70 Fun Facts About Sweden

Stockholm's centre is spread across how many islands?

Stockholm's centre is spread across 14 islands where Lake Mälaren meets the Baltic, which is why so many of the city's roads run through tunnels and over bridges.

Which Swedish city has the largest port in the Nordic countries?

Gothenburg is Sweden's second-largest city and its biggest port, sitting on the west coast at the mouth of the Göta älv about 400 km from Stockholm.

What is Sweden's third-largest city?

Malmö is Sweden's third-largest city and the largest in Skåne, sitting at the Swedish end of the Öresund crossing to Denmark.

The Öresund Bridge carries road and rail from Sweden across the strait to which foreign capital?

The crossing links Sweden with Copenhagen; the bridge ends on the artificial island of Peberholm and a four-kilometre tunnel completes the link to the Danish capital.

Why did Kiruna, Sweden's northernmost city, decide in 2004 to relocate its centre?

Kiruna decided to move its centre because of ground subsidence from its iron mine, as LKAB's ore body runs beneath the old town; the relocation began with buildings shifted piece by piece.

Which is Sweden's largest island?

Gotland, at about 3,000 square kilometres, is Sweden's largest island; its main town Visby hosts Almedalen Week every summer, followed by Medieval Week.

What is the largest lake in Sweden?

Vänern, about 5,650 square kilometres, is the largest lake in Sweden and in the European Union, and the third-largest in Europe after Ladoga and Onega.

What is the highest mountain in Sweden?

Kebnekaise is Sweden's highest mountain; its glaciated southern summit has melted so much that since 2018 the ice-free northern summit, about 2,097 metres, has been the higher of the two.

Sweden's National Day, 6 June, marks the 1523 election of which king?

Gustav Vasa was elected king at Strängnäs on 6 June 1523, ending Danish rule over Sweden; he went on to lead the country into the Protestant Reformation.

King Gustavus Adolphus was killed in 1632 at which Thirty Years' War battle?

Gustavus Adolphus was killed at Lützen on 16 November 1632 (New Style), riding into fog and smoke during a cavalry charge; his army held the field but lost its king.

Charles XII's army was crushed by Russia in July 1709 at which battle?

Charles XII's army was destroyed at Poltava on 8 July 1709; the king, already wounded in the foot, escaped south and lived in exile in the Ottoman Empire until 1714.

Charles XII was killed in 1718 while besieging which fortress?

Charles XII was shot in the head in the trenches before Fredriksten fortress on 30 November 1718 (Old Style); it overlooked the Norwegian town of Fredrikshald, now Halden.

The reigning Swedish royal house, Bernadotte, was founded by a marshal in the service of which emperor?

Jean Baptiste Bernadotte was one of Napoleon's marshals before being elected heir to the Swedish throne in 1810; he reigned as Charles XIV John from 1818.

In 1809 Sweden lost which territory, then its eastern half, to Imperial Russia?

Sweden ceded Finland to Russia by the Treaty of Fredrikshamn in September 1809, after the Finnish War, leaving Sweden with roughly its modern borders.

In which year did Sweden join the European Union?

Sweden joined the European Union on 1 January 1995, after a referendum in November 1994 approved membership by about 52 to 47 per cent.

Sweden deposited its instrument of accession and formally joined NATO in March of which year?

Sweden became NATO's 32nd member on 7 March 2024, ending two centuries of formal non-alignment, a shift prompted by Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Carl XVI Gustaf became King of Sweden in which year?

Carl XVI Gustaf became king on 15 September 1973, succeeding his grandfather Gustaf VI Adolf; his father had died in a plane crash in 1947 when he was nine months old.

Which palace on Lovön has been the Swedish royal family's permanent home since 1981?

Drottningholm Palace, on the island of Lovön in Lake Mälaren, became the royal family's permanent residence in 1981 and was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1991.

How many members sit in the Riksdag, Sweden's parliament?

