Political map of the Nordic countries and associated territories.
Overview map of the region.
The 'Nordic countries', sometimes also the 'Nordic region', make up a region in
Northern Europe consisting of
Denmark,
Finland,
Iceland,
Norway and
Sweden and their associated territories (in particular the
Faroe Islands,
Greenland, and
Ã…land). In English usage,
Scandinavia is sometimes used in an extended sense that is synonymous with the Nordic countries.
[1]
The region's five
nation-states and
three autonomous regions share much common history as well as common traits in their respective
societies, such as political systems. Politically, Nordic countries do not form a separate entity, but they co-operate in the
Nordic Council. Linguistically, the area is heterogeneous, with two unrelated language groups, the
North Germanic branch of
Indo-European languages and the
Baltic-Finnic and
Sami branches of
Uralic languages. The Nordic countries have a combined population of approximately 25 million spread over a land area of 3.5 million km² (Greenland accounts for 60% of the total area).
Recently,
Estonia has also projected itself as a Nordic country, although it is widely considered to be a
Baltic state. Estonia has close linguistic, ethnic and cultural ties with Finland, some cultural ties with Sweden, and most of its investment and trade is with the Nordic countries.
Etymology and terminology
The term is
derived from the
French term ''Pays Nordiques'' as an equivalent of the local terms ''Norden'' (
Scandinavian languages), ''
Pohjola'' / ''Pohjoismaat'' (
Finnish language), ''Norðurlönd'' (
Icelandic) and ''Norðurlond'' (
Faroese) with the meaning of "
The North(ern lands)".
In English usage, the term
Scandinavia is also used — though incorrectly — as a synonym for the Nordic countries. From the 1850s, ''Scandinavia'' came to include,
politically and
culturally, Denmark, Norway and Sweden.
Geographically, the
Scandinavian Peninsula includes mainland Sweden and mainland Norway, and also a part of Finland, while the
Jutland Peninsula includes mainland Denmark and a small part of Germany. (Denmark proper has not included any territory on the Scandinavian Peninsula since
1658). The
Faroe Islands and
Iceland are "Scandinavian" in the sense that they were settled by Scandinavians and speak Scandinavian languages, but geographically they are not part of Scandinavia. Finland was once part of Sweden, and has been significantly influenced by Swedish culture, but it is not geographically part of Scandinavia either nor is Finnish related to the Scandinavian languages.
Greenland was settled by the Norse, and is currently part of the Danish realm, with the Danish language spoken by some, but geographically it is part of
North America.
In
geology, the term for the land area which lies above sea level on the
Baltic shield (also known as the
Fennoscandian Shield) is
Fennoscandia (from the
Latin toponyms ''
Fennia'' and ''
Scania'').
Before the 19th century, the term ''Nordic'' may have been used more as a synonym for ''Northern'' to mean
Northern Europe, including
European
Russia, the
Baltic countries (at that time
Estonia,
Livonia and
Courland) and occasionally the
British Isles and other lands on the shores of the
Baltic and
North Seas.
History
The Nordic countries are characterised by similar structures of their societies and cultural traits. This results not only from similar environmental realities and thus traditional livelihoods but also from a shared history.
During the
Middle Ages, what are now Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Iceland, they shared a similar
cultural,
linguistic (
Old Norse) and
religious (
Norse mythology) environment. From ca. the 12th century onwards what is now Finland (linguistically
Baltic-Finnic and broader
Finno-Ugric) started sharing the common developments as it was increasingly integrated into the kingdom of Sweden. As another example of a deeply rooted unifying past could be taken the indigenous Sami lifestyle (linguistically Finno-Ugric) across what is now northern Norway, Sweden and Finland (and beyond). Indeed, all Nordic countries have minority groups deriving or claiming heritage of a population residing within another Nordic state.
After being Christianised around the year 1000, the process of local unification established Denmark, Norway and Sweden as separate
kingdoms. Finland became part of Sweden in the mid 1200s, whereas Iceland, the Faroe Islands, the
Shetland Islands,
Orkney,
Greenland and large parts of
Scotland and
Ireland belonged to Norway. All Nordic countries followed the Protestant Reformation of the Western church during the 16th century and adopted
Lutheran state churches - still having a large membership count, although state church status varies. Finland also has a much smaller
Orthodox state church whose members mainly come from the areas that were outside the Swedish realm when Christianity was introduced.
