Danes still world's happiest people
Security, generous welfare and a practical streak make up for debt, dark winters and dying young
They are the most indebted people in the world, live through long, dark winters and have a shorter life expectancy than several Mediterranean countries.
Yet for the past four decades, the Danes have consistently rated themselves as the happiest people on earth.
Among foreigners in Denmark, theories as to why the host population is so content range from its egalitarian policies, to its history, to the observation that some people are simply easier to satisfy than others.
“You can reach a high-ranking politician or a director here even if you are an ordinary person,” said Josephine Hoegh, who moved to Denmark from the Philippines 40 years ago.
Denmark first topped the happiness table in 1973, when a European Union survey found that people there were happier than in any other member state.
This year, it held on to the top spot in the United Nations’ annual World Happiness Report, issued in September, even as it suffered its worst economic crisis since the second world war.
The top five were all wealthy northern European nations: Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Sweden. Canada came in sixth, and Australia 10th, with Finland (seventh), Austria (eighth) and Iceland (ninth) rounding out the top 10. Hong Kong was mid-ranked in 64th place, mainland China 93rd, and Togo 156th and last.