With the formation of the Kalmar Union in 1397, these three Scandinavian nations, along with their respective territories, were ruled by a common monarch, Queen Margrethe I of Denmark. Youth unemployment is higher than the UK's and higher than the EU average; integration is an ongoing challenge; and as with Norway and Denmark, the Swedish right is on the rise. Denmark is becoming a nation divided, essentially, between the places which have a branch of Sticks'n'Sushi (Copenhagen) and the rest. It has been hundreds of years since the Danes and Swedes last took up arms against each other, and just about the only modern-day hostilities between them involve words, attitudes, and even volleys of tweets during an epic social media dust-up. Mostly Sunni Muslim, they have their own unique language and customs. In fact, Erdogan has already blocked an early attempt by NATO to fast-track Finland and Sweden's applications, saying their membership would make the alliance "a place where representatives of terrorist organizations are concentrated.". [1]. Other awkward truths? Neighbors may also have different religious convictions as well. Norway saw a 40% increase over the five-year-period of young people seeking help for mental health difficulties. Why did Sweden and Norway Break Up? It said that research shows lack of social contact was a greater problem among Nordic men than women. Photo by Eline Van Breda. The clash has sent Western diplomats scrambling to bring Turkey on side, as Ankara presented a list of grievances to NATO ambassadors about its issues with the Nordic states Sweden in particular. Finland and Sweden formally applied to join NATO on Wednesday at Allied headquarters in Brussels, driven by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Like the Swedes, they embraced privatisation with great enthusiasm (even the ambulance service is privatised); and can seem spectacularly unsophisticated in their race relations (cartoon depictions of black people with big lips and bones through their noses are not uncommon in the national press). Read about our approach to external linking. The Swedish approach. To say that Denmark and Sweden are historical rivals would be a vast understatement when looking at the number of conflicts between these two Scandinavian countries. to learn more. In other regional conflicts around the world, present-day racial, political, and social tensions can be traced back thousands of years, not just hundreds like in Scandinavia. Christian started Scandinavia Facts to explore his family heritage, raise awareness of one of his academic interests as a professor, and civilly promote the region. link to 5 Great Places To Stay in Iceland. Finland ranks third in global gun ownership behind only America and Yemen; has the highest murder rate in western Europe, double that of the UK; and by far the highest suicide rate in the Nordic countries. Here's how that would work, 30,000 and 40,000 people are estimated to have died. But do some people living today still have resentment and hold negative views about a neighboring people group due to conflicts that happened centuries ago? [8]. 3. According to The Explorer, Norway has long been at the forefront in regards to Electric Vehicles: The idea is that because Sweden's horrific death rates followed its refusal to lock down its society as strictly as other countries, the latter must have been the cause of the former. Anything I say about the Swedes will pale in comparison to their own excoriating self-image. But for as long as the internet has . (The other day, I turned up at my local A&E to be told that I had to make an appointment, which I can't help feeling rather misunderstands the nature of the service.) The decision represents a setback for Moscow, with the. Some Norwegians, like some Danes and Swedes, have a certain perspective about visitors and non-natives who have relocated to Norway. gender equality, freedom of information). Will Ferrell hates Norway because They sell way more electric cars per capita than the United States. 2023 BBC. Swedens opposition to Nato membership has been more ideological. Sweden and Finland are set formally to end decades of neutrality and join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), in a historic breakthrough for the alliance that deals a blow to Russian . Join the Allies!"). to learn more about Scandinavian culture. It may be no surprise to hear that Northern Europe is top of the charts in SDGs with Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Austria as the top sustainable countries leading the way in creating a more sustainable world. ), At their closest points, Denmark and Sweden are separated by a mere 12 kilometers (roughly 7 miles), and yet Danes and Swedes are culturally distinct and speak different languages. Nordic countries like Finland and Norway may regularly come out on top of world happiness indexes for wellbeing year-on-year - but new research shows the happiness is far from universal. Today, they are friendly rivals, especially when it comes to getting in the last word. They were both part of the Kalmar Union between 1397 and 1523, and a personal union between 1814 and 1905. A Division of NBCUniversal. How can they afford all those expensively foraged meals and hand-knitted woollens? For example when the US came and made that whole ASAP Rocky bullshit, the Danish media was all over the place, defending Sweden and condemning America. According to him, his countrymen have been corrupted by their oil money, are working less, retiring earlier, and calling in sick more frequently. So what are other stereotypes people have about Scandinavians? 