Are you curious about Sweden facts? If so, you came to the right place. Before we start our article, here is some quick info about the country: Sweden is officially known as the Kingdom of Sweden. It is a nordic country situated in Northern Europe.
Sweden is a country in Europe. How much do you know about the country? So, let us not waste any more time and learn some cool and crazy Sweden facts.
Sweden Facts: 1-5
1. Sweden is also known as Sverige (in Swedish) and Kingdom of Sweden. The population of Sweden is 10 million people. Svear people gave the name Sverige. In their language, the meaning of Svear was “us” and the meaning of rike was “kingdom.” So, Sverige meant ‘our kingdom.’
2. Stockholm is the capital city of Sweden. Stockholm hosts 1.6 million inhabitants.
3. The official language is Swedish. The government is the Parliamentary constitutional monarchy.
4. Sweden celebrates her Independence Day on 6th June every year. Eurasian elk is the national animal of Sweden. Blue and yellow are the national colors of Sweden.
5. Over 60% of the population of Sweden follow Christianity. The life expectancy of Swedish people is 82 years.
Sweden Facts: 6-10
6. Du Gamla, Du Fria is the national anthem which translates to Thou Ancient, Thou Free in English.
7. Sweden belongs to the Scandinavian countries which include Finland and Norway.
8. It is 977 miles long, and it has a total surface area of 173,860 square miles or 450,295 square kilometers. Norway is to the north and to the west of Sweden. Finland is to the east of Sweden. Baltic Sea surrounds Sweden from southeast and south. The North Sea surrounds Sweden from southwest.
9. Sweden is slightly larger than the USA’s California. It is the size of Austria, Slovenia, and Germany combined. It is the second largest country in the European Union after France.
10. It is the largest country in Northern Europe. Did you know that forests cover 68% of the country? It is one of the most sparsely populated countries in Europe. Other sparsely populated countries are Norway, Finland, and Iceland.
Sweden Facts: 11-15
11. Kebnekaise is the highest point in Sweden. It has an altitude of 6,890 feet or 2,100 meters above the sea level.
12. Klarälven is the longest river of Sweden. It is also the longest river in Scandinavia. The western parts of Sweden have mountains whereas other parts have hills and flatlands.
13. Gotland is the largest island of Sweden. The largest lake of Sweden is Lake Vänern. It has over 100,00 lakes. It is also one of the very few countries with most lakes.
14. The first country to introduce standardized time was Sweden.
15. It was once, one of the largest weapon manufacturers, but it didn’t participate in any battle or a war for nearly two centuries (including World War I and World War II).
Sweden Facts: 16-20
16. The personal income tax rate of Sweden reached an all-time high of 61.85% in 2017! Swedish word for tax is skatt and it means treasure.
17. Parents in Sweden are entitled to 240 days of paid parental leave each meaning 240 parental leaves for mother and 240 parental leaves for father which totals to 480 days of paid parental leave!
18. Nobel Prizes are awarded every year in Sweden’s Stockholm since 1901. It was started by Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite. Did you know that Sweden won seven Nobel Prizes in the field of literature? Selma Lagerlöf, the first woman to win the Nobel Prize was a Swedish woman. She won it in 1909.
19. Swedes are so innovative that Sweden has the highest number of patents per capita in Europe. Some of the crazy and amazing inventions that came from Sweden are ultrasound, astronomical lens, pacemaker, refrigerator, marine propeller, ultrasound, computer mouse, safety match, etc.
20. Sweden won 625.5 Olympic medals. They won 475.5 medals from the Summer Olympics (one gold medal is shared with Denmark), and 150 of the medals are from the Winter Olympics.
Sweden Facts: 21-25
21. In 1972 Sweden became the first country to legalize change in gender identity. In 1944, Sweden legalized gay sex.
22. There are around 300,000 to 400,000 moose in the Swedish forests. Every year 250,000 people participate in the annual hunt of moose. They kill around 100,000 moose. The moose pose a huge threat to Swedish people. 6,000 road accidents are caused because of them.
23. However, moose are not the only menace that the Swedish people face. Wasps kill more people directly in Sweden than any other animal! Wasps kill one person per year in Sweden.
