By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. For Hakki Akil, a former Turkish ambassador, the Turkish perspective is "very simple. Thank you for visiting Scandinavia Facts. Will Ferrell hates Norway because They sell way more electric cars per capita than the United States. Thank you for visiting Scandinavia Facts. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Many have pointed to their success as a contrast to Sweden, which has a much higher COVID-19 death rate. For instance, non-Scandinavians observe many similarities between Norwegians, Swedes, and Danes, especially when it comes to appearance, politics, and lifestyle. Don't worry man, nobody hates Sweden, it's just sibling rivalry. Various Kurdish groups have pushed for Kurdish autonomy and statehood over the decades, some peacefully and some, like the PKK, through violence. The most direct route via Sweden and Finland would still take at least 27 hours. Denmark's provinces have become a social dumping ground for non-western immigrants, the elderly, the unemployed and the unemployable who live alongside Denmark's 22m intensively farmed pigs, raised 10 to a pen and pumped full of antibiotics (the pigs, that is). We invoke another Latin expression as more pertinent to Sweden's excess corona deaths: ceteris paribus, or "all things equal." But would I want to live in Finland? This sparked huge tensions with Turkey, which then launched attacks on the Kurds in Syria. As of 2022, NATO has expanded to let in three former Soviet states and all of the former Warsaw Pact countries. Yet, it is sometimes the case that neighboring countries, though their people can be similar, have more conflict with each other, not less. Some Swedes are deeply offended at the joke; some laugh and agree. It might not seem like there is a big difference between the 2 Scandinavian countries whereas to the land, use and its outlook, but there are a . There are many widely held perceptions about Scandinavians, with quite a few rooted in truth and others very far from it. Sweden denies this, saying it supports other Kurds who are not in the PKK but the details are more complicated. The Finns are epic Friday-night bingers and alcohol is now the leading cause of death for Finnish men. Polls show public support for Nato membership has trebled to about 75% in Finland and surged to about 60% in Sweden. Ask the Danes, and they will tell you that the Norwegians are the most insular and xenophobic of all the Scandinavians, and it is true that since they came into a bit of money in the 1970s the Norwegians have become increasingly Scrooge-like, hoarding their gold, fearful of outsiders. "We are seeing that this epidemic of mental illness and loneliness is reaching the shores of the Nordic countries.". They will do anything to avoid sharing a lift with a stranger, as I found out during a day-long experiment behaving as un-Swedishly as possible in Stockholm. It was part of Sweden for 600 years, and the cultures are similar, a minority of Finns speak Swedish, surely they are Swedish? The Nato secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, has said they would be welcomed with open arms if they do apply and that the accession process would be quick, although formal ratification by all the alliances members could take several months. Why do the Danes score so highly on international happiness surveys? The Swedes are, he says, "highly adept at insulating themselves from each other". The authors say that in Nordic countries high incomes protected people against feeling they were suffering or struggling. "We would always prefer to be alone," a Finnish woman once admitted to me. This gesture was repeated when members of the Sweden Democrats abstained in the European Parliament resolution condemning Hungary's controversial LGBTIQ law. Norwegians love their country and many of its citizens believe it is better than other nations, though in a non-hateful way. 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. Dont worry man, nobody hates Sweden, its just sibling rivalry. "More and more young people are getting lonely and stressed and having mental disorders," one of the report's authors, Michael Birkjaer, told the Guardian newspaper. 15 reasons why you should move to Sweden. 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. In Denmark, Sweden and Norway, political parties introduced voluntary gender quotas in the 1970s, resulting in high numbers of female political representatives . Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Finland, Denmark, Sweden and New Zealand all have high GDP per capita, low inequality rates, literacy rates close to 100 %, and prioritise human right issues (e.g. I have contributed to the relentless Tetris shower of print columns on the wonders of Scandinavia myself over the years but now I say: enough! It found that young women consistently reported feeling depressed more than young men did. 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. Scandinavia Flags: Compare Designs and Meanings. [6]. It is unclear how he would respond if he considers the alliances expansion in northern Europe an existential danger. - Quora Answer (1 of 22): It is hardly bitter on the Swedish side and I would not use that exact word on the Finnish side either. Neighbors may also have different religious convictions as well. (Also see Why Do Doors Open Outward in Sweden?). "The Sweet Danish Life: Copenhagen: Cool, Creative, Carefree," simpered National Geographic; Protesters clash with police at an asylum centre near Copenhagen in 2008. 