Students celebrate the end of an era and the beginning of a new one with beer, cheer and traditional white caps

High school graduation has reached fever pitch and thousands of graduating students have been taking to the streets in the last few days wearing their obligatory white student cap to signify the end of their school days.

And it’s not just Danish students taking part in the tradition, but record numbers of immigrant students as well.

The latest figures from the Danish IT Centre for Education and Research show that of the 33,500 students graduating from high school this year, 8.1 percent, or 2,700, are described as having an immigrant background. This represents an increase of five percent compared with 1997 graduation records.

For the uninitiated onlooker, it looks like thousands of sailors wearing jaunty white caps have descended for fun and merriment on the streets as they circle Kongens Nytorv Square in Copenhagen, horns blaring from the back of festively decorated flatbed truck.

It is a time for celebration and large amounts of alcohol are usually involved, but according to one sociologist it is also an important rite of passage for the students.

Margit Warburg is a religious sociologist and professor at the Department of Cross-Culture and Regional Studies at the University of Copenhagen and recently submitted an article on graduation rituals to the religious periodical, Tidsskriftet Religion, outlining the importance of the cap.

‘High school exams are a transition ritual, where young people go through three phases: the isolation phase, and of course the transition phase and the last phase where they integrate into society. And the student cap is a central symbol and object in the ritual,’ said Warburg.

The isolation phase was described as when the individual takes time alone during the study period to prepare for the transition phase.

‘The graduation ceremony at the school is the transition phase and the drive through the town celebrating and making noise represents the phase where they must integrate into society.’

The researcher said the student celebrations are a form of civil religion – a ritual expression of patriotism that can be associated with religious events, such as memorial days for fallen soldiers.

Student caps traditionally feature a small Dannebrog cross, a symbol of the Order of the Dannebrog founded by Christian V in 1671.

‘It reminds Danes that it was God that helped them to victory when the Dannebrog [Danish flag] fell down from heaven during Valdemar’s victory over Estonia in 1219,’ said Warburg.

But the cross isn’t the only representation on the student caps. Each hat features a coloured band that denotes the field of study taken, such as the International Baccalaureate (IB) or Higher Technical Exam (HTX).

For atheist students, the cross can be replaced with a maple leaf, while a red sun on a white background represents Greenlanders.

A long list of traditions is also associated with the cap, apart from the annual drive through the local town.

Students wanting to avoid bad luck should not try on the cap before their last exam, while other students often write messages in the lining.

And perhaps the most anticipated tradition of all – the student with the biggest or smallest head in the class (judged by the size of their cap) has to buy beer for their entire class!

Fact file | Timeline of student caps
1856 – student caps first introduced to Denmark as part of the large Nordic meeting of
            students
1880s – cap represents graduation from two fields of study, all have Bordeaux band
1930s – women allowed to wear the cap
1970s – cap represents new high school educations: Higher Preparatory Exam (HF),
             Higher Commercial Exam (HHX) and Higher Technical Exam (HTX)
1990s – cap represents other educations including 10th grade