1.
Danish language
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There are also minor Danish-speaking communities in Norway, Sweden, Spain, the United States, Canada, Brazil and Argentina. Due to immigration and language shift in urban areas, around 15–20% of the population of Greenland speak Danish as their home language. Along with the other North Germanic languages, Danish is a descendant of Old Norse, until the 16th century, Danish was a continuum of dialects spoken from Schleswig to Scania with no standard variety or spelling conventions. With the Protestant Reformation and the introduction of printing, a language was developed which was based on the educated Copenhagen dialect. It spread through use in the system and administration though German. Today, traditional Danish dialects have all but disappeared, though there are variants of the standard language. The main differences in language are between generations, with youth language being particularly innovative, Danish has a very large vowel inventory comprising 27 phonemically distinctive vowels, and its prosody is characterized by the distinctive phenomenon stød, a kind of laryngeal phonation type. The grammar is moderately inflective with strong and weak conjugations and inflections, nouns and demonstrative pronouns distinguish common and neutral gender. As in English, Danish only has remnants of a case system, particularly in the pronouns. Its syntax is V2, with the verb always occupying the second slot in the sentence. Danish is a Germanic language of the North Germanic branch, other names for this group are the Nordic or Scandinavian languages. Along with Swedish, Danish descends from the Eastern dialects of the Old Norse language, Scandinavian languages are often considered a dialect continuum, where there are no sharp dividing lines between the different vernacular languages. Like Norwegian and Swedish, Danish was significantly influenced by Low German in the Middle Ages, Danish itself can be divided into three main dialect areas, West Danish, Insular Danish, and East Danish. Danish is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Swedish, both Swedes and Danes also understand Norwegian better than they understand each others languages. By the 8th century, the common Germanic language of Scandinavia, Proto-Norse, had some changes. This language was called the Danish tongue, or Norse language. Norse was written in the alphabet, first with the elder futhark. From the 7th century the common Norse language began to undergo changes that did not spread to all of Scandinavia, most of the changes separating East Norse from West Norse started as innovations in Denmark, that spread through Scania into Sweden and by maritime contact to southern Norway
2.
Municipality
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It is to be distinguished from the county, which may encompass rural territory and/or numerous small communities such as towns, villages and hamlets. The term municipality may also mean the governing or ruling body of a given municipality, a municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district. The term is derived from French municipalité and Latin municipalis, a municipality can be any political jurisdiction from a sovereign state, such as the Principality of Monaco, or a small village, such as West Hampton Dunes, New York. The power of municipalities range from virtual autonomy to complete subordination to the state, municipalities may have the right to tax individuals and corporations with income tax, property tax, and corporate income tax, but may also receive substantial funding from the state. Similar terms include Spanish ayuntamiento, also called municipalidad, Polish gmina, Dutch/Flemish Gemeente, in Australia, the term local government area is used in place of the generic municipality. Here, the LGA Structure covers only incorporated areas of Australia, incorporated areas are legally designated parts of states and territories over which incorporated local governing bodies have responsibility. In Canada, municipalities are local governments established through provincial and territorial legislation, the Province of Ontario has different tiers of municipalities, including lower, upper, and single tiers. Types of upper tier municipalities in Ontario include counties and regional municipalities, nova Scotia also has regional municipalities, which include cities, counties, districts, or towns as municipal units. In India, a Nagar Palika or Municipality is a local body that administers a city of population 100,000 or more. Under the Panchayati Raj system, it directly with the state government. Generally, smaller cities and bigger towns have a Nagar Palika. Nagar Palikas are also a form of local self-government entrusted with duties and responsibilities. Such a corporation in Great Britain consists of a head as a mayor or provost, since local government reorganisation, the unit in England, Northern Ireland and Wales is known as a district, and in Scotland as a council area. A district may be awarded borough or city status, or can retain its district title, in Jersey, a municipality refers to the honorary officials elected to run each of the 12 parishes into which it is subdivided. This is the highest level of government in this jurisdiction. In the United States, municipality is usually understood as a city, town, village, or other local government unit, in the Peoples Republic of China, a direct-controlled municipality is a city with equal status to a province, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Chongqing. In Taiwan, a municipality is a city with equal status to a province, Kaohsiung, New Taipei, Taichung, Tainan, Taipei. In Portuguese language usage, there are two words to distinguish the territory and the administrative organ, when referring to the territory, the word concelho is used, when referring to the organ of State, the word município is used
3.
