The
Kingdom of Sweden (
Swedish:
Konungariket Sverige ) is a
Nordic country in
Scandinavia, in
Northern Europe. It is bordered by
Norway on the west,
Finland on the northeast, the
Skagerrak Strait and the
Kattegat Strait on the southwest, and the
Baltic Sea and the
Gulf of Bothnia on the east. Sweden has a low population density in all but its metropolitan areas, with most of the inland consisting of large peaceful forests and mountainous wilderness.
The official
list of Swedish monarchs starts about a 1000 years ago, about as long as Sweden has been
Christian. After the allegedly notorious Vikings, Sweden spent a couple of centuries in battles with its neighbouring countries
Denmark from the 12th century – 1710, and
Norway in the
16th and
17th century. In the 17th and 18th centuries the
Realm of Sweden was through warfare extended to a Great Power of twice its size – subsequently lost within a century. Since 1816, Sweden has been at peace, adopting a policy of armed neutrality.
Sweden was one of the poorest countries in Europe in the
19th century, and shaped by a dogmatic
Protestantism, until its natural assets – timber,
iron ore, grains – allowed it to fund a social democratic
welfare state in the early
20th century. The country is today defined by liberal tendencies and a strong national quest for equality.
History
Main article: History of Sweden
Pre-history
Sweden was inhabited by
hunters and gatherers during the
Stone Age (6000 BC – 4000 BC), following the recession of the last
ice age – the Weichsel glaciation. The region developed rather slowly compared to southern Europe; while the
Romans wrote poetry, Scandinavia had just entered the
Iron Age.
Sweden was first mentioned in the
1st century, by Roman historian
Tacitus, who wrote that the
Suiones lived out in the sea and were powerful in both arms and ships. After that, the sources are scarce.
Sweden as a name originated in a so-called "
back-formation" from the plural form Swedes (Old English
Sweoðeod, Swedish
Svear), the people of the
Suiones. This referred to the inhabitants of
Svealand primarily around lake
Mälaren; towns of
Stockholm, Sigtuna and
Birka. The southern parts were on the other hand inhabited by Geats (''Götar'') in
Götaland.
During the
Scandinavian Viking culture of the
9th and
10th century, the Swedes primarily went east, to Balticum,
Russia and the
Black Sea, and by lakes of Russia down to southern Europe. The
Kievan Rus', from which Russia takes its name, traces its heritage to the Swedes.
Middle Ages
With the
Christianization in the
12th century, the country was consolidated, with its center at the water-ways of the northern Baltic and the
Gulf of Finland.
Like the rest of Europe it was in the
14th century struck by the
Black Death (the Plague), with all the effect. But Sweden's expansion into the northern wilderness of Laplandia, the Scandinavian peninsula, and present-day
Finland continued; the country today known as Finland was a part of Sweden from 1362 until 1809.
King [[Gustav I of Sweden]]
In 1389, the three countries of Norway, Denmark and Sweden were united in the
Kalmar Union under a single monarch. After several wars and disputes between the nations, the King Gustav I of Sweden (Vasa) ultimately broke free in 1521 and established a nation state, considered the
Foundation of modern Sweden, and shortly thereafter carrying through a
Protestant Reformation. Gustav Vasa is the closest to a
Father of the Nation the Swedes know.
A major power
The
17th century saw
the rise of Sweden as one of the great powers in Europe, due to successful participation, initiated by King Gustav II Adolph, in the
Thirty Years' War. Mighty as it was, it crumbled in the
18th century with
Imperial Russia taking the reins of northern Europe in the
Great Northern War, and finally in 1809 when the
Grand Duchy of Finland was created out of the eastern half of Sweden.
The Campaign against Norway, 1814, led to the
Treaty of Kiel, whereby Norway was forced into a union with Sweden that wasn't dissolved until 1905. But the campaign also signified the last of the Swedish wars and its 200 years of peace are arguably unique in the world today.
Modern history
The 19th century saw a significant population increase, generally attributed to the three factors of peace,
vaccination and potatoes, doubling the population from 1750 to 1850. Many people on the countryside, the home for the majority, found themselves out of work, leading to poverty and alcoholism. Therefore a massive
emigration to mainly the U.S occurred 1850-1910. However, as the
Industrial revolution in Sweden progressed during the century, people gradually began moving into the Swedish cities and factory work, where they organized in Socialistic
unions.
