# Humanities & Anthropology > History & Civilisations >  Who is the greatest Dane in history?

## TheCaptain

In your opinion, who is the greatest Dane in history?
Read more about the candidates here: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Christian_Andersen
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Blixen
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niels_Bohr
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tycho_Brahe
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canute_the_Great
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soren_Kierkegaard
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Laudrup
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arnold_Peter_Moller
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jorn_Utzon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Christian_Orsted

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## Maciamo

I hesitated between Canute the Great, Niels Bohr and Arnold Peter M&#248;ller. I chose the latter because he had the biggest impact on modern Denmark by founding the Moller-Maersk Group, the largest container ship operator in the world. Bohr's contribution to the atomic bomb does not make him "great" (important, but not great).

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## Derek Knatchbull

Lars Von Trier
Briget Neilson
Peter Scheimichael
Hamlet
Flemming Christiansen

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## Gwyllgi

http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps...ap_320X240.jpg 

Well, someone had to do it!

It's "George", and according to the Guiness Book of Records he's the biggest.

(I'm having a silly day today, I've decided!)

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## superhorn

I don't think there's any one "greatest" person of any nation . All of these are great Danes (not dogs!).
Another who is not listed here but should be is Denmarlk's greatest composer Carl Nielsen (1865-1931 ),
who worte highly original and individualistic music, mostly famously his six symphonies , and many other
very interestign works .

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## JFWR

The answer is obviously Hamlet. As a historical individual he is not especially useful, but his fame has been vastly extended by his literary importance through Shakespeare. 

Otherwise, Soren Kierkegaard should have been euthanized about the time that he left Regina Olson. Nihilists should never be regarded as worthy of admiration in any sense.

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## oriental

How about the Great Dane for animal lovers.  :Laughing:

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## albanopolis

> I hesitated between Canute the Great, Niels Bohr and Arnold Peter Møller. I chose the latter because he had the biggest impact on modern Denmark by founding the Moller-Maersk Group, the largest container ship operator in the world. Bohr's contribution to the atomic bomb does not make him "great" (important, but not great).


Of course Niles Bohr was important and Great, but he was not Dane by blood. So that might be a disquolifier for Niels.

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## Balder

Peter Schmichael has a Pomeranian Polish father (half Dane of course).
Lars von Trier is half German (with a adoptive Jewish father)
Niels Bohr is half Jew. 
 :Cool V: 

Also, Tycho Brahe was from north of Svalöv in then Danish Scania, now Swedish, to Otte Brahe (of the Brahe family). Technically today he would be a Swede. 

And Carl Theodor Dreyer, famous Danish moviemaker, is half Swede. His mother was from Sweden.

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## Templar

Was Ragnar Lodbrok from modern-day Denmark? I couldn't find a conclusive answer for that anywhere.

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## Barantes

> Was Ragnar Lodbrok from modern-day Denmark? I couldn't find a conclusive answer for that anywhere.


According to Danish historian Saxo Grammaticus, he was a 9th century Danish king. That's about all it says however.

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## disputedname

Ik this thread is over a decade old but I'd have to say that Svend Haraldsen (Forkbeard) is the Greatest Dane, his son, Knud, ruled over what he conquered, he kept Danish sovereignty against the mighty tide of the Holy Roman Emperor, and while being Christian, he definitely supported Paganism, as he took a pagan wife. He also defeated the Norwegian King Olav Tryggvason, Conquered England and avenged the countless Danes massacred by Aethelred, and as mentioned before, raised his sons to be great Kings in their own right.

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