24. There are around 250,000 reindeer in the country. Their diet includes lichen, mushrooms, herbs, grass, etc. Did you know that the milk of reindeer looks like melted ice cream and tastes sweet?
25. In 1979, Sweden became the first country to ban beating children. 35 countries followed Sweden and banned smacking of children.
Sweden Facts: 26-30
26. Sweden imports waste from the UK and Norway. 50% of the waste produced in Sweden gets recycled, 49% gets incinerated for energy and only 1% of the waste ends up in landfills. They now import waste from the UK and Norway to keep the incinerators running. Fun thing, Norway and the UK pays Sweden to take their waste away!
27. The famous Ice Hotel is situated in Sweden’s Jukkasjarvi village. The hotel is built every year afresh. The ice is brought from the nearby River Torne. Funny thing, though it is completely made of ice, due to safety regulations, the hotel is required to keep fire alarms fitted!
28. The most famous Disney character in Sweden is Donald Duck and not Mickey Mouse. On every Christmas eve at 3 PM, the whole nation watches Donald Duck and his friends wish you a Merry Christmas. This so-called tradition started in 1959.
29. Coca Cola is one of the leading brands in cola and soda all over the world. Sweden is no different except during the Christmas season. Julmust, a fermented non-alcoholic beverage is sold way more than Coca Cola. In December alone, Swedish people consume nearly 45 million liters of Julmust.
During Easter, the same drink appears as Pakmust. It is the same drink but the name is different. 75% of the “must” is consumed in December and the rest 25% is consumed when Easter falls. Other than these two times, it is hard to get the drink.
30. In the 1970s after the North Korean War, North Korea ordered 1000 Volvo 144GL luxury cars from Sweden. The first batch was sent to North Korea in 1974 but North Korea didn’t pay the bills.
The debt remains to date. Swedish government adjusts the debt and sends a new invoice every year to North Korea even now. The debt amounts to 300 million Euros!
Sweden Facts: 31-35
31. Breaks during work is common, but Swedes take the breaks seriously and call the breaks “fika.” It is a communal break that is compulsory. If anyone doesn’t take a break, it is considered rude!
32. Sweden was the country that invented nicotine replacement gums.
33. Some of the biggest cities of Sweden are Stockholm, Uppsala, Gothenburg, Malmo, Norrkoping, Linkoping, etc.
34. Swedes consume twenty million semlor annually. Some of the famous dishes of Swedish cuisine are kanelbullar, kalops, falukorv, raggmunk, etc.
35. Swedes work for 1611 hours a year. 86% of the Swedes live in urban areas.
Sweden Facts: 36-40
36. Falu Koppargruva AB was the first and the oldest limited company in the world. It was founded in 1288.
37. Sweden is the only country in the whole world where the donations make up 1% of the country’s GDP.
38. ABBA, a Swedish music band, is one of the most famous music bands in the world . It is the fourth best-selling music band in history after, Beatles, Michael Jackson, and Elvis Presley.
39. Swedish passport is the sixth best passport in the world. Swedes can go to 124 countries without a visa and they can obtain a visa to 33 other countries at arrival.
40. One in four Swedes is younger than 20 years. In Sweden, every child has to go to school at least for 10 years.
Sweden Facts: 41-45
41. Over 950 Swedes have won the Nobel Prize since 1901.
42. There are over 20,000 Sami or natives living in Sweden as of today. The indigenous people of Sweden have had their own parliament since 1993.
43. Soccer or football is the most popular sport of Sweden. Innebandy, a kind of floor hockey that is played indoors is the second most popular sport in Sweden.
44. Surströmming is the iconic dish of Sweden. Surströmming translates to fermented baltic herring. It is thought to have started in the 16th century when salt was highly expensive and the fish couldn’t be preserved using salt.
So, they allowed the fish to ferment. The fish is first put in flat tins containing a weak salt solution and then sealed. It is left the same way for four to ten weeks for fermentation. After that the tins swell up like soccer balls and the dish is ready to eat.
45. Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis are visible around the equinoxes in March and late September in Sweden.
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