The Riksdag has 349 members, an odd number adopted from the 1976 election to avoid the tied votes seen with the earlier 350 seats; it has been unicameral since 1971.

Alfred Nobel patented which invention in 1867?

Nobel patented dynamite in 1867, stabilising nitroglycerine by absorbing it in kieselguhr; he later left 94% of his estate to fund the prizes that bear his name.

The annual Nobel Prize award ceremony in Stockholm is held in which building?

The prizes are presented in the Concert Hall (Konserthuset) in Stockholm on 10 December; the banquet that follows is held separately in the City Hall, which is why the venue trips up so many people.

UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld died in a 1961 plane crash in what is now which country?

Hammarskjöld's plane crashed near Ndola in Northern Rhodesia, now Zambia, on 18 September 1961; he was the second Secretary-General and the first to die in office.

Which Swedish prime minister was shot dead on a Stockholm street in February 1986?

Olof Palme was shot on Sveavägen on 28 February 1986 while walking home from a cinema with his wife; it was Sweden's first killing of a national leader since Gustav III in 1792.

In Sweden, the main Midsummer's Eve celebrations always fall on which day of the week?

Midsummer's Eve falls on the Friday between 19 and 25 June; the date was fixed to a weekday slot in 1953, so the celebrations land on a long weekend every year.

The Swedish ritual of fika centres on which drink?

Fika centres on coffee, usually with a pastry; Swedes are among the world's heaviest per-capita coffee drinkers, a habit that took root after the drink arrived in the 1670s.

Sweden's candle-lit Lucia processions take place on which date?

Lucia is celebrated on 13 December, the feast of Saint Lucy; it is not an official public holiday, but early-morning processions fill schools, churches and workplaces.

Surströmming, infamous for its smell, is a fermented version of which fish?

Surströmming is Baltic herring fermented for months in brine; a Japanese study once rated its smell the most putrid of any food, and Swedes have eaten it since at least the 1500s.

Swedish meatballs are traditionally served with jam made from which berry?

Swedish meatballs come with lingonberry jam, whose tartness cuts the cream sauce; pickled cucumber and boiled or mashed potatoes usually round out the plate.

Kanelbullens dag, Sweden's Cinnamon Roll Day, falls on which date?

Kanelbullens dag is 4 October, a theme day created in 1999 by Sweden's Home Baking Council rather than an official holiday; a large share of Swedes mark it.

Systembolaget is the only shop allowed to sell drinks above what alcohol strength?

Ordinary shops may sell only beer up to 3.5% alcohol; anything stronger goes through Systembolaget, the state retail monopoly, where the minimum purchase age is 20.

What does the Swedish principle of allemansrätten give people?

Allemansrätten is the right of public access: free access to roam the countryside, including walking, camping a night or two, and picking berries and mushrooms even on private land.

The painted wooden Dala horse originates from which Swedish province?

Painters in Nusnäs near Mora developed the two-colours-on-one-brush technique still used today.

In the acronym IKEA, what was Elmtaryd, the source of the 'E'?

Elmtaryd was Kamprad's family farm, where Ingvar Kamprad grew up; the 'A' is Agunnaryd, the nearby Småland village, and 'I' and 'K' are his initials.

The car brand Volvo takes its name from a Latin word meaning what?

Volvo is Latin for 'I roll', a name first registered by the bearing maker SKF; the car company was set up in 1927 by Assar Gabrielsson and engineer Gustaf Larson.

Which former Stardoll chief technology officer co-founded Spotify in 2006?

Daniel Ek, who had been chief technology officer at the fashion game Stardoll, founded Spotify in 2006 with Martin Lorentzon, co-founder of the ad network Tradedoubler.

H&M's original name, Hennes, is Swedish for what?

Hennes means 'hers'; Erling Persson's first shop, opened in Västerås in 1947, sold only women's clothing, and the Mauritz came with the 1968 purchase of a hunting outfitter.

