Sweden Political System, Famous People, Animals and Plants

By | January 15, 2023

Sweden: political system

According to COMPUTERMINUS.COM, Sweden is a parliamentary monarchy with a king or queen as head of state. The head of government is a prime minister who is elected by the Swedish Parliament. The legislature, i.e. the Reichstag, is a unicameral parliament and is re-elected every four years and has 349 members. See AbbreviationFinder for more information about Sweden politics, and acronyms as well.

The official name of the country is:

Konungariket Sverige Kingdom of Sweden

Sweden is divided into 21 provinces. All provinces have an elected provincial assembly as the legislature and a district president with a provincial government as the executive.

National anthem

The national anthem of Sweden was composed in 1844 by Richard Dybeck (1811 – 1877). The music comes from an earlier folk song. The composer is unknown. The hymn does not speak of Sweden but of the “north”, as Sweden formed a union with Norway at the time. Usually the first two stanzas, or just the first stanza, are sung.

Text in Swedish In the English translation
“You gamla, you fria, you fjällhöga nord”You gamla, you fria, you fjällhöga nord

you tysta, you glädjerika sköna!

Jag hälsar Dig, Vänaste land uppå jord,

– Din sol, Din heaven, Dina ängder gröna.

You tronar på minnen från fornstora år,

dåärat Ditt namn flög over jorden.

Jag vet att Du är och You blir vad du var.

– Yes, jag vill leva jag vill dö i north.

Jag städs vill dig tjäna mitt älskade land,

din trohet till döden vill jag svära.

Din rätt, skall jag värna, med håg och med hand,

– din fana, listen to the bragderika bear.

Med Gud skall jag kämpa, för hem och för härd,

för Sverige, den kära fosterjorden.

Jag byter Dig ej, mot allt i en värld

– Nej, jag vill leva jag vill dö i north.

“You old, you free, you mountainous north”You old, you free, you mountainous north,

you quiet, you joyful beautiful.

I greet you, loveliest land on earth

– your sun, your sky, your green meadows.

You are enthroned on the memory of great, bygone days,

your name was honored, flew through the world.

I know that you are, that you stay what you were.

– Yes, I want to live, I want to die in the north.

I will always serve you, my beloved country,

I will swear loyalty to you until death.

I want to protect your rights, with heart and with hand,

– hold up your flag, your heroic kingdom.

With God I will fight, for home and for hearth,

for Sweden, the beloved homeland.

I don’t trade you for anything in the world.

-No, I want to live, I want to die in the north.

National flag

Based on flag descriptions by Countryaah.com, the national flag of Sweden was officially introduced on June 22, 1906. The flag shows the yellow Scandinavian cross on a blue background. In addition to Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Iceland use the Nordic cross in their flags. Also the autonomous territories of Åland and the Faroe Islands. The cross was first used in Denmark with the Danebrog in 1219.

  • Check top-mba-universities for public holidays, sports events, UNESCO world heritage sites and major places to visit in Sweden.

Architects and builders

  • Ragnar Östberg (1866 – 1945), architect and professor at the Stockholm School of Art
  • Carl Fredrik Adelcrantz (1716-1796), architect
  • Sven Mauritz Backström (born 1903), architect
  • Klas Wilhelm Boman (1866-1940), architect and graphic artist
  • Ferdinand Boberg (1860-1946), architect
  • Lars Israel Wahlman (1870-1952), architect

Natural scientist

doctors

  • Olaf Immanuel Fahräus (1796 – 1844), Swedish doctor and naturalist
  • Axel Martin Fredrik Munthe (1857-1949), doctor and author
  • Carl Pehr (1743 – 1828), doctor and professor of botany

Natural scientist

  • Alfred Nobel (1833-1896), chemist and inventor of dynamite in 1867. From the interest on his fortune, he donated the most important science prize of all, according to his will, the Nobel Prize.
  • Anders Jonas Ångström (1814 – 1874), astronomer and physicist and co-founder of astrospectroscopy.
  • Carl Adolph Agardh (1785-1859), botanist.
  • Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778) after being raised to the nobility in 1761 Carl von Linné, scientist who developed the foundations of modern taxonomy (binary nomenclature).
  • Andersson Nils Johann (1821-1880), professor of botany.
  • Hans Karl August Simon von Euler-Chelpin (1873-1929), chemist and Nobel Prize winner for chemistry.

