Västerås

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Coordinates: 59°37′N 16°32′E
Västerås, Sweden
Nickname: "Gurkstaden"
Area
- City	51.16 km² (19.8 sq mi)
Population (2004)
- City	132,000
Time zone	+1 (UTC)
Website: http://www.vasteras.se/

Location of the city in Sweden.

Västerås [vɛstər'oːs] is a city in central Sweden, located on the shore of Lake Mälaren in the province Västmanland, some 100 km west of Stockholm. The city proper has a population of approximately 107,000, and is the seat of Västerås Municipality with 130,000 inhabitants (Sweden's sixth largest).

1 History
2 Today
3 Industry
4 Retailing and Trade
5 Image gallery
6 Notable natives
7 Travel
8 See also
9 Twin town
10 External links

[edit] History

Västerås is one of the oldest cities of Sweden and Northern Europe. The name originates from Västra Aros, which refers to the estuary of the river Svartån. The area had been populated from Nordic Viking Age, before 1000 AD. In the beginning of the 11th century it was the second largest city in Sweden, and in the 12th century became seat of the bishop.

In the ensuing centuries a cathedral and a monastery were built. The first City Arms is from the end of the 13th century.

Rudbeckianska Gymnasiet, the oldest gymnasium (secondary school) in Sweden, was built in Västerås by Johannes Rudbeckius in 1623.

In the 18th and 19th century the growing of cucumbers was frequent, and Västerås received the nickname Gurkstaden (Cucumber City), which is still occasionally heard today.

[edit] Today

Västerås circa 1700, in Suecia antiqua et hodierna.

Västerås is predominantly known as an industrial city, but is also a retailing and logistics city. Västerås wants to distinguish itself as Västerås - Mälarstaden, which means "Västerås -- the city by Lake Mälaren", in order to attract tourists and new inhabitants, as well as students to the local university college, Mälardalen University (approximately 16,000 enrolled students in Västerås and in the nearby Eskilstuna). To this effect, they are using a designed symbol in some official contexts, replacing the coat of arms. Västerås has the largest lakeside port (Lake Mälaren) in Scandinavia. Västerås also has a skyscraper cordially nicknamed "Skrapan" (English: The Scraper) which has Sweden's highest cocktail bar, the Sky Bar (24th floor).

[edit] Industry

In 1891, the Turbine House, a small hydroelectric dam was built on Svartån, in central Västerås. This early electrification encouraged ASEA, a large electricity equipment manufacturer, to concentrate its operations in Västerås, shifting focus away from Arboga. Later, after a merger with BBC Brown Boveri, ASEA became ABB. As a result, Västerås became its de facto Swedish capital. There, it is situated mainly at the Mimer Complex in the city centre with production facilities in Finnslätten.

Other major industries include transportation like Bombardier with several distribution centers, copper smiths Outokumpu Copper and IT.

[edit] Retailing and Trade

One of the historical reasons that made Västerås a city is its trading-friendly location by the river Svartån and lake Mälaren. The city remains one of the main logistical centers in Sweden due to its central location in the densely populated region Mälardalen and the favourable infrastructure with railways, waterways and highways. Amongst others, ICA AB has one of its main distribution centres located in Västerås.

Västerås is the birth place of multinational clothing retailer H&M, their first store was opened in the town centre in 1947.