Denmark
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The term Danish Realm refers to the relationship between Denmark proper, the Faroe Islands and Greenland—three countries constituting the Kingdom of Denmark. The legal nature of the Kingdom of Denmark is fundamentally one of a sovereign state. The Faroe Islands and Greenland have been part of the Crown of Denmark since 1397 when the Kalmar Union was ratified, legal matters in The Danish Realm are subject to the Danish Constitution. Beginning in 1953, state law issues within The Danish Realm has been governed by The Unity of the Realm, a less formal name for The Unity of the Realm is the Commonwealth of the Realm. In 1978, The Unity of The Realm was for the first time referred to as rigsfællesskabet. The name caught on and since the 1990s, both The Unity of The Realm and The Danish Realm itself has increasingly been referred to as simply rigsfællesskabet in daily parlance. The Danish Constitution stipulates that the foreign and security interests for all parts of the Danish Realm are the responsibility of the Danish government, the Faroes received home rule in 1948 and Greenland did so in 1979. In 2005, the Faroes received a self-government arrangement, and in 2009 Greenland received self rule, the Danish Realms unique state of internal affairs is acted out in the principle of The Unity of the Realm. This principle is derived from Article 1 of the Danish Constitution which specifies that constitutional law applies equally to all areas of the Danish Realm, the Constitutional Act specifies that sovereignty is to continue to be exclusively with the authorities of the Realm. The language of Denmark is Danish, and the Danish state authorities are based in Denmark, the Kingdom of Denmarks parliament, with its 179 members, is located in the capital, Copenhagen. Two of the members are elected in each of Greenland and the Faroe Islands. The Government ministries are located in Copenhagen, as is the highest court, in principle, the Danish Realm constitutes a unified sovereign state, with equal status between its constituent parts. Devolution differs from federalism in that the powers of the subnational authority ultimately reside in central government. The Self-Government Arrangements devolves political competence and responsibility from the Danish political authorities to the Faroese, the Faroese and Greenlandic authorities administer the tasks taken over from the state, enact legislation in these specific fields and have the economic responsibility for solving these tasks. The Danish government provides a grant to the Faroese and the Greenlandic authorities to cover the costs of these devolved areas. The 1948 Home Rule Act of the Faroe Islands sets out the terms of Faroese home rule, the Act states. the Faroe Islands shall constitute a self-governing community within the State of Denmark. It establishes the government of the Faroe Islands and the Faroese parliament. The Faroe Islands were previously administered as a Danish county, the Home Rule Act abolished the post of Amtmand and these powers were expanded in a 2005 Act, which named the Faroese home government as an equal partner with the Danish government
4.
East Jutland metropolitan area
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East Jutland metropolitan area or Greater Aarhus is a geographic term for an area in Jutland and Funen, Denmark. The term denotes a functional coherent area linked by both infrastructure and labour across municipal boundaries, with about 1.4 million people living in the area it represents approximately 25% of the population of Denmark and is the second largest Metropolitan area after Greater Copenhagen. The region has 19 municipalities as of 2016, the area consist of Business Region Aarhus with a population of 960,000 to the north, and Trekantsområdet with 418,000 people in the south. The metropolitan area is a hub for education and is home to many large companies, in particular in the sectors of food production, agriculture, renewable energy. Major companies includes Vestas Wind Systems A/S and Arla Foods, among cooperative dairy companies, Arla is the third largest in the world. The primary harbour of the region is Aarhus harbour and it is the largest industrial harbour in Denmark and among largest in Northern Europe, only surpassed by the Swedish industrial harbour in Gothenburg in the Kattegat sea area. With modern facilities, it handles approximately 12 million tonnes of cargo per year and is therefore among the 100 biggest containerports in the world, Greater Aarhus boasts a unique position in the global wind energy market. It is home to some of the world’s biggest manufacturers of wind turbines and constitutes the world’s most advanced knowledge center. An array of suppliers and subcontractors, covers the supply chain. The wind business cluster here has a legacy of cooperation between manufacturers, suppliers, scientific communities and public authorities. Note that on 24 February 2016, Viborg municipality became a part of Business Region Aarhus, contributing with a population of 95,776 and an area of 1,409 km2. The core area around Aarhus is the most populated area in East Jutland, the figures below are for the core area centered on Aarhus and most populous area in the East Jutland metropolitan area as of 1 January 2016. The figures below are for the whole East Jutland metropolitan area as of 1 January 2016
5.
