Danish people
(Redirected from Danes)
Categories: Ethnic groups of Europe | Germanic peoples | Danish people
| Danes | ||
|---|---|---|
| {{|{{{3}}}}}}|show1|Image:HCAndersen.jpeg}} | ||
| Total population: | 10 - 12 million (est) | |
| Significant populations in: | Denmark: 5,300,000 (est) United States: | |
| Language: | Danish | |
| Religion: | The vast majority of Danes are Lutherans. Atheist and Roman Catholic minorities | |
| Related ethnic groups: | Norwegians, Swedes, Icelanders, Faroese, and to a lesser extent, all Germanic ethnic groups | |
- This article is about Danes as an ethnic group. For information about residents or nationals of Denmark, see demographics of Denmark.
The term Dane may refer to:
- People with a Danish ancestral or ethnic identity, whether living in Denmark, emigrants, or the descendents of emigrants.
- Members of the Danish ethnic minority in Southern Schleswig, a former Danish province.
- Anyone whose mother tongue is Danish.
- Nationals or citizens of Denmark, which also includes a German minority in South Jutland as well as recent non-European immigrants and their descendents (see: Demographics of Denmark).
This article refers to the two definitions, ethnic Danes and their descendents plus the minority in Germany.
Danes in Denmark
More than 5 million ethnic Danes live in Denmark today. The Danes are a Scandinavian ethnic group, and are the descendents of the Norse - better known as Vikings - along with Norwegians, Swedes, Icelanders, and Faroese. The average Dane enjoys a comfortable standard of living.
See also History of Denmark.
A minority of approx. 50,000 Danes live in Southern Schleswig in Germany, a former Danish territory, forming around 10% of the local population. In Denmark, the latter group is often referred to as De danske syd for grænsen (literally: the Danes south of the (Danish-German) border).
The Danish Nation in a political context
Det danske folk (The Danish nation) as a concept, played an important role in 19th century ethnic nationalism and refers to self-identification rather than a legal status. Use of the term is most often restricted to a historical context; the historic German-Danish struggle regarding the status of the Duchy of Schleswig vis-à-vis a Danish nation-state. It describes people of Danish nationality, both in Denmark and elsewhere. Most importantly, ethnic Danes in both Denmark proper and the former Danish Duchy of Schleswig. Excluded from this definition are people from the formerly Norwegian Faroe Islands and Greenland as well as members of the German minority as well as members of other ethnic minorities.
The term should not be confused with the legal concept of nationality, Danske statsborgere (Danish nationals) i.e. individuals holding Danish citizenship.
Nydanskere (literally: New-Danes) is a recently invented politically correct term to describe immigrants, particularly well-integrated individuals. The term is mostly used by politicians and scientists.
Foreigners often describe Danes as members of a tribe, and refer to the concept of the Danish nation as proof.da:Det danske folk de:Dänen pl:Duńczycy