Northern and
Southern Schleswig
Denmark & GermanyJune 28 - July 7, 2024.

News

Five languages in one sentence


The German-Danish-Frisian border region has a lot to offer in terms of landscape, culture and sport. The traces of its chequered history are still visible in everyday life today.

 

It is hard to imagine today, but the German-Danish border was fiercely contested for a long time. Over the centuries, the course of the border changed several times. Until the German-Danish War, the River Eider marked the border between the Danish Duchy of Schleswig in the north and German Holstein in the south. With the Peace of Vienna in 1864, the whole of Schleswig, which extended almost as far north as Kolding, fell to Prussia. 

Contested border

Two years later, under French pressure, Prussia agreed to a referendum on a possible annexation to Denmark. This was only implemented by the Allies after the First World War. In the 1920 referendum, the population north of the current border voted in favour of belonging to Denmark and south of it to Germany. This was also the birth of the German minority in North Schleswig and the Danish minority in South Schleswig.

On the way to England

Little is known about the fact that the course of the world was changed from here in ancient times. During the Migration Period in the 5th century, the Angles who had settled in eastern Schleswig joined forces with the Saxons in the south, the Jutes in the north and the Frisians in the west and travelled across the North Sea to Britain. They displaced the Celtic population in what is now southern and central England. The Angles gave the whole of England its name, and the Anglo-Saxons later spread across the whole world.

33 kilometres from the North Sea to the Baltic Sea

The motto of the 5th EUROPEADA sums up the main geographical feature of the region: Between the seas. If you were to line up one of the teams taking part in the Europeada every kilometre in a westerly direction from Schleswig, you would arrive in Husum after 33 kilometres at the narrowest point between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. 

As small as this distance is, the landscape between the seas is just as varied across the border. In the far west lies the Wadden Sea with the North Frisian Islands and the Halligen on the German side and the island of Röm on the Danish side. Who doesn't think of long bathing beaches, dunes and seagulls? This unique natural area is a UNESCO World Heritage Site on both sides of the border. National parks have also been established on both sides to ensure a balance between tourism, management and nature conservation.

From the Wadden Sea to the hills

The interior of the entire region is characterised by three landscape formations that run from south to north. The damp, flat marshland in the west is followed by the sandy geest ridge in the centre. The loamy hill country in the east may surprise some first-time visitors, as the north is generally considered to be very flat. The Knivsberg between Apenrade and Haderslev is 97 metres high and many a cyclist will work up a sweat on both sides of the Flensburg Fjord.

The coast between Eckernförde Bay and the Little Belt is characterised by steep cliffs and small bathing bays. The Baltic Sea is a very popular sailing area here, which belongs to the so-called Danish South Sea north of the border due to the many small islands.

Districts, cities, municipalities

In Germany, the region is divided into the districts of Nordfriesland, Schleswig-Flensburg and the northern part of Rendsburg-Eckernförde. In addition, there is the independent city of Flensburg with the centre of the Danish minority.  The Frisian ethnic group has its centre in Bredstedt with the Frisian Council and the Nordfriisk Instituut. Other well-known places in North Friesland are the district capital Husum, Tönning, Niebüll and Friedrichstadt.

The region of Southern Denmark, which is divided into numerous municipalities, begins north of the border. The German minority is mainly represented in the municipalities of Tondern, Haderslev, Sonderburg and Apenrade, where their central organisations are based.

Vikings and Herrnhuter

The variety of languages spoken in this relatively small area is unique – sometimes they are even used in the same sentence. In addition to German and Danish, Frisian, Low German and Sønderjysk are also spoken in North Friesland. Danish, Sønderjysk and German are also part of the common vocabulary of the German and Danish minorities.

The Gottorf castles in Schleswig and Augustenborg on the island of Alsen are particular tourist attractions with a rich history.  Two spectacular open-air museums take visitors back to worlds of their own: in Haithabu you can feel like a Viking, in Christiansfeld like a member of the Moravian Church that once settled here.

Mecca for folk musicians, gaff sailors and handball players

Of the numerous live events, two stand out as the most important of their kind in the whole of Northern Europe: The Tonder Festival for folk musicians and the Flensburg Rum Regatta for gaff sailors.

Oh yes, great sport is of course also on offer: SG Flensburg-Handewitt is one of the top European teams in men's handball.  SønderjyskE has successful first division handball teams in both the men's and women's leagues. The men's footballers of the club, which is based in Apenrade and Haderslev, also play in the Danish Superliga.

When future historians report on the region's sporting and cultural highlights, they will not be able to avoid the EUROPEADA 2024.

Five languages in one sentence

Latest news

Event

European Football Championship of the autochthonous national minorities

European Football Championship of the autochthonous national minorities

Organisation

Federal Union of European Nationalities

Federal Union of European Nationalities

 

Mute Hate Speech

Mute Hate Speech

Partners

Federal Ministry of the Interior and Homeland de / UEFA

Federal Ministry of the Interior and Homeland de / UEFA

 

Sydslesvigudvalget

Sydslesvigudvalget

 

Sportland SH

Sportland SH

 

Stadt Flensburg

Stadt Flensburg

 

Kreis Schleswig-Flensburg

Kreis Schleswig-Flensburg

 

Tønder Kommune

Tønder Kommune

 

Region Syddanmark

Region Syddanmark

 

Haderslev Kommune

Haderslev Kommune

 

Aabenraa Kommune

Aabenraa Kommune

 

Sønderborg Kommune

Sønderborg Kommune

 

Kreis Nordfriesland

Kreis Nordfriesland

 

Kreis Rendsburg-Eckernförde

Kreis Rendsburg-Eckernförde

 

Miniszterelnökség, Nemzetpolitikai Államtitkárság Bethlen Gábor Alap

Miniszterelnökség, Nemzetpolitikai Államtitkárság Bethlen Gábor Alap

Local organisers

German Minority in Denmark

German Minority in Denmark

 

Sinti and Roma Organisation

Sinti and Roma Organisation

 

North Frisian Minority Association

North Frisian Minority Association

 

Danish minority in Germany

Danish minority in Germany

Local sponsors

Select

Select

 

Union Bank

Union Bank

 

Rohde Verkehrsbetriebe GmbH

Rohde Verkehrsbetriebe GmbH

 

Flensborg Avis

Flensborg Avis

 

Der Nordschleswiger

Der Nordschleswiger

 

Na Logo

Na Logo

 

Hotel des Nordens

Hotel des Nordens

 

Hudl

Hudl

 

hpo Steuerberater

hpo Steuerberater

 

Strandet

Strandet

 

Naturgeflüster

Naturgeflüster

 

Flensburger Brauerei

Flensburger Brauerei

 

Knipskasten Flensburg

Knipskasten Flensburg

 

Phono Flensburg

Phono Flensburg