Visual artists, actors and directors

Visual artist

  • John Bauer (1882-1918), artist, painter and illustrator
  • Carl Frederik Reuterswärd (born 1934 in Stockholm), sculptor. Among other things, he created the sculpture “Non Violence”, which depicts a revolver, the barrel of which is knotted. The original is in front of the UN building in New York, replicas in front of the Chancellery in Berlin.

Actors and directors

  • Ingrid Bergman (1915-1982), actress
  • Greta Garbo (1905-1990), actress
  • Ingmar Bergman (1918-2007), director. His best-known works are without a doubt his then scandalous film “The Silence” and “Scenes of a Marriage” from 1973
  • Tage Danielsson (1928-1985)Left-wing comedian, poet, actor and director. Since 1975 his cartoon “The fairy tale of Karl-Bertil Johnson’s Christmas Eve” has been shown every year on Swedish television. Danielsson, born in Linköping, died on October 13, 1985 in Stockholm
  • Karl Frederik Lukas Moodysson (born 1969), writer and director
  • Arne Sucksdorf, Oscar laureate from 1948
  • Lasse Hallström, director. Famous Movies: “Gilbert Grape – Somewhere In Iowa” and “God’s Work And The Devil’s Contribution”
  • Victor Sjöström (1879-1960), director and actor
  • Mauritz Stiller (1883-1928), silent film director

Musician

  • The ABBA group, consisting of Agnetha Fältskog, Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus and Anni-Frid Lyngstad
  • Hugo Alfvén (1972-1960), composer and conductor
  • Kurt Atterberg (1887-1974), composer, conductor and music critic
  • Franz Adolf Berwald (1796 – 1868), composer and violin virtuoso
  • Johan Jonatan (Jussi) Björling (1911-1960), singer (tenor)
  • Karl-Birger Blomdahl (1916-1968), composer and conductor
  • Joseph Martin Kraus (1756 – 1792), composer and conductor
  • Wilhelm Peterson-Berger (1867-1942), composer
  • Lisa Ekdahl (born 1972), jazz and pop singer and songwriter
  • Allan Pettersson (1911-1980), composer
  • Johan Helmich Roman (1694 – 1758), the most important Swedish composer of the 18th century
  • Wilhelm Stenhammar (1871-1927), composer, conductor and pianist
  • Carl Michael Bellman (1740-1795), poet and singer of the Stockholm Rococo
  • Per Gessle and Marie Fredriksson became known under the name Roxette. After ABBA, they are the most internationally successful Swedish pop music group.
  • Ace of Base is a pop band that was formed in Gothenburg in 1990. The band consists of the three siblings Jonas Berggren, Linn Berggren and Jenny Berggren as well as their friend Ulf Ekberg.
  • Mando Diao is a Swedish rock band that was formed in 1999. It consists of Björn Dixgård (guitar, vocals), Gustaf Norén (guitar, vocals), Carl-Johan Fogelklou (electric bass), Samuel Giers (drums) and Mats Björke (keyboard).
  • Cardigans is a successful pop band that was founded in 1992 in Jonkoping. Members are Nina Persson, Peter Svensson, Magnus Sveningsson, Bengt Lagerberg and Lars-Olaf Johansson.
  • Army of Lovers was a Swedish pop music group founded in 1987. They emerged from the group Barbie, founded by Alexander Bard, which combined travesty with electronic pop music and was known in the Stockholm gay scene.
  • Europe was a hugely successful soft rock band from the 80s. Her biggest hit was “The final countdown”.
  • The Hives are a Swedish retro rock combo.
  • Neneh Cherry and her brother Eagle-Eye Cherry are children of the American jazz musician Don Cherry. While Neneh is considered a pioneer in the field of “TripHop”, Eagle-Eye composed lively pop music on a guitar basis. Neneh Cherry achieved a hit with “Seven Seconds”, which she sang with Youssou N’Dour, a hit that remained number one in France for 17 weeks.
  • Viktoria Tolstoy (born 1974), jazz singer
  • Leila El Khalifi (born 1971) known under the name Leila K. is a Swedish pop singer of Moroccan descent.
  • Carola Maria Häggkvist (born 1966), pop singer. She achieved great international success when she won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1991 with the song “Fångad av en stormvind”.

