Hygge has been part of the Danish lifestyle forever. More precisely, it’s a sort of second nature to Danish people. Now if we were to try and find the most adequate equivalent in the English language, cozy is probably the term which would come closest to defining what makes up Hygge—although the Danish would probably insist that cozy falls short compared to what Hygge actually stands for in their culture.
Regardless of the choice of words or the exact definition of what qualifies as Hygge, the reason why Hygge has been getting so much press lately is probably due to the fact that the Danish rank among the happiest citizens of the world, something awe inspiring in a rather bleak world stage context. And so the question on everyone’s mind: is Hygge the reason behind the happiness rate of Danish people? Even if a positive answer sounds a bit simplistic, it’s still been enough to create momentum around Hygge, which brings us to our article of the day.
We like to believe that, whether the effects of Hygge are backed by science doesn’t really matter in the end. What’s enough for us is that this trademark of the Scandinavian lifestyle seems to be making a country happy, even when a snowstorm is blazing outside— this is science enough to us after all. Besides, in a day and age where the latest fads sometimes encourage consumption over experiences, Hygge is the exact opposite.
Indeed, Hygge is all about creating experiences over blind consumerism. And when it comes to this behavior, you will have to agree that we all have a thing or two to learn, right? We’ve all been guilty of buying things to fill a void and spending more time with “stuff”, our smartphone making top of the list, rather than our loved ones, friends or even colleagues. That’s where Hygge steps in with its simple good sense values.
Let us describe a few Hygge settings for you, just so that you get the picture: a dinner at your place with friends, featuring homemade hearty food that you’ve prepared together, followed by a night of board games, a romantic date at a cozy coffeeshop sitting with a warm blanket on your lap and hot cocoa, no phones allowed, a night in with yourself, cozied up on the couch with warm socks, a good book instead of TV and warm candlelight for company. Simple pleasures which apparently make all the difference in the world for the Danish, so why not give it a try and see for yourself if it turns your life around, something tells me it just might...
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