In short, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark are all Nordic countries with Scandinavian roots, but typically, you will only find Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish people referring to themselves as Scandinavian.

Is Scandinavian and Nordic the same thing?

In the current scenario, while the term Scandinavia is commonly used for Denmark, Norway and Sweden, the term Nordic countries is vaguely used for Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland, including their associated territories of Greenland, the Faroe Islands and the Åland Islands.

Why are they called Scandinavian countries?

It is believed that the name used by Pliny may be of West Germanic origin, originally denoting Scania. The name Scandinavia would then mean dangerous island, which is considered to refer to the treacherous sandbanks surrounding Scania.

Does Norse include Sweden?

The word “Nordic” can be used specifically to refer to the geographic and political Nordic region, which includes Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and Finland. These are also known as the norse countries.

Are Norwegians actually happy?

According to the World Happiness Report that was published by United Nations, Norway has been among the top five happiest countries in the world every year ever since the first report of 2012.