Danish Odds and Ends Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cheese

Like most European countries, cheese is a popular food in Denmark and the nation has many different varieties. Havarti is among the most popular cheese. It is a soft cow's milk cheese similar to what some places call swiss cheese, but without the holes usually. It is frequently flavored with additional seasonings and spices like garlic, basil and even coconut.

Danablu is a blue cheese made from cow's milk. It is frequently called Danish Blue Cheese in the English-speaking world. It is similar to Roquefort cheese. Mycella is also made from cow's milk. It is very similar to the Italian cheese gorgonzola.

Answer: Queen Margrethe II's tapestries

Norgaard was commissioned by Queen Margrethe II to design a series of tapestries depicting Denmark's history. This was in honor of her 50th birthday in 1990. Norgaard did not physically make the tapestries but he designed them all and the tapestries were made from his sketches.

Norgaard is known for being a versatile and sometimes bizarre artist. One of his more well known "exhibits" was called "Horse Sacrifice" which was meant as Vietnam War Protest. Norgaard killed a horse, chopped it up and placed the pieces in many different jars.

Some of his more mainstream creations include the Gladsaxe Library, Thor's Tower and statue of Hans Tausen.

Answer: Elverhoj

"Elves' Hill" or "Elverhoj" is one of the most famous Danish compositions of all time. "Elverhoj" is a comedy opera and was the very first Danish national play. Kuhlau wrote it for the wedding of Princess Vilhelmine Marie in 1828. Notably, the comedy makes use of the Danish national anthem (which Kuhlau did not write but his use of it here made it popular).

In addition to "Elverhoj", Kuhlau is also famous for introducing the works of Beethoven and other foreign composers to Denmark.

Answer: A War (Krigen)

"A War" was nominated for the award in 2015 but lost to the Hungarian film "Son of Saul". "A War" follows Danish troops in Afghanistan as they work to protect innocent civilians while a war crime scandal hangs over them.

"In a Better World" won the award in 2011. The film is about a Danish doctor who works in a Sudanese refugee camp. The film tells his life both in Sudan and back home in Denmark.

The 1987 award went to "Babette's Feast". The film is about two elderly sisters who operate a religious institution that is steadily losing members. The film tells their story from their youth to the elderliness. This was the first Danish film to win the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar.

"Pelle the Conqueror" stars Max Van Sydow as an elderly immigrant names Lesse who, with his young son Pelle, moves to Sweden from Denmark. Lesse and Pelle struggle in their new country as it is nearly impossible for either of them to find work. The film won the award in 1988.

Answer: Soccer/football

Handball originated in Denmark and both the national men's and women's team have had tremendous success in various international competitions. However, the national and most popular sport is football/soccer. Denmark won the European Cup in 1992 but has not had much success in other international competitions.

Denmark is also known for having the most successful badminton players outside of Asia. In addition, sailing and rowing are also very popular with sailing being Denmark's Olympic sport with the most medals.

Answer: False

Denmark, like other Nordic countries, is very tolerant of LGBT rights and issues. Same-sex relations were legalized in 1933 and same-sex marriage was legalized in 2012 and even had the support of the Church of Denmark. Copenhagen has held a pride parade every year since 1996. Openly gay people are allowed to serve in the military and transgendered people have an easier time amending their birth certificates and other documents.

There are also strong anti-discrimination laws in effect.

Answer: Rice pudding

Although rice pudding has long been popular in Denmark, risalamande only became popular after World War II. Rice and cinnamon were expensive so the Danes started adding the inexpensive whipped cream to the dish to stretch it out. Thus risalamande was born.

It soon became the traditional Danish Christmas dessert. According to tradition, a whole almond is hidden in the batch of rice pudding and whoever finds it receives a chocolate prize.

Answer: Gnome

A nisse is a popular gnome creature that is sometimes misconstrued to be a goblin in the English-speaking world. Nisser (plural of nisse) are popular in most Scandinavian tales and have their origins in ancient Norse times. Nisser are said to live in barns or sheds and will protect the people and animals who live the main house from harm. However, nisser are also known to be quite devilish if they are mistreated or insulted, which can be done easily.

Nisser look like traditional American or British garden gnomes in appearance. In modern times, they have been associated with Christmastime or wintertime and have become the Danish equivalent to Santa's elves.

Answer: The Snow Queen

"The Snow Queen" is one of Andersen's most famous tales. In this story, the Devil has made a mirror that makes everything it reflects ugly and undesirable. When the mirror breaks, tiny shards of it spread throughout the earth. Kai gets a shard in his eye and everything he sees becomes ugly to him, including his childhood friend/crush Gerda and his grandmother. Kai meets the Snow Queen who makes him forget all about Gerda while Gerda meets a sorceress who fails to get her to forget about Kai. Realizing Kai is not dead as was believed, Gerda goes to the Snow Queen's Palace to find him.

Answer: Dala horse

The Dala or Dalecarlian horse is a symbol of Sweden and was designed by the Swedes centuries ago. They are traditionally little wooden horses painted red with patterns on them.

The Sydney Opera House in Australia was designed by architect Jorn Utzon. The roof of the Sydney Opera House resembles shells and the panels are often called shells but they are technically ribs. They are meant to appear like a ship's sails from a distance. The main building opened in 1973.

Egg chairs are a style of chairs typically elevated a good distance off the ground and have a large, curved back to them so oftentimes you cannot see the person sitting in it from the back. Egg chairs are considered to be part of the Danish Modern designed and were originally conceived by Arne Jacobsen.

The Little Mermaid statue is a well known symbol of Copenhagen. It was designed by Edvard Eriksen as a tribute to Hans Christan Andersen's "The Little Mermaid". Specifically is commissioned by a man named Carl Jacobsen who loved the opera based on Andersen's story. The statue is also well known for how many times it has been vandalized, usually in political protest. It has been decapitated at least twice, blown up and painted. It is always restored as soon as possible.