Which Swedish programmer founded Mojang, the studio behind Minecraft?

Markus Persson, known online as Notch, created Minecraft and founded Mojang to develop it; he sold the studio to Microsoft for $2.5 billion in 2014.

Candy Crush Saga, from Swedish-founded King, was first released in 2012 on which platform?

Candy Crush Saga launched on Facebook in April 2012 and only reached iOS and Android phones later that year; it became one of the highest-grossing mobile games of the decade.

ABBA won the 1974 Eurovision Song Contest with which song?

ABBA won in Brighton in 1974 with 'Waterloo', and at the contest's 50th-anniversary show in 2005 it was voted the best song in Eurovision history.

How many times has Sweden won the Eurovision Song Contest, as of 2023?

Sweden's seven wins as of 2023 came in 1974, 1984, 1991, 1999, 2012, 2015 and 2023, matching Ireland's total of seven at that point.

Which singer won Eurovision for Sweden in both 2012 and 2023?

Loreen won with 'Euphoria' in 2012 and 'Tattoo' in 2023, becoming the first woman, and only the second artist after Johnny Logan, to win the contest twice.

Roxette paired Per Gessle with which singer?

Marie Fredriksson sang with Per Gessle in Roxette from 1986, on hits such as 'The Look' and 'It Must Have Been Love'; she died in 2019 after a long illness.

Avicii was the stage name of which Swedish DJ?

Avicii was Tim Bergling, born in Stockholm in 1989; his 2013 single 'Wake Me Up', with vocals by Aloe Blacc, became one of Spotify's most-streamed songs.

Which Swedish producer wrote Britney Spears's debut hit '...Baby One More Time'?

Max Martin, born Karl Martin Sandberg, wrote and produced '...Baby One More Time' at Cheiron Studios in Stockholm; it went to number one in 1999 and launched his run of Hot 100 chart-toppers.

Zlatan Ibrahimović is Sweden's all-time top international scorer with how many goals?

Ibrahimović scored 62 goals in 122 appearances for Sweden between 2001 and 2023, far ahead of Sven Rydell's 49 from the 1920s and 1930s.

How many consecutive Wimbledon singles titles did Björn Borg win?

Borg won five Wimbledon titles in a row from 1976 to 1980, plus six French Opens, before shocking tennis by retiring at 26.

Ingemar Stenmark's record for alpine World Cup race wins, unbroken until 2023, stood at how many?

Stenmark's 86 World Cup wins, all in slalom and giant slalom between 1974 and 1989, were the most by any skier until Mikaela Shiffrin passed the mark in March 2023.

Pole vault world-record holder Armand 'Mondo' Duplantis was born in which US state?

Duplantis was born in Lafayette, Louisiana, to an American pole-vaulting father and a Swedish mother; he grew up speaking English, learned Swedish later and competes for Sweden.

What is the nickname of Sweden's men's national ice hockey team?

Sweden's men are Tre Kronor, after the three crowns on the national coat of arms; in 2006 they became the first team to win Olympic gold and the World Championship in the same year.

Which Swedish author created Pippi Longstocking?

Astrid Lindgren published Pippi Longstocking in 1945 and also wrote Emil of Lönneberga, Karlsson-on-the-Roof and Ronia the Robber's Daughter.

Which publisher famously rejected the Pippi Longstocking manuscript before it found a home?

Bonniers turned the manuscript down in 1944; the author then entered a revised version in a Rabén & Sjögren competition, and that house published Pippi Longstocking in 1945.

Ingmar Bergman lived and shot many of his later films on which island?

Bergman first filmed on Fårö for Through a Glass Darkly (1961) and later made the island his home, shooting Persona and Shame there; he died on Fårö in 2007.

Stieg Larsson died in 2004, before which of his works was published?

Larsson died of a heart attack at 50 in November 2004 after climbing the stairs to his office; The Millennium trilogy, starting with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, appeared from 2005.

