Sweden

"Sverige" redirects here. For other uses, see Sweden (disambiguation) and Sverige (disambiguation).

Kingdom of Sweden Konungariket Sverige
Flag Coat of arms
Motto: (Royal) "För Sverige - I tiden" 1 "For Sweden – In Time"
Anthem: Du gamla, Du fria2 Thou ancient, thou free Royal anthem: Kungssången The Song of the King
Location of  Sweden  (orange) – on the European continent  (camel & white) – in the European Union  (camel)                  [Legend]
Capital (and largest city)		Stockholm (pop. city 802,611, Metro 2 million) 59°21′N 18°4′E / 59.35, 18.067
Official languages		None (Swedish de facto)3
Ethnic groups		80% Swedish, 0.2% Sami, 5% Finns, ~15% others
Demonym		Swedish or Swedes
Government		Parliamentary democracy and Constitutional monarchy
-	Monarch	King Carl XVI Gustaf
-	Prime Minister	Fredrik Reinfeldt
-	Speaker of the Riksdag	Per Westerberg
Consolidation		1523/24 (End of the Kalmar Union)[citation needed]
EU accession		1 January 1995
Area
-	Total	449,964 km² (55th) 173,732 sq mi
-	Water (%)	8.7
Population
-	2008 census	9 234 2094 ( Source: www.scb.se)
-	Density	20/km² (194th) 52/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2007 estimate
-	Total	$335.405 billion[1] (30th)
-	Per capita	$36,577 [1] (IMF) (16th)
GDP (nominal)		2007 estimate
-	Total	$454.839 billion[1] (18th)
-	Per capita	$49,602[1] (IMF) (8th)
Gini (2005)		23 (low)
HDI (2004)		▲ 0.956 (high) (6th)
Currency		Swedish krona (SEK)
Time zone		CET (UTC+1)
-	Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Internet TLD		.se5
Calling code		+46
1	För Sverige - I tiden has been adopted by Carl XVI Gustaf as his personal motto.
2	Du gamla, Du fria has never been officially adopted as national anthem, but is so by convention.
3	The Swedish language is the de facto national language, but it is not an official language in Sweden. However, the main goal of the Swedish parliament is to keep the Swedish language the main language (huvudspråk). Five other languages are officially recognized as minority languages.[2] [3]
4	"Population in the country, counties and municipalities on 31/12/2007 and Population Change in 2007". Statistiska centralbyrån. Retrieved on 2008-02-19.
5	The .eu domain is also used, as it is shared with other European Union member states. The .nu domain is another commonly used TLD ("nu" means "now" in Swedish).

Sweden[ˈswidn] (help·info), officially the Kingdom of Sweden (Swedish: Konungariket Sverige (help·info) [ˈko:.nɵ.ŋa.ˌri:.kət ˈsvær:.jə]), is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden has land borders with Norway and Finland, and is connected to Denmark by the Oresund Bridge. It has been a member of the European Union since January 1, 1995. Its capital and largest city is Stockholm, with a population of 802,611 and 2 million in metropolitan area, and it's by far the most populated city in Sweden and Scandinavia.

Sweden is the most visited country in Northern Europe with 5,2 million visitors in 2007 ^[4]

At 449,964 km² (173,732 sq mi), Sweden is the largest country by area in Northern Europe and fourth largest in Europe. With a total population of over 9.2 million, of whom about 7.8 million are ethnic Swedes,^[5][6] Sweden has a low population density of 20 people per km² (52 per sq. mi). About 84% of the population live in urban areas.^[7] Sweden emerged out of the Kalmar Union formed in 1397, and by the unification of the country by King Gustav Vasa in the 16th century. In the 17th century the country expanded its territories to form the Swedish empire. Most of the conquered territories outside the Scandinavian Peninsula were lost during the 18th and 19th centuries. The eastern half of Sweden constituted by the eastern half of Norrland and Österland was lost to 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 with Sweden, a union which lasted until 1905. Since 1814, Sweden has been at peace, adopting a non-aligned foreign policy in peacetime and neutrality in wartime.^[8]

Etymology

Main article: Etymology of Sweden

This runestone from Aspa, Södermanland is the oldest native source mentioning Sweden, suiþiuþu, from the 11th century.

