Portal:Sweden
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Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At 450,295 square kilometres (173,860 sq mi), Sweden is the largest Nordic country and the fifth-largest country in Europe. Its capital and largest city is Stockholm. Sweden has a population of 10.6 million, and a low population density of 25.5 inhabitants per square kilometre (66/sq mi); 88% of Swedes reside in urban areas. They are mostly in the central and southern half of the country. Sweden's urban areas together cover 1.5% of its land area. Sweden has a diverse climate owing to the length of the country, which ranges from 55°N to 69°N.
Sweden has been inhabited since prehistoric times around 12,000 BC. The inhabitants emerged as the Geats (Swedish: Götar) and Swedes (Svear), which were part of the sea-faring peoples known as the Norsemen. A unified Swedish state was established during the late 10th century. In 1397, Sweden joined Norway and Denmark to form the Scandinavian Kalmar Union, which Sweden left in 1523. When Sweden became involved in the Thirty Years' War on the Protestant side, an expansion of its territories began, forming the Swedish Empire, which remained one of the great powers of Europe until the early 18th century. During this era Sweden controlled much of the Baltic Sea. Most of the conquered territories outside the Scandinavian Peninsula were lost during the 18th and 19th centuries. The eastern half of Sweden, present-day Finland, was lost to Imperial Russia in 1809. The last war in which Sweden was directly involved was in 1814, when Sweden by military means forced Norway into a personal union, a union which lasted until 1905.
Sweden is a highly developed country ranked fifth in the Human Development Index. It is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy, with legislative power vested in the 349-member unicameral Riksdag. It is a unitary state, divided into 21 counties and 290 municipalities. Sweden maintains a Nordic social welfare system that provides universal health care and tertiary education for its citizens. It has the world's 14th highest GDP per capita and ranks very highly in quality of life, health, education, protection of civil liberties, economic competitiveness, income equality, gender equality and prosperity. Sweden joined the European Union on 1 January 1995 and NATO on 7 March 2024. It is also a member of the United Nations, the Schengen Area, the Council of Europe, the Nordic Council, the World Trade Organization and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). (Full article...)
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Greta Tintin Eleonora Ernman Thunberg (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈɡrêːta ˈtʉ̂ːnbærj] ⓘ TOON-berry; born 3 January 2003) is a Swedish environmental activist known for challenging world leaders to take immediate action to mitigate the effects of human-caused climate change.
Born in Stockholm, Thunberg's climate activism began when she persuaded her parents to adopt lifestyle choices that reduced her family's carbon footprint. In August 2018, aged 15, Thunberg began skipping school, vowing to remain out of school until after a Swedish election to attempt to influence the outcome. She protested outside the Swedish parliament where she called for stronger action on climate change by holding up a Skolstrejk för Klimatet (School Strike for Climate) sign and handing out informational flyers. After the election, Thunberg spoke in front of supporters, telling them to use phones to film her. She then said she would continue school striking for the climate every Friday until Sweden was in compliance with the Paris climate agreement. Thunberg's youth and blunt speaking manner fueled her rise to the status of a global icon. (Full article...)
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Sweden maintained its policy of neutrality during World War II. When the war began on 1 September 1939, the fate of Sweden was unclear. But by a combination of its geopolitical location in the Scandinavian Peninsula, realpolitik maneuvering during an unpredictable course of events, and a dedicated military build-up after 1942, Sweden kept its official neutrality status throughout the war. At the outbreak of hostilities, Sweden had held a neutral stance in international relations for more than a century, since the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1814 and the invasion of Norway.
At the outbreak of war in September 1939, twenty European nations were neutral. Sweden was one of only nine of these nations to maintain this stance for the remainder of the war, along with Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, and the microstates of Andorra, Liechtenstein, Vatican City, and San Marino. The Swedish Government made a few concessions, and sometimes breached the nation's neutrality in favor of both Germany and, later, the Western Allies. (Full article...)
Did you know -
- ... that Lapland school founder Maria Magdalena Mathsdotter turned to Erik Viktor Almquist to improve the rights of the Sami people?
- ... that the first public Swedish orienteering competition, held in 1901, had two churches, Spånga and Bromma kyrka (pictured) as control points?
- ... that one of the richest people in the world, Ingvar Kamprad, is Swedish?