Anholt (Denmark)
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Anholt is a Danish island in the Kattegat, midway between Jutland and Sweden at the entrance to the North Sea in Northern Europe. There are 145 permanent residents as of 1 January 2016, Anholt is seven miles long and about four miles wide at its widest, and covers an area of 21,75 km². Anholt is part of Norddjurs Municipality in Region Midtjylland, before the 2007 municipal reform, it was in Grenå Municipality. The western fifth of Anholt consists of hilly country, while the eastern four-fifths of the island consist of mostly flat raised seabed with some low hills. Only the western hills are inhabited. The eastern part, called Ørkenen - the Desert - is treeless, the desert has never been ploughed. For this reason the original stone age topography from when the glaciation ceased and this includes former shorelines inland, consequences of different sea levels over time. The unploughed features of The Desert are unique for Denmark, as well as for part of Europe. The inhabited part of Anholt has two villages, The Harbour and Anholt Town, inland, there are also 300–400 summer houses, some of them rentals. The western part of Anholt is a moraine landscape, the small village is situated in the middle of the landscape, whereas the harbour is at the northwestern tip of the island. The eastern part of the island is known as Ørkenen and this desert-like area is the largest of its kind in Northern Europe. The desertification was caused by deforestation, strictly speaking, the desert is not a true desert, but a lichen heath, with some 300 to 400 types of lichen. Great efforts are being taken to preserve the unique scenery and prevent the effects of erosion. In 1995/6 the Danish Heath Society cleared large areas in the part of Ørkenen of mountain pine. On Totten, the tip of the island, there is one of the biggest colonies of seals in Denmark. This part of the island is closed to visitors, dangerous reefs and shoals surround Anholt. Consequently, in 1560 King Frederick II ordered the erection of lights at Skagen, Anholt. Despite the bascule light, on 10 November 1716 the 60-gun third-rate HMS Auguste, Captain Robert Johnson, most of the people on her were saved
6.
Municipalities of Denmark
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Denmark is divided into five regions, which contain 98 municipalities. This structure was established per an administrative reform, effective Monday 1 January 2007 which replaced the counties with five regions, the 270 municipalities were consolidated into 98 larger units, most of which have at least 20,000 inhabitants. The reason was to give the new municipalities greater financial and professional sustainability, many of the responsibilities of the former counties were taken over by the enlarged municipalities. Presented in a report put forward as a proposal by the government in April 2004, the report on the structural reform of the public sector was first presented 9 January 2004 by the commission which was set up by the government 1 October 2002. The archipelago of Ertholmene is not part of any municipality, but is administered by the Ministry of Defence, the existing coat of arms of the municipalities. The average land area of a Danish municipality is 432.59 km2,167.08 square miles, the Constitution of Denmark states, Article 82. The right of municipalities to manage their own affairs independently, under State supervision,2,522 municipal councillors were elected on Tuesday 15 November 2005 being the first councils elected since the new reform. The number of councillors was reduced to 2,468 in the 2009 elections, in 1997 there were 4,685 municipal and 374 county councillors in the then 275 municipalities and 14 counties. As an example of the reduction in the number of councillors, Bornholm then had a total of 122 councillors in five municipalities, after the merger on 1 January 2003, of the five municipalities and the county, there was one single municipal council with 27 municipal councillors. These guidelines replaced the old guidelines with the elections in 2005 after the laws initiating the structural reform were passed in parliament. Council elections are held on the third Tuesday of November every four years, the previous were held on 19 November 2013 and the next are due to be held on 21 November 2017. 32 municipalities including those of the recently formed Ærø Municipality and Bornholm Regional Municipality remained unchanged and were not merged with other municipalities, copenhagen County was not included in the municipal reform of 1 April 1970. This is probably because the municipality was extremely populous. Thus the number of municipalities was 277 from 1 April 1970 to 1 April 1974, still, the reform is called The municipal reform of 1970, because the decisive changes happened 1 April 1970, when 1098 municipalities were reduced to 277. Also on 1 April 1974, Avedøre, which was part of Glostrup Municipality, was conjoined with Hvidovre Municipality and this combination was logical, as Avedøre bordered Hvidovre, but was separated from Glostrup. This brought the number of municipalities down to 271 from 1 January 2003, the final agreement from 2005 included more parties. Until 1978 the fiscal year from 1 April to 31 March was in use in the sector since a law was passed in 1849. As a consequence of a law passed by the Folketing in 1976, many reforms and laws passed prior to 1979 therefore have effect from 1 April
7.
Grenaa Municipality
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Until 1 January 2007, Grenaa municipality or Grenå municipality was a municipality in Aarhus County on the east coast of the Jutland peninsula in central Denmark. The municipality covered an area of 196 km², and had a population of 18,641. Its last mayor was Gert Schou, a member of the Social Democrats political party, the municipalitys main city and the site of its municipal council was the town of Grenaa. The municipality was located on the east coast of the known as Djursland, with the waters of the Kattegat to the east. Grenaa municipality ceased to exist due to Kommunalreformen and it was combined with Nørre Djurs and Rougsø municipalities, along with the eastern part of Sønderhald municipality to form the new Norddjurs municipality. This created a municipality with an area of 661 km² and a population of 34,382. The new municipality belongs to Region Midtjylland, Norddjurs municipality website Municipal statistics, NetBorger Kommunefakta, delivered from KMD aka Kommunedata
