Jim OConnor - What Is LEGO?

Billund is a very small town in Denmark, a country in northern Europe. Only about six thousand people live there. It is far away from Denmarks capital city of Copenhagen. But every year over a million and a half people visit Billund.

Why?

Because Billund is the home of the LEGO toy company. And LEGO fans from all over the world go there to visit LEGOs main factory. There, nineteen billion LEGO pieces are made every year. Thats right. Nineteen billion. Those pieces come in dozens of different shapes, colors, and sizes that are used in countless different LEGO sets. Besides the original LEGO factory in Billund, there are four others, in the Czech Republic, Hungary, China, and Mexico. Altogether they make over ninety billion LEGO bricks a year. They also make seven hundred million tiny rubber tires for LEGO cars and trucks.

In Billund, the crowds of LEGO fans also visit LEGOLAND. It opened in 1968 and is a thirty-five-acre amusement park for children eleven or younger. Theres the Vikings River Splash, Lloyds Laser Maze, and roller coasters such as The Dragon, which is based on LEGO KNIGHTS KINGDOMTM sets, as well as DUPLO planes, LEGO cars to ride, and more. But the heart of the park is Miniland, a complete miniature city made from more than twenty million LEGO bricks.

So how did the LEGO company end up in Billund? And how has LEGO grown to be the most successful toy company in the world?

The LEGO story starts in the 1930s with a very skillful carpenter who happened to live in Billund. His name was Ole Kirk Christiansen. Hes among the most famous people youve never heard of!

Denmark, the home of LEGO, is one of three countries known together as Scandinavia. The other two are Sweden and Norway. They are all in northern Europe. They have long, cold winters and shorter summers than most other European countries. Sweden is the largest of the three in size and population. Its capital is Stockholm. Norway has a long, rocky coastline on the parts of the North Atlantic Ocean called the North Sea and the Norwegian Sea. Its capital is Oslo. Denmark, whose capital is Copenhagen, is the smallest of the three in size. All have similar languages, although not exactly the same.

All three countries have constitutional monarchies and a parliamentary system. That means they have a king or queen who has very limited powers. The passing of laws is the job of elected members of their parliament. The head of each government is a prime minister.

Swedes, Danes, and Norwegians travel easily among the three countries. In fact, Ole Kirk Christiansen, founder of LEGO, had his first carpentry job in Norway and married a Norwegian woman. Then he returned to Denmark and set up a small business in Billund.