SLESWICK, or SCHLESWIG, a province in the kingdom of Denmark, in that division usually denominated the Duchies, including, with this province, Holstein and Lauenberg, all of which are inhabited by people of German origin, who speak that language, and are regulated by different laws from the rest of Denmark. This province is bounded on the north by Jutland; on the north-east by the Little Belt, wherein the Island of Aroe, which is a part of it, lies; on the east by the Baltic sea, wherein are the Islands Alsen and Femern; on the south by Holstein, from which it is divided by the river Eyder and the Sleswick canal; and on the west by the German Ocean, in which are the islands of Nordstrand, Pellworm, and some other smaller ones. The whole extent is 3515 square miles. It comprehends thirteen cities, fourteen market-towns, and 1500 hamlets or villages, divided into 257 parishes, which contained 36,000 inhabitants in 1832. It is in general a level district, having on the western side many tracts of rich meadow land; while, on the eastern side, its agricultural produce are corn, butter, cheese, and meal; but through the middle of the province runs a ridge of sandy hills, which scarcely repay the cost of cultivation. There are many lakes and marshes, and on the eastern side, fiords or bays, formed by projecting woody headlands, which have a picturesque appearance. The climate is cold in winter, but remarkably variable. There are few manufactures, and the trade chiefly consists of the export of the products of the soil, or of the fisheries; which last forms an important part of the occupation of a great number of the inhabitants. The principal towns, besides the capital, are Hadersleben, Apenrade, Tondern, Bredsted, Husum, Nordstrand, Toning, Friedrichstadt, Flensburg, and Eckenforde.