Nobel Prize Winner

The Nobel Prize

The Nobel Prize is considered to be the highest honor given to scientists, writers and peacemakers (individuals, politicians or organizations).

The award goes back to the Swedish chemist, inventor and industrialist Alfred Nobel (1833–1896).

Nobel had stipulated in his will that a foundation should be established with his fortune, the interest profits of which should be given in the form of a prize to the people who had rendered the greatest benefit to mankind in the past year.

The money should be divided equally for special achievements in the fields of physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine as well as literature and for peace efforts.

The Nobel Foundation was established – following Nobel’s request – on June 29, 1900 and in 1901 the first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901.

The winners will be announced in October, while the official award ceremony will take place on December 10 – the anniversary of Nobel’s death – with the exception of the Nobel Peace Prize in Stockholm.

The Nobel Peace Prize is presented in Oslo.

In 1866 Alfred Nobel developed the explosive “dynamite”. There is evidence that his conscience, because of the use of explosives as a weapon of war, led him to write his will to establish the Nobel Foundation.

However, there is no reliable evidence for this interpretation.

Note

Only those Nobel Laureates who were Swedish at the time of the award are listed here.

Nobel Prize in Chemistry

Award winner Year of award Reason for the award
Thomas Lindahl(born) 2015 Together with the American Paul Modrich and the Turkish Aziz Sancar, the Nobel Prize in Chemistryfor the description of the DNA repair mechanisms
Arne Tiselius(1902–1971) 1948 For his work on analysis using electrophoresis and adsorption,especially for his discoveries about the complex nature of serum proteins
Hans von Euler-Chelpin(1873–1964)

born. in Augsburg

1929 Together with British Arthur Hardenfor her research on sugar fermentation

and the role of enzymes in this process

Theodor HE Svedberg(1884–1971) 1926 For his work on disperse systems
Svante August Arrhenius(1859-1927) 1903 In recognition of the extraordinary servicehe has earned

for the development of chemistry through his theory of electrolytic dissociation

Nobel Peace Prize

Award winner Year of award Reason for the award
Alva Myrdal(1902-1986) 1982 Together with the Mexican Alfonso García Roblesfor her work as a diplomat and delegate of the UN disarmament conferences
Dag Hammarskjöld(1905–1961) 1961 (posthumously) Secretary General of the United Nations
Nathan Söderblom(1866-1931) 1930 For his work in ecumenism
Hjalmar Branting(1860-1925) 1921 Swedish delegate to the Council of the League of Nations
Klas Pontus Arnoldson(1844-1916) 1908 Founder of the Swedish Peace and Arbitration League

Nobel Prize in literature

Award winner Year of award Reason for the award
Tomas Tranströmmer(born 1931) 2011 Because it shows usnew paths to the real in compressed, illuminating images
Harry Martinson(1904–1978) 1974 For a poetic work thatcaptures the drop of dew and reflects the cosmos
Eyvind Johnson(1900-1976) 1974 For his art of storytelling,which looks far across countries and times and is at the service of freedom
Nelly Sachs(1891–1970)

(born in Berlin)

1966 For her outstanding lyrical and dramatic works,which interpret the fate of Israel with moving clarity
Pär Lagerkvist(1891–1974) 1951 For the artistic power and deep independencewith which he seeks the answer to the eternal questions of man in his poetry
Erik Axel Karlfeldt(1864–1931) 1931 For Erik Axel Karlfeldt’s poetry
Verner von Heidenstam(1859–1940) 1916 As a recognition of his importance as spokesman fora new era in our beautiful literature
Selma Lagerlöf(1858–1940) 1909 Because of the noble idealism, the wealth of imaginationand the soulful representation that characterize her poetry

Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

Award winner Year of award Reason for the award
Arvid Carlsson(born 1923) 2000 Together with the Americans Eric Kandel and Paul Greengardfor their discoveries about signal transmission in the nervous system
Bengt Ingemar Samuelsson(born 1934)

