Sweden
Capital: Stockholm · Northern Europe
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe.
Photo: Ermell, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Steamboat Siljan. Built in 1868 for timber floating. Lake Insjön, Dalarna (Dalecarlia), Sweden.
Photo: ArildV, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
This is a picture of an archaeological site or a monument in Sweden, number 67f61d76-88f0-46c8-801a-d063ae86e8c6 in the RAÄ Fornsök database.
Photo: Kristianwhedberg, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Brahehus Castle, Småland, Sweden.
Photo: kallerna, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Did you know?
Sweden has been inhabited since prehistoric times around 12,000 BC. The inhabitants emerged as the Geats (Swedish: Götar) and Swedes (Svear), who formed 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.
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H&M Canal City Hakata shop in Canal City Hakata East Building at Fukuoka,Japan.
Photo: Nissy-KITAQ, CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Kebnekaise (2111 m), view from Tuolpagorni. Lappland (Sweden).
Photo: Photographer: Mg-k ., CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Etymology
The name for Sweden is generally agreed to derive from the Proto-Indo-European root *s(w)e, meaning 'one's own', referring to one's own tribe from the tribal period. The native Swedish name, Sverige (a compound of the words Svea and rike, first recorded in the cognate Swēorice in Beowulf), translates as "realm of the Swedes", which excluded the Geats in Götaland.
The contemporary English variation was derived in the 17th century from Middle Dutch and Middle Low German.
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Fishing hut and sauna in Oregrund, Sweden on Oregrundsgrepen / Bothnian Sea
Photo: Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Photo: Arild Vågen, CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
History
Sweden's prehistory begins in the Allerød oscillation, a warm period around 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, Scania. This period was characterised by small clans of hunter-gatherers who relied on flint technology.
Sweden and its people were first described by the Roman historian Publius Cornelius Tacitus in his Germania (98 AD). In Germania 44 and 45 he mentions the Swedes (Suiones) as a powerful tribe with ships that had a prow at each end (longships).
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Photo: Montgomery County Planning Commission, CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
Dom zu Kalmar, das Kirchengebäude wurde in den Jahren 1660 bis 1703 erbaut. Kalmar ist eine Stadt in der südschwedischen Provinz Kalmar län an der Ostsee.
Photo: W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Stockholms centralstation
Photo: michell zappa from São Paulo, Brazil, CC BY-SA 2.0 · source
Geography
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. Finland is located to its north-east. It has maritime borders with Denmark, Germany, Poland, Russia, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, and it is also linked to Denmark (south-west) by the Öresund Bridge. Its border with Norway (1,619 km long) is the longest uninterrupted border within Europe.
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Photo: Johann Jakob Walter, Public domain · source
Detalj från bildsten med skepp 800-1099 Tjängvide, Gotland.
Photo: Bengt A, CC BY 2.5 se · source
Photo: unknown author, Copyrighted free use · source
Government and politics
Sweden has a history of strong political involvement by ordinary people through its "popular movements" (Folkrörelser), the most notable being trade unions, the independent Christian movement, the temperance movement, the women's movement, and the intellectual property pirate movements. Sweden was the first country in the world to outlaw corporal punishment of children by their parents (parents' right to spank their own children was first removed in 1966, and it was explicitly prohibited by law from July 1979).
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Photo: Pierre-Denis Martin, Public domain · source
Inger Nilsson as Pippi Långstrump 1968
Photo: Unknown photographer, Public domain · source
Ice Hotel in Sweden.
Photo: Cyr (Tom Corser), CC BY-SA 2.0 uk · source
Economy
Sweden is the twelfth-richest country in the world in terms of GDP (gross domestic product) per capita and a high standard of living is experienced by its citizens. Sweden is an export-oriented mixed economy. Timber, hydropower and iron ore constitute the resource base of an economy with a heavy emphasis on foreign trade. Sweden's engineering sector accounts for 50% of output and exports, while telecommunications, the automotive industry and the pharmaceutical industries are also of great importance. Sweden is the ninth-largest arms exporter in the world.
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Veggie burger with swedish eldost (chess), truffle mayonnaise, pickled red onion, spinach and guacamole.
Photo: ArildV, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Globen, Stockholm, Sweden.
Photo: kallerna, CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Northern pike head
Photo: Rhododendrites, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Demographics
The total resident population of Sweden was 10,588,020 in January 2025. The population exceeded 10 million for the first time on Friday 20 January 2017.
The average population density is just over 25 people per km2 (65 per square mile), with 1 437 persons per km2 in localities (continuous settlement with at least 200 inhabitants). 88% of the population live in urban areas, which cover 1.5% of the entire land area. 63% of Swedes are in large urban areas. It is substantially higher in the south than in the north. There are more than 2000 localities.
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Nacka Strand seen from the sea.
Photo: kallerna, CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
IKEA Headquarters in Älmhult , Sweden
Photo: unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Culture
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Sweden was seen as an international leader in what is now referred to as the "sexual revolution", with gender equality having particularly been promoted. Sweden has also become very liberal towards homosexuality, as is reflected in the popular acceptance of films such as Show Me Love. Since 1 May 2009, Sweden repealed its "registered partnership" laws and fully replaced them with gender-neutral marriage. Sweden also offers domestic partnerships for both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. Cohabitation (sammanboende) by couples of all ages, including teenagers as well as older couples, is widespread.
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