| Luleå | |||
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| Storgatan in Luleå | |||
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Luleå
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Sweden | ||
| Province | Norrbotten | ||
| County | Norrbotten County | ||
| Municipality | Luleå Municipality | ||
| Charter | 17th Century | ||
| Area[1] | |||
| • Total | 28.81 km2 (11.1 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2005-12-31)[1] | |||
| • Total | 45,467 | ||
| • Density | 1,578/km2 (4,087/sq mi) | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| Website | www.lulea.se | ||
Luleå (Swedish: [ˈlʉːlɛo] ( listen), Lule sami Luleju, Finnish Luulaja) is a city on the coast of northern Sweden with 45,467 inhabitants.[1] It is the seat of Luleå Municipality and the capital of Norrbotten County.
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The town of Luleå is situated on a peninsula where Lule Bay meets the Gulf of Bothnia; the bay stretches northwest and becomes the Lule River, allowing sea-based transportation across the county. The town's location on the peninsula of Svartöstaden required expansion, and therefore much of its ground area of 2110 square kilometres is human-made. Luleå also has urban areas built on the island of Hertsön which, thanks to Luleå's location, is Sweden's seventh most populated.
The harbour of Luleå — Sweden's fifth-largest port, which transports over seven million tons of cargo each year — is of particular significance for iron ore from LKAB's mining in Kiruna and Gällivare/Malmberget. During the winter, sea traffic continues at a virtually unchanged rate with the assistance of icebreakers; Luleå is the home port of the Swedish icebreaker armada.
Luleå archipelago contains over 700 islands. Its area extends to the county limit of Norrbotten/Västerbotten and to Sweden's national border with Finland. Archaeological expeditions have discovered many mazes which are widely believed to have been used for fertility and agricultural rituals. There are an estimated 300 mazes worldwide which share this distinct pattern, 100 of which are found on the islands of Luleå.
Luleå was already an important harbour in the 13-15th centuries.
The Royal charter was granted in 1621 by King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden. The original town was situated where Gammelstad (Old Town) is situated today. The town had to be moved in 1649 to the current site, due to the land elevation that had made the bay too shallow for ships to enter.
The Gammelstad Church Town is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
In 1887, a devastating fire destroyed most of the town, sparing only a few buildings. The Neo-Gothic Cathedral (originally the Oscar Fredrik church), dedicated in 1893, is at 67 meters (220 ft) the tallest building in town.
Luleå's commerce and industry is a mix of industry, research, education, trade, and services. The university's educational programmes have attracted new businesses as well as local offices for multinational corporations.
Major employers in the city are the SSAB steelworks and Luleå University of Technology. A Swedish Air Force wing, F 21 (or Norrbotten Air Force Wing), are stationed near Luleå at the neighbouring Luleå Airport. Other major employers include Ferruform (a subsidiary of Scania AB) and Gestamp HardTech (acquired from SSAB 2005-01-01).
The information technology industry in Luleå has about 2000 employees (2008).
Luleå is the home of several major innovations and technological milestones.[2]
Luleå has a subarctic climate with short, mild summers and long, cold, and snowy winters.
| Climate data for Luleå, Sweden | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °C (°F) | −8 (18) |
−8 (18) |
−2 (28) |
3 (37) |
10 (50) |
17 (63) |
19 (66) |
17 (63) |
12 (54) |
6 (43) |
−1 (30) |
−5 (23) |
5.0 (41.0) |
| Average low °C (°F) | −16 (3) |
−16 (3) |
−11 (12) |
−4 (25) |
2 (36) |
8 (46) |
11 (52) |
10 (50) |
5 (41) |
1 (34) |
−7 (19) |
−13 (9) |
−2.5 (27.5) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 34 (1.34) |
30 (1.18) |
31 (1.22) |
29 (1.14) |
32 (1.26) |
37 (1.46) |
46 (1.81) |
64 (2.52) |
63 (2.48) |
46 (1.81) |
51 (2.01) |
45 (1.77) |
508 (20) |
| Source: [6] | |||||||||||||
Local buses are run by Luleå LLT.
A passenger train service is available from Luleå Central Station on Sweden's national SJ railway service northbound to Narvik on the Norwegian coast, or southbound to Stockholm. See Rail transport in Sweden.
Luleå Airport has the longest runway in Sweden and serves about 1,000,000 passengers annually. [7]
Luleå has a variety of cultural institutions, among them Norrbottensteatern, Norrbottens museum, and Norrbotten big band led by Tim Hagans. In January 2007 the Cultural house (Kulturens Hus) was opened. A library, concerts, and art exhibitions are all hosted here. Luleå is also home to the hardcore punk band Raised Fist and melodic death metal band The Duskfall.
Luleå has many teams competing in a variety of sports including
In Luleå there is also an American football team, the Luleå Eskimos. The Swedish Championship in Yukigassen is held in Luleå annually.
Luleå is home to one of the oldest indoor shopping centres in the world, "Shopping," designed by British born architect Ralph Erskine, and opened in 1955. More recent additions to the cityscape are the shopping centres "Strand, Smedjan, Folksamhuset" and the first "youth-galleria" in Sweden, "Storgatan 61", located in the city centre. There are two main shopping streets in the city centre: Storgatan and Kungsgatan.
A new shopping area in the industrial area of Storheden outside the city was built more recently; it houses several large stores.
| Luleå is one of 133 places with the historical city status in Sweden. |
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