John Robert Vane

1982 With Sune Bergström and British John Robert Vanefor their groundbreaking work on prostaglandins

and related biologically active substances

Sune Bergström(1916-2004) 1982 With Bengt Ingemar Samuelsson and the British John Robert Vanefor their groundbreaking work on prostaglandins

and related biologically active substances

Torsten N. Wiesel(born 1924) 1981 Together with the US-Americans Roger Sperry and David H. Hubelfor their discoveries about information processing in the visual perception system “
Ulf von Euler(1905–1983) 1970 Together with the Briton Bernard Katz and the American Julius Axelrodfor their discoveries of the signal substances in the contact organs of

the nerve cells and the mechanisms for their storage, release and inactivation

Ragnar Granit(1900–1991) (born in Helsinki) 1967 Together with the Americans Haldan Keffer Hartline and George Waldfor their discovery in the field

of primary physiological and chemical visual processes in the eye

Hugo Theorell(1903-1982 1955 For his discoveries about thenature and mode of action of oxidizing enzymes
Allvar Gullstrand(1862-1930) 1911 For his work on dioptrics

Nobel Price for physics

Award winner Year of award Reason for the award
Kai Siegbahn(1918–2007) 1981 In the same year as the Americans Nicolaas Bloembergen and Arthur Leonard Schawlowfor his contribution to the development of high-resolution electron spectroscopy
Hannes Alfvén(1908-1995 1970 Together with the French Louis Néelfor his fundamental achievements and discoveries

in magnetohydrodynamics with fruitful applications

in various parts of plasma physics “

Manne Siegbahn(1886–1978) 1924(awarded in 1925) For his X-ray spectroscopic discoveries and research
Gustaf Dalén(1869–1937) 1912 For his invention of self-acting regulators,which are used in combination with gas accumulators to illuminate

lighthouses and light barrels

Alfred Nobel Memorial Prize for Economics

Note

The Alfred Nobel Memorial Prize for Economics does not go back directly to Alfred Nobel’s will, but was donated by the Swedish Reichsbank in 1968 on the basis of the Nobel Prizes on the occasion of its 300th anniversary. The prize was awarded for the first time in 1969 to the Norwegian Ragnar AK Frisch (1895–1973) and the Dutchman Jan Tinbergen (1903–1994).

Award winner Year of award Reason for the award
Bertil Ohlin(1899–1979) 1977 Together with the British James Edward Meadefor her groundbreaking work on the

theory of international trade and the international movement of capital ”

Gunnar Myrdal(1898-1987) 1974 Together with the Briton Friedrich HayekFor her groundbreaking work in the field of money and business cycle theory

and her profound analyzes of the mutual dependence

of economic, social and institutional conditions “

Politicians and rulers

  • Tage Erlanger (1901 – 1985), Swedish Prime Minister from 1946 to 1969. He is one of the fathers of the Swedish welfare state.
  • Olaf Palme (1927-1986), Swedish Prime Minister from 1969 to 1976 and from 1982 to 1986, who among other things was very strongly committed to the Vietnam War. He was shot dead in the street on February 28, 1986 on his way home from a visit to the cinema in downtown Stockholm by a still unknown person.
  • Anna Lindh (1957-2003), Swedish Foreign Minister. On September 10, 2003, in a department store, she was stabbed to death for no apparent reason. The perpetrator, Mijailo Mijailovic, could be identified relatively quickly. The Swede of Serbian descent was 25 years old at the time of the crime. He was sentenced to life imprisonment.
  • Göran Persson (born 1949) is a Swedish social democratic politician and has been Prime Minister of Sweden since 1996.

