football ,Rugby Union and Hockey Basketball and Volleyball have some practioners but they are not among the most popular.

Otto Kjærgaard, Denmark.


Anonymous: "spaghetti diving"

What is that about? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.99.160.8 (talk) 03:21, 7 January 2010 (UTC)

Problems

Generally I find the introduction of this article kind of odd. A lot of very bold generalizations on 5 million people. Can we somehow cut down on the oversimplifying statements an keep it objective...?

-Well, seeing as the article neccesarily contains a brief description of Danish culture, I don't see how it could be anything other than 'bold generalizations' and 'oversimplifying statements'. That's it's whole purpose! :) Otherwise it would be a billion pages long and of limited utility since it would take forever to get to the point, that is, to explain what might be perceived as the essential nature of a people.

--

I see some problems with some of the facts in the section of fredom of speech - wich in denmark until resently was considered fredom of speech under responsibility. we actually dont have fredom of speech in denmark. It is as you might know forbidden to say, write or DRAW anything diskiminating about peoples religion, culture or seksual preferences.

I see a tiny neutrality problem in the following sections wich have the aperance of being a bit more wide-sided than we realy are - Gays and lesbians still have many problems with having same rights as hetroseksual cuples. They still cant adopt even though singles can. and it is onely resently they may be insiminated as other coples wich only came throug congress because one person was absent (witch i belive must reflect the public opinion). They still are not alowed to call themselves married and they do not have the same rights as married couples

I se a final problem with the neutrality in the following section. It is not mensioned that many danish are racists (though they dont caracterises them selves as this) and that the second (or thirt?) larges political partie is the "racistparty" (dansk folkeparti). I know it is embarasing but i feel it is important to have that in mind when talking about danish culture.

i am sorry to be susch a downer - it might just be my opinion - but at least we can say we dare to critisice overselves and the contry:) luise/denmark

First off. Yes, we have freedom of speech WITH responsibility, which means that you can say, write or draw anything that does not directly encourage violence or bodily harm (threats, "violent mob encourages" etc), and it is generally punish by a fine, or imprisonment in extreme cases. Discriminating against religion, culture or sexuality is not punishable by law, though it is strongly discouraged in Danish culture.
Secondly. As the article says, Denmark is, and have always been, on the forefront of homosexual rights, and though Denmark is not perfect, it's still better then most countries. I have never heard of homosexuals being discriminated by media, or the public, because they wanted to adopt, or get married, though is it still happens in isolated cases.
Thirdly. Danes are some of the most anti-racist people in Europe. We have some of the best integration systems in the world, with a high number of successful integrations of non-native Danes. Most examples of racism is among (not against) the small minority of extremely low income families. And though The Peoples Party (folkepartiet and not "racistparty") is highly xenophobic, most of it's members are against our open borders, but not the integration of of non-native Danes (being of middle eastern lineage or otherwise). And I'm saying this, as a member of an opposing political party.
I fear most of your "impressions" of Denmark stems from media sensationalism, inflating up isolated cases. TSCTH (talk) 03:14, 11 June 2009 (UTC)

--- Link is not working: http://www.ambwashington.um.dk/en/menu/InformationaboutDenmark/Culture/ —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.31.229.172 (talk) 12:14, 12 May 2009 (UTC)

Art

Should something not be said about Danish artistic achievements? The list here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Danish_painters) could provide a start: especially with artists such as Vilhelm Hammershøi attracting increasing international attention. Also: i saw a documentary about Copenhagen that claimed that edgy (political) stand up comedy is increasingly fashionable (especially now that the political temperature has, as it were, heated up, as a result of the (in)famous Danish cartoons etc. Does anyone know anything about this? I also feel that Danish cinema needs a section of its own: there is a lot more about than just Dogme 95, although, as one of the world's most important current cinema movements that is an achievement in itself User: BScotland

Influence of French culture

French culture has had significant impact on Danish culture, though maybe not in what the people themselves are like. As my grandfather/farfar was fond of saying of the Danish royalty "They spoke French to each other, German to their servants, and Danish to their dogs".

A great number of words in Danish are of french extraction, if not outrigt French themselves, such as Champignon for mushrooms, etc. Yes that's only one example, but there are more ;)

Danish cuisine has notably been influenced by French cuisine, especially pastries. More formal food, ie. non smorresbrod stuff, has alot of sauces.

