Forget American Hegimony, Check Out IKEA's Cultural Imperialism

In international news, the Danish are accusing Sweden's IKEA of cultural imperialism by naming the cheapest and most pedestrian products with Danish words and the best with Swedish words. Certain readers of this blog were correct to be skeptical of IKEA and their intentions (you know who you are). I'm just saying we should be on alert in this new front in the Scandanavian "culture wars."

"An analysis by two Danish academics found that the Swedish furniture store Ikea gives its "better" products Swedish and Norwegian names, while "lesser" products are christened with Danish names. An analysis by a blogger on a Germany-based Web forum also reached the same conclusion.Here's the hierarchy:

Tier 1, Swedish: Upholstered furniture, bookcases, and multimedia consoles get the names of Swedish towns. Example -- the Kramfors sofa.

Tier 2, Norwegian: Beds, dressers, and hallway furniture are bestowed with the names of Norwegian towns. Example -- the Leksvik bed.

Tier 3, Finnish: Chairs and dining tables are christened after Finnish towns. Example -- the Harola chair.

Tier 4, Danish: Doormats, runners, and inexpensive carpeting get Danish names. Example -- the Roskilde rug and the Köge doormat.

The hierarchy, an example of "Swedish imperialism," sends the message that Denmark is the doormat of Sweden, one of the academics said in a Feb. 14 article in the Danish newspaper Nyhedsavisen."

Courtesy of FP's Passport at http://blog.foreignpolicy.com.