Your Scandinavian Stereotypes?

I am working on a story taking place in Scandinavia, but with a few foreginers showing up. I just wonder what people have for stereotypes about Scandinavia and its inhabitants. (Sweden, Iceland, Denmark, Norway and Finland.)

Please mention which country you are from.

I'm a Swede and my own stereotypes are:

• Sweden: Political Correctness Gone Mad , irritating rules and don't think you are special.
• Finland: Equal parts Sisu, vodka, depression and knife-nut-tendencies.
• Denmark: Two words: Cheep beer...
• Norway: Happy but stupid guys with lots of oil.
• Iceland: Volcanoes and glaciers.

edited 10th Mar '16 1:55:44 AM by TheBorderPrince

Here in the United States, at least in my own personal experience, Scandinavians in general are associated with four things: vikings, social democracy (often painted as either utopian or dystopian depending on the politics of the viewer, with nuanced analyses rare), a penchant for large amounts of alcohol, and (maybe this last one is a result of my own social groups), simply incredible amounts of Heavy Metal ranging from Opeth to Nightwish to Finntroll. Most Americans aren't likely to have stereotypes about specific Scandinavian countries beyond that, unless they themselves have Scandinavian ancestry, in which case they'll replicate their ancestral ones.

edited 9th Mar '16 3:57:42 PM by KillerClowns

The only Scandinavian stereotype I can think of is the Swedish Chef from the Muppets — A guy you can't understand cooking meatballs that you can bounce off a tennis racket.

(I'm also from the USA, by the way.)

edited 9th Mar '16 4:44:40 PM by pwiegle

You mean there's more to Finns than sniper rifles, cell phones, and Perkele?

Don't forget cheap, assemble-yourself furniture and the indecipherably oblique instructions that come with them.

Scandinavia = really hot-looking blonde, blue-eyed girls with sexy exotic accents who probably know how to give really good massages

"Welcome to Denmark, see our historic buildings, marvel at our majestic scenery, sit in one of our quaint cafes and have a bit of Danish..."

That's pretty much the stereotype about Scandinavia I grew up around in New Zealand.

Finland: Symphonic Metal, Power Metal, Alternative Metal, Heavy Metal... with depression related lyrics, of course. And there may be elves there, but I am unsure.

Iceland: I am quite sure there are elves there, hiding under the rocks.

They make good cars, though. (Volvo & Saab.)

Also, if we're talking historical stereotypes as well, I cannot let Sweden go by without mentioning its line of odd-looking but pretty delta-winged Saab fighters, its turretless Strv 103 tanks, and, going back further...

Into battle facing the fire, Lord, thy will be done
Into battle walking the line—see the white of their eyes, Caroleans are marching on!

Things I know about:
Sweden: IKEA. Meatballs.
Finland: I know a Finnish guy. I call him Gruffs.
Denmark: Something is rotten in the state of.
Norway: I got nothin.
Iceland: All green and shit, compared to Greenland which is all icy.

Here are mine. I'm Czech.

• Sweden: great ice-hockey; Nobel Prize, Children of Bullerbyn, gorgeous nature, almost too good to be true, therefore slightly suspicious social system, low criminality, Sexy Scandinavian, they stole our most precious art collections from Rudolph II's court, and they did not even manage to preserve them right
• Finland: great ice-hockey; depressed people; over-priced alcohol, cool but difficult to learn language; saunas, Nokia
• Denmark: old Czech sayings "drink as a Dane" or "be as plastered as a Dane"; Danish teenagers drinking illegally and destroying hotels in Prague during their spring break (last year to extreme, this year less so); Hamlet, Prince of Denmark; why don't play great ice-hockey?
• Norway: Barnevernet = Department of Child Disservices — seems like they literally steal children; beautiful countryside; oil;
• Iceland: here there be geysers and volcanoes

Do they resemble Vigo the Carpathian in any way?

.....wait. Wrong series.

edited 23rd Mar '16 6:58:34 PM by Xenovista

Aussie. Umm, ones I've heard:

- Scandinavian countries are kinda interchangeable

- Drugs!

- Skinny, pasty white blondes with blue eyes

- Fish? Fish.

...I expect these are all wildly inaccurate

edited 25th Mar '16 4:40:51 AM by Murataku

Norway is 90% fjords or mountains, and trolls live up in the rocky terrain.