Provinces of Sweden
The
provinces or
landskap were the subdivisions of
Sweden until
1634, when they were replaced by the
counties of Sweden (
län).
The 25 provinces have no administrative function today but remain historical legacies and the means of cultural identification, and their traditions are maintained by present day authorities.
In some cases, the administrative counties corresponds almost exactly to the provinces, as is
Dalarna to
Dalarna County and
Gotland, which is a
province,
county and a
municipality. In other cases, they do not, which then enhances the cultural importance of the provinces. In addition, the administrative units are subject to continuous changes – several new counties were for instance created in the 1990s – while the provinces have their historical borders outlined since centuries.
|
Provinces of Sweden today. |
Sweden is divided into the three lands:
Götaland,
Svealand,
Norrland.
=
*
Blekinge*
Bohuslän*
Dalsland*
Gotland (
Gotlandia*)
*
Halland*
Skåne (
Scania*)
*
Småland*
Västergötland*
Öland*
Östergötland=
*
Dalarna (
Dalecarlia*)
*
Närke (
Nerike*)
*
Södermanland*
Uppland*
Värmland*
Västmanland=
*
Gästrikland*
Hälsingland*
Härjedalen*
Jämtland*
Lappland*
Medelpad*
Norrbotten*
Västerbotten*
Ångermanland* Latin forms used occasionally in the English and some other non-Swedish languages. The origins of the provincial divisioning lays in the
petty kingdoms that merged during the
Consolidation of Sweden around 800–1000 AD. After the unification and a common
Swedish monarch, each of these lands still had its own laws with its own assembly (the
thing), and in effect governed themselves. The historical provinces were held as
duchies, but newly conquered provinces added to the kingdom either received the status of a duchy or a county, depending on its importance.
 |
Sweden's provinces from 1658 to 1809. |
Of the conquests made after the separation from the
Kalmar Union in
1523 only some were incorporated as provinces. The most permanent acquisitions were from the
Treaty of Roskilde in
1658, in which the former
Danish Scanian lands – the provinces of
Skåne,
Blekinge and
Halland – along with the Norwegian
Bohuslän,
Jämtland and
Härjedalen, became Swedish and gradually integrated. Other foreign territories were ruled as
Swedish Dominions under the Swedish monarch, in some cases lasting for two or three centuries.
Norway was in personal union with Sweden from
1814 to
1905 but never became an integral part of Sweden.
The division of
Västerbotten that took place with the cession of Finland caused the
new province of
Norrbotten to emerge, eventually being recognised as a province in its own right. It was granted a coat of arms in 1995.
History provinces according to lands
 |
Lands of Sweden and Finland |
Sweden was historically divided into the four lands:
*
Götaland (Sweden)
*
Svealand (Sweden)
*
Österland (Finland)
*
Norrland (Sweden)
Götaland and Svealand consisted before (cirka) 1000 AD by
petty kingdoms: The main tribe of Götaland was the
Geats; the main tribe of Svealand was the
Suiones (or the "historical Swