The Nordic Countries: cultural and library cooperation

Denmark, Norway and Sweden form the region of Scandinavia, but they are also a part of the Nordic region, ‘Norden’, which consists of five countries and three autonomous areas. The Nordic countries established the Nordic Council, an organized cooperation on the parliamentary level, in 1952. Under the umbrella of ‘Norden’ there are a great number of institutions, committees and institutional bodies, many of them in the cultural field. The Nordic Literature and Library Committee (NORDBOK) supports various projects and initiatives aimed at promoting Nordic literature and gives translation grants for a considerable number of books each year. The library aspect of the committee’s work is directed towards the public library sector. At the top of the Nordic agenda in 2005 is the question of language. Eight languages are spoken in the region, but there is a Nordic linguistic community based on the three Scandinavian languages. The Nordic linguistic community provides a foundation for cultural cooperation and a necessary platform for collaboration in many other fields.