15 reasons why you should move to Sweden. According to the World Cancer Research Fund, the Danes have the highest cancer rates on the planet. Sweden denies this, saying it supports other Kurds who are not in the PKK but the details are more complicated. And Norway isn't the only Scandinavian neighbor barring Swedes, with some exceptions, from visiting this summer. 'Finland and Sweden should not base their security on damaging the security of other countries and their accession to NATO can have detrimental consequences and face some military and political consequences,' foreign affairs spokeswoman Maria . According to the 2019 iteration of the World Happiness Report, Denmark ranked as the second happiest nation in the world, and Sweden ranked a very respectable seventh in the world (in fact, all 5 Nordic countries ranked within the top ten). 11 Really Good Reasons Why You Should Visit land, https://www.hofstede-insights.com/product/compare-countries/, http://www.worldvaluessurvey.org/images/Culture_Map_2017_conclusive.png, http://www.fallintofinland.com/culture/how-to-communicate-with-a-finn/, http://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/mondays_papers_mp_absences_athletes_drinking_biathlon_bronze_norovirus_hunt/9469182, https://www.infopankki.fi/en/living-in-finland/finnish-and-swedish/finnish-online. There is no true animosity between these two former enemies today, which is a testament to the high standard of civility cultivated throughout Scandinavia in the modern era. Neighboring countries sometimes seek the same land and water use. [7], In the early 16th-century, the union began to show signs of fraying. "Swedish women try to moan as little as possible during childbirth and they often ask, when it is all over, whether they screamed very much. Every nation has a neighbor it dislikes. See Do Swedes Actually Like Surstromming? Sweden, however, remained the regional outlier for more than a century. Norwegians feel a deep connection with the landscape and take any opportunity to experience it, like this couple cross-country skiing. The reasons behind Turkey's opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO are complicated, emotional and steeped in decades ofoftenviolent history. More . Thank you for visiting Scandinavia Facts. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns. Later, in 1523, Sweden left the alliance, which resulted in increased tension among the Scandinavian nations. Apparently, crying at funerals is frowned upon and "remembered long afterwards". "At some point in the evening around 11.30pm, people start behaving aggressively, throwing punches, wrestling," Heikki Aittokoski, foreign editor of Helsingin Sanomat, told me. Sometimes non-Scandinavians mix up countries in the region. Why do Sweden and Finland have a bitter relationship? Everyone understands that Finland is not Russian, despite being part of the Russian Empire for 108 years. I think a lot of the reason Sweden being targetted by its neighbours can be attributed to simple facts: Sweden being the immediate Nordic neighbour of Denmark/Norway/Finland, Sweden being the largest country in the Nordics. (Also see Do People Still Practice the Norse Religion Today? Denmark, Sweden and Norway have eased or eliminated all of their COVID-19 related restrictions, but posts falsely claiming this means their governments stopped believing in the pandemic or . Nearly 20% of Turkey's 84 million-strong population is Kurdish, with some Kurds holding important positions in Turkish politics and society, though many say they are discriminated against and their political parties face crackdowns from the Turkish state. However, what is often overlooked is that in addition to their raids against foreign people in faraway places like the British Isles and France, the Vikings also waged war against each other. We invoke another Latin expression as more pertinent to Sweden's excess corona deaths: ceteris paribus, or "all things equal." One main reason this is the case is because of the competition over resources. It is time to redress the imbalance, shed a little light Beyond the Wall. It was part of Sweden for 600 years, and the cultures are similar, a minority of Finns speak Swedish, surely they are Swedish? So you know, only we can criticize each other, and if other countries try it, they need to shut up. Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes. Just like in other countries around the world, sometimes native residents dont want others coming into their country and taking jobs or benefiting from social programs that they havent been into very long or not at all. [1] But it has so many exciting places that deciding which area to visit can be challenging. The top eight adjectives they chose were: envious, stiff, industrious, nature loving, quiet, honest, dishonest, xenophobic. While such competitive Scandinavians may cross a line at a given time, like a Dane who shouts negative comments to a Swede during a hockey game, collectively the competitive spirits of Scandinavians dont result in harmful outcomes. Pull up an Egg. If you do decide to move there, don't expect scintillating conversation. Think of it as the China of the north. Yet historical disagreements, and international conflict, can create rifts between neighboring people groups, even ones their current citizens didnt directly experience. The Swedes are, he says, "highly adept at insulating themselves from each other". I hear you say. Perceived tension may be due to competition and rivalry that is not hate-based. "It's not just a matter of Sweden's liberal policies towards Kurdish refugees and political dissidents and activists. A Norwegian who is passionate about winter sports, may have a national pride when it comes to comparisons about speed skating or cross-country skiing. Luckily, judging by a recent journey I took with my eldest son the length of the country by train, the place appears to be 99% trees. Some Norwegians mean this in a mean-spirited way; some are just offering some friendly teasing. Effectively a one-party state albeit supported by a couple of shadowy industrialist families for much of the 20th century, "neutral" Sweden (one of the world largest arms exporters) continues to thrive economically thanks to its distinctive brand of totalitarian modernism, which curbs freedoms, suppresses dissent in the name of consensus, and seems hell-bent on severing the bonds between wife and husband, children and parents, and elderly on their children. Their data found these problems being reported by young people in particular. If only I had a penny everyone time someone from my country cried about tar or cudgel war well I wouldn't be rich but I could easily afford a cup of coffee. Both countries switched from formal neutrality to military non-alignment in 1995 when they joined the EU. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning, Norway the nice side, at least. Since the Treaty of Copenhagen, there havent been significant problems between the three Scandinavian countries that have reached the extremes of military conflict. After centuries of animosity and war, Denmark and Sweden have learned to co-exist peacefully. Underlying the tension between Turkey and Sweden is how each country defines "terrorist," says Hussein Ibish, a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. Whether it is Denmark's happiness, its restaurants, or TV dramas; Sweden's gender equality, crime novels and retail giants; Finland's schools; Norway's oil wealth and weird songs about foxes; or Iceland's bounce-back from the financial abyss, we have an insatiable appetite for positive Nordic news stories. , This blog uses affiliate links and cookies, Growing Your Travel Blog Through Branding . The Danish national rail company has skirted bankruptcy in recent years, and the trains most assuredly do not run on time. But public opinion in Finland and Sweden suggests that he has driven them into NATO's arms. So let's remove those rose-tinted ski goggles and take a closer look at the objects of our infatuation . The claim that Denmark is the EU's largest oil exporter was based on out-of-date information and has been removed. Finland and Sweden could apply for membership of the 30-nation Nato alliance within days, ending decades of military non-alignment in a historic shift triggered by Russias invasion of Ukraine. And Sweden? As a result, productivity is worryingly sluggish. The Vikings are often perceived as ultraviolent people whose ruthless ways terrorized all of Northern Europe during the Middle Ages. Ask the Finns and they will tell you that Swedish ultra-feminism has emasculated their men, but they will struggle to drown their sorrows. Perhaps the Danes' dirtiest secret is that, according to a 2012 report from the Worldwide Fund for Nature, they have the fourth largest per capita ecological footprint in the world. Sweden's Prime Minister, Ulf Kristersson, referencing the unrealistic demands that Turkey is making, said on January 9 that, "Turkey both confirms that we did what we said we would do, but they also say they want things we can't and don't want . References:[1] Source[2] Source[3] Source[4] Source[5] Source[6] Source[7] Source[8] Source[9] Source. The PKK have carried out scores of attacks within Turkey. There is more than a whiff of the police state about the fact that Danish policeman refuse to display ID numbers and can refuse to give their names. Please see the About page for details. Crucially, they all perform well in terms of government openness and effectiveness. Most start with around five weeks of paid vacation and more as you go. "My suspicion is that Turkey, eventually, especially if it can extract a few concessions here and there from the Western powers and its NATO allies, will