Sweden: writer

  • Arvid August Afzelius (1785 – 1871) collected Swedish folk songs.
  • Alfhild Teresia Agrell (1849-1923), writer.
  • Victoria Maria Benedictsson (1850 – 1888), writer who published under the pseudonym Ernst Ahlgren.
  • Lars Ahlin (1915-1997), writer.
  • Carl Jonas Love Almqvist (1793-1866), writer and composer.
  • Dan Andersson (1888-1920), poet and lyric poet.
  • Carl Michael Bellman (1740-1795), Rococo poet, composer and national poet.
  • Jan Berglin (born 1960), comic strip artist and author.
  • Hjalmar Fredrik Bergman (1883-1931), writer.
  • Gunilla Bergström (born 1942), author and illustrator of children’s books.
  • Elsa Beskow (1874-1953), children’s book author, painter and illustrator.
  • August Theodor Blanche (1811-1868), writer.
  • Karin Maria Boye (1900-1941), writer.
  • Fredrika Bremer (1801 – 1865), writer and leader of the Swedish women’s movement.
  • Sophia Elisabeth Brenner (1659-1730), writer.
  • Sigrid Combüchen (born 1942), writer and literary critic in the magazine “Allt om Böcker” and the daily newspaper “Dagens Nyheter”. Selma-Lagerlöv-Prize winner from 2004.
  • Stig Dagerman (1923-1954), journalist and writer.
  • Tage Danielsson (1928-1985), writer, film director and comedian. His motto was: “Freden måste komma först. Gor den inte det, min vän, kommer inget efter den” (Peace has to come first. If you don’t do it, my friend, nothing comes afterwards!)He filmed the children’s book “Ronja” The Robber’s Daughter “by Astrid Lindgren.
  • Ernst Didring (1868-1931), writer.
  • Åke Edwardson (born 1953), crime novel writer.
  • Vilhelm Ekelund (1880-1949), one of the first Swedish modernists.
  • Kerstin Lillemor Ekman (born 1933), one of Sweden’s most respected writers.
  • Per Olov Enquist (born 1934), writer and journalist.
  • Emilie Flygare-Carlén (1807-1892), writer
  • Per Anders Fogelström (1917-1998), writer and social critic.
  • Marianne Fredriksson (born 1927) is a writer.
  • Gustaf Fröding (1860-1911), poet.
  • Erik Gustaf Geijer (1783 – 1847) is one of the most important Swedish romantic writers.
  • Jan Guillou (born 1944), journalist and novelist.
  • Lars Gustafsson (born 1936), writer.
  • Carl Gustaf Verner von Heidenstam (1859-1940), poet.
  • Eric Hermelin (1860-1944), translator and author.
  • Eyvind Johnson (1900-1976), writer and 1974 Nobel Prize winner.
  • Erik Axel Karlfeldt (1864-1931), poet.
  • Per Ulrik Kernell (1797-1824), Romantic writer.
  • Agnes von Krusenstjerna (1894-1940), writer.
  • Pär Fabian Lagerkvist (1891-1974), writer and poet.
  • Selma Ottilia Lovisa Lagerlöf (1858-1940), writer. In 1909 she was the first woman to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature. Your best-known work in the German-speaking area is certainly “Nils Holgersson’s wonderful journey through Sweden”! (Nils Holgersson underbara resa genom Sverige)
  • Viveca Lärn (born 1944), children’s book author and writer.
  • Anne Charlotte Leffler (1849-1892), writer.
  • Oscar Levertin (1862-1906), writer.
  • Anna Maria Lenngren (1754 – 1817) one of the most important writers in Swedish literature at the end of the 18th century.
  • Sara Lidman (1923-2004), writer.
  • Astrid Lindgren (1907-2002), writer. With her children’s books “Pipi Longstocking”, “We Children from Bullerbü” or “Michel from Lönneberga” etc. she became the most successful children’s author of all time.
  • Barbro Lindgren-Enskog (born 1937), children’s author and writer.
  • Egron Sellif Lundgren (1815-1875), painter and writer.
  • Henning Mankell (born 1948), theater director and writer.
  • Eva Elisabeth Liza Marklund (born 1962), journalist, crime writer and founder of the Piratförlaget publishing house.
  • Katarina Mazetti (born 1944), radio journalist, columnist and writer.
  • Vilhelm Moberg (1898-1973), writer.
  • Karl Frederik Lukas Moodysson (born 1969), writer and director.
  • Axel Martin Fredrik Munthe (1857-1949), doctor and author.
  • Håkan Nesser (born 1950), author.
  • Mikael Niemi (born 1959), author of poetry collections and books for children and young people.
  • Peter Nilsson (1937-1998), astronomer and novelist.
  • Hedvig Charlotta Nordenflycht (1718 – 1763), one of the most important Swedish writers.
  • Sven Nordqvist (born 1946), draftsman and in Germany and one of the most popular authors for children’s books.
  • Carl Hindrik Sven Rudolphsson Lidman (1882-1960), writer.
  • Elias Sehlstedt (1808-1874), poet.
  • Maj Sjöwall (born 1935), writer and translator.
  • Johan August Strindberg (1849 in Stockholm – 1912 in Stockholm), one of Sweden’s most important writers. He wrote groundbreaking dramas.He was and is one of the most important Swedish writers and artists. He achieved his literary breakthrough in 1879 with the work “The Red Room” (Röda rummet). Because of the criticism of his socially critical works, he left Sweden and went to Paris, later to Switzerland and Berlin. In his home country he was revered as an icon of the labor movement. In 1897 he returned to Sweden. With us you can listen to some excerpts from his work “On the Open Sea” under audio travel descriptions
  • Hjalmar Söderberg (1869-1941), fin-de-siècle writer.
  • Esaias Tegnér (1782-1846), poet.
  • Thomas Tranström (born in Stockholm in 1931)Tranströmer suffered a stroke in 1990 which led to paralysis on one side and to speech disorders. He received the 2011 Nobel Prize for Literature for his work.
  • Göran Tunström (1937-2000), writer.
  • Helene Tursten (born 1954), writer.
  • Annika Thor (born 1950), writer.
  • Per Wästberg (born 1933), writer and from 1979 to 1986 he was president of the international PEN club.
  • Per Fredrik Wahlöö (1926-1975), writer.

