Kingdom of Denmark – The Oldest Kingdom in the World

Country name: Denmark

Official name: Kingdom of Denmark

Continent: Europe

Independence: 5th June 1849 (celebrated as Constitution Day in Denmark)

Area: 2,210,380 square kilometers (including Faroe Islands & Greenland)

Capital: Copenhagen

Share borders with: Germany, Sweden (by sea) and Norway (by sea)

Other major cities: Aarhus, Odense and Aalborg

Population: 5,687,591 (including Faroe Islands & Greenland – Estimated in January 2012)

Currency: Kron

Official Language: Danish

Other major languages: Faroese, Greenlandic and German

Religions: Lutheranism 80.4%, Islam 3% and other religions 16.6% including Judaism, Buddhism, Neopaganism and many other small groups.

Amazing and interesting facts about Denmark:

• Denmark is the oldest kingdom in the world that still exists. It exists since 995 AD. “Dannebrog”, the Danish flag is the oldest flag used by an independent nation since 1219.

• Bicycling is the  most common and popular form of transport in Denmark because Denmark is the country with one of the highest tax rates in the world. To register new car, one has to pay about 180% income tax and 25% Value Added Tax (VAT). These taxes collectively are higher than the actual price of the car. These taxes are implemented to discourage the trend of private vehicles and to keep the environment of the country clean.

• Denmark has very interesting seasonal variations because it is located near the North Pole. During winter, the sun rises at 8:45 am and sets at 4:15 pm. While in summer it rises at 4:30 am and sets at 10:00 pm.

• Greenland is also a part of Denmark but is located in Northern America near Canada. It is the largest island in the world.

• Denmark got its name from the Danes. Danes are the people who moved from Sweden to Denmark in 5th century.