Sweden in brief

(Sverige i korthet)

Population
Sweden has a small population compared to the size of the country. Around 10 million people live on an area of 450 000 square kilometers. Sweden is the fifth largest country in Europe, after Russia, the Ukraine, France and Spain.

Over 2 million Swedes were born in another country. Of these, some of the biggest groups are immigrants from Finland, Iraq and Syria.

Sweden has an indigenous people, the Sami, who come from the north of Sweden and the northern parts of Norway and Finland.

Capital
(Huvudstad)

Stockholm is the capital of Sweden, and also the country’s largest city. Over 2 million people live in the county of Stockholm. In total, there are 26 municipalities in the entire county.

Nature
(Natur)

Sweden is 1 600 kilometers from north to south, and almost half of its area is covered by forest. The country has 100 000 lakes. The biggest lakes are called Vänern, Vättern and Mälaren. The east side of the country lies against the sea, the Baltic sea (Östersjön).

Democracy and monarchy
(Demokrati och monarki)

Sweden is a democracy. The people decide which politicians will govern the country. Sweden is also a monarchy. A monarchy is a country where a king or queen is head of state, rather than a president. King Carl XVI Gustaf has no political power. This is written into the constitution. But the king and the royal family represent Sweden at many official events.

The EU
(EU)

Sweden is a member of the European Union, the EU. Sweden has chosen not to use the European currency, the euro.