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    Stortorget square in Stockholm
    Stortorget square in Stockholm

    Sweden, a Nordic country in Northern Europe, boasts a rich history dating back to the Viking Age (8th to 11th centuries), when seafaring warriors from the region engaged in trade, exploration, and conquest. Over the centuries, Sweden evolved into a regional power, notably during the reign of Gustav II Adolph (1594-1632), who led the country through the Thirty Years' War and expanded its territories. The 17th century marked the height of the Swedish Empire, but by the early 18th century, it experienced a decline in power, culminating in the loss of Finland to Russia in 1809. The 20th century saw Sweden adopting a policy of neutrality, which was maintained during both World Wars. Key figures in Sweden's history include King Gustav Vasa (1496-1560), who liberated the country from Danish rule and established a hereditary monarchy, Alfred Nobel (1833-1896), the inventor of dynamite and founder of the prestigious Nobel Prizes, and Olof Palme (1927-1986), a charismatic and influential Prime Minister who played a significant role in shaping modern Sweden's social democratic policies.

    The regions of Sweden

    Sweden is traditionally divided into three main regions. These regions contain 21 counties in total.

    1. Main regions:
      • Norrland: The northernmost region, covering about 60% of the total land area. It is largely wilderness with a sparse population.
      • Svealand: Located in the middle of the country, Svealand is the location of the capital city, Stockholm.
      • Götaland: The southernmost region, which includes the cities of Gothenburg and Malmö.
    2. Counties:

    Swedish history

    Sweden is believed to have been home in ancient times to several of the major tribes whose migration southwards and westwards towards the Roman Empire led to its collapse in the west in the fifth century CE. These include the Vandals, Gepidae and Goths, although the exact origins of all of these tribes and the extent to which they constituted homogenous groups has been widely debated by historians of late antiquity.[1]

    Sweden was absolutely central to the Viking migrations of the eighth, ninth and tenth centuries. While the Norwegians and Danes led the way in the North Atlantic, it was the Swedes who traveled in great numbers down the rivers of Eastern Europe (the Volga, Don and Dnieper) to the Black Sea and Caspian Sea. Along the way they developed city-states like Kyiv and Novgorod into formidable powers in Eastern Europe. It is unsurprising, given all of this, that the name Rus’ from which Russia derives comes from the Old Finnish term for the Swedes, Ruotsi. This indicates the extent to which the Swedish Vikings were believed to have colonized extensive parts of what would now be called Russia and Ukraine.[2]

    Out of the Viking age a kingdom of Sweden emerged in the eleventh century. For a time under the terms of the Kalmar Union, Sweden, Norway and Denmark were joined under one monarch in the fourteenth, fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries, but Sweden obtained its independence in 1523, shortly before it became one of the most unequivocally Protestant states in Europe in the immediate aftermath of the Reformation. Over the next two centuries Sweden emerged as a considerable European power, intervening consequentially in Germany during the Thirty Years War (1618–48) and fighting a series of wars (the Northern Wars) against Russia and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, through which Sweden obtained some territories in Livonia and Pomerania along the southern shores of the Baltic Sea.[3]

    Ultimately Sweden declined as Russia rose in the eighteenth century. The Napoleonic Wars cemented this situation as Sweden lost Finland to Russia in 1809 and Pomerania in 1815 at the Congress of Vienna. After a century of decline Sweden rapidly industrialized in the second half of the nineteenth century and entered a period of new prosperity. It managed to remain neutral in both the First and Second World Wars and in the post-war period emerged as a leading liberal democracy in Europe.[4]

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    Swedish geography

    Sweden is the third largest country exclusively in Europe. Only Ukraine and France are bigger. However, with just over ten million inhabitants Sweden is vastly less populated than Ukraine and France which boast over 40 and 65 million citizens respectively. The reason for this comparative under-population is that vast tracts of Sweden lie within or close to the Arctic Circle and are inhospitable. Moreover, mountains and hills abound in the northern and central regions, which are also heavily forested. Consequently, as with its immediate neighbors, Norway and Finland, the population centers of Sweden, cities like Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmo and Uppsala, tend to be found in the south of the country. These are also located either on the coast of the Baltic Sea or near the chain of major lakes which stretch across the southern region, notably Lake Vanern, Lake Vattern and Lake Malaren. Sweden is ultimately a land of contrasts. The north is cold, inhospitable and thinly populated, but quickly gives way in the south to productive land and an environment which is temperate for large parts of the year owing to the Gulf Stream. These, combined with the rich mineral wealth and forestry in the north, have ensured that Sweden is one of the most affluent nations in the world.[5]

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    Researching family history in Sweden

    Sweden has some of the best records available for family history and genealogical studies anywhere in the world. This is because the Swedish state was one of the most advanced bureaucratic states during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and detailed administrative records on towns and parishes were kept.[6] A country-wide census or Tabellverket (‘office for tabulation’) was undertaken as early as 1749 and regular records of this kind were produced every few years thereafter.[7] Consequently Sweden has a claim to being the first country on earth to begin making systematic national demographic records or population statistics and this aids immensely when it comes to Swedish family history and genealogical studies. Many of these records are digitized and available online today, though some language proficiency in Swedish is necessary to navigate such sites. A good starting point is the online site of the Swedish National Archives.[8]

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    Swedish ethnicity

    Fishing village in Sweden
    Fishing village in Sweden

    Sweden, historically a largely homogenous country, has become increasingly diverse due to immigration in recent decades. The majority of the population still consists of ethnic Swedes, who are of North Germanic descent. However, significant minority groups have emerged, including Finns, Sami people (the indigenous population of northern Scandinavia), and various immigrant communities from the Middle East, such as Iraqis, Syrians, and Iranians, as well as from the Balkans and Eastern Europe.

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    Swedish surnames

    Sweden's unique surnames are an essential aspect of researching family history in the country, as they provide valuable clues about one's ancestry. Historically, Swedish surnames were patronymic, with children's last names being derived from their father's first name and a suffix indicating their relationship (such as -son or -dotter). However, in the 19th and early 20th centuries, many Swedes adopted fixed family names, often inspired by nature, geography, or occupations. For example, the surname "Lindberg" means "linden mountain," and the surname "Bergström" means "mountain stream". Understanding the origins and evolution of Swedish surnames can greatly aid genealogical research, as they may reveal connections between family members and provide insights into their lives and heritage.

    Examples of different Swedish surnames include: Andersson, Carlsson, Eriksson, Johansson, Lindgren, Nilsson, Persson, and Svensson.

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    Explore more about Sweden

    References

    1. ↑ https://www.britannica.com/topic/Germanic-peoples
    2. ↑ https://www.worldhistory.org/Vikings/
    3. ↑ https://www.history.com/topics/european-history/thirty-years-war
    4. ↑ https://www.jstor.org/stable/20081401
    5. ↑ https://www.countryreports.org/country/Sweden/geography.htm
    6. ↑ https://www.jstor.org/stable/2338403?seq=2
    7. ↑ https://www.scb.se/en/About-us/main-activity/history-of-statistics-sweden/
    8. ↑ https://sok.riksarkivet.se/digitala-forskarsalen
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