A threatening Socialist
revolution was avoided in 1917, following the re-introduction of Parliamentarism, and the country was democratized.
Recent history
In the 20th century,
Sweden remained neutral during
World War I and
World War II and continued to stay non-aligned during the
Cold War – still today not being a member of any
military alliance. Following the second World War, Sweden made use of its natural resources and undemolished state, making it possible to expand its industry to supply the rebuilding of Europe, leading to Sweden being one of the richest countries in the world by 1960. As other economies were re-established, Sweden was surpassed in the 1970's, but still ranks among the top nations concerning well being of its inhabitants.
Politics
Main articles: Politics of Sweden
Sweden has been a
monarchy for almost a
millennium, with its taxation controlled by the
Riksdag (parliament). It consisted of
four chambers, made up by representatives from the 4 categories peasants, nobility, clerics and townsmen, until 1866 when Sweden became a
Constitutional monarchy with a bicameral parliament. Its First Chamber is indirectly elected by
local governments, and the Second Chamber directly elected in national elections every four years.
The Riksdag in Stockholm
Legislative power was shared between king and parliament until 1975.
In 1971 the Riksdag became unicameral. Constitutionally, the 349-member Riksdag holds supreme authority in Sweden, and its acts are not subject to
judicial review. However, acts of the parliament must at every level be made inapplicable if they obviously are against constitutional laws. 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
supermajority and confirmation after the following general elections. Sweden has three other constitutional laws: the Act of Royal Succession, the Freedom of Press Act and the Fundamental Law on Freedom of Expression.
Executive power was 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, Parliamentarism 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.
Social Democracy has played a dominant political role since 1917, after Reformists had confirmed their strength and the
Revolutionaries left the party. Social Democratic influence over society and government is often described as
Hegemony. After 1956, the Cabinets have been dominated by the Social Democrats. It is considered the reason for the Swedish post-war
welfare state.
Welfare state
Swedes benefit from an extensive
social welfare system, whereby the government provides for childcare, maternity and paternity leave, a ceiling on health care costs, retirement pensions, and sick leave. Parents are entitled to a total of 480 days paid leave between birth and the child's eighth birthday, with 30 days reserved specifically for each parent, in effect providing the father with a so called "daddy-month". And a ceiling on health care costs makes it easier for Swedish workers to take time off for medical reasons.
Education
Main article: Education in Sweden
As part of its social welfare system, Sweden provides an extensive childcare system that guarantees a place for all young children from 1-5 years old in a public day-care facility. Between ages 6-16, children attend compulsory comprehensive school. After completing the ninth grade, 90% continue with a three year upper secondary school leading to either an exam in a technical profession, or the qualifications for further studies at a
Högskola or University of Sweden.
Geography
Main article: Geography of Sweden
A map of Sweden with largest cities and lakes
Image from [[Lappland in the north]]
Image from [[Scania in the south]]
Sweden enjoys a mostly temperate climate despite its northern
latitude, mainly due to the
Gulf Stream. In the south of Sweden leaf-bearing
trees are prolific, in the north
pines and hardy
birches dominate the landscape. In the mountains of northern Sweden a sub-arctic climate predominates. North of the
Arctic Circle, the sun never sets during the summer, and in the winter night is unending.
East of Sweden is the
Baltic Sea and the
Gulf of Bothnia, providing a long coastline, and mellowing the climate further yet. To the west is the Scandinavian mountain chain, a range that separates Sweden from
Norway.
The southern part of the country is chiefly agricultural, with forests covering a larger percentage of the land the further north one goes. Population density is also higher in southern Sweden, with centers being in the valley of lake
Mälaren and the
Öresund region.
Gotland and
Öland are the two largest Islands of Sweden.
Counties
Main article: Counties of Sweden
Sweden is divided into 21
counties or
län. In each county there is a
County Administrative Board or
länsstyrelse which is appointed by the Government. In each county there is also a separate
County Council or
landsting, which is the municipal representation appointed by the county electorate. Each county further divides into a number of
municipalities or
kommuner, making a total of 290 municipalities, in 2004. There are also older historical divisions of the
Swedish Realm, primarily into
provinces and
lands.
