86 % of the Danish population lives in urban areas. The population of Denmark proper is 5,353,816 (2001 estimate), giving the nation an overall population density of 125 persons per sq km.

Denmark is almost entirely inhabited by ethnic Danes. . Small German, Jewish, and Polish minorities, on the other hand, have been long accomplished and are substantially assimilated. In the 1960s an economic development required more labour than the nation could supply, and “guest workers” made their way into Denmark. In the late 1980s the most numerous ethnic minorities in Denmark were Turks, Yugoslavs, and Iranians.

Population (2003): 5.385 million. Annual growth rate: 0.4%. Ethnic groups: Scandinavian, German, Inuit, Faroese. Religion membership: Evangelical Lutheran 84.3%. Catholics, Jews, other protestant denominations and Moslems account for around 5%. Languages: Danish, some German, Faroese, Greenlandic. English is the predominant second language. Education: Years compulsory--9. Attendance--100%. Literacy--100%. Health: Infant mortality rate (2001)--4.9/1,000. Life expectancy--men 75 years, women 79 years. Work force (2002): 2.8 million. Employment: industry, construction, mining and utilities--23%; government--34%; private services--38%; agriculture and fisheries--4%