Copenhagen
2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: European Geography
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| City coat of arms | |
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| Area - City - Metropolitan |
88 km² 455.61 km² |
| Population (2006-01-01) - City - Metropolitan - Density (city/met) |
501,158 1,211,542 5695/km² / 2659/km² |
| Time zone | Central European: UTC+1 |
| Latitude Longitude |
55°43' N 12°34' E |
Copenhagen ( IPA: [kəʊpənˈheɪgən], rhyming with pagan (the way the Danes themselves pronounce the name of the capital in English), or [kəʊpənˈhɑˑgən], with a as in spa; Danish København IPA: [købn̩ˈhaʊˀn]) is the capital of Denmark and the country's largest city (metropolitan population 1,211,542 (2006)). It is also the name of the adjacent county. Copenhagen is the seat of the national parliament, the government, and the monarchy.
The original designation for the city, from which the contemporary Danish name is derived, was Kjøbmandehavn, "merchants' harbour". The English name for the city is derived from its German name, Kopenhagen. The element hafnium is named after the city's Latin name, Hafnia.
Copenhagen municipality
Copenhagen is one of three Danish municipalities that are not part of any county (that is, county functions are performed by the municipality), the others being the city of Frederiksberg (an enclave within Copenhagen itself) and the island of Bornholm. On 1 January 2007, when the counties are to be replaced by fewer but larger "regions", Copenhagen will lose this special status and become an ordinary municipality within the new Region Hovedstaden (i.e. the Copenhagen Capital Region).
The municipality covers a land area of 88 (total a. 91.3) km², and has a population of 501,000 (2006). Lord Mayor of Copenhagen is Ritt Bjerregaard, a member of the Social Democrats (Socialdemokraterne) political party, who is head of the Finance Committee. Other mayors are Martin Geertsen (Cultural and Recreational Committee), Bo Asmus Kjeldgaard (Education and Youth Committee), Mogens Lønborg (Health and Care Committee), Jakob Hougaard (Employment and Integration Committee), Klaus Bondam (Building and Environment Committee), and Mikkel Warming (Social Committee).
The municipal seat of government is the Copenhagen City Hall (Rådhus).
Neighboring municipalities are Gentofte, Gladsaxe and Herlev to the north, Rødovre and Hvidovre to the west, and Tårnby to the south. Frederiksberg is located as an enclave within the municipality, and is thus surrounded by Copenhagen.
Copenhagen municipality will not be merged with other municipalities by January 1, 2007 as the result of nationwide Kommunalreformen ("The Municipal Reform" of 2007).
History of Copenhagen
Copenhagen was founded around year 1000 by Sweyn I Forkbeard (Svend Tveskæg) and his son Canute the Great (Knud den Store). It was only a fishing village by the name of "Havn" (harbour) until the middle of the 12th century when it grew in importance after coming into the possession of the Bishop Absalon, who fortified it in 1167. The excellent harbour encouraged Copenhagen's growth until it became an important centre of commerce (hence its name). It was repeatedly attacked by the Hanseatic League as the Germans took notice. In 1254, it received its charter as a city under Bishop Jakob Erlandsen.
During 1658-59 it withstood a severe siege by the Swedes under Charles X. In 1801 a British fleet under Admiral Parker fought a major battle, the Battle of Copenhagen, with the Danish navy in Copenhagen harbour. It was during this battle Lord Nelson famously "put the telescope to the blind eye" in order not to see Admiral Parker's signal to cease fire. When a British expeditionary force bombarded Copenhagen in 1807, to gain control of the Danish navy, the city suffered great damage and hundreds of people were killed. The reason why the devastation was so great was that Copenhagen relied on an old defence-line rendered virtually useless by the increase in shooting range available to the British. But not until the 1850's were the ramparts of the city opened to allow new housing to be built around the lakes ("Søerne") which bordered the old defence system to the west. This dramatic increase of space was long overdue, not only because the old ramparts were out of date as a defence system, but also because of bad sanitation in the old city. Before the opening, Copenhagen Centre was inhabited by approximately 125,000 people, peaking in the census of 1870 (140,000); today the figure is around 25,000. In 1901, Copenhagen expanded further, incorporating communities with 40,000 people, and in the process making Frederiksberg an enclave within Copenhagen.
During World War II Copenhagen was occupied by German troops along with the rest of the country from 9 April 1940 until 4 May 1945. In August 1943, when the government's collaboration with the occupation forces collapsed, several ships were sunk in Copenhagen Harbour by the Royal Danish Navy to prevent them being used by the Germans. The city has grown greatly since the war, in the seventies using the so-called five-finger-plan of commuter trainlines to surrounding towns and suburbs.
