Denmark

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)

56 00 N, 10 00 E

Europe

slightly less than twice the size of Massachusetts; about two-thirds the size of West Virginia

7,314 km

temperate; humid and overcast; mild, windy winters and cool summers

low and flat to gently rolling plains

petroleum, natural gas, fish, arable land, salt, limestone, chalk, stone, gravel and sand

2,420 sq km (2022)

population centers tend to be along coastal areas, particularly in Copenhagen and the eastern side of the country's mainland

flooding is a threat in some areas of the country (e.g., parts of Jutland, along the southern coast of the island of Lolland) that are protected from the sea by a system of dikes

composed of the Jutland Peninsula and a group of more than 400 islands (Danish Archipelago); controls Danish Straits (Skagerrak and Kattegat) linking Baltic and North Seas; about one-quarter of the population lives in greater Copenhagen

Danish (includes Greenlandic (who are predominantly Inuit) and Faroese) 84.2%, Turkish 1.1%, other 14.7% (largest groups are Polish, Romanian, Syrian, Ukrainian, German, and Iraqi) (2023 est.)

Evangelical Lutheran (official) 71.4%, Muslim 4.3%, other/none/unspecified (denominations include Roman Catholic, Jehovah's Witness, Serbian Orthodox Christian, Jewish, Baptist, Buddhist, Church of Jesus Christ, Pentecostal, and nondenominational Christian) 24.3% (2024 est.)

0.64% (2025 est.)

9.81 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

10.56 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

7.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

population centers tend to be along coastal areas, particularly in Copenhagen and the eastern side of the country's mainland

1.381 million COPENHAGEN (capital) (2023)

29.8 years (2020 est.)

4 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

1.5 children born/woman (2025 est.)

0.73 (2025 est.)

7.24 physicians/1,000 population (2021)

2.5 beds/1,000 population (2021 est.)

19.7% (2016)

54.3% (2024 est.)

parliamentary constitutional monarchy

civil law; judicial review of legislative acts

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal

ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CD, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOOSA, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

ca. 965 (unified and Christianized under Harald I GORMSSON); 5 June 1849 (became a parliamentary constitutional monarchy)

Constitution Day, 5 June (1849)

lion, mute swan

red, white

high-income, EU-member, trade-oriented Nordic economy; growth driven by pharmaceuticals, energy, and services; large share of employment in public sector; fixed exchange rate pegged to euro; strong fiscal position and declining public debt; tight labor market mitigated by migrant workers and higher retirement age

$429.457 billion (2024 est.)

milk, wheat, potatoes, barley, sugar beets, pork, rapeseed, rye, oats, chicken (2023)

wind turbines, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, shipbuilding and refurbishment, iron, steel, nonferrous metals, chemicals, food processing, machinery and transportation equipment, textiles and clothing, electronics, construction, furniture and other wood products

12% (2024 est.)

3.21 million (2024 est.)

12.4% (2021 est.)

31.4% (of GDP) (2023 est.)

Germany 13%, USA 10%, Sweden 9%, Netherlands 7%, China 5% (2023)

packaged medicine, fish, vaccines, refined petroleum, pork (2023)

Germany 18%, Sweden 11%, Norway 10%, Netherlands 9%, China 7% (2023)

natural gas, cars, garments, packaged medicine, refined petroleum (2023)

strong public-sector TV presence, with Danmarks Radio (DR) operating 6 channels and TV2 operating roughly a half-dozen channels; private stations are available via satellite and cable feed; DR operates 4 FM radio stations, 10 digital audio stations, and 14 web-based radio stations; 140 commercial and 187 community (non-commercial) radio stations (2019)

.dk

OY

102 (2025)

29 (2025)

Danish Armed Forces (Forsvaret): Royal Danish Army, Royal Danish Navy, Royal Danish Air Force (2025)

approximately 17,000 active-duty military personnel (2025)

the Danish military inventory is comprised of modern European, Israeli, US, and domestically produced weapons and equipment; the Danish defense industry is active in the production of naval vessels, defense electronics, and subcomponents of larger weapons systems, such as the US F-35 fighter aircraft; the major warships of the Royal Danish Navy are produced domestically (2025)

18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service for men and women; draftees serve 11 months, including five months of basic training, followed by six months in an operational unit (2025)

Denmark contributes air, ground, and naval forces to a variety of international missions, including grounds troops to NATO's forward defenses in Latvia (2025)