Swedish kings

  • Gustav Wasa (1523-1560)
  • Erik XIV (1560 – 1568)
  • Johan III (1568 – 1592)
  • Sigismund (1592-1599)
  • Charles IX (1604 – 1611)
  • Gustav II Adolf (1611 – 1632)
  • Kristina (1644-1654)
  • Karl X. Gustav (1654 – 1660)
  • Charles XI. (1672 – 1697)
  • Charles XII. (1697-1718)
  • Ulrika Eleonora (1719–1720)
  • Fredrik I (1720–1751)
  • Adolf Fredrik (1751–1771)
  • Gustav III (1771 – 1792)
  • Gustav IV Adolf (1796-1809)
  • Charles XIII (1809-1818)
  • Charles XIV Johan (1818 – 1844)
  • Oscar I (1844-1859)
  • Charles XV (1859 – 1872)
  • Oscar II (1872-1907)
  • Gustaf V. (1907-1950)
  • Gustaf VI. Adolf (1950-1973)
  • Carl XVI. Gustaf (born 1973), current King of Sweden

Others

  • Victoria Ingrid Alice Désirée Bernadotte (born 1977) eldest child of King Charles XVI. Gustaf and Queen Silvia and thus the Crown Princess of Sweden and Duchess of Västergötland.
  • Silvia, Queen of Sweden (born 1943 in Heidelberg) has been with the Swedish King Karl XVI since 1976. Gustaf married.

athlete

  • Stefan Edberg (born 1966), tennis player. Sporting successes: Australian Open 1985 and 1987; US Open 1991 and 1992; Wimbledon 1988 and 1990.
  • Ingemar Stenmark (born 1956), skier with 86 victories in World Cup races, 46 of them in giant slalom and 40 in slalom. Also gold in slalom and giant slalom at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid.
  • Björn Borg (born 1956), tennis player who won a total of 62 individual titles in the course of his relatively short career, including the Wimbledon tournament five times in a row from 1976 to 1980. He finished his tennis career in 1983 at the age of 26.
  • Henrik Lundqvist (born 1982), ice hockey goalkeeper
  • Ronnie Hellström (born 1949), soccer goalkeeper, he was elected soccer player of the year in Sweden in 1971 and 1978
  • Peter Forsberg (born 1973) is considered one of the best ice hockey players around 2004.
  • Carolina Klüft (born 1984), heptathlete, broke through the magical limit of 7,000 points
  • Alfredsson Daniel (born 1972 in Gothenburg), international ice hockey player
  • Kajsa Bergqvist, high jumper. She is indoor world champion.
  • Thomas Fogdö (born 1970), ski racer. He won a total of five World Cup slalom races.
  • Peter Forsberg (born 1973), Philadelphia Flyers ice hockey player. He is considered one of the best active players in the world.
  • Thobias Fredriksson (born 1975), cross-country skier. He won gold at the 2003 World Championships in Val di Fiemme and bronze at the 2005 World Championships in Oberstdorf in the 1.5 km sprint.
  • Gunder Hägg (1918-2004), athlete. Between 1941 and 1945 he set 16 world records.
  • Zlatan Ibrahimovic (born 1981), football player for the Swedish national team.
  • Henrik Larsson (born 1971), football player.
  • Nicklas Lidström (born 1970), ice hockey player for the Detroit Red Wings.
  • Karl Fredrik Ljungberg, called Freddie, (born 1977), football player.
  • Olof Mellberg (born 1977), football player.
  • Bengt Ronnie Peterson (1944-1978), Formula 1 racing driver.
  • Anja Pärson (born 1981), alpine ski runner.
  • Thomas Ravelli (born 1959), football player.
  • Ulrich Salchow (1877-1949), figure skater. He was the first Olympic champion in figure skating and won the gold medal in London in 1908.
  • Ingemar Stenmark, (born 1956), ski athlete.
  • Gunde Svan (born 1962), one of the most successful cross-country skiers in the history of winter sports. He won four gold medals at the 1984 and 1988 Winter Olympics, one silver and one bronze.
  • Annika Sörenstam (born 1970), golf player. Since 1993 she has been playing professionally on the LPGA tour (Ladies Professional Golfers Association).
  • Pernilla Wiberg (born 1970), ski racer. In 1992 she won gold at the Albertville Olympic Games, in 1994 she won the Olympic Games in Lillehammer, at the 1996 World Cup in Sierra Nevada she won the slalom and the combined and won silver at the Olympic Games in Nagano.
  • Mats Wilander (born 1964), tennis player. He won 7 Grand Slam titles and three Davis Cup titles with the Swedish team. He was number 1 in world tennis between September 1988 and January 1989.
  • Emelie Öhrstig (born 1978), cross-country skier. She won gold in the sprint at the Nordic World Ski Championships in 2005.

