SCANDINAVIA
Scandinavia is a historical and geographical region centred on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sources often use the term Scandinavia to describe only the three kingdoms of Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, but it is sometimes extended to cover Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland; or Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland; or, at its greatest extent, the nations of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, and their associated territories: The Faroe Islands, The Åland Islands, and Greenland. Regardless how the word Scandinavia is defined, the term Nordic countries is used to denote all of the above-mentioned nations and territories as one collective group.
In 1946 the Danish, Swedish and Norwegian ministers of justice decided to appoint a committee to draw up proposals on co-operation in the future on legislation in the Nordic region.
In February 1953 the Nordic Council became a reality. Finland joined the council in 1956. The formation of the council made it possible for Nordic parliamentarians to play a larger role in the process of developing co-operation on legislation.
The Nordic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers is an intergovernmental forum for co-operation between the Nordic countries. It was established following World War II and its first concrete result was the introduction in 1952 of a common labour market and free movement across borders without passports for the countries’ citizens.