Economy
Main article: Economy of Sweden
The Swedish Krona, depicting King [[Carl XVI Gustav]]
Aided by
peace and
neutrality for the whole of the
20th century, Sweden has achieved an enviable standard of living under a mixed system of high-tech
capitalism and extensive welfare benefits. It has a modern distribution system, excellent internal and external communications, and a skilled labour force.
Timber,
hydropower, and
iron ore constitute the resource base of an
economy heavily oriented toward foreign
trade.
Privately-owned firms account for about 90% of industrial output, of which the engineering sector accounts for 50% of output and exports. This is one of the reasons why Sweden's Per Capita Income is so high.
Agriculture accounts for only 2% of
GDP and 2% of the jobs. The
government's commitment to fiscal discipline resulted in a substantial budgetary surplus in 2001, which was cut by more than half in 2002, due to the global economic slowdown, revenue declines, and spending increases. The Swedish
Riksbank is focusing on price stability with its inflation target of 2%. Growth is expected to reach 3.5% in 2004, assuming a continued moderate global recovery. However, open unemployment has steadily increased since 2001 and stood at 5.5% as of March 2005, although there are a great many more persons of working age without a job.
The
communications and
transportation systems of Sweden are important components of the infrastructure.
Demographics
Main article: Demographics of Sweden
Sweden has one of the world's highest life expectancies. As of approximately
August 12, 2004, the total population of Sweden for the first time exceeded 9,000,000, according to
Statistics Sweden.
The country is inhabited by some 17,000 indigenous
Samis. Also some 50,000 of the ethnic Finns of Sweden consist an indigenous minority, although many more of the
Sweden Finns descend from 20th century immigrants.
The Swedish nation has been transformed from a nation of
emigration ending after
World War I to a nation of
immigration from
World War II and on. Currently, almost 12% of the residents are born abroad, and about one fifth of Sweden's population are either immigrants or the children of immigrants. The largest immigrant groups are from
Finland, the
former Yugoslavia,
Iran,
Norway,
Denmark, and
Poland, in that order. This reflects the inter-Nordic migrations, earlier periods of labor immigration, and later decades of refugee and family immigration.
19th, early
20th century farmer's house on the rural countryside]]
Soviet intervention against the
1956 Hungarian Revolution and the
1968 Czechoslovakian liberalization resulted in the first surges of intellectual political refugees. Some
American deserters from the
Vietnam War also found refuge among the Swedes, who in international politics took a clear stand against what they typically viewed as
imperialism executed by both the Soviet Union and the United States of America. After the 1973 coup in Chile, and the following military dictatorships in
Chile and other
South American countries, political refugees came to dominate the image of immigration to Sweden, including refugees from
Iran,
Iraq and
Palestine.
Language
Main article: Swedish language
Swedish is a Germanic language, related to Danish and Norwegian, but different from them in pronunciation and orthography. Like the U.S., Sweden has no
official language, but the Swedish language has held a
de facto status as such. The dominating language has always been Swedish and there has never been a political issue about making it an
official language. However, with the recognition of five
minority languages of Sweden on
April 1, 2000, the issue of whether Swedish should be declared official language has been raised.
Most Swedes, especially those under 50, have no difficulty in understanding and speaking English due to the globalisation. Many pupils have also learnt an additional language in school; often
German.
Culture
Main article: Culture of Sweden
The most successful Swedish popular music artist are
ABBA,
Roxette,
The Cardigans,
Ace of Base and guitarist
Yngwie J. Malmsteen.
In underground circles, Sweden is known for a large number of
death metal and
black metal acts such as
Bathory,
Opeth, Dark Tranquility,
Naglfar,
In Flames and
Vintersorg.
The best known internationally
opera singers are the 19th century
soprano Jenny Lind and the 20th century
tenor Jussi Björling, who had great success abroad. Also
sopranos Christina Nilsson Birgit Nilsson, and tenorss
Nicolai Gedda,
baritone Håkan Hagegård and the contemporary
mezzo-soprano Anne-Sofie von Otter are worth mentioning.
