Childrens Illustrated Encyclopedia

scandinavia

453

Copenhagen

Copenhagen (right) is the

capital of Denmark, and more

than one quarter of all Danish

people live in and around the

city. Copenhagen is on the

east coast of Zealand, the

largest of 482 islands that

make up about 30 percent

of Denmark. The low-lying

Jutland peninsula to the

west makes up the rest of

the land area.

SaunaS

Finland is home to the sauna, which has

become a national institution.

The Finns have used the steam

bath for centuries as a way of

cleansing and relaxing the

body, and today most houses

in Finland have one. a sauna

is a small, very warm room

that is filled with steam. The

steam is produced by

pouring water over hot

stones. as the water

crackles and spits, the air

fills with clouds of steam.

Cooling off under a cold

shower or a plunge in an

icy pool (left) follows a

session in the sauna and

completes the process.

Saunas are traditionally

fueled by wooden logs, but

they are increasingly powered by

electricity, especially in Finland’s cities.

FJorDS

During the ice age, glaciers carved

steep-sided valleys in the rocks along

norway’s coast. as the ice melted, the

north Sea flowed in, creating fjords.

glaciers have cut hundreds of fjords into

Scandinavia’s atlantic coastline. Fjords

are usually deeper in their middle and

upper reaches than at the seaward end.

The water in these inlets is calmer than

in the open sea.

Farming in SweDen

The fertile soil in

southern Sweden

makes this area the

most productive

farming area

in the country,

with pig

farming, dairy

farming, and

crops such as

wheat, barley,

and potatoes.

many Swedish

farmers belong

to agricultural

cooperatives that process

and distribute their crops.

norTh Sea oil

Discoveries of oil and natural gas beneath the north Sea

began in 1959, when a seaward extension of a major natural

gas field in the northeastern part of the netherlands was

identified. within two decades, natural gas production sites

were located along a 100-mile (160-km) band stretching

from the netherlands to eastern england. Farther north,

norway’s first offshore oilfield went into production in 1971.

Today, norway’s economy largely depends on its abundant

natural resources, and the country is europe’s largest oil

producer. norway is self-sufficient in natural gas and oil.

The tranquil waters of a Norwegian fjord.

Fjords often reach great depths. The great

weight of the glaciers which formed them

eroded the bottom of the valley far below

sea level. The best farming land is found

in the lowland areas around fjords.

The farming

regions close to

the Gulf of Bothnia

is best known for dairy products.

North Sea oil, produced on oil rigs,

such as the one pictured above, is

exported globally. Norway is a

world leader in the construction

of drilling platforms.

This man is

cooling off in an

icy pool of water

after a session in a sauna.

Find out more

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europe

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US_453_Scandinavia_2.indd 453 22/01/16 4:47 pm