Since the summer 2000, the cities of Copenhagen and Malmö have been connected by a toll bridge/tunnel ( Øresund Bridge), which allows both rail and road passengers to cross. It was inaugurated in July 2000 by King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and Queen Margrethe II of Denmark. As a result, Copenhagen has become the centre of a larger metropolitan area which spans both nations. The construction of the bridge has led to a large number of changes to the public transportation system and the extensive redevelopment of Amager, south of the main city. The bridge has not yet been as widely used by motorists as was originally hoped, likely due to the high road tolls, allegedly slowing the planned integration of the region. Train passengers, however, are plentiful and increasing in numbers. The lack of a commonly acceptable currency throughout the area is another hindrance to the integration of the region, even though a growing number of shops, restaurants etc, if not usually encouraged, accept payment with either nation's currency in the other country.
Geography
Location
Copenhagen is located on the eastern shore of the island of Zealand (Sjælland) and partly on the island of Amager. Copenhagen faces to the east the Øresund, the strait of water that separates Denmark from Sweden, and that connects the North Sea with the Baltic Sea. On the Swedish side of the sound directly across from Copenhagen, lie the towns of Malmö and Landskrona.
Copenhagen is also a part of the Øresund region, which consists of the eastern part of Zealand in Denmark and the western part of Scania in Sweden.
Population
1,211,000 people live in metropolitan Copenhagen (Storkøbenhavn), a statistical abstract comprising the municipalities of Copenhagen and Frederiksberg and Copenhagen County. Of these, 501,158 live in the Municipality of Copenhagen, 91,855 in the Municipality of Frederiksberg, and 618,529 in the 18 municipalities of Copenhagen County.
An even larger metropolitan region is known as the Copenhagen Region (Hovedstadsregionen), which consists of the municipalities of Copenhagen and Frederiksberg, and the counties of Copenhagen, Frederiksborg and Roskilde. The population of Hovedstadsregionen is 1,831,751 (2006). Land area: 2760 km² (1,065.6 sq mi). Water area: 105 km² (40.5 sq mi). Thus, the Copenhagen Region comprises 6,5% of the land area of Denmark, but has 34% of Denmark's population. This gives a total of 664 inhabitants per km² or 1,720 per square mile for the Region. This compares with a population density in the rest of the country of approximately 90 per km² or around 230 per square mile. The population density of the Region is around 300 inhabitants per km² (777/ sq mi) outside the metropolitan area of Copenhagen, and this is also the population density of Zealand as a whole.
Districts
The city itself is divided into 15 administrative, statistical and tax districts (bydele):
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Demography
Historic population
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Culture
General situation
Danish newspapers rank Copenhagen as one of the world's best cities in which to live, despite the high cost of living.
Strøget, a pedestrian shopping street in central Copenhagen was inaugurated in 1961. Copenhagen's extensive pedestrian network has been developed over the last 40 years through the work of architect and professor Jan Gehl.
The Copenhagen Jazz Festival is a popular annual event that is the result of a significant jazz scene having existed for many years. It developed significantly when a number of American jazz musicians such as Ben Webster, Thad Jones, Richard Boone, Ernie Wilkins, Kenny Drew, Ed Thigpen, Bob Rockwell and others such as rock guitarist Link Wray came to Copenhagen beginning in the 1960s.
Sexual equality is a high priority in Denmark. Women should encounter little or no discrimination in Copenhagen, and sexual harassment is rare compared to other Western capital cities, as well as crime in general.
Copenhagen is a popular destination for homosexual travellers. It has an active gay community and a wide selection of nightlife options for those such as gay clubs for example the popular Pan Club Copenhagen. The more widely known gay pride festival is the annual Copenhagen Pride (formerly the Mermaid Pride Parade), a big Mardi Gras-like bash that occurs on a Saturday in early August, as well as Gay And Lesbian Film Festival Copenhagen held annually in late October. Danes are known to have a high degree of tolerance for "alternative" lifestyles of all sorts, and homosexuals receive equal rights to express themselves and are protected by anti-discrimination laws.
Copenhagen is a 24-hour party city. For free entertainment simply stroll along Strøget, especially between Nytorv and Højbro Plads, which in the late afternoon and evening is a bit like an impromptu three-ring circus with musicians, magicians, jugglers and other street performers.
Sports
Copenhagen has a wide variety of sport teams. Denmark's two leading football teams, Brøndby IF and FC København, are based in Copenhagen and its suburbs. FC København plays at Parken in Østerbro, Copenhagen. Brøndby IF plays at Brøndby Stadion outside of the municipality of Copenhagen.