The modern name Sweden is derived through back-formation from Old English Sweoðeod, which meant "people of the Swedes" (Old Norse Svíþjóð, Latin Suetidi). This word is derived from Sweon/Sweonas (Old Norse Sviar, Latin Suiones). The Swedish name Sverige literally means "Realm of the Swedes", excluding the Geats in Götaland.

The etymology of Swedes, and thus Sweden, is generally not agreed upon but suggestively deriving from Proto-Germanic *Swihoniz meaning "one's own",^[9] referring to one's own Germanic tribe.

History

Main article: History of Sweden

Prehistory

Main article: Prehistoric Sweden

Sweden's prehistory begins in the Allerød warm period c. 12,000 BC with Late Palaeolithic reindeer-hunting camps of the Bromme culture at the edge of the ice in what is now the country's southernmost province. This period was characterized by small bands of hunter-gatherer-fishers using flint technology.

Rock carvings from Tanum, Bohuslän. Rock carvings (petroglyphs) are common all over Scandinavia and several thousands have been found in Sweden alone.

Farming and animal husbandry, along with monumental burial, polished flint axes and decorated pottery, arrived from the Continent with the Funnel-beaker Culture in c. 4,000 BC. Sweden's southern third was part of the stock-keeping and agricultural Nordic Bronze Age Culture's area, most of it being peripheral to the culture's Danish centre. The period began in c. 1,700 BC with the start of bronze imports from Europe. Copper mining was never tried locally during this period, and Scandinavia has no tin deposits, so all metal had to be imported. It was largely cast into local designs on arrival.

The Nordic Bronze Age was entirely pre-urban, with people living in hamlets and on farmsteads with single-story wooden long-houses.

In the absence of any Roman occupation, Sweden's Iron Age is reckoned up to the introduction of stone architecture and monastic orders about 1100. Much of the period is proto-historical, that is, there are written sources but most are of low credibility. The scraps of written matter are either much later than the period in question, written in distant areas, or, while local and coeval, extremely brief.

A rock painted moose from Jämtland. Rock paintings (pictographs) have been fairly limited to northern Scandinavia.

The climate took a turn for the worse, forcing farmers to keep cattle indoors over the winters, leading to an annual build-up of manure that could now for the first time be used systematically for soil improvement.

A Roman attempt to move the Imperial border forward from the Rhine to the Elbe was aborted in AD 9 when Germans under Roman-trained leadership defeated the legions of Varus by ambush in the Battle of the Teutoburg Forest. About this time, there was a major shift in the material culture of Scandinavia, reflecting increased contact with the Romans.

Starting in the 2nd century, much of southern Sweden's agricultural land was parcelled up with low stone walls. They divided the land into permanent infields and meadows for winter fodder on one side of the wall, and wooded outland where the cattle was grazed on the other side. This principle of landscape organization survived into the 19th century. The Roman Period also saw the first large-scale expansion of agricultural settlement up the Baltic coast of the country's northern two thirds.

Sweden enters proto-history with the Germania of Tacitus in AD 98. Whether any of the brief information he reports about this distant barbaric area was well-founded is uncertain, but he does mention tribal names that correspond to the Swedes (Suiones) and the Sami (Fenni) of later centuries. As for literacy in Sweden itself, the runic script was invented among the south Scandinavian elite in the 2nd century, but all that has come down to the present from the Roman Period is curt inscriptions on artefacts, mainly of male names, demonstrating that the people of south Scandinavia spoke Proto-Norse at the time, a language ancestral to Swedish and other North Germanic languages.

Viking and Middle ages

Panoramic view of Ale's Stones in Scania, southern Sweden. This ship setting is a Vendel Period burial monument, most likely dating from the 7th century.

See also: Early Swedish history and Foundation of Modern Sweden

The Swedish Viking Age lasted roughly between the eighth and eleventh centuries. During this period, it is believed that the Swedes expanded from eastern Sweden and incorporated the Geats to the south.^[10] It's believed that Swedish vikings and Gutar mainly travelled east and south, going to Finland, the Baltic countries, Russia, the Mediterranean and further as far as Baghdad. Their routes passed the rivers of Russia down south to Constantinople (Byzantine Empire) (present-day Istanbul, Turkey) on which they did numerous raids. The Byzantine Emperor Theophilos noticed their great skills in war, and invited them to serve as his personal bodyguard, known as the varangian guard. The adventures of these Swedish Vikings are commemorated on many runestones in Sweden, such as the Greece Runestones and the Varangian Runestones. There was also considerable participation in expeditions westwards, which are commorated on stones such as the England Runestones. The last major Swedish Viking expedition appears to have been the ill-fated expedition of Ingvar the Far-Travelled to Serkland, the region south-east of the Caspian Sea. Its members are commemorated on the Ingvar Runestones, none of which mentions any survivor. What happened to the crew is unknown, but it is believed that they died of sickness.

