Notes on Danish culture

If you’ve just arrived in Denmark – welcome! And if you’ve just discovered that there are no igloos here – congratulations!

An important milestone

The reason you’re in Denmark and planning to stay is most likely because of a Dane you’ve met in your home town. Danes are extremely proud of their country, and for good reason. If you’ve already made it so far as to have to decide about living in Denmark, you are probably already convinced that the only reason the world has not long ago descended into complete mayhem is solely thanks to the efforts of the Danes. You look back at your own country with new eyes, noting its inadequacies, and based on what your Danish friends have told you, conclude that you’d be foolish not to embrace this veritable utopia as your new home.

I have to concede there is much to be said about the hype that is so generously dispensed around the world by Denmark’s young emissaries. It probably is one of the best-organized countries in the world (like Carlsberg probably is the best beer). Its current social, cultural and ideological roots all trace back to Renaissance Enlightenment ideals of reason and common sense, and while it essentially is a Christian country, religion features very little in its government, schooling and everyday discourse. A socially progressive country, its focus is less on the individual and more on the common good – which in economic terms means high taxation, free education, free health care and a good infrastructure. While some might disagree, its governmental and bureaucratic structures are generally efficient and well-oiled, with very low levels of corruption.

On the other hand, it is not quite home for you, and settling in can be hard, especially if you’ve never left your beloved country before. While Denmark is very organized and the people very friendly, you might find it a bit rigid in places and lacking a bit in imagination. There will always be pros and cons for you to contend with.

The point I want to make is that, yes, Denmark is in many respects a great country, but when you come to Denmark for the first time, your perspective of it will be completely dependent on impressions you get from your Danish friends and stuff you read in travel books, which might not always be quite objective or accurate. Sometimes you read something about a place, but your own experience of it happens to be completely opposite. An important thing to remember when coming to Denmark (as with visiting any new country) is to keep an open mind, and not to take completely to heart everything you’ve heard about the place, even from Danes themselves. No, especially not from the Danes themselves!

So, you will be prone to unrealistic and possibly even some overly-grandiose expectations during your first few months in Denmark. This is fairly common. It is a perfectly natural response to the exotic and unknown. This is what is known as the honeymoon phase, where everything seems wonderful and magical. Enjoy it while you can; it will soon be replaced by a sequence of other, lesser-pleasant phases.

Typical Danish girl watching pedestrians go by

Denmark is not a fairytale land. Crime, although relatively rare, does exist. Your stuff will get stolen if you’re not careful, and while the vast majority of Danes are much nicer than people I’ve met in some other countries, you will most certainly meet some unsavoury and downright nasty people as well (as the laws of averages and common sense well dictate you should).

If you’re ethnically different from the Danes, you might on the rare occasion experience some racism, but again, the overwhelming majority of Danes are pleasant, tolerant and well-educated. It is certainly a non-issue in deciding whether to come to Denmark or not.

The following submissions will pertain to the lessons (at speakdanish.dk), including topics such as socializing, shopping, visiting the doctor, and so on. Much of it will be based on my own opinion and experience as a foreigner in Denmark, so it will by no means be an authoritative or definitive guide to Danish culture – but I hope that it will be enough to generate some lively discussion. I will try to add a new entry as often as I can.