Common cultural features
The Nordic countries have undergone many changes since the days of the Kalmar Treaty. Nevertheless some cultural features have remained the same, for instance the original language, which can still be found in Iceland, where the Sagas, written in the 13th century, can still be read in the original.

The population of the Faroe Islands speak their own language, Faroese, which is related to Old Norse and Icelandic.

The Scandinavian languages, Danish, Swedish and Norwegian, come from the same roots and the people of these nations have little or no difficulty in understanding each other. Greenlanders, Finns and Lapps are an exception, speaking languages of unrelated origins. However, most Greenlanders speak fluent Danish, a large number of the Finns speak Swedish and the Lapps speak Swedish or Norwegian or both. Thus, language barriers rarely occur in the Nordic countries.

The climate has always played a large role in both culture and general existence. Nine-month-long winters in the northern regions with constant changes in weather have taught the populations of the northern regions to live in harmony with nature and appreciate the beautiful winter scenes lit by nature's "Northern Lights".

The Nordic nations are renowned for their appreciation and respect for their natural surroundings which becomes evident in their cultures and their persistent fight for issues related to environmental preservation.

Due to their geographical position, the countries share a certain hardness of landscape and coastline, Nevertheless each has its own special character.

These bonds, in addition to shared views on fundamental democratic values, have tied the Nordic countries together in a co-operative unit which is internationally known and has no parallel in any other part of the world. They work together in numerous areas of national policy; through this, the Nordic countries hope to maintain their standards in development, prosperity and peace. Despite increasing integration into Europe through the European Union (EU), the Nordic countries all share the same commitment on continuing this co-operation.