| Zealand (Sjælland) | |
| Island | |
| Country |  Denmark |
|---|---|
| Region | Region Sjælland, Region Hovedstaden |
| Coordinates | 55°30′0″N 11°45′0″E / 55.5°N 11.75°E |
| Area | 7,031 km2 (2,715 sq mi) |
| Timezone | CET (UTC+1) |
| - summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) |
| Postal codes | [1] |
 Zealand (Sjælland) island (map center) is linked west to Fyn by the Great Belt Bridge and east to Sweden by the Oresund Bridge.
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Zealand (also Sealand; Danish: Sjælland; pronounced [ˈɕɛˌlænˀ]) is the largest island (7,031 km²) of Denmark (the 95th-largest island in the world). Zealand is connected to Funen by the Great Belt Bridge and to Sweden by the Oresund Bridge.
The capital of Denmark, Copenhagen, is partly located on the eastern shore of Zealand and partly on Amager. Other cities on the island include Roskilde and Elsinore.
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In Norse mythology, the island was created by the goddess Gefjun after she tricked Gylfi, the king of Sweden, as told in the story of Gylfaginning. She removed a piece of land and transported it to Denmark, and it became the island of Zealand. The vacant area was filled with water and became Mälaren.[2] However, since modern maps show a similarity between Zealand and the Swedish lake Vänern, it is sometimes identified as the hole left by Gefjun.
On June 5, 2007, the regional subsidiary of national broadcaster DR reported that a hill, Kobanke, situated in the southeast near the town Rønnede in Faxe municipality, with a natural point of terrain at 122.9 m (403.21 feet), was the highest natural point on Zealand. Gyldenløveshøj, south of the city Roskilde has a height of 126 m (413.4 feet), but that is due to a man-made hill from the 1600s and its highest natural point is only 121.3 m (397.96 feet).
This article covers the island in Denmark, not to be confused with the Dutch province Zeeland.
Zealand (Danish: Sjælland, [1]) is the largest island in Denmark, located between the Island of Funen and the southern tip of Sweden. It is the seat of the capital Copenhagen. In addition to Zealand this region also encompasses the islands of Lolland, Falster and Møn, as well as numerous small islands.
| Greater
Copenhagen region The densely populated capital region |
| North
Zealand The Northern Zealand of Kings with lakes, farmland, lush forests and impressive castles |
| West
Zealand |
| South
Zealand |
| Møn Known and loved by the Danes for its scenic country side, Viking burial mounds and its spectacular chalck cliffs. |
| Lolland
The "sugar island", supplies the sugar for almost all the tasty Danish pastry. |
| Falster
Includes good beaches, and Denmark's southernmost point, Gedser, where you can jump on a ferry to Germany. |
Rumours has it that Zealand was carved out of Sweden (See the ancient legend on your right), and the area where Zealand was carved out from, is now a huge lake which bears some similarity to Zealand. Today a large statue commemorating Gefions feat of ploughing Zealand out of Sweden with her ox cart stands near Kastellet in Copenhagen.
And for many years to follow, Gefion's Zealand was the geographical centre of the Danish Kingdom, as Sweden's three southern most provinces was then an integral part of Denmark. But the Swedes had their vengeance for Gefion's dirty tricks, though they had to wait a thousand years to taste it. In 1658 they took the eastern part of the Kingdom, in one of the countless wars between the two countries, so that Denmark now ended on the shores of Zealand - hence the rather odd location of the Danish capital.
Much has happened since then, and today nearly half of the population of Denmark lives on the island, where also the capital and largest city Copenhagen is situated - the metropolitan area covers almost the entire north eastern portion of the island, and many people on the rest the island commutes to the capital every day.
Zealand is a quite large island, at just over 7000 km2 (2,715 sq mi), it's among the 100 largest islands in the world. It's flat, but dominated by low rolling hills from moraines left behind from the last ice age - the highest point, Gyldenløves Høj, is only 126 meters (413 ft) above the sea. It's heavily cultivated, but there are some (by local standards) large forested areas in Northern Zealand and on Western Zealand between Slagelse and Sorø.
The sea south of Zealand is dominated by the three large islands Lolland, Falster and Møn,
Although densely populated and the seat of the Danish capital, Zealand is an island - in the past 15 years two fixed connections to Jutland and Sweden respectively have been completed, but there is still numerous ferry lines connecting Zealand with the European continent.
Zealand is connected to the European highway network on European routes E20 running between Shannon in Ireland, and St Petersburg in Russia, the E47 between Lübeck, Germany and Helsingborg in Sweden and finally the E55 between Helsingborg, and Kalamata in Greece. Please note that all of the ferry connections listed below, also take on cars. Avoid highways leading into Copenhagen in the morning rush hour between 7-9AM, where traffic is notoriously slow for tens of kilometers.
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There are numerous trains connecting Zealand with Funen and Jutland, they all cross the Great Belt fixed link. The Main lines departs from Copenhagen twice every hour, usually divided in a Express and a Intercity train, and runs across the length of Zealand with stops in Roskilde, Ringsted, Slagelse and Korsør before crossing the Belt and Funen, and finaly branching out when they reach Jutland. The most important branches being Århus/Aalborg running North, Esbjerg running west and finaly Sønderborg running south. All cross belt trains are operated by DSB (Danish Railways[17]. International trains depart Copenhagen Central station for Hamburg and Berlin serveral times per day, stopping in major Zealand cities; Næstved, Vordingborg and Nykøbing Falster on the way. There is also connections between Copenhagen and Ystad, Göteborg and Stockholm in Sweden across the Øresund bridge.