It is not known when and how the kingdom of Sweden was born, but the list of Swedish monarchs is drawn from the first kings who ruled Svealand (Sweden) and Götaland (Gothia) as one with Erik the Victorious. Sweden and Gothia were two separate nations long before that. It is not known how long they existed, Beowulf described semi-legendary Swedish-Geatish wars in the 6th century.

Visby, a medieval city on Gotland.

During the early stages of the Scandinavian Viking Age, Ystad in Scania and Paviken on Gotland, in present-day Sweden, were flourishing trade centers. Remains of what is believed to have been a large market have been found in Ystad dating from 600–700 AD.^[11] In Paviken, an important center of trade in the Baltic region during the ninth and tenth century, remains have been found of a large Viking Age harbour with shipbuilding yards and handicraft industries. Between 800 and 1000, trade brought an abundance of silver to Gotland and according to some scholars, the Gotlanders of this era hoarded more silver than the rest of the population of Scandinavia combined.^[11]

St. Ansgar introduced Christianity in 829, but the new religion did not begin to fully replace paganism until the twelfth century. During the 11th century, Christianity became the most prevalent religion, and from the year 1050 Sweden is counted as a Christian nation. The period between 1100 and 1400 was characterized by internal power struggles and competition among the Nordic kingdoms. Swedish kings also began to expand the Swedish-controlled territory in Finland, creating conflicts with the Rus which now no longer had any connection with Sweden.^[12]

In the 14th century, Sweden was struck by the Black Death (bubonic plague). During this period the Swedish cities also began to acquire greater rights and were strongly influenced by German merchants of the Hanseatic League, active especially at Visby. In 1319, Sweden and Norway were united under King Magnus Eriksson and in 1397 Queen Margaret I of Denmark effected the personal union of Sweden, Norway, and Denmark through the Kalmar Union. However, Margaret’s successors, whose rule was also centred in Denmark, were unable to control the Swedish nobility. Real power was held for long periods by regents (notably those of the Sture family) chosen by the Swedish parliament. King Christian II of Denmark, who asserted his claim to Sweden by force of arms, ordered a massacre in 1520 of Swedish nobles at Stockholm. This came to be known as the “Stockholm blood bath” and stirred the Swedish nobility to new resistance and, on 6 June (now Sweden's national holiday) in 1523, they made Gustav Vasa their king. This is sometimes considered as the foundation of modern Sweden. Shortly afterwards he rejected Catholicism and led Sweden into the Protestant Reformation. Gustav Vasa is considered to be Sweden's "Father of the Nation".

Swedish Empire

The Swedish Empire following the Treaty of Roskilde of 1658. Dominions in Prussia, held from 1629 to 1635, do not appear on this map.

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     Sweden proper      Kexholm County      Swedish Ingria      Swedish Estonia      Livonia      Swedish Pomerania, Abp Bremen and Bp Verden      Scania, Blekinge, Halland, Gotland and Bohuslän      Trøndelag and Møre og Romsdal      Jämtland, Härjedalen, Idre & Särna

See also: History of Sweden (1611–1648), Swedish Empire, Swedish overseas colonies, Sweden and the Great Northern War, Absolute Monarchy in Sweden, Sweden-Finland, and Union between Sweden and Norway

Gustavus Adolphus.

During the 17th century Sweden emerged as a European Great Power. Before the emergence of the Swedish Empire, Sweden was a very poor, scarcely populated, barely known of country in northern Europe with no significant power or reputation what so ever. It was suddenly brought up to be one of Europes leading nations by the geniouse Axel Oxenstierna and the present king Gustavus Adolphus, thanks to territories seized from Russia and Poland-Lithuania but also greatly thanks to his involvement in the Thirty Years' War, which also made Sweden the continental leader of protestantism until the Empire's collapse in 1721.