Theologians and philosophers

  • Larsson, Hans (1862-1944), philosopher and writer. From 1901 to 1927 he was a professor in Lund.
  • Lars Gustafsson (born 1936), philosopher and writer. In 1981 Gustafsson converted to Judaism. He has lived in Austin/Texas since 1983.
  • Lars Olof Jonathan Söderblom, also known as Nathan Söderblom (1866-1931), Protestant theologian and clergyman. Archbishop of Uppsala from 1914 and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate from 1930.
  • Lars Levi Laestadius (1800 – 1861), preacher in Lapland. Also known as the “apostle of the seeds”.
  • Sigurd Ribbing (1816-1899), philosopher and professor of logic and metaphysics in Upsala.

Sweden: animals

Mammals

The most common animals are moose, which you can meet almost all over the country with the exception of Gotland and Skane. Are also common deer, foxes, hares and otters. The most common small mammals are lemmings in Lapland. Bears, lynxes and wolves

, on the other hand, are much less common, all of which are protected.

The arctic fox and wolverine live in the north of Sweden. He belongs to the marten family and is in this with a length of 1 m and a weight of max. 35 kg the largest and heaviest representative. The shy mountain animal has a shaggy, dark brown fur, a long bushy tail and large paws that make it much easier for him to walk through the snow.

Wolverines live solitary and prefer to stay near water. In addition to carrion, its diet also includes berries and rodents. It doesn’t get its name because of its eating habits, but in all probability owes it to a translation error. In Norwegian “fjeldfross” means something like “mountain cat”.

The reindeer population is limited to Lapland, where they have all been domesticated and live semi-wild. The reindeer is about 2 m long and 1.25 m high and belongs to the deer family. Clothing is made from its very dense fur, which consists of air-filled hair. He also serves as a meat supplier. The reindeer is the only species of deer in which both males and females have antlers. Its main diet includes lichens, which it exposes from the snow with its wide hooves. But they also eat leaves, bark and grass.

In addition to Sweden, the animals can also be found in Norway, Greenland and in the tundras of Northern Eurasia and Canada.

After wild boars have almost been exterminated, individual animals have settled in game enclosures and successfully reproduced.

There are seal populations in the Baltic Sea, but these are very heavily polluted by the destruction of the environment.

Reptiles

Among the reptiles found in Sweden are the brownish forest lizard and the pretty sand lizard.

The snake-like slow worm is also counted among the lizards. Your extremities are so strongly receded that they cannot be seen from the outside. However, their beginnings are visible in the skeleton.

Other features of the lizard include the closable eyelids and the lack of abdominal scales that help snakes move. The tail can also be thrown off in case of danger and distracts the enemy from the actual prey through independent movements. However, only a short part of the slow-worm grows back, not the entire tail.

Overall, it reaches a length of up to 50 cm, which can vary greatly due to the growing tail stub. The color is sand-gray to brown-black. The slow worm lives inconspicuously in cool stream valleys, forest clearings, hedges, meadows and embankments. Usually it hides under stone slabs or wooden boards.

