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Svealand
Swealand | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Coordinates: 60°52′N 14°44′E / 60.867°N 14.733°E | |
| Area | |
| • Total | 91,098 km2 (35,173 sq mi) |
| Population (31 December 2021)[1] | |
| • Total | 4,268,504 |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
Svealand (Swedish: [ˈsvêːaˌland] ), or Swealand, is the historical core region of Sweden. It is located in south-central Sweden and is one of the three historical lands of Sweden, bounded to the north by Norrland and to the south by Götaland. Deep forests, Tiveden, Tylöskog, and Kolmården, separated Svealand from Götaland. Historically, its inhabitants were called Svear, from which is derived the English 'Swedes'.
Svealand consists of the capital region Mälardalen in the east, Roslagen in the north-east, the former mining district Bergslagen in the center, and Dalarna and Värmland in the west. It includes an extensive archipelago of thousands of small islands in Södermanland and Uppland and has lakeshores on the four largest lakes in the country. In the interior, there are several ski resorts in the southern parts of the Scandinavian Mountains. Two large rivers run through Svealand. Klarälven originates in Norway and enters lake Vänern through Värmland, whereas Dalälven runs from Dalarna through the lake of Siljan. The other major river basins in Svealand are Norrström that runs up in Bergslagen through lakes Hjälmaren and Mälaren, along with Nyköpingsån that covers the post-glacial lake district of Södermanland. Svealand generally has a moderate continental climate with a gradual decline of precipitation and increase of temperatures moving eastwards as the elevation descends.
Stockholm, the capital and largest city in Sweden, is Svealand's primate city and historical urban centre. The other administrative capitals are Falun, Karlstad, Nyköping, Uppsala, Västerås and Örebro.
The older name of Sweden in Swedish, Svea rike (modern spelling: Sverige) Realm of the Swedes, "Swea Region", originally only referred to Svealand. Other forms are Sweoðeod (Old Norse/Icelandic Svíþjóð), and Sweorice. As the domains of the Swedish kings grew, the name Svealand began to be used to separate the original territory from the new.[citation needed]
- ^ "Folkmängd i landskapen den 31 december 2021" (in Swedish). Statistics Sweden. Archived from the original on 23 August 2022. Retrieved 23 August 2022.