Gustav Adolphus warfare against The Holy Roman Empire had a high cost of the lives of a third of all the Holy Roman population, and it took the position of The Holy Roman Empire as the mightiest country in Europe with Spain taking it's place. Sweden managed to conquer approximately 50 percent of the Holy Roman states. The plan of Gustav Adolphus was to become the new Holy Roman Emperor over a united Scandinavia and the Holy Roman states, however after his death in 1632 at the Battle of Lützen the adversities were increasingly frequent. After the Battle of Nördlingen the faith for Sweden amongst the Swedish controlled German states was severely injured, and these provinces excluded themselves from Swedish power one by one, leaving Sweden with only a couple of northern German provinces namely Swedish Pomerania, Bremen-Verden and Wismar.

In the middle of the 17th century Sweden was the third largest country in Europe by land area, only superseded by Russia and Spain. Sweden reached its largest territorial extent during this time under the rule of Charles X (1622–1660) after the treaty of Roskilde in 1658.^[13][14] The foundation of Sweden's success during this period is credited to Gustav I's major changes on the Swedish economy in the mid-1500s, and his introduction of Protestantism.^[15] The 17th century saw Sweden engaged in many wars, for example with the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with both sides competing for territories of today's Baltic states, with the disastrous Battle of Kircholm being one of the highlights.^[16]

This period also saw the Deluge—the Swedish invasion of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. After more than half a century of almost constant warfare, the Swedish economy had deteriorated. It would become the lifetime task of Charles' son, Charles XI (1655-1697), to rebuild the economy and refit the army. His legacy to his son, the coming ruler of Sweden Charles XII, was one of the finest arsenals in the world, a large standing army and a great fleet. Sweden's largest threat at this time, Russia, had a larger army but was far behind in both equipment and training.

After the Battle of Narva in 1700, one of the first battles of the Great Northern War, the Russian army was so severely decimated that Sweden had an open chance to invade Russia. However, Charles did not pursue the Russian army—instead turning against Poland-Lithuania and defeating the Polish king Augustus II and his Saxon allies at the Battle of Kliszow in 1702. This gave the Russian Tsar time to rebuild and modernize his army. After the success of invading Poland Charles decided to make an invasion attempt of Russia which ended in a decisive Russian victory at the Battle of Poltava in 1709. After a long march exposed to cossack raids, the Russian Tsar Peter the Great's scorched-earth techniques and the cold Russian climate, the Swedes stood weakened with a shattered morale, and enormously outnumbered against the Russian army at Poltava. The defeat meant the beginning of the end for the Swedish empire.

Charles XII of Sweden.

Charles XII attempted to invade Norway 1716; however, he was shot dead at Fredriksten fortress in 1718. The Swedes weren't militarily defeated at Fredriksten, but the whole structure and organization of the Norwegian campaign fell apart with the King's death and the army withdrew. Forced to cede large areas of land in the Treaty of Nystad in 1721, Sweden also lost its place as an empire and as the dominant state on the Baltic Sea. With Sweden's lost influence, Russia emerged as an empire and became one of Europe's dominant nations.

In the 18th century, Sweden did not have enough resources to maintain its territories outside Scandinavia and most of them were lost, culminating with the 1809 loss of Österland and the eastern part of Norrland to Russia which became the semi-autonomous Duchy of Finland in Imperial Russia.

After Denmark-Norway was defeated in the Napoleonic Wars, Norway was ceded to the king of Sweden on 14 January 1814 in exchange for northern German provinces, at the Treaty of Kiel. The Norwegian attempts to keep their status as a sovereign state were rejected by the Swedish king, Charles XIII. He launched a military campaign against Norway on July 27, 1814, ending in the Convention of Moss, which forced Norway into a personal union with Sweden under the Swedish crown, which was not dissolved until 1905. The 1814 campaign was the last war in which Sweden participated as a combatant.

Modern history

A map of Sweden with largest cities and lakes and most important roads and railroads, from a printed CIA World Factbook. (See also: Atlas of Sweden)

See also: Modernization of Sweden and Swedish emigration to the United States

The 18th and 19th centuries saw a significant population increase, which the writer Esaias Tegnér in 1833 famously attributed to "the peace, the (smallpox) vaccine, and the potatoes".^[17] Between 1750 and 1850, the population in Sweden doubled. According to some scholars, mass emigration to America became the only way to prevent famine and rebellion; over 1 percent of the population emigrated annually during the 1880s.^[18] Nevertheless, Sweden remained poor, retaining a nearly entirely agricultural economy even as Denmark and Western European countries began to industrialize.^[19][18] Many looked towards America for a better life during this time. It is believed that between 1850 and 1910 more than one million Swedes moved to the United States.^[20] In the early 20th century, more Swedes lived in Chicago than in Gothenburg (Sweden's second largest city).^[21] Most Swedish immigrants moved to the Midwestern United States, with a large population in Minnesota. Some Swedes moved to Delaware. Some also moved to Canada and others in smaller numbers to Argentina.

