SWEDEN

LocationSweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden shares borders with Norway to the west and Finland to the east, and is connected to Denmark by Øresund Bridge.

Viking and Middle AgesThe Swedish Viking Age lasted roughly between the 8th and 11th centuries. During this period, it is believed that the Swedes expanded from eastern Sweden and incorporated the Geats to the south. It is believed that Swedish Vikings and Gutar mainly travelled east and south, going to Finland, the Baltic countries, Russia, Belarus, Ukraine the Black Sea and further as far as Baghdad. Their routes passed through the Dnieper down south to Constantinople, on which they did numerous raids. The Byzantine Emperor Theophilos noticed their great skills in war and invited them to serve as his personal bodyguard, known as the varangian guard. The Swedish Vikings, called "Rus" are also believed to be the founding fathers of Kievan Rus. Their boats called longboats.

Boats of VikingsConquests of Vikings wouldn't be

possible without taking control by them of the ability of the structure of boats supplied with the rectangular sail. The biggest ship of Vikings – longboats – which had over 60 oars. These ships had most often belonged to leaders and they performed the formal function in the fleet. During the majority of expeditions smaller boats were being used – snekkary – moving thanks of work 30 - 40 rowers. They could take on the deck including from 40 to 100 warriors

The Swedish National Anthem1. Du gamla, du fria, du fjällhöga Nord,

du tysta, du glädjerika sköna!Jag hälsar dig, vänaste land uppå jord,din sol, din himmel, dina ängder gröna,din sol, din himmel, dina ängder gröna.

2. Du tronar på minnen från fornstora dar,då ärat ditt namn flög över jorden.

Jag vet, att du är och du blir vad du var.Ja, jag vill leva, jag vill dö i Norden!Ja, jag vill leva, jag vill dö i Norden!

3. Thou ancient, thou freeborn, thou mountainous North,In beauty and peace our hearts beguiling,

I greet thee, thou loveliest land on the earth,Thy sun, thy skies, thy verdant meadows smiling.Thy sun, thy skies, thy verdant meadows smiling.

4. Thy throne rests on mem’ries from great days of yore,When worldwide renown was valour’s guerdon.

I know to thy name thou art true as before.In thee I'll live, in thee I'll die, thou North Land,In thee I'll live, in thee I'll die, thou North Land.

The Swedish National Anthem and The King's

SongThe text of the Swedish National Anthem, "Du gamla, Du fria," was written by folklorist and ballad writer Richard Dybeck (1811-77) and set to a folk tune from the province of Västmanland in the middle of the 19th century. By the end of the century, the song was so popular that it became the Swedish national anthem.

ReligionAt the end of 2009, 71.3% of Swedes belonged to the Church of Sweden (Lutheran); this number has been decreasing by about 1% a year for the last two decades. However, only approximately 2% of the church's members regularly attend Sunday services. Despite a high formal membership rate in the Church of Sweden, some studies have found Sweden to be one of the least religious countries in the world, with one of the highest levels of atheism. According to different studies, between 46% and 85% of Swedes do not believe in God. In the Eurostat survey, 23% of Swedish citizens responded that "they believe there is a God", whereas 53% answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force" and 23% that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, God, or life force".

MusicSweden has a rich musical tradition, ranging from mediaeval folk ballads to hip hop music. The music of the pre-Christian Norse has been lost to history,

although historical re-creations have been attempted based on instruments found in Viking

sites. ABBA was one of the first internationally well-known popular music bands from Sweden, and still

ranks among the most prominent bands in the world, with about 370 million records sold. With ABBA, Sweden entered into a new era, in which

Swedish pop music gained international prominence. In 1974 ABBA won Eurovision with

song „Waterloo”.

AbbaThe group vocal-instrumental, established in 1970. Constitution of the team: F. Lyngstad, and. Fältskog, B. Andersson, B. Ulvaeus (a

rhythm section accompanied the quartet on changeable composition). The group achieved the international success in 1974, winning at

the Festival of the Eurovision with song Waterloo. The team acted up to the beginning

of years 80.

TechnologyIn the 18th century Sweden's scientific revolution took off. Previously, technical progress had mainly come from mainland Europe. In 1739, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences was founded, with people such as Carolus Linnaeus and Anders Celsius as early members. Many of the companies founded by early pioneers are still remain major international brands. Gustaf Dalén founded AGA, and received the Nobel Prize for his sun valve. Alfred Nobel invented dynamite and instituted the Nobel Prizes

CultureSweden has many authors of worldwide recognition

including August Strindberg, Astrid Lindgren, and Nobel Prize winners Selma Lagerlöf and Harry Martinson. In

total seven Nobel Prizes in Literature have been awarded to Swedes. The nation's most well-known

artists are painters such as Carl Larsson and Anders Zorn, and the sculptors Tobias Sergel and Carl Milles.Swedish 20th-century culture is noted by pioneering

works in the early days of cinema, with Mauritz Stiller and Victor Sjöström. In the 1920s–1980s, the filmmaker

Ingmar Bergman and actors Greta Garbo and Ingrid Bergman became internationally noted people within cinema. More recently, the films of Lukas Moodysson

and Lasse Hallström have received international recognition.

The day of the flag On the turn of the XIX and XX age, in the period of

the eruption of romantic national emotions, many enthusiasts wanted Sweden also to have its national holiday. However in the period of the First World War, on one's own initiative, people started getting around the 6 of June as the Day of the Swedish Flag. That day in 1523 Gustaw 1 Waza which broke off the union thrown for the late Middle Ages with Denmark, he was appointed for the king of Sweden, and in 1809 one of Swedish constitutions was signed

CuisineSwedish cuisine, like that of the other Scandinavian countries (Denmark, Norway and Finland), was traditionally simple. Fish (particularly herring), meat, potatoes and dairy products played prominent roles. Spices were sparse. Famous dishes include Swedish meatballs, traditionally served with gravy, boiled potatoes and lingonberry jam; pancakes, lutfisk, and Smörgåsbord, or lavish buffet. Akvavit is a popular alcoholic distilled beverage, and the drinking of snaps is of cultural importance. The traditional flat and dry crisp bread has developed into several contemporary variants. Regionally important foods are the surströmming (a fermented fish) in Northern Sweden and eel in Scania in Southern Sweden.Swedish traditional dishes, some of which are many hundreds of years old, others perhaps a century or less, are still a very important part of Swedish everyday meals.

ClimateMost of Sweden has a temperate climate, despite its northern

latitude, with four distinct seasons and mild temperatures throughout the year. The country can be divided into three types

of climate; the southernmost part has an oceanic climate the central part has a humid continental climate and the northernmost

part has a subarctic climate. However, Sweden is much warmer and drier than other places at a similar latitude, and even

somewhat farther south, mainly because of the Gulf Stream.For example, central and southern Sweden has much warmer winters

than many parts of Russia, Canada, and the northern United States.[Because of its high latitude, the length of daylight varies greatly. North of the Arctic Circle, the sun never sets for part of each summer, and it never rises for part of each winter. In the capital, Stockholm daylight lasts for more than 18 hours in late

June but only around 6 hours in late December. Sweden receives between 1,100 to 1,900 hours of sunshine annually