not ultimately seek to block Finland and Sweden from joining the organization," the Arab Gulf States Institute's Ibish said. (Short Animated Documentary) History Matters 1.51M subscribers Subscribe 69K 2.2M views 1 year ago Sometimes countries break up, like Britain and Ireland,. or the past few years the world has been in thrall to all things Nordic (for which purpose we must of course add Iceland and Finland to the Viking nations of Denmark, Norway and Sweden). Finlands prime minister, Sanna Marin, and her Swedish counterpart, Magdalena Andersson, said last month that Russias invasion of Ukraine had changed Europes whole security landscape and dramatically shaped mindsets in the Nordic region. Btw, there was a similar thread in r/Nordiccountries recently: r/Nordiccountries/comments/jqwqxt/why_do_nordic_countries_citizens_seem_to_dislike/. Both considered that joining the alliance would represent an unnecessary provocation of Moscow, and so have long pursued policies of neutrality, and then non-alignment, to avoid antagonising a major regional power. They're not big on chat. Last Sunday night confirmed literally none of our guesses. It's also a reflection of differing definitions over who and what constitutes intolerable Kurdish extremism," Ibish said. Ask the Danes how they feel about their neighbors to the northeast, and the Swedes would likely be described as being stiff, overly reserved, and downright unfriendly. Somehow, though, the government still managed to find 2m to fund a two-year tax-scandal investigation largely concerned, as far as I can make out, with the sexual orientation of the prime minister's husband, Stephen Kinnock. Finlands president, prime minister and senior cabinet ministers will meet on Sunday to make a formal decision on submitting an application. But this does not mean that they are all too chummy either. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. It found general health and mental health were both closely associated with happiness ratings - with unemployment, income and sociability also playing a role. Norway's strong social security net, which includes generous parental leave policies, is a key reason the country of just over 5 million people is consistently rated one of the best places in the world to live. 1. link to 5 Great Places To Stay in Iceland. In the US, they'd have an intervention.". (Also see What Are Reindeer Used for in Norway? "The Russian invasion of Ukraine and the fact that the war now focuses on parts of that country that are adjacent to Turkey and of profound strategic and even historic interest to Ankara has reminded many Turks of the value of membership in NATO.". Video, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story, The researchers behind In the Shadow of Happiness looked at data collected across five years, Time, not material goods, 'raises happiness', one of the report's authors, Michael Birkjaer, told the Guardian newspaper. So while 3.9% of people in the Nordic region may report scores so low they are classed as "suffering" - that level is as high as 26.9% in Russia and 17% in France. Other widely accepted stereotypes of Swedes depict them as: Sweden has a fascinating culture. Enough with foraging for dinner. Sweden, which along with Finland is seeking entry into the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, has been one of Europe's most willing recipients of migrants fleeing conflict, including Kurds.. Actually, they dont hate them at all. Researchers found mental health to be one of the most significant barriers to subjective well-being. The Finns are epic Friday-night bingers and alcohol is now the leading cause of death for Finnish men. Some people believe Norwegians are just more competitive than their neighbors. As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Nonaligned up until now, Finland and Sweden last weekend announced plans to abandon that position and join NATO in the wake of Russia's bloody invasion of Ukraine. Stockholm also politically and financially supports the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), the political wing of the SDF, a Kurdish-led militia group created with support from the U.S. to fight ISIS in Syria. Ethnic minorities living in Nordic countries were less happy, Very religious people were more likely to be happier, No difference was found between people living in the country and those in cities. Thank you for posting on NordicHistoryMemes. Its true that Scandinavia holds the highest percentage of people with blonde hair and blue eyes in the world. Sign up to First Edition, our free daily newsletter every weekday at 7am BST, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. Don't worry man, nobody hates Sweden, it's just sibling rivalry. Sweden too is ramping up its military budget and expects to reach the target by 2028. Worth bearing that in mind the next time a Dane wags her finger at your patio heater. Finland's leaders on Thursday officially expressed support for applying to NATO "without delay," while Sweden's ruling party is expected to follow suit on Sunday. 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