It can often be encountered after rain showers as it then leaves its hiding place to hunt nudibranchs, earthworms, insects and spiders. Their enemies include hedgehogs, crows, other larger birds and also humans.

The slow worm is widespread throughout Europe, and is also found in North Africa.

There are some non-poisonous snakes in Sweden. The only venomous snake found in Sweden is the adder.

Birds

The species diversity of birds is greater than that of mammals. In addition to seagulls and terns, eider ducks also live on the coast. The protected cranes can be found near the lake areas.

Birds of prey such as the rare golden eagle and peregrine falcon hunt in the forests.

Other common bird species are waxwings, capercaillie, nuthatch and blue tits.

insects

Mosquitoes are a real nuisance in summer, especially on the banks of lakes and ponds, in wetlands and in moor areas. There are also numerous species of butterflies, bees, wasps and dragonflies, to name just a few of the local insects.

Underwater world

Both freshwater and sea fish are abundant in Sweden. The freshwater fish include trout, catfish, carp and pikeperch.

The Baltic fish include salmon, mackerel and cod.

Sweden: plants

Trees

Around 50% of the country is covered with forests.

Most of the trees found in Sweden are coniferous forests with spruce and pine in the north of the country and in the higher elevations.

Birch trees are also very common, although in the far north these trees are of very low growth and are known as dwarf birches.

Mixed forests of birch and aspen as well as deciduous trees can be found in southern Sweden. The northernmost beech forest in the world is located in Västergötland.

Crops

In the forests of Sweden you can find the numerous chanterelles, as well as raspberries, wild berries, blueberries and lingonberries, among other mushrooms.

The cloudberry, which is otherwise hardly known in Europe, grows in Lapland. This plant, which is also often found in bog areas, becomes 10-25 cm high and first has red and later orange-yellow fruits.

The cloudberries are mostly processed into jam. They also grow in northern Asia as well as northern North America.

Medicinal plants

The red saxifrage belongs to the saxifrage family and forms cushions. The small blue-green leaves are characteristic. The flowers are colored from wine-red to blue-violet.

The plant is used for a wide variety of diseases.

It is used for arthritis, gout, rheumatism as well as for diarrhea, fever, flu and headaches.

Poisonous plants

The globe flower with the yellow spherical flowers at the end of the stem belongs to the buttercup family. These bloom May – June and reach a diameter of 3 cm. It grows in moist meadows, but mainly in the mountains, Alps and Northern Europe. Due to the alkaloid magnoflorin, it is slightly toxic and causes burning of the oral mucous membranes, gastrointestinal complaints, diarrhea and severe cramps. It can also lead to circulatory problems and fever, as well as skin irritation and blisters. The globe flower owes its name to the spherical appearance of its flowers, as the Latin translation of “trulleus” means “round vessel” and the name was slightly modified in Old German. The globe flower is protected.

There are different types of monkshood, the type found in Sweden is the Nordic monkshood. All species are very poisonous, so that the monkshood is considered the most poisonous plant in Europe. It is 1-2 m high and has light purple flowers that are arranged in dense clusters. The poisonous alkaloid aconitine is found in all parts of the plant, but the roots are particularly enriched with the poison. Just a few grams of it are fatal for an adult. The special thing is that the poison can also be absorbed through the skin, where it then has a local anesthetic effect. After an initial tingling sensation in the fingers and toes, sweats, vomiting and diarrhea occur. Eventually death occurs from cardiac arrest or respiratory arrest.

In the past, monkshood poison was used as an arrow poison and quite often in poisonous murders.

Apart from its toxicity, the monkshood must not be picked because it is strictly protected.

More plants

Arctic vegetation such as dwarf shrubs, mosses and lichens is represented in large numbers. In Götland, Öland and in parts of the mountain range, however, you can also admire a wide variety of orchid species. The typical alpine flowers like the saxifrage, the poisonous monkshood and the edelweiss can be found in the mountains.

The national parks of Sweden shine in different colors in spring. Globeflowers and the shaggy cinquefoil bloom yellow, the glacier buttercup, silver arum and the alpine hornwort have white flowers.

The red saxifrage, the cucumber and the red night carnation are blooming in red, while the forest cranesbill and alpine home have purple, snow gentian and forest forget-me-not blue flowers.

Sweden Politics