Geography of Sweden

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Sweden
Location of Sweden
Continent Europe
Subregion Scandinavia
Geographic coordinates 62°00′N, 15°00′E
Area
 - Total
 - Water		 Ranked 55th
449,964 km²
39,03- km² (8.69%)
Coastline 3,218 km (2,000 mi)
Land boundaries 2,333 km (1,550 mi)
Countries bordered Norway 1,169 km
Finland 614 km
Highest point Kebnekaise, 2,111 m / 6,926 ft
Lowest point Kristianstad, -2.41 m
Longest river Torne River, 521.63 km (324.14 mi)
Largest inland body of water Vänern 5,648 km² (3,510 sq mi)
Land Use
 - Arable land

 - Permanent
   crops

 - Other
5.93 %

0.01 %

94.06 % (2005 est.)
Irrigated Land 1,150 km²
Climate: Temperate to subarctic
Terrain: flat lowlands, mountains
Natural resources iron ore, copper, lead, zinc, gold, silver, tungsten, uranium, arsenic, feldspar, timber, hydropower
Natural hazards ice flow
Environmental issues acid rains

Sweden is a country in Northern Europe.

Contents

[edit] Location

Northern Europe, Scandinavian Peninsula, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, Kattegat, and Skagerrak, between Finland and Norway. Strategic location along Öresund and the Danish Straits linking Baltic and North Seas.

  • Climate: temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north
  • Terrain: Mountains and hills in west. Plains and agriculture land in the south. The mountains fjeld are in the north together with plains and lakes and a lot of snow in the winter. More than 50% of Sweden is forests, dominant in the central parts, comparable to the terrain of Canada.
  • Geographic coordinates: 62°00′N, 15°00′E

The two largest islands are Gotland and Öland in the south-east. They each have their own culture, most notably Gotland with the old, largely intact and heritage-filled city Visby.

[edit] Lands of Sweden

Sweden is traditionally divided into three Lands or landsdelar without any administrative function:

Main article: Lands of Sweden

[edit] Provinces

The lands are further divided into 25 provinces or landskap, which also are without administrative function.

Main article: Provinces of Sweden

[edit] Counties

Main article: Counties of Sweden

Administratively Sweden is divided into 21 counties or län. In each county there is a County Administrative Board or länsstyrelse which is appointed by the Government.

In each county there is also a separate County Council or landsting, which is the municipal representation appointed by the county electorate.

The letters shown were until 1973 on the vehicle registration plates.

[edit] Municipalities

Main article: Municipalities of Sweden

Each county is further divided into municipalities or kommuner, ranging from only one (in Gotland County) to forty-nine (in Västra Götaland County). The total number of municipalities is 290.

The northern municipalities are often large by size, but low populated – the largest municipality is Kiruna with an area as large as the three southern provinces in Sweden (Scania, Blekinge and Halland) combined, but it only has a population of 25,000, and its density is about 1 / km².

[edit] Cities

Main article: Cities in Sweden
Main article: Urban areas in Sweden

Cities and towns in Sweden are not political or administrative entities, but localities or urban areas, independent of the municipal subdivision.

The largest city, by population, is the capital Stockholm, to the east, the dominating city for culture and media, with a population of 1,250,000. The second largest city is Gothenburg, with 510,500, to the west. Third is Malmö in the south, with 258,000.

The north is less populated than the southern and central parts, mostly because of its colder climate. The largest city is Umeå with 75,000 inhabitants.

There are 1,940 localities with more than 200 inhabitants in the country.

[edit] Area

  • Total: 449,964 km² (slightly larger than California, USA)
  • where of land: 410,934 km²
  • and water: 39,030 km²

The water area consists of around 95,700 lakes [1], and the area taken up by lakes are close to 10%. They are extensively used for water power plants, especially the large northern rivers and lakes. Sweden is the biggest Scandinavian country as well as the third largest West-European country.

[edit] Land boundaries

  • total: 2,205 km
  • border countries: Finland 586 km, Norway 1,619 km
  • Coastline: 3,218 km

[edit] Maritime claims

  • continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
  • exclusive economic zone: agreed boundaries or midlines
  • territorial sea: 12 nautical miles (22 km) (adjustments made to return a portion of straits to high seas)

[edit] Elevation extremes

[edit] Railways

[edit] Natural resources

[edit] Land use

What is Sweden land used for? Showing forest, agriculture and mountain.
What is Sweden land used for? Showing forest, agriculture and mountain.
  • arable land: 7%
  • permanent crops: 0%
  • permanent pastures: 1%
  • forests and woodland: 78%
  • other: 14% (1993 est.)
  • Irrigated land: 1,150 km² (1993 est.)

[edit] Natural hazards

In this true-color scene in March 15, 2002, much of Scandinavia can be seen covered by snow and the Gulf of Bothnia covered with ice (NASA satellite photo).
In this true-color scene in March 15, 2002, much of Scandinavia can be seen covered by snow and the Gulf of Bothnia covered with ice (NASA satellite photo).

Ice floes in the surrounding waters, especially in the Gulf of Bothnia, can interfere with maritime traffic.

[edit] Environment

[edit] See also

[edit] References

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Geography of Europe
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Italics indicates an unrecognised or partially recognised country. 1 Entirely in Southwest Asia.  2 Partially or entirely in Asia, depending on the border definitions.  3 / 4 / 5 / 6 Has part of its territory in Asia / North America / South America / Africa.  7 / 8 Entirely on the North American Plate / African Plate.