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Coastal defence ship of the Swedish Navy HM Pansarskepp Gustaf V (Agfacolor photo until 1957) (from History of Sweden) -
The Swedish Crown Prince Charles John (Bernadotte), who staunchly opposed Norwegian independence, only to offer generous terms of union. (from History of Sweden) -
The Swedish Empire, 1560–1815 (from History of Sweden) -
The Royal Swedish Opera in Stockholm (Autochrome Lumière 1934) (from History of Sweden) -
Two golden 20 kr coins from the Scandinavian Monetary Union, which was based on a gold standard. The coin to the left is Swedish and the right one is Danish. (from History of Sweden) -
Map of Sweden-Norway (from History of Sweden) -
Gustav Vasa (Gustav I) in 1542 (from History of Sweden) -
This family crypt and the chapel above it house, in highly ornate coffins, the remains of all four of the Wittelsbach Dynasty monarchs of Sweden whose high-powered period (1654–1720) has been called the Caroline Era for Kings Carl X Gustav, Carl XI and Carl XII. (from History of Sweden) -
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Swedish tribes in Northern Europe in 814 (from History of Sweden) -
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Self-portrait by Anders Zorn in 1915 (from Culture of Sweden) -
Traditional Swedish folk costumes according to Nordisk Familjebok (from Culture of Sweden) -
Historical provinces of Sweden (from Culture of Sweden) -
Homann's map of the Scandinavian Peninsula and Fennoscandia with their surrounding territories: northern Germany, northern Poland, the Baltic region, Livonia, Belarus, and parts of Northwest Russia. Johann Baptist Homann (1664–1724) was a German geographer and cartographer; map dated around 1730. (from History of Sweden)
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The Battle of Svolder (Svold or Swold) was a large naval battle during the Viking age, fought in September 1000 in the western Baltic Sea between King Olaf of Norway and an alliance of the Kings of Denmark and Sweden and Olaf's enemies in Norway. The backdrop of the battle was the unification of Norway into a single independent state after longstanding Danish efforts to control the country, combined with the spread of Christianity in Scandinavia.
King Olaf Tryggvason was sailing to, or home from, an expedition in Wendland (Pomerania), when he was ambushed by an alliance of Svein Forkbeard, King of Denmark, Olof Skötkonung (also known as Olaf Eiríksson or Olaf the Swede), King of Sweden, and Eirik Hákonarson, Jarl of Lade. According to the Saga of King Olaf I Tryggvason, he had 60 warships plus the contribution of 11 warships from the Jomvikings [1] His ships were captured one by one, last of all the Ormen Lange, which Jarl Eirik captured as Olaf threw himself into the sea. After the battle, Norway was ruled by the Jarls of Lade allied (as a suzerain) to both the Danish Crown and the Commonwealth of Uppsala, Sweden. (Full article...)
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Mount Helagsfjället (left) and Sylan mountain range, seen from Torkilstöten, Ljungdalen -
Allehandaborgen is a historic office building in Örebro, Sweden that was built 1891. -
A small greenhouse with grapevines (Vitis vinifera) escaping from the roof hatch, In Gåseberg, Lysekil Municipality, Sweden -
A view of the Rådhuset metro station in Central Stockholm -
Tjörnbron (the Tjörn bridge) is one of three bridges along Tjörnbroleden that connects the islands of Tjörn and Orust to the mainland. -
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Katarina Church and cemetery. Södermalm, Stockholm, Sweden -
A Life Guard in Stockholm -
Map of Gothenburg, Sweden, published by N. P. Pehrsson in 1888
Categories
Main topics
Subdivisions: Counties of Sweden • Municipalities of Sweden • Provinces of Sweden
History: 1975 Occupation of the West German embassy • Ådalen shootings • Consolidation of Sweden • Early Swedish history • Enlightened Absolute Monarchy in Sweden • Early Vasa era • Industrialization of Sweden • Post-war Sweden • Prehistoric Sweden • Rise of Sweden as a Great Power • Suiones • Swedish Empire • Sweden after the Great Northern War • Sweden and the Winter War • Sweden during late 19th century • Sweden during World War II • Swedish allotment system • Swedish emigration to the United States • Union between Sweden and Norway
Politics: Alliance for Sweden • Constitution of Sweden • Foreign relations of Sweden • Government of Sweden • Parliament of Sweden • Riksdag • Swedish general election, 2006 • Swedish general election, 2010 • Swedish neutrality • Swedish welfare
Demographics: Education • Ethnic minorities • Languages • Religion • Subdivisions • Cities • People • Healthcare • Immigration
Culture: Cinema of Sweden • Cuisine of Sweden • Music of Sweden • Sports in Sweden • Swedish literature • Tourism in Sweden
Symbols: Flag • Coat of arms • National anthem
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