In the 14th century, Denmark, Norway (with Iceland) and Sweden (with Finland) were united under one
regent, in the
Kalmar Union. Denmark quickly gained the upper hand, but in the early 16th century Sweden reestablished itself as a separate kingdom. Denmark's domination over Norway lasted until 1814 when the king was forced to cede Norway to the king of Sweden. Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands remained Danish.
After establishing itself as one of the
Great powers in Europe during the 17th century Sweden ultimately lost its foreign
Dominions one by one. This process culminated in the loss of Finland to
Russia in 1809 which became an autonomous
Grand Duchy under the Russian
tsar.
The 19th century saw a personal union between Sweden and Norway which was dissolved in 1905 due to growing dissatisfaction from the Norwegian part. At the same time
Scandinavism emerged in Scandinavia. This movement strove to unite the three Scandinavian countries into one kingdom without much success.
During
World War I and in the midst of the
Russian revolution of 1917, Finland emerged for the first time as an independent nation and the perspective of a Nordic community replaced the idea of a united Scandinavia alone. During
World War II in 1944, Iceland gained its independence from Denmark. The member states of the Nordic council (founded in 1952) had thus emerged.
The Nordic countries share similar traits in the policies implemented under the postwar period, especially in the socioeconomic area. All Nordic countries have large tax-funded
public welfare sectors and extensive socialist legislation. In most cases, this is due to the political ambitions of the many
Social Democrat governments that came to power during the interwar period in each of the Nordic countries.
Chronology of the Nordic countries
Nordic Passport Union
The 'Nordic Passport Union', created in
1954, and implemented on
May 1,
1958, allows
citizens of the
Nordic countries (
Denmark (
Faroe Islands included since
January 1,
1966,
Greenland not included),
Sweden,
Norway (
Svalbard,
Jan Mayen,
Bouvet Island and
Queen Maud's Land not included),
Finland and
Iceland (since
September 24,
1965)) to cross approved border districts without carrying and having their
passport checked. Other citizens can also travel between the Nordic countries' borders without having their passport checked, but still have to carry a passport or another kind of approved travel identification papers.
Since
1996, these countries have joined the larger EU directive
Schengen Agreement area, comprising 30 countries in
Europe.
Border checkpoints have been removed within the Schengen zone and only a national
ID card is required. Within the Nordic area any ID card, e.g.
driving licence is valid for Nordic citizens, because of the Nordic Passport Union.
From
March 25 2001, the Schengen
acquis fully applied to the five countries of the Nordic Passport Union (except for the
Faroe Islands, which remain outside of Schengen). There are some areas in the Nordic Passport Union that gives extra rights for Nordic citizens, not covered by Schengen, such as less paperwork if moving to a different Nordic country, and less requirements for
naturalisation of
citizenship.
Political dimension and divisions
The Nordic region has a mild political dimension in joint official bodies called the
Nordic Council and the
Nordic Council of Ministers. In this context, several aspects of the
common market as in the
European Union have been implemented decades before the EU implemented them.
In the European Union, the
Northern Dimension refers to external and cross-border policies covering the Nordic countries, the Baltic countries, and
Russia.
Politically, the Nordic dimension has grown increasingly irrelevant, since the member states disagree on memberships in the European Union,
Eurozone, and
NATO. Norway and Iceland are only members of NATO, while Finland and Sweden are only members of the European Union. Denmark alone participates in both organizations. Only Finland is a member of the Eurozone. The tasks and policies of the European Union overlap with the Nordic council significantly, e.g. the
Schengen Agreement partially supersedes the Nordic
passport free zone and a common labor market.
Flags and symbols
Flags
All Nordic countries, including the autonomous territories of
Faroe and
Ã…land Islands, have a similar flag design, all based on the
Dannebrog, the Danish flag. They display an off-center cross with the intersection closer to the hoist, the "
Nordic cross".
Nordic flags
and the
Sami people have adopted flags without the Nordic cross, but they feature a circle which is placed off-center like the cross.
Areas with close relations to the Nordic countries
Several areas have a long and close relationship with and often identify with some or all of the Nordic countries. These are however for the most part not regarded as part of the Nordic group themselves.