Despite the slow rate of industrialization into the 19th century, many important changes were taking place in the agrarian economy due to innovations and the large population growth.^[22] These innovations included government-sponsored programs of enclosure, aggressive exploitation of agricultural lands, and the introduction of new crops such as the potato.^[22] Due also to the fact that the Swedish peasantry had never been enserfed as elsewhere in Europe,^[23] the Swedish farming culture began to take on a critical role in the Swedish political process, which has continued through modern times with modern Agrarian party (now called the Centre Party).^[24] Between 1870 and 1914, Sweden began developing the industrialized economy that exists today.^[25]

Strong grassroots movements sprung up in Sweden during the latter half of the nineteenth century (trade unions, temperance groups, and independent religious groups), creating a strong foundation of democratic principles. In 1889 The Swedish Social Democratic Party was founded. These movements precipitated Sweden's migration into a modern parliamentary democracy, achieved by the time of World War I. As the Industrial Revolution progressed during the twentieth century, people gradually began moving into cities to work in factories, and became involved in socialist unions. A socialist revolution was avoided in 1917, following the re-introduction of parliamentarism, and the country was democratized.

World Wars

See also: Sweden during World War II.

Sweden remained officially neutral during World War I and World War II, although its neutrality during World War II has been vigorously debated.^[26][27] Sweden was under German influence for most of the war, as ties to the rest of the world were cut off through blockades.^[26] The Swedish government felt that it was in no position to openly contest Germany,^[28] and therefore collaborated with Hitler.^[29] Swedish volunteers in Nazi SS units were among the first to invade the Soviet Union in Operation Barbarossa. Sweden also supplied steel and machined parts to Germany throughout the war. Toward the end of the war however, when the defeat of Germany seemed imminent, Sweden began to play a role in humanitarian efforts and many refugees, among them many Jews from Nazi-occupied Europe, were saved partly because of the Swedish involvement in rescue missions at the internment camps and partly because Sweden served as a haven for refugees, primarily from the Nordic countries and the Baltic states.^[28] Nevertheless, internal and external critics have argued that Sweden could have done more to resist the Nazi war effort, even if risking occupation.^[28]

Cold War

See also: History of Sweden (1945–1989)

Sweden publicly claimed to be a neutral country and the image was forcefully maintained, but unofficially Sweden's leadership had strong ties with the United States. In the early 1960s Sweden and the United States agreed to deploy nuclear submarines off the Swedish west coast. In the same year Sweden made a defense pact with the United States. Knowledge of this alliance was kept secret from the Swedish public until 1994.

Following the war, Sweden took advantage of an intact industrial base, social stability and its natural resources to expand its industry to supply the rebuilding of Europe.^[30] Sweden was part of the Marshall Plan and participated in the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). During most of the post-war era, the country was governed by the Swedish Social Democratic Party (in Swedish: Socialdemokraterna). Social democrats imposed corporatist policies: favoring big capitalist corporations and big unions, especially Swedish Trade Union Confederation, affiliated with Social Democrats.^[31] The amount of bureaucrats rose from normal levels in the 1960s to very high levels by 1980s.^[31] Sweden was open to trade and pursued internationally competitive manufacturing sector. Growth was good until 1970s.

Sweden, like countries around the globe, entered a period of economic decline and upheaval, following the oil embargoes of 1973-74 and 1978-79.^[32] In the 1980s pillars of Swedish industry were massively restructured. Shipbuilding was discontinued, wood pulp was integrated into modernized paper production, the steel industry was concentrated and specialized, and mechanical engineering was robotized.^[33]

Between 1970 and 1990 the overall tax burden rose by over ten percentage points and the growth was very low compared to most other countries in Western Europe. The marginal income tax for workers reached over 80%. Eventually government spent over half of the country's gross domestic product. Sweden steadily declined from its perennial top five GDP per capita ranking. Since the late 1970s, Sweden's economic policies were increasingly questioned by economists and Ministry of Finance officials.^[31]

Prime Minister Olof Palme was murdered in 1986.