Swedish 20th century culture is noted by pioneering works in the early days of cinema, with
Mauritz Stiller and
Victor Sjöström. In the 50's – 80's, the filmmakers
Ingmar Bergman and
Bo Widerberg received Academy Awardss, and actresseses
Greta Garbo,
Zarah Leander,
Ingrid Bergman and
Anita Ekberg made careers abroad. More recently, the films of
Lukas Moodysson have gotten international recognition.
Swedish authors of worldwide recognition include
Carolus Linnaeus,
August Strindberg,
Selma Lagerlöf,
Vilhelm Moberg and
Astrid Lindgren.
Many well-known inventions and discoveries, historical and modern, were made by Swedes. The most notable figures are
Alfred Nobel,
Anders Celsius,
Carl Wilhelm Scheele,
Lars Magnus Ericsson,
Svante Arrhenius and
Anders Jonas Ångström.
Swedes are among the greatest consumers of newspapers in the world and every town is served by a local rag. The country's main quality dailies are
Svenska Dagbladet and
Dagens Nyheter, but the most popular are the evening tabloids
Aftonbladet and
Expressen. The free international morning paper,
Metro International, was originally founded in Stockholm, Sweden.
Related topics:
Sports
Sport activites are a national movement with half of the population actively participating. The two main spectator sports are soccer and
ice hockey. Some notable soccer stars of Sweden include
Zlatan Ibrahimovic,
Henrik Larsson and
Fredrik Ljungberg, while some famous Swedish hockey players include
Peter Forsberg,
Mats Sundin, Niklas Lidström,
Börje Salming and
Pelle Lindbergh.
Second to soccer, Horse sports have the highest number of practitioners, mostly confined to the female population. Thereafter follow
golf, track and field, and the
team sports of handball,
floorball,
basketball and in northern parts
bandy. American sports such as
baseball and
American football are also practiced but have no widespread popularity.
Successful
tennis players include former world No. 1's
Björn Borg,
Mats Wilander and
Stefan Edberg; in
skiing sports,
Ingemar Stenmark,
Pernilla Wiberg and
Anja Pärson have all had dominating periods in
alpine skiing, and
Gunde Svan and
Thomas Wassberg ranked among the greatest
cross country skiers.
Other famous Swedish athletes include the Heavy Weight Boxing Champion
Ingemar Johansson,
golfer Annika Sörenstam, former five times World
table tennis Champion
Jan-Ove Waldner and the World Speedway Champion
Tony Rickardsson.
In schools, on meadows and in parks, the game
brännboll, a sport similar to
baseball, is commonly played for fun. Other leisure sports are the historical game of
kubb and
boules among the older generation.
Religion
Before the 11th century, the heathen religion was devoted to
Ásatrú, which meant worshipping of the
Aesir gods with a centre at the
Temple at Uppsala. With the Christianisation in the 11th century the laws of the country were shaped and worshipping of other deities forbidden. After the
Protestant Reformation in the 1530's, the Church and State became united and the State (including the King) was allowed to tell people what to believe. Not until a globalisation in the late 18th century, it became allowed for believers of other faiths, including
Judaism and
Catholicism, to live and work in Sweden. The 19th century saw other Christian denominations, such as the Episcopalian Church; and towards the end of the century
Socialism began attracting attention, leading to people distancing themselves from Church rituals such as baptism. With the 20th century a personal belief became possible, including leaving the
Church of Sweden to join any other religion, but not until the 1970's was it formally allowed to stand outside of all religious communities. Today about 78% of Swedes belong to the Church of Sweden, but the number is decreasing with about one percentage point every year, and church sermons are scarsely attended. However, a majority of Swedes claim to believe in "something" – a higher being of some kind. Also of significanse are the about 100,000 muslim believers.
Holidays
Main article: Holidays in Sweden
Apart from traditional Protestantic
Christian holidays, Sweden also celebrates some unique holidays, some of a a pre-christian tradition. They include
Midsummer, celebrating the summer solstice;
Walpurgis Night on
April 30 lightning bonfires;
May 1st is a business free day and dedicated to Socialistic demonstrations; and
December 13th, the day of
Saint Lucy the lightgiver. Apart from these there are also
official flag day observances and a Namesdays in Sweden calendar.
Miscellaneous topics
International rankings
References
Notes
External links
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