kulturel

Kulturel is an adjective used in several Scandinavian languages, most notably Danish, to mean cultural or related to culture. In Danish, it is used to describe culture-related aspects across society, arts, policy, and everyday life. Cognate forms in related languages include kultural forms like kulturnell in other languages, but the Danish version kulturel follows its own spelling conventions. The term is usually lowercase in running text and does not function as a proper noun.

Usage of the term appears in phrases such as kulturel identitet (cultural identity), kulturel mangfold (cultural diversity), kulturel sektor (cultural sector), kulturel praksis (cultural practice), and kulturel politik (cultural policy). In academic and media contexts, it helps distinguish cultural dimensions from economic, political, or social ones, and it can be applied across disciplines including sociology, anthropology, arts, and education.

Origin and etymology trace kulturel to the Latin cultura, via French culture, and its adoption into various European languages. The Danish form reflects typical Scandinavian adaptation of the root meaning. While closely related to terms in other Nordic languages—such as kulturell in Norwegian and Swedish—the exact spelling and usage may differ by language and region. In English-language texts, kulturel is usually treated as a loanword when discussing Danish or regional cultural topics.