Recent history

See also: History of Sweden (since 1989)

A bursting real estate bubble caused by inadequate controls on lending combined with an international recession and a policy switch from anti-unemployment policies to anti-inflationary policies resulted in a fiscal crisis in the early 1990s.^[34] Sweden's GDP declined by around 5%. In 1992, there was a run on the currency, the central bank briefly jacking up interest to 500% in an unsuccessful effort to defend the currency's fixed exchange rate.^{[citation needed]} Total employment fell by almost 10% during the crisis.^{[citation needed]} The response of the government was to cut spending and institute a multitude of reforms to improve Sweden's competitiveness, among them reducing the welfare state and privatizing public services and goods. Much of the political establishment promoted EU membership, and the Swedish referendum passed by 52-48% in favour of joining the EU on 13 November 1994. Sweden joined the European Union on 1 January 1995, after the collapse of the Soviet Union. During the Cold War, Europe's non-aligned Western countries, except the Republic of Ireland, had considered membership unwise, as the EU predecessor, the European Community, had been strongly associated with NATO countries. Following the end of the Cold War, however, Sweden, Austria and Finland joined, though in Sweden's case without adopting the Euro. Sweden remains non-aligned militarily, although it participates in some joint military exercises with NATO and some other countries, in addition to extensive cooperation with other European countries in the area of defence technology and defence industry. Among others, Swedish companies export weapons that are used by the American military in Iraq.^[35] Sweden also has a long history of participating in international military operations, including most recently, Afghanistan, where Swedish troops are under NATO command, and in EU sponsored peacekeeping operations in UN protectorate Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Cyprus. Foreign minister Anna Lindh was murdered in 2003.

Geography and climate

Main article: Geography of Sweden

The Lapporten mountain pass in Lappland.

The 25 provinces of Sweden

Situated in Northern Europe, Sweden lies west of the Baltic Sea and Gulf of Bothnia, providing a long coastline, and forms the eastern part of the Scandinavian Peninsula. To the west is the Scandinavian mountain chain (Skanderna), a range that separates Sweden from Norway.

Sweden is surrounded by Norway (west), Finland (northeast), the Skagerrak, Kattegat and Öresund straits (southwest) and the Baltic Sea (east). It has maritime borders with Denmark, Germany, Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, and it is also linked to Denmark (southwest) by the Öresund Bridge. At 449,964 km² (173,732 sq mi), Sweden is the 55th largest country in the world. It is the 5th largest in Europe, and the largest in Northern Europe. The land area is slightly larger than the U.S. state of California, or equal to Uzbekistan with a population in 2006 of 9.1 million people.

View of the Kebnekaise valley.

The lowest elevation in Sweden is in the bay of Lake Hammarsjön, near Kristianstad at -2.41 m (−7.91 ft) below sea level. The highest point is Kebnekaise at 2,111 m (6,926 ft) above sea level.

Sweden has 25 provinces or landskap (landscapes), based on culture, geography and history; Bohuslän, Blekinge, Dalarna, Dalsland, Gotland, Gästrikland, Halland, Hälsingland, Härjedalen, Jämtland, Lapland, Medelpad, Norrbotten, Närke, Skåne, Småland, Södermanland, Uppland, Värmland, Västmanland, Västerbotten, Västergötland, Ångermanland, Öland and Östergötland.

Summer scenery in Jämtland.

While these provinces serve no political or administrative purpose, they play an important role for people's self-identification. The provinces are usually grouped together in three large lands, parts, the northern Norrland, the central Svealand and southern Götaland. The scarcely populated Norrland encompasses almost 60% of the country.

About 15% of Sweden lies north of the Arctic Circle. Southern Sweden is predominantly agricultural, with increasing forest coverage northward. The highest population density is in the Öresund region in southern Sweden, and in the valley of lake Mälaren near to Stockholm. Gotland and Öland are Sweden's largest islands; Vänern and Vättern are Sweden's largest lakes. The lake Vänern is the largest lake in Northern Europe and the third largest in all Europe, after Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega in Russia.

