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Scandinavism ( da, skandinavisme; no, skandinavisme; sv, skandinavism), also called Scandinavianism or pan-Scandinavianism,"Pan-Scandinavianism"
. (2007). In ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved April 29, 2007, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online.
is an ideology that supports various degrees of cooperation among the
Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...
n countries. Scandinavism comprises the literary, linguistic and cultural movement that focuses on promoting a shared Scandinavian past, a shared cultural heritage, a common
Scandinavian mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia, and into the Nordic folklore of the modern period ...
and a common language or dialect continuum (from the common ancestor language of
Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...
), and which led to the formation of joint periodicals and societies in support of Scandinavian literature and languages. Nordism expands the scope to include
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
and
Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
. The movement was most popular among
Danes Danes ( da, danskere, ) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nationality native to Denmark and a modern nation identified with the country of Denmark. This connection may be ancestral, legal, historical, or cultural. Danes generally regard t ...
and
Swedes Swedes ( sv, svenskar) are a North Germanic ethnic group native to the Nordic region, primarily their nation state of Sweden, who share a common ancestry, culture, history and language. They mostly inhabit Sweden and the other Nordic countr ...
.


History

According to historian Sverre Bagge, prior to the formation of state-like kingdoms in Scandinavia,
Scandinavia was culturally and linguistically homogeneous. Even in the thirteenth century the term ‘Danish tongue’ was used for the language throughout the area. There were different dialects, but the lines of division between them did not correspond to the later national borders. Religion and customs were also similar, during the pagan as well as the Christian periods. Thus, no cultural or linguistic distinctions prevented unification of each country. Nor, on the other hand, did such distinctions give rise to natural borders between the kingdoms that eventually emerged.
Pan-Scandinavianism as a modern movement originated in the 19th century, but the movement had already begun spreading a century earlier in circles of literature and science. The Pan-Scandinavian movement paralleled the unification movements of
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
and
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
.
Ola Tunander Ola Tunander (born in Stockholm, Sweden in 1948) is a research professor emeritus at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO, Norway). He worked as a researcher at PRIO in the period 1987-2016. He is the son of Museum Director Ingemar Tunander and ...
(1999)
"Nordic cooperation"
UDA085ENG. In ''Nytt fra Norge, ODIN – Information from the government and the ministries'', Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Norway. See also Tunander, Ola (1999). "Norway, Sweden and Nordic cooperation". In ''The European North – Hard, soft and civic security''. Eds. Lassi Heininen and Gunnar Lassinantti. The Olof Palme International Center/Arctic Centre, University of Lapland, 1999. pp. 39–48. .
As opposed to the German and Italian counterparts, the Scandinavian state-building project was not successful and is no longer pursued. It was at its height in the mid-19th century and supported the idea of
Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...
n unity. The movement was initiated by Danish and Swedish university students in the 1840s, with a base in
Scania Scania, also known by its native name of Skåne (, ), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces (''landskap'') of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conte ...
. In the beginning, the political establishments in the two countries, including the
absolute monarch Absolute monarchy (or Absolutism (European history), Absolutism as a doctrine) is a form of monarchy in which the monarch rules in their own right or power. In an absolute monarchy, the king or queen is by no means limited and has absolute pow ...
Christian VIII Christian VIII (18 September 1786 – 20 January 1848) was King of Denmark from 1839 to 1848 and, as Christian Frederick, King of Norway in 1814. Christian Frederick was the eldest son of Hereditary Prince Frederick, a younger son of King Frederi ...
and
Charles XIV Charles XIV John ( sv, Karl XIV Johan; born Jean Bernadotte; 26 January 1763 – 8 March 1844) was King of Sweden and King of Norway, Norway from 1818 until his death in 1844. Before his reign he was a Marshal of France during the Napoleonic Wars a ...
with his "one man government", were suspicious of the movement.The Students
. Øresundstid, 2003. Retrieved 6 May 2007.
The movement was a significant force from 1846 to 1864, however the movement eventually dwindled and only had strong support among the
Swedish-speaking population of Finland The Swedish-speaking population of Finland (whose members are called by many names; fi, suomenruotsalainen) can be used as an attribute., group=Note—see #Terminology, below; sv, finlandssvenskar; fi, suomenruotsalaiset) is a linguistic mi ...
. The collapse of Pan-Scandinavianism came in 1864 when the
Second Schleswig-Holstein War The Second Schleswig War ( da, Krigen i 1864; german: Deutsch-Dänischer Krieg) also sometimes known as the Dano-Prussian War or Prusso-Danish War was the second military conflict over the Schleswig-Holstein Question of the nineteenth century. T ...
broke out. King
Charles XV Charles XV also Carl (''Carl Ludvig Eugen''); Swedish: ''Karl XV'' and Norwegian: ''Karl IV'' (3 May 1826 – 18 September 1872) was King of Sweden (''Charles XV'') and Norway, there often referred to as Charles IV, from 8 July 1859 until his dea ...
who was the King of
Sweden-Norway Sweden and Norway or Sweden–Norway ( sv, Svensk-norska unionen; no, Den svensk-norske union(en)), officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, and known as the United Kingdoms, was a personal union of the separate kingdoms of Sweden ...
from 1859 until his death in 1872, in spite of championing Pan-Scandinivianism failed to help
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...
in the war. Author
Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consisti ...
became an adherent of Scandinavism after a visit to Sweden in 1837, and committed himself to writing a poem that would convey the relatedness of Swedes, Danes and
Norwegians Norwegians ( no, nordmenn) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nation native to Norway, where they form the vast majority of the population. They share a common culture and speak the Norwegian language. Norwegians are descended from the N ...
. It was in July 1839, during a visit to the island of
Funen Funen ( da, Fyn, ), with an area of , is the third-largest island of Denmark, after Zealand and Vendsyssel-Thy. It is the 165th-largest island in the world. It is located in the central part of the country and has a population of 469,947 as of ...
in Denmark, that Andersen first wrote the text of his poem, ''Jeg er en Skandinav'' ("I am a Scandinavian"). Andersen composed the poem to capture "the beauty of the Nordic spirit, the way the three sister nations have gradually grown together", as part of a Scandinavian national anthem. Composer
Otto Lindblad Otto Jonas Lindblad (31 March 1809 – 26 January 1864), was a Swedish composer. He is most famous for the musical score of '' Kungssången'', the Swedish royal anthem. Otto Lindblad was the son of a clergyman. He was born in Karlstorp and at ...
set the poem to music, and the composition was published in January 1840. Its popularity peaked in 1845, after which it was seldom sung.