Shetland and Orkney
The
Northern Isles of
Scotland - '
Orkney' and '
Shetland' - have a long-established Nordic identity. The islands were Norwegian
colonies for more than 500 years, but ownership defaulted to the
crown of Scotland in 1472 following non-payment of the marriage
dowry of
Margaret of Denmark and Norway, queen of
James III of Scotland.
During
World War II Shetland and Orkney were important bases for the Norwegian armed forces in exile. The
Shetland Bus was based in Shetland and smuggled refugees, agents and supplies to and from Norway.
In later years financial relations, particularly in the maritime industries, have been important. Cultural and sporting exchanges are frequent. A genetic survey showed that 60% of the male population of Shetland and Orkney had Norwegian genes.
The traditional links to Scandinavia are reflected in the islands' flags, both of which are based around a
Nordic cross:
Other regions of the
British Isles have adopted symbols to allude to a similar Norse or
Norse-Gaelic heritage.
Estonia
Estonians consider themselves a Nordic people rather than
Balts,
[2][3] based on strong linguistic, cultural and historical ties with Finland in particular, and also with Sweden and Denmark. The
Estonian language is closely related to the
Finnish language and
Estonians, as an ethnic group, are a
Finnic people. Estonia was part of the Danish and Swedish
empires for many centuries: it is generally thought that the name of the Estonian capital,
Tallinn, derives from the
Estonian ''taani linn'', meaning 'Danish town.'
|  Proposed Estonian flag featuring a Nordic cross |
| Current Estonian flag | Proposed Estonian flag
featuring a Nordic cross |
Estonia was part of the
Swedish and
Danish Empires for centuries prior to its absorption into the
Russian Empire. Historically, large parts of Estonia’s north-western coast and islands have been populated by an indigenous ethnically Swedish population (
Estonian Swedes). The majority of Estonia's Swedish population fled to Sweden in 1944, escaping the advancing Soviet Army. Only about a thousand Swedes were left.
Since regaining
independence in 1991,
Estonia has expressed interest in identifying with the Nordic community. In 1999, Estonian Foreign Minister — and current president since 2006 —
Toomas Hendrik Ilves delivered a speech entitled "Estonia as a Nordic Country" to the
Swedish Institute for International Affairs.
[4] In 2003, the
foreign ministry also hosted an exhibit called "Estonia: Nordic with a Twist."
[5] In 2005, Estonia also joined the
European Union's
Nordic Battle Group and shows interest in joining the
Nordic Council.
Today there is a great deal of economic interdependence between Estonia and some of its Nordic neighbors. Three quarters of investments into Estonia come from Nordic states (principally Finland and Sweden), to which Estonia sends 58% of its exports. On the other hand, the Estonian political system and non-welfare-state model distinguish it from the other Nordic states, and from many other European countries.
Others
The North of
England, particularly the
North East was once part of the Danish Viking Empire, and the modern
Geordie dialect spoken in
Newcastle-upon-Tyne shares some similarity to the modern Germanic languages of the Nordic countries. The region and its culture does not have a Nordic character however.
Finally, the northernmost part of
Germany,
Southern Schleswig on the
Jutland peninsula, had a Nordic identity up until its transfer to Germany in the mid 19th century and its subsequent
Germanisation. Today, the Nordic character of Southern Schleswig's society and its inhabitants is not very prominent.
See also
★
Scandinavia
★
Subdivisions of the Nordic countries
★
Nordic Council
★
Nordic Cross
★
Northern Dimension
★
Thule
★
West Nordic Council
★
Baltic countries
★
Baltic region
★
Largest Nordic Companies
★
Northern Europe
★
''Nordic countries'' a journal created by
Institut Choiseul for International Politics and Geoeconomics
References
1. "Scandinavia". Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2007.
2. "Estonian Life". Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs publication, 2004.
3. "Estonian Life". Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs publication, 2002.
4. Ilves, Toomas Hendrik. "Estonia as a Nordic Country". December 14, 1999.
5. "Estonia - Nordic with a Twist". Estonian Ministry of Social Affairs, 2004 (last updated).
External links
★
Norden — the Nordic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers' website.
★
Nordregio — a European centre for research, education and documentation on spatial development, established by the Nordic Council of Ministers.
★
NordRegio Statistics — a collection of thematic maps and figures of Nordic and Baltic countries by NordRegio.
★
Go Scandinavia — official website of the Scandinavian Tourist Boards in North America.
★
Scandinavia House — the Nordic Center in New York, run by the
American-Scandinavian Foundation.
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