Climate

Most of Sweden has a temperate climate, despite its northern latitude, with four distinct seasons and mild temperatures throughout the year. The country can be divided into three types of climate; the southernmost part has an oceanic climate, the central part has a humid continental climate and the northernmost part has a subarctic climate.^[36] However, Sweden is much warmer and drier than many other places at the same latitude and than what might be expected, mainly because of the Gulf Stream.^[37][38] For example, central and southern Sweden has much warmer winters than many parts of Russia, Canada, and the northern United States.^[39] Because of its high northern latitude, the length of daylight varies greatly. North of the Arctic Circle, the sun never sets for part of each summer, and for part of the winter the sun never rises. Stockholm's daylight lasts for more than 18 hours in late June, but only around 6 hours in late December. Most of Sweden has more than 1,600 hours of sunshine annually, while Stockholm has 1,981 hours.^[40]

Temperatures vary greatly from north to south. Southern and central parts of the country have warm summers and cold winters, with average high temperatures of 20 to 25°C (68 - 77°F)^[41] and lows of 12 to 15°C (53 - 59°F)^[42] in the summer, and average temperatures of −4 to 2°C (25 - 36°F) in the winter,^[43] while the northern part of the country has shorter, cooler summers and longer, colder and snowier winters, with temperatures that often drop below freezing from September through May.^[44][45] Occasional heatwaves occur a few times each year, and temperatures above 25°C (77°F) occur on many days during the summer, sometimes even in the north.^[46][47] The highest temperature ever recorded in Sweden was 38°C (100.4°F) in Målilla in 1947, while the coldest temperature ever recorded was −52.6°C (−63.7°F) in Vuoggatjålme in 1966.^[48][49]

On average, most of Sweden receives between 500 and 800 mm (20 and 31 in) of precipitation each year, making it considerably drier than the global average. The southwestern part of the country receives more precipitation, between 1000 and 1200 mm (39 and 47 in), and some mountain areas in the north are estimated to receive up to 2000 mm (79 in).^[50][51]

Administration and politics

Main article: Politics of Sweden

Sweden is a constitutional monarchy, in which King Carl XVI Gustaf is head of state, but royal power has long been limited to official and ceremonial functions.^[53] The Economist Intelligence Unit, while acknowledging that democracy is difficult to measure, listed Sweden in first place in its index of democracy assessing 167 countries. ^[54] The nation's legislative body is the Riksdag (Swedish Parliament), with 349 members, which chooses the Prime Minister. Parliamentary elections are held every four years, on the third Sunday of September.

Counties and municipalities

Sweden municipal borders

Main articles: Counties of Sweden and Municipalities of Sweden

Sweden is a unitary state, currently divided into twenty-one counties (län). Each county has a County Administrative Board or länsstyrelse, which is appointed by the government (the first Swedish County Administrative Board was made up by the Swedish Prime Minister Axel Oxenstierna in 1634). In each county there is also a separate County Council or landsting, which is elected directly by the people.

Each county further divides into a number of municipalities or kommuner, with a total of 290 municipalities in 2004. Municipal government in Sweden is similar to city commission government and cabinet-style council government. A legislative municipal assembly (kommunfullmäktige) of between 31 and 101 members (always an uneven number) is elected from party-list proportional representation at municipal elections, held every four years in conjunction with the national parliamentary elections.

The municipalities are also divided into a total of 2,512 parishes, or församlingar (2000). These have traditionally been a subdivision of the Church of Sweden, but still have importance as districts for census and elections.

There are also older historical divisions, primarily the twenty-five provinces and three lands, which still retain cultural significance. The Swedish government is investigating the possibilities of merging the current 21 counties into circa 9 larger regions along the lines of the current riksområden used for statistical purposes. If approved, these would come into effect around 2015.^[55]

Further information: Subdivisions of Sweden

Political history

Kingdoms of Svear (Swedish) and Götar (Geats) in the tenth century.

The actual age of the kingdom of Sweden is unknown.^[56] It depends mostly on whether Sweden should be considered a nation when the Svear (Swedes) ruled Svealand or if the emergence of the nation started with the Svear and the Götar (Geats) of Götaland being united under one ruler. In the first case, Sweden was first mentioned as having one single ruler in the year 98 by Tacitus, but it is almost impossible to know for how long it had been this way. However, historians usually start the line of Swedish monarchs from when Svealand and Götaland were ruled under the same king, namely Erik the Victorious and his son Olof Skötkonung in the 10th century. These events are often described as the consolidation of Sweden, although substantial areas were conquered and incorporated later.

Earlier kings, for which no reliable historical sources exist, can be read about in mythical kings of Sweden and semi-legendary kings of Sweden. Many of these kings are only mentioned in various saga and blend with Norse mythology.