In recent years, Brøndby IF has become the second most successful team ever in Danish history, winning the Danish Championship 10 times and the Danish Cup 5 times since 1985. The most successful team in Danish history is KB — Kjøbenhavns Boldklub who has won the Danish championship 15 times. In 1992, KB merged with B1903 — winner of 6 Danish Championships — forming FC København. FC København has won the Danish Championship 5 times and the Danish Cup 3 times over the last 14 years (4 times Danish champions since 2001) — FC København was founded in 1992 and won their first Danish championship in their first season. FC København's home ground is the Danish national stadium, Parken.
Notable Copenhagen teams playing at the second highest level in Danish football (the Danish 1st Division) include AB, HIK, Frem, Brønshøj, Fremad Amager and Skjold.
Copenhagen also has three ice hockey teams: Rødovre Mighty Bulls, Herlev Hornets and Nordsjælland Cobras.
There is both a men's and a women's handball team, and both teams play in the highest league. Both of the handballteams are owned by FC København and have the same name and logo. They were formerly known as FIF.
Rugby is also played in the Danish capital with teams such as CSR-Nanok, Copenhagen Scrum, Exiles, Froggies and Rugbyklubben Speed.
The Danish Australian Football League, based in Copenhagen is the largest Australian rules football competition outside of the English speaking world.
Copenhagen is also home to a number of Denmark's 40-odd cricket clubs. Although Denmark has been an associate member of the International Cricket Council since 1966, the sport is not taught much in schools, and Danish cricket competes unfavourably with the much more widely followed sport of football for players, facilities, media attention and spectators.
Copenhagen is also home to three prominent paintball teams, the Copenhagen Ducks, The Ugly Ducklings and the Copenhagen Berserks. Because of paintball's relative popularity in Scandinavia, these teams are well-known throughout the globe, despite Denmark's small size.
The second World Outgames will take place in Copenhagen in 2009, after Berlin refused to stage them due to the continuing rivalry between the two gay sporting organisations.
Cuisine
Copenhagen offers a great variety of fine restaurants and it is possible to find modest eateries with open sandwiches (called " smørrebrød"), which is the traditional and most known dish. Most restaurants, though, serve international dishes.
Also, Copenhagen is known for the hotdog stands found throughout the city. The city is also home to many fine bakeries and pastry shops.
The city boasts an impressive 10 Michelin star restaurants.
Lately, immigration from the Middle East, Turkey and Arabian countries has made fast food dishes like kebab and falafel as popular as more traditional Danish fast food.
Transport
The public transportation system of Copenhagen consists of commuter trains (called " S-Trains" (S-tog)), buses, and a metro. The S-trains form the basis of the transportation network, stretching to most areas of metropolitan Copenhagen, with their main hub at Copenhagen Central Station (København H). Some regional trains supplement the S-train services with lines extending further such as to the Copenhagen Airport, Elsinore, and Malmö.
The entire system is operated by the Greater Copenhagen Authority (Hovedstadens Udviklingsråd), covering the three counties and two municipalities of Hovedstadsregionen (Copenhagen Region) – 50 municipalities in total. Tickets are transferable from one means of transport to another (e.g. from bus to train) as long as the time limit is not exceeded. The region is divided into ninety-five zones, which determine the cost of a ticket. The more zones a ticket is valid for, the longer its time validity with a maximum of two hours. A trip of seven or more zones costs a base rate.
Discount cards, known as punch cards, as well as period cards are available. Ticket prices are high and have increased substantially in recent years leading to a decrease in passenger numbers. In fact the percentage of trips made on public transportation in Copenhagen is quite low by northern European standards.
An extensive road system is also in place, and the city's bicycle paths are extensive and well-used. The city provides public bicycles which can be found throughout the downtown area and used with a returnable deposit of 20 kroner. Bicycle paths are often separated from the main traffic lanes and sometimes have their own signal systems. Copenhagen is known as one of the most bicycle-friendly cities in the world , and is a centre of bicycle culture.
Places of note in or near Copenhagen
- Amalienborg Palace
- Assistens Cemetery (Assistens Kirkegård)
- Arken Museum of Modern Art
- Børsen The former Stock Exchange
- The Copenhagen Opera House
- Bakken
- Christiania
- Christiansborg
- Copenhagen Zoo
- Danish National Gallery
- The Deer Park
- Frederiksborg Palace in Hillerød
- Gefion fountain
- Kastellet
- Kongens Have
- Kronborg Castle — Hamlet's castle in Elsinore (Helsingør)
- The Little Mermaid
- La Fontaine
- Louisiana Museum of Modern Art
- National Museum of Denmark
- Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek
- Nyhavn
- Rosenborg Castle
- Roskilde Cathedral
- Rundetårn
- Strøget
- Tivoli Gardens
- University of Copenhagen
Notable natives
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