In literature

The
Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a " consulting detective" in the stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with observation, deduction, forensic science and ...
story " A Scandal in Bohemia" mentions a fictional King of Scandinavia whose daughter is about to marry the (also fictional) King of
Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...
, a major protagonist in the story.


See also

*
Nordic Council The Nordic Council is the official body for formal inter-parliamentary Nordic cooperation among the Nordic countries. Formed in 1952, it has 87 representatives from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden as well as from the autonomou ...
*
Nordic Language Convention The Nordic Language Convention is a convention of linguistic rights that came into force on 1 March 1987, under the auspices of the Nordic Council. Under the Convention, citizens of the Nordic countries have the opportunity to use their native lang ...
*
Nordic Passport Union The Nordic Passport Union allows citizens of the Nordic countriesIceland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finlandto travel and reside in another Nordic country without any travel documentation (e.g. a passport or national identity card) or a reside ...
* Nordic student meeting *
Pan-nationalism Pan-nationalism (from gr, πᾶν, "all", and french: nationalisme, "nationalism") is a specific term, used mainly in social sciences as a designation for those forms of nationalism that aim to transcend (overcome, expand) traditional boundari ...
* Scandinavian defence union *
Viking revival The Viking revival was a movement reflecting new interest in, and appreciation for Viking medieval history and culture. Interest was reawakened in the late 18th and 19th centuries, often with added heroic overtones typical of that Romantic era. T ...
*
Kalmar Union The Kalmar Union (Danish language, Danish, Norwegian language, Norwegian, and sv, Kalmarunionen; fi, Kalmarin unioni; la, Unio Calmariensis) was a personal union in Scandinavia, agreed at Kalmar in Sweden, that from 1397 to 1523 joined under ...


References


Further reading

* *
Pan-Scandinavianism. Reference Points in the 19th Century (1815-1864)
by Mircea-Cristian Ghenghea


External links


The Helsinki Treaty of 1962
Nicknamed as constitution of the Nordic Countries.
Jeg er en Skandinav
A rendition of H. C. Andersen's poem, set to Otto Lindblad's music. {{Pan-nationalist concepts Scandinavia Pan-nationalism Political theories Nordic politics