On Anders Celsius's original 1742 thermometer, what value marked the boiling point of water?

Celsius set 0 as the boiling point and 100 as the freezing point of water; the scale was reversed to its familiar form after his death in 1744.

Carl Linnaeus formalised which system?

Linnaeus formalised binomial nomenclature, the two-part Latin species name, in Species Plantarum (1753) and the tenth edition of Systema Naturae (1758), after first publishing Systema Naturae in 1735.

In which year did Swedish gain official legal status as Sweden's main language?

The Language Act of 2009, in force from 1 July that year, made Swedish the country's principal language in law; until then it had only been the de facto language of government and schools.

What colour is the cross on the flag of Sweden?

The flag bears a yellow cross on a blue field, the colours of the national coat of arms; the design dates from the 16th century and its proportions were fixed by law in 1906.

Sweden voted against adopting the euro in a referendum held in which year?

In the September 2003 referendum, 56% voted no on a turnout of 82%, so Sweden kept the krona.

The Vasa Museum stands on which Stockholm island?

The Vasa Museum on Djurgården houses the 64-gun warship Vasa, which sank on its maiden voyage in 1628 and was raised in 1961, the only almost fully intact 17th-century ship ever salvaged.

The Icehotel in Jukkasjärvi is rebuilt each winter from ice cut from which river?

The Icehotel is built each winter from ice harvested from the Torne river beside the village; even the glasses in its bar are made of ice, and the first version opened in 1989.

On 'Dagen H', 3 September 1967, what did Sweden switch overnight?

On Dagen H Sweden switched from left- to right-hand traffic at 5 a.m. on 3 September 1967, after driving on the left since 1736, to match its Nordic neighbours.

Roughly what is the population of Sweden, the most populous Nordic country?

Sweden's population was about 10.6 million in the mid-2020s; roughly 88% of Swedes live in urban areas, mostly in the south and centre, giving the country only around 25 people per square kilometre.

In 1397 Sweden, Norway and Denmark were joined together under what name?

The Kalmar Union was created by Queen Margaret I of Denmark in 1397; Sweden broke away for good in 1523 after the Stockholm Bloodbath of 1520 provoked a revolt.

In which year did Sweden fight the short war that forced Norway into a union?

Sweden's 1814 campaign against Norway ended with the Convention of Moss, which forced Norway into a personal union under the Swedish crown that lasted until 1905.

The Swedish name Sverige is a compound translating as what?

Sverige comes from Svea rike, 'realm of the Swedes', combining the tribal name Svear with rike, 'realm'; an Old English form, Swēorice, appears in Beowulf.

Which Viking Age trading centre was founded around 750 AD on the island of Björkö?

Birka, on Björkö in Lake Mälaren, was founded around 750 and traded with the Byzantine and Abbasid worlds via the Russian rivers; it had perhaps 500 to 1,000 inhabitants and was abandoned around 975.

Sweden's three traditional 'lands' are Norrland, Svealand and what?

Götaland is the southern land, taking in Skåne, Småland and the west coast; Svealand sits in the middle around Stockholm, while sparsely populated Norrland covers almost 60% of the country.

Sweden reached its greatest territorial extent under Charles X after which 1658 agreement?

The Treaty of Roskilde in February 1658 gave Sweden Skåne, Blekinge and Bohuslän after Charles X marched his army across the frozen Danish Belts to threaten the Danish capital.

Which Swedish engineer invented the three-point seat belt in 1959?

Nils Bohlin, a Volvo safety engineer, patented the three-point seat belt in 1959, and Volvo left the patent open for other carmakers to use.

A 1593 church assembly that confirmed the Church of Sweden as Lutheran met in which city?

The Uppsala Synod of 1593 adopted the Augsburg Confession for the Church of Sweden; Duke Charles called it to block his Catholic nephew Sigismund, who was king of both Poland and Sweden.