Buses between Zealand and Jutland are only marginally cheaper than the train, although there is considerable discounts between Monday - Thursday. The International buses on the other hand offers considerably lower prices than the train. Copenhagen due to its size, acts as the central hub for all bus lines, but the highway buses for Jutland, listed under Copenhagen, makes stops in both Roskilde and Holbæk.
The vast majority of regional transportation is done by train, the bulk of it on the 4 main DSB [18] corridors, radiating out of Copenhagen. It is worth noting that that the ticketing system changes in Borup and Hvalsø, roughly half way between Roskilde and Holbæk & Ringsted respectively, if you cross these cities "All-Zone" tickets bought in Copenhagen are no longer valid, and you need to purchase train tickets with DSB instead,
The regional transportation agency for the whole region is Movia [19]. Though the lionsshare of long distance transportation in the region are done by train, there are a few important interregional routes namely:
And two mainly summer express buses[20] which non-stop between Høje Taastrup and the beaches and vacation homes in North-Eastern Zealand:
The most important ferry route on Zealand is between Hundested and Rørvig [21], crossing the big fjord in northern part of the island. Many of the smaller islands dotting the sea around Zealand and Lolland are also connected by ferries, check these in the relevant sub regions,
While the rest of Denmark is aptly represented in terms of local specialties, the closest Zealand gets is probably the famous smørrebrød, meaning buttered-bread, which has its origins in Copenhagen. These open faced sandwiches of rye bread and butter, comes with as many as 250 different toppings, and are usually finished by some elaborate decorations. Smørrebrød is usually eaten at lunch.
Further south, on the island of Møn the local specialty is bidesild (chewy herring) and is herring that has been pickled in brine over several years, and is served with bread and fat.
There are several breweries dotted around Zealand. Carlsberg & Tuborg, Denmarks major brands used to be produced in Copenhagen but production has now moved to Jutland, but there are serveral other local brands to choose from
The Swedish province of Scania is an easy trip by ferry or train from most parts of eastern Zealand. It shares a common history and heritage with the island.
| This is a usable article. It has information for getting in as well as some complete entries for restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please plunge forward and help it grow! |
Category: Usable articles
ZEALAND (also Sealand or Seeland; Danish Sjaelland), the largest island of the kingdom of Denmark. It is bounded N. by the Cattegat, E. by the Sound, separating it from Sweden, and the Baltic Sea, S. by narrow straits separating it from Falster, Mien, and smaller islands, and W. by the Great Belt, separating it from Fiinen. Its nearer point to Sweden is 3 m., to Fiinen 11. Its greatest extent from N. to S. is 82 m., from E. to W. 68 m., but the outline is very irregular. The area is 2636 sq. m. The surface is for the most part undulating, but on the whole little above sea-level; the highest elevations are in the south-east, where Cretaceous hills (the oldest geological formation on the island) reach heights of upwards of 350 ft. The coast is indented by numerous deep bays and fjords; the Ise Fjord in the north, with its branches the Roskilde Fjord on the east and the Lamme Fjord on the west, penetrates inland for about 25 m. There are no rivers of importance; but several large lakes, the most considerable being Arre and Esrom, occur in the north-east. The soil is fertile and produces grain, especially rye and barley, in great abundance, as well as potatoes and other vegetables, and fruit. The scenery, especially in the neighbourhood of the fjords, is pleasant, lacking the barrenness of some portions of the kingdom.
Zealand is divided into five amter (counties). (i) Frederiksborg, in the north, named from the palace of Frederiksborg. In the north-east, where the coast approaches most nearly to Sweden, is Helsingor or Elsinore. (2) Kjobenhavn, south of Frederiksborg. The capital is that of the kingdom, Copenhagen (Kjobenhavn). The only other town of importance is the old cathedral city of Roskilde on the fjord of that name. Off the little port of Kjiige in the south the Danes under Nils Juel defeated the Swedes in 1677, and in another engagement in 1710 the famous Danish commander Hvitfeldt sank with his ship. (3) Holbaek, west of Kjobenhavn. The chief town, Holbaek, lies on an arm of the Ise Fjord. In the west is the port of Kallundborg, with regular communication by steamer with Aarhus in Jutland. It has a singular Romanesque church of the 12th century. The district is diversified with small lakes, as the Tiffs So. (4) Soro, occupying the south-western part of the island. The chief town, Soro, lies among woods on the small Soro lake. It was formerly the seat of a university, and remains an important educational centre. Its church, of the 12th century, contains the tombs of the poet Holberg (d. 1754) and of some of the Danish kings. Slagelse in the west, an agricultural centre, is an ancient town dating back to the 12th century. Here Hans Christian Andersen, the poet, received part of his education. Korsor is an important seaport. (5) Praestii, the most southerly county. The capital, Praest&, is a small port on the inner lagoon of a bay of this name, on the east coast. In the west is the ancient town of Naestved; in the south, Vordingborg, with a ruined castle and a small harbour. The railway here crosses a great bridge on to the small Masnedo, whence there is a ferry to Orehoved on Falster island, a link in the direct route between Copenhagen and Berlin.
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Categories: Z-ZYM | Scandinavia
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Plural |
Zealand
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Zealand is an island of Denmark. It is the biggest island. Over two million people live on it. Copenhagen, the capital city of Denmark, can be found on the island, if you know where to look.
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