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. Geographically speaking, the Scandinavian peninsula is the area shared by Norway, Sweden, and a part of northern Finland. What do Norwegians think of Swedes and Danes? The PKK have carried out scores of attacks within Turkey. The Norwegians were allowed to maintain their parliament, and their own army and judiciary. A 1948 agreement of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with Russia isolated Finland militarily from western Europe, though the breakup of the Soviet Union and EU membership have since allowed it to step out of Russias shadow. It wasnt until 1536, that a new alliance between Norway and Denmark was formed. But this does not mean that they are all too chummy either. Enough of the unblinking idolatry of all things knitted, bearded, rye bread-based and licorice-laced. Video, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece, Record numbers of guide dog volunteers after BBC story. The causes of the Scandinavia's states wealth are numerous and complex. No but seriously what did we do? Here is a brief look at the background and implications of their decisions. I was told we'd run out of time. In 2021, Sweden's government announced an increase in funding for Kurdish groups in Syria to $376 million by 2023, saying it remained an "active partner" to Syria's Kurds and that its funds were aimed at "strengthening resilience, human security and freedom from violence" and improving "human rights, gender equality and democratic development.". But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoan described Finland and Sweden as a "hatchery" for terror groups. And that is done by distancing, ribbing and at times even a slight hostility. [1] But it has so many exciting places that deciding which area to visit can be challenging. According to him, his countrymen have been corrupted by their oil money, are working less, retiring earlier, and calling in sick more frequently. See Why Do Some Icelandic People Look Asian? Photograph: AFP/Getty Images, Finns having a quiet drink Photograph: Martti Kainulainen/REX, A car burning after riots in Stockholm in 2013. So, yes, I do think culture matters a great deal to understanding why countries like Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden score high on this particular indicator of happiness. The myriad successes of the Nordic countries are no miracle, they were born of a combination of Lutheran modesty, peasant parsimony, geographical determinism and ruthless pragmatism ("The Russians are attacking? . So you know, only we can criticize each other, and if other countries try it, they need to shut up. Although the report particularly focuses on Nordic countries, it does compare some of the data to that recorded elsewhere. Why, asks one expert, does everybody think the Nordic region is a utopia? For example, a Norwegian who is hyper competitive about, A Norwegian who is passionate about social issues, may have a national pride when it comes to comparisons of tolerance or the strength and availability of. In 1520, the execution of 80 members of Swedish nobility (an event that came to be known as the Stockholm Bloodbath) under the direction of then-leader of the union Kristian II of Denmark set the stage for Sweden to break away from the Kalmar Union and set off on its own path of sovereign independence under Swedish ruler Gustav Vasa. 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). Icelands epic landscapes draw hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. I am very fond of the Finns, a most pragmatic, redoubtable people with a Sahara-dry sense of humour. (Also see Are Norwegians and Swedes the Same People?). Vladimir Putin sees Nato not as a defensive alliance but as a threat to Russias security. Last Wednesday in Stockholm, the prime ministers of Sweden and Finland, countries where neutrality and military non-alliance are deeply woven into their cultures, shocked the world by issuing a. Western governments hailed the Kurdish fighters as allies, and several EU countries put various embargoes on Turkey due to their targeting of Kurdish militias in Syria, highlighting the intractable differences between how each side perceived the fighters. [3] Other Swedish characterizations of the Danish include: Due to their proximity to continental Europe and their direct interactions throughout history with the French and Germans, Danish people are also often perceived as possessing a bit of an elitist attitude toward their fellow Scandinavians across the water in Sweden and Norway. "Swedes seem not to 'feel as strongly' as certain other people", Daun writes in his excellent book, Swedish Mentality. A spokesman for the Sweden Democrats (currently at an all-time high of close to 10% in the polls) insisted to me that immigrants were "more prone to violence". The view was a bit samey. Your identity is a lot about what you are not. Finland and Sweden share a long history, similar legal systems, and an economic and social model.Finland was part of Sweden for almost 700 years from around 1150 until the Finnish War of 1809 after which Finland became an autonomous part of the Russian Empire as the Grand Duchy of Finland.Since Finland gained its full independence from Russia in 1917, Finland and Sweden have been close . Norway saw a 40% increase over the five-year-period of young people seeking help for mental health difficulties. Norwegians, Swedes, and Danes all get along very well. Socialists quit Denmark coalition over energy deal, 'The grim truth behind the Scandinavian miracle' the nations respond, Finland's heart is not so dark as it's been painted, Nordicana sale in London makes a killing from Scandinavian culture, Climate change: don't get scared, get ready, TheAlmost Nearly Perfect People: TheTruth About theNordic Miracle byMichael Booth review, Borgen creator Adam Price: 'We had to give Birgitte a Faustian choice' - video interview, TheLegacy: Danish treat for BBC viewers to get teeth into post-Borgen, Danish media accused of ignoring plight of jailed computer specialist, Nordic nations respond to the original article, "The Nordic Countries: The Next Supermodel", "Copenhagen really is wonderful for so many reasons,", second only to Iceland when it comes to consuming anti- depressants, "the most successful society the world has ever seen", work fewer hours per year than most of the rest of the world, the highest level of private debt in the world, 2012 report from the Worldwide Fund for Nature, The Legacy, when it comes to BBC4 later this year, Denmark's schools lag behind even the UK's, the sexual orientation of the prime minister's husband, Stephen Kinnock, the Norwegians boast of using only renewable energy sources, the world's largest sovereign wealth fund selling fossil fuels to the rest of us, the highest murder rate in western Europe, the leading cause of death for Finnish men, higher than the UK's and higher than the EU average, an all-time high of close to 10% in the polls. 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