The title Sveriges och Götes Konung was last used for Gustaf I of Sweden, after which the title became "King of Sweden, of the Goths and of the Wends" (Sveriges, Götes och Vendes Konung) in official documentation. Up until the beginning of the 1920s, all laws in Sweden were introduced with the words, "We, the king of Sweden, of the Goths and Wends". This title was used up until 1973.^[57] The present King of Sweden, Carl XVI Gustaf, was the first monarch officially proclaimed "King of Sweden" (Sveriges Konung) with no additional peoples mentioned in his title.

The term Riksdag was used for the first time in the 1540s, although the first meeting where representatives of different social groups were called to discuss and determine affairs affecting the country as a whole took place as early as 1435, in the town of Arboga.^[58] During the assemblies of 1527 and 1544, under King Gustav Vasa, representatives of all four estates of the realm (clergy, nobility, townsmen and peasants) were called on to participate for the first time.^[58] The monarchy became hereditary in 1544.

Executive power was historically shared between the King and a noble Privy Council until 1680, followed by the King's autocratic rule initiated by the common estates of the Parliament. As a reaction to the failed Great Northern War, a parliamentary system was introduced in 1719, followed by three different flavours of constitutional monarchy in 1772, 1789 and 1809, the latter granting several civil liberties. The monarch remains as the formal, but merely symbolic, head of state with ceremonial duties.

The Riksdag of the Estates consisted of two chambers. In 1866 Sweden became a constitutional monarchy with a bicameral parliament, with the First Chamber indirectly elected by local governments, and the Second Chamber directly elected in national elections every four years. In 1971 the Riksdag became unicameral. Legislative power was (symbolically) shared between king and parliament until 1975. Swedish taxation is controlled by the Riksdag (parliament).

Modern political system

The Riksdag building, Stockholm.

Constitutionally, the 349-member Riksdag (Parliament) holds supreme authority in modern Sweden. The Riksdag is responsible for choosing the prime minister, who then appoints the government (the ministers). The legislative power is then shared between the parliament and the Prime Minister led government. The executive power is exercised by the government, while the judiciary is independent. Sweden lacks compulsory judicial review, although the non-compulsory review carried out by lagrådet (Law Council) is mostly respected in technical matters but less so in controversial political matters. Acts of the parliament and government decrees can be made inapplicable at every level if they are manifestly against constitutional laws. However, due to the restrictions in this form of judicial review and a weak judiciary, this has had little practical consequence.

Legislation may be initiated by the cabinet or by members of Parliament. Members are elected on the basis of proportional representation for a four-year term. The Constitution of Sweden can be altered by the Riksdag, which requires a simple but absolute majority and two decisions with general elections in between. Sweden has three other constitutional laws: the Act of Royal Succession, the Freedom of Press Act and the Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression.

The Riksdag assembly hall following its 2006 renovation.

The Swedish Social Democratic Party has played a leading political role since 1917, after Reformists had confirmed their strength and the revolutionaries left the party. After 1932, the cabinets have been dominated by the Social Democrats. Only four general elections (1976, 1979, 1991 and 2006) have given the centre-right bloc enough seats in Parliament to form a government. However, poor economic performance since the beginning of the 1970s, and especially the crisis at the beginning of the 1990s, have forced Sweden to reform its political system to become more like other European countries. In the 2006 general election the Moderate Party, allied with the Centre Party, Liberal People's Party, and the Christian Democrats, with a common political platform, won a majority of the votes. Together they have formed a majority government under the leadership of the Moderate party's leader Fredrik Reinfeldt. The next elections will be held in September 2010^[59]

Election turnout in Sweden has always been high by international comparison, although it has declined in recent decades, and is currently around 80% (80.11 in general election of 2002, 81.99 in general election of 2006). Swedish politicians enjoyed a high degree of confidence from the citizens in the 1960s but it has since declined steadily and has a markedly lower level of trust than its Scandinavian neighbours.^[60]

Some Swedish political figures that have become known worldwide include Raoul Wallenberg, Folke Bernadotte, former Secretary General of the United Nations Dag Hammarskjöld, former Prime Minister Olof Palme, former Prime Minister and Foreign minister Carl Bildt, former President of the General Assembly of the United Nations Jan Eliasson, and former International Atomic Energy Agency Iraq inspector