What exactly is Scandinavia?
The countries of Scandinavia are Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.
We might also refer to the Scandinavian Peninsula, or Fennoscandia, which also comprises Finland
and parts of Russia.
Moreover, we talk about Nordic countries, and these include Iceland, Greenland and Faroe
Islands.
But today we are talking about three countries alone, and they are Sweden, Denmark and Norway.
The countries have similar customs and cultures, and the languages are not far apart.
The EU tells us the citizens of all these countries will likely be able to read each
other’s language, although Swedes and Norwegians can have trouble understanding spoken Danish,
even though the Danish and Norwegian languages are the most similar.
Now, let’s look at what would happen if those countries finally came together, in
this episode of the Infographics Show, What if Scandinavia United?
Many people look at these countries as if they are some kind of utopias.
They generally are in the top ten of countries based on standard of living.
The economies are vibrant; there are safety nets in place for the poor and there doesn’t
seem to be too much crime.
We might also add that life can be diverse in these regions.
There is a big difference from living in downtown Stockholm to living in Jokkmokk, a remote
part of Sweden home to the Sami people.
The same goes for the hinterlands of Norway, although Denmark could be said to be much
less diverse in terms of geography and culture.
How big would the population be?
According to Worldometers, 9.9 million people live in Sweden, 5.3 million people live in
Norway, and 5.7 million people live in Denmark.
Now let’s get the calculator out.
The entire population of a United Scandinavia would be nearly 21 million.
That still isn’t very big; it’s about the same amount of people that live in Sri
Lanka, less than Australia, and almost equal to the metropolitan area populations of Sao
Paulo, Brazil or Mumbai in India.
Now let’s add up the GDPs of these countries- according to the International Monetary Fund:
The GDP of Sweden is $538.6 billion.
The GDP of Norway $396.5 billion.
The GDP of Denmark $324.5 billion Time for the calculator again.
The entire GDP of our United Scandinavia according to these numbers would be $1.3 trillion.
How does figure against the GDPs of the world?
It would be in 17th place, just behind Indonesia and just in front of Turkey.
To put that into perspective, Indonesia has a population of just over 267 million.
Turkey slightly over 82 million, so it looks as though there is plenty of money to go around
for our 21 million united Scandinavians.
If we look at gross domestic product per capita, which is the GDP divided by the population,
used as an estimate of purchasing power, Norway comes top of our three nations.
Lists differ, depending on what source you are reading.
The CIA puts Norway in 8th place, Sweden in 18th place and Denmark in 23rd place.
What we can say is that economically these united countries would do just fine.
Would this prosperous country be safe on the world stage?
We can’t go into a detailed military analysis of all three nations, but we can have a look
at military expenditures according to Global firepower.
It tells us that Sweden has the 31st most powerful military in the world and spends
$6.2 billion on defense.
Norway was ranked 36th but was said to have spent 7 billion on defense.
Denmark was 54th on the list, with a defense budget of $4.4 billion.
Altogether that’s a combined defense budget of 17.6 billion dollars.
On the world stage that would put the combined defense budget of these countries in 15th
place, behind Israel and in front of Canada.
But how would the people be getting along in other matters concerning well-being?
That of course is hard to say, but if you look at the World Economic Forum’s top ten
list of standard of living around the world, it looks like our United Scandinavia would
do well.
It has Denmark in 3rd place, stating that it rates very high in equality and opportunities
for upward mobility.
Sweden was in 6th place, with the report saying lifestyle, nutrition, and general well-being
of its people was great.
Norway was behind in 7th place for many of the same reasons.
All countries fare well on lists determining healthcare, with Business Insider saying that
Norway spends more on healthcare per person than any country in the world.
Life expectancy in all these nations is also high, with Sweden being 82.4 for both sexes,
Norway 81.8 and Denmark 80.6.
That makes life expectancy for our United Scandinavia 81.8.
As for how the young are educated, there are many lists out there you can check.
Countries such as Singapore and South Korea often come high in terms of academic performance,
but low in terms of student stress.
One country that is often extolled for its education system all-round is Finland, so
maybe our United Scandinavia can look there for help.
Still, on most lists Norway, Denmark and Sweden don’t do too badly.
Another thing is that not only do these countries have languages they all understand, but if
you’ve visited Scandinavia you’ll know that many, many people speak exceptional English.
In fact, Denmark and Sweden often come top in lists that judge the best speakers of English
as a second language in the world.
On the lists we could find all three countries get in the top four, with only the Dutch getting
in the way of Scandinavians taking gold, silver and bronze.
In terms of job opportunities and other opportunities in life, this ability to be super-fluent in
English makes our United Scandinavia a special place.
So, what if Scandinavia united?
In the UK’s Independent newspaper in 2016 a Norwegian hotel tycoon and billionaire said
that’s what should happen.
He said a Scandinavian “super state” could be made due to proximity, similarities in
culture and language.
“Think about what a fantastic country we would have been together,” he said, talking
about how each country and their innovations would be even better if they were one.
A United Scandinavia is discussed on Quora many times, with lots of people thinking it
would be a good idea.
Still, some say it wouldn’t have the economic or military strength to truly become a great
global super power.
Powerful or not, most agree it would be a prosperous place.
So, would a United Scandinavia really be a better place for all its people?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments!
Also, be sure to check out our other video called 20 Safest Countries In The World!
Thanks for watching, and, as always, don’t forget to like, share, and subscribe.
See you next time!