were giants who once ruled the world.
Demeter was said to watch over all
aspects of farming, including plowing,
planting, and harvesting. In ancient
Greece the women typically did these
jobs. So Greek women often worshipped
Demeter.
The ancient Greeks used a story about
Demeter to explain the changing of the
seasons. Demeter’s daughter was the
beautiful Persephone. Hades, the god of
the underworld, seized Persephone. He
took her to the land of the dead to be
his queen. Demeter was overcome with
grief. In her great sadness she did not
care about helping the harvest. As a
result, no crops on Earth could grow.
Zeus, the chief god, ordered Hades to
give up Persephone. But in the underworld
Persephone had eaten the seed of
a fruit called a pomegranate. Because of
this, she would always be connected to
the land of the dead. For part of each
year she would have to return to Hades.
When Persephone was gone, Demeter
refused to let anything grow.Winter
then fell over Earth. But when Per-
Certain grass
seeds that are
good to eat
are called
cereals in
honor of
Ceres.
34 Demeter BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
sephone returned, Demeter made all the
plants bloom in celebration. It was then
spring.
#More to explore
Hades • Mythology
Democracy
The word democracy describes a form of
government. The word comes from two
Greek words that mean “rule by the
people.” In a democracy the people have
a say in how the government is run.
They do this by voting, though there are
usually rules about who can vote.
Democracies are different from dictatorships.
In a dictatorship one person called
a dictator makes all the rules.
Types of Democracy
There are two main forms of democracy.
In a direct democracy all the voters
come together in one place to make laws
and decisions. Often there are too many
people for a direct democracy to work.
In those cases the people elect representatives,
or other people to speak for
them. This is called a representative
democracy. The elected representatives
make the laws and decisions.
History
The first democracies were in ancient
Greece more than 2,000 years ago.
Those did not last long, however. After
that, kings and other rulers had all the
power in their countries. In about the
1200s, however, some rulers began to
allow certain citizens to be part of the
government.
By the 1600s and 1700s some people
began to think that all people had certain
rights. These included the right to
participate in their government. In the
British colonies of North America the
colonists felt that the king did not allow
them to participate enough. They
fought a war to gain their freedom.
When they won the war they established
the United States as a republic.
A republic is a form of democracy in
which the citizens vote for the people
who make the laws. They also vote for
the leader of the country, who is often a
president. Many other countries became
republics as well. Other countries kept
their kings or queens but still became
democracies. Monarchies with democracy
are called constitutional monarchies.
In such countries the people vote
for representatives. The king or queen is
the head of the country, but they have
little real power.
#More to explore
Government • Voting
People line up to vote in Sierra Leone, a
country in Africa.
BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA Democracy 35
Denmark
The Kingdom of Denmark is the southernmost
of the countries that form the
region known as Scandinavia. Scandinavia
also includes Sweden and Norway.
Although small in territory and population,
Denmark has played a notable role
in European history. The capital is
Copenhagen.
Geography
A long peninsula known as Jutland
makes up most of the country’s area.
Denmark also includes more than 400
islands to the east of Jutland. Germany
lies to the south of the peninsula. The
North and Baltic seas surround the rest
of Denmark. Narrow passages of water,
called straits, separate Denmark from
Norway and Sweden. Greenland and the
Faroe (or Faeroe) Islands, both located
in the North Atlantic Ocean, are selfgoverning
parts of Denmark.
The Jutland Peninsula is a lowland
region with farmland in the east. The
longest river in Denmark, the Gudena,
flows for 98 miles (158 kilometers)
through Jutland. The islands have low
hills, small lakes, and sandy beaches.
Fewer than one quarter of the islands are
populated. The climate is generally
moist and mild.
Plants and Animals
Much of Denmark was once covered by
forests of oak, elm, lime (linden), and
beech trees. These original forests were
cleared to create farmland, but some
areas have been replanted.Wildlife
includes deer, hares, and hedgehogs.
More than 300 species, or types, of bird
live in Denmark. However, though the
once-common stork is now rare. Fish are
plentiful in Danish waters.
The Faroe Islands of Denmark are home to
Atlantic puffins and other sea birds.
36 Denmark BRITANNICA STUDENT ENCYCLOPEDIA
People
Most of the people of Denmark are ethnic
Danes. Minority groups include
people from Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan.
Danish, the official language, is closely
related to Norwegian. English is also
widely spoken. Most of the people
