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| − | Scandinavia is a geographical area in northern Europe. it includes the countries of [[Denmark]], [[Norway]] and [[Sweden]]. strictly speaking, the area is identical to the Scandinavian [[peninsula]] which also includes parts of northwestern [[Finland]] but not Denmark. the Scandinavian countries have been socialistic or liberal since late 19:th century and have had strong connections with former [[soviet|soviet union]]. | + | [[Image:Scandinavia location.png|right|300px|thumb|Scandinavia]] |
| | + | '''Scandinavia''' is a geographical area in northern [[Europe]]. Typically, Scandinavia is considered to consist of the countries of [[Norway]], [[Sweden]], and [[Denmark]]. If Scandinavia is defined strictly by the geographical limits of the Scandinavian [[peninsula]], Denmark is excluded. [[Finland]] is often included in Scandinavia, because it has very extensive cultural ties with the rest of the Scandinavian countries; [[Iceland]] is often included, for similar reasons. |
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| − | although there are distinct differences, the Danish, Norwegian and Swedish languages are quite similar; citizens of Scandinavian countries are able to understand each other quite well.
| + | Although there are distinct differences, the Icelandic, Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish languages are quite similar; citizens of some Scandinavian countries are able to understand each other quite well. [[Finnish]] is not mutually intelligible with the other languages; indeed, Finnish is not even in the [[Indo-European language]] family. Finnish is generally considered to be part of the [[Finno-Ugric]] family. |
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| | + | It is also noticeable that the national flags of the Scandinavian countries display the [[scandinavian cross|Scandinavian cross]]. |
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| | + | [[Category:Europe]] |