I've also been led to believe that significant liasons exist between French and Danish film making. If anything, the stark discipline and bareness of method of Lars Von Trier is certainly in keeping with the French character... both Frenchmen and Danes can get downright ornery about purity of art.

Other links? Hmmm.... more historically, the country did side militarily with France during the Napoleonic era. One would assume there would be cultural exchange as well. More importantly, as a result of siding with the French, Denmark quite literally got its ass handed to it. If I understand it correctly, the navy was either destroyed and/or hauled back to England by Lord Nelson, and the country was driven into bankruptcy. As a result sizeable amount (all? someone correct me) of Danish territory (ie. colonies) outside of Europe was sold off. If there was such a thing as a Danish empire, or an inkling of one, it was completely eliminated. One would imagine this having a huge effect on a people. I think Denmark was more prone to think of itself as a little country in much stronger terms after that point, in order to take solace and to forge a new national identity.


I don't believe it's necessary to go into the influence of French on Danish culture, surely it is great if due only to proximity, but then would we not have to go into the influences of other countries? I think German, English, and American culture have had just as large if not larger (definately the case for Germany) impact on Denmark than French culture has, so the article would get quite large. It would probably warrant it's own article.

The quote referred to doesn't only apply to royals (well, most of the Oldenburgers were more German than Danish - with notable exceptions, e.g. Frederick VI) but it could also have been applied to much of the nobility: such a man would "will speak French to his mistress, German to his servant and Danish to his dog". I believe this phrase is better known as an example of the heavy German influence which lead to the 19th century's Danish-German antagonism. There was an influence from French culture among the upper levels of society in the 1700s and early 1800s - e.g. in one of Ludvig Holberg's plays, two noblemen speak French with each other to conceal their conversation from the peasants. However, German culture has historically been much more influential than French and around 1/3 of all Danish words are probably Low German in origin, a number which does not take into account the 19th century attempts to "cleanse" the language of German influences removing a number of common words, e.g. "Geburtsdag" was changed to "fødselsdag" (birthday) (this change succeeded), or changing "isenkræmmer" to "jernkræmmer" (ironmonger; a change that failed). The linguistic impact is not very obvious at first glance as most of this influence took place in the Middle Ages, and many Danish words have changed somewhat since then. In both the French and German cases, it could be said that certain strata in Danish society imitated cultures they saw as more technologically, artistically, or culturally advanced. In the Middle Ages, this influence was German, in the Renaissance and Napoleonic periods it was French, and in the 19th century it shifted to German again, an influence continuing throughout the 19th century but in many ways terminated by the Danish-German wars in the 19th century which tore apart the Danish and German components of the Danish realm. In recent years many would-be experts have predicted the doom of the Danish language due to the influx of American words, but I somehow doubt that the same kind of people would have said anything differently 100 years ago only singling out the German language as the great threat.
Anyway, it is hard to quantify cultural influences. In many ways, the more recent French / German influences mostly influenced the leading strata of society more that they influenced the common peasants. In the Middle Ages, the German influence was more confined to more day-to-day activities, e.g. a mason would likely learn his trade in Germany, so this must have had a deeper impact on the culture of the more common people, a development reinforced by the Lutheran Reformation since this development predominantly affacted Scandinavia and northern Germany. When it comes to the mentality of the Danish people, the most obvious difference between Danish and German culture is sometimes described with a claim that in Denmark (like in Britain) "everything is allowed unless a law explicitly forbids it". The Danish stereotype on Germans says that the opposite is the case there. Grundtvig's influence also remains strong; to boil him down to the completely stereotypical level: to be Danish means to be the opposite of being German. It is hardly an exaggeration that Danish culture wasn't really interested in foreign influences following the war in 1864. Valentinian T / C 20:51, 16 March 2007 (UTC)

"Hygge"

How come that the article doesn't mention about "hygge"? I know it is hard to define what it actually is, but nontheless, it is a major part of danish culture. We often do that when we have company by people close to us, like friends or family. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 83.93.140.106 (talk) 18:45, 2 April 2008 (UTC)

WHY is 'hygge' even included in this article? Hygge is not a unique Danish word, nor a unique danish concept. All humans hygger, this is not danish in any way at all. 83.94.164.219 (talk) 21:49, 4 August 2014 (UTC)
I agree, even though I am a Dane. Many Danes have a twisted view of how foreigners sees their country and their culture and also about Denmark's place in the world. It is a widespread misconception in Denmark, that 'hygge' is something special for Denmark. It is nothing more than socializing. I know that in many cultures you dont socialize with guests in your own home, but people still socialize for the most part. Socializing in your own home and 'hygge' might be something unique to the Northern Temperate Zone, mainly because of the weather I think. I think it would be great and solve a lot of problems, if we could dig up some scholarly texts to write about 'hygge' and see it in a broader context. RhinoMind (talk) 18:26, 5 August 2014 (UTC)
I found out about 'hygge' through a Guardian article that links to this page. Agree that it's true that hospitality, making people feel welcome, socialising, etc is common to probably all cultures. But in English at least, there is no one word encompassing all these things as a concept (hence the Guardian article reaching for 'hygge'), so I think there is something particular in a culture that has created a word for the concept. I'm glad that I now know a word for it. Claire 75 (talk) 06:48, 10 August 2014 (UTC)
Ah yes, good point! RhinoMind (talk) 23:55, 10 August 2014 (UTC)

---

I honestly doesnt understand why this section is that long - i dont think hygge defines danish people as much as the artikle says. Danish are (sterotypically i know) life-enjoyers that see personal freetime, traveling, enjoying food as human rights compared to other cultures, but i dont see hygge gives an idear of this in the amount the person hvom has written this section thinks. im sorry i have to be critical - luise/denmark —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.167.173.177 (talk) 16:01, 21 November 2008 (UTC)

---

About christmas: I don't think the queen is giving any speech on christmas night. Anyway, I have never seen it, so if it she does, it's not a tradition for me or anyone I know. But it's true that she gives a speech on new years evening that most people in denmark watch. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 192.38.95.23 (talk) 01:15, 24 March 2009 (UTC)

Expanding the article

I have been having a go at expanding the article by breaking it up into more sections. There is much more to be done, especially in connection with contemporary culture (painters, writers, theatre, music, etc.). Any help on this would be much apprecated. I also see there are serious gaps in "main articles" on topics such as fine art, e.g. Danish painting, sculpture, photography. It would be good if we could also make a start on these.Ipigott (talk) 18:31, 4 December 2008 (UTC)

Danes and drink

The intro has quite a long passage about Danes and drink, especially regarding teenagers. Is this appropriate? I suggest it should be drastically cut back, if not completely removed. Any comments?- Ipigott (talk) 14:25, 5 December 2008 (UTC)

That does seem somewhat out of place. Even though I often hear foreign visitors are surprised at the low legal drinking age I am not sure if it this something that should be part of this article (perhaps in the Denmark article?). At the very least it has to be moved from the intro. I would not object to a deletion though. --Saddhiyama (talk) 22:01, 5 December 2008 (UTC)
Historically, and at least all the way back to the bronze age, drinking of alcoholic beverages has been part of Danish culture. Not least because it used to be an important part of our most important national holiday from pre-christian times: Jul. clsc (talk) 22:59, 21 April 2017 (UTC)

Comments

Generally I think the article gives a quite reasonable overview but here are a few suggestions:

  • Cuisine: I think the article should definitely mention the emergence of the New Nordic Quicine. It's a movement which has enjoyed massive international attention, both due to the sucess of Noma and in general. Of course it is mostly a tendency within fine dining but in general this article includes fine arts and not only popular culture too. Plus it has had an effect on less upmarket dining, food journalism etc. Also more generally, the current very talented generation of chefs should be mentioned. And a small thing: "Steaks are now becoming increasingly popular" made me kind of check the calendar.
  • Highlights: "neglected articulation of the principle of conservation of energy", is that an eufemism for good ol' Danish laziness? In that case it is quite an important part of our national character which should probably be more highlighted! On a more serious note, I'm not sure I would include scientific discoveries in an article on culture but if that is the rule in similar articles it's of course fine. I don't know if they are highlights (and should go in this section) but the mention of Piet Hein made me think of whom I see as very typically 20th century proponents for Danish culture, and then Poul Henningsen and particularly Storm P jumps to mind, though it may well be irrelevant to mention them in an article this general in its scope. Maybe a section on Danish humor would me worth considering.
  • Painting: I think Vilhelm Hammershøi should be mentioned for his early work and COBRA should too.
  • Literature: If Henrik Pontoppidan is mentioned, Johannes V. Jensen could be too, though I doubt that either have many readers today. Georg Brandes had a quite international platform in his day and have had an immense influence on Danish culture. As for more contemporary authors, I think Inger Christensen definitely should be mentioned, she has been critically acclaimed in a number of countries, particularly in Germany, though I'm unaware of her reputation in England. Svend Aage Madsen might also be a candidate, I know he has been well received in France but again I'm uncertain about the English-speaking markets.
  • Design: Some more contemporary names would probably be relevant to mention but since only few have articles to link to, it would probably be more relevant to start there and in the article on Danish design.
  • Music: Here Niels Gade should be mentioned. It is of course relevant to mention Bournonville but I think it should be mentioned on a more general note that Danish Ballet has enjoyed international success
  • Cinema: Doesn't the article sound as if they are still making Dogme movies?
  • Other contributions: Christmas again, shouldn't this go in the dedicated subsection earlier in the article?Ramblersen (talk) 18:31, 27 January 2010 (UTC)

Sydney operahouse?

Hello. I understand that Sydney operahouse was designed by a Danish architect, but I don't think it can fully qualify as a part of Danish culture. I mean, it is in Australia, and I definitely do not think that it is worth being the first picture in the Culture of Denmark page. Some other, more common and rapresentative, symbol of Danish culture might be worth replacing. Any suggestions?--Theologiae (talk) 10:24, 7 February 2010 (UTC)

Attempting to edit this page...

I was going to start editing this page to help resolve the flag and came across the second sentence. There is a tag after the reference that is interesting (dubious discuss). I personally think that this sentence should not be in the article at all. It is not encyclopedic.

Sentence below:

Modesty, punctuality but above all equality is important aspects of the Danish way of life.

Opening discussion about this sentence.

Thanks for your input. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Sharrrks (talk • contribs) 15:16, 20 August 2013 (UTC)

Modesty, punctuality but above all equality is important aspects of the Danish way of life. Indeed true, I may agree that it sounds outrageous, but unfortunately is quite near the truth. Hafspajen (talk) 10:21, 22 August 2013 (UTC)
The sourcing could probably be improved. I can not see why it is "un-encyclopedic"? Why is that? For the record, I can hint that the modesty stems from the Lutheran protestantism. The punctuality most likely from the industrial age and high organizational level of society. The equality is reflected in the welfare state and the redistribution of wealth, and as a ruling principle in countless laws and regulations, in the organization of the Danish state, and in the everyday culture and interpersonal relations. The focus on equality stems primarily from a 100-150 year old social-right class-struggle, but could probably also be traced to the homogeneity, going back centuries.
All these points are worth mentioning, because they stand out, when compared to many other cultures, including European cultures. RhinoMind (talk) 08:18, 18 October 2015 (UTC)

"Modesty, punctuality, but above all, equality, are important aspects of the stereotypical Danish way of life." — Preceding unsigned comment added by 90.184.146.157 (talk) 22:23, 22 January 2014 (UTC)

Well "stereotypical" is implied in every description of this nature. It is redundant. RhinoMind (talk) 08:05, 18 October 2015 (UTC)
Punctuality? Where did that come from? This is about Danish culture, not German/Swedish ("Goth") culture. For the past 50 years I've observed many interesting parts of Danish culture, both present and past. Punctuality was first observed above, on this web page, today. Nitpicking, OTOH, is very prevalent (and important) in Danish culture, and perhaps this is what the author of said phrase is thinking about? clsc (talk) 23:09, 21 April 2017 (UTC)

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Assessment comment

The comment(s) below were originally left at Talk:Culture of Denmark/Comments, and are posted here for posterity. Following several discussions in past years, these subpages are now deprecated. The comments may be irrelevant or outdated; if so, please feel free to remove this section.

I have raised the assessment of Culture of Denmark to B. While it still requires more work, it is now far beyond the start class. It would be good to see more Danish participation both in the assessment and in building up the content of the article.-Ipigott (talk) 15:30, 21 December 2008 (UTC)

Last edited at 15:30, 21 December 2008 (UTC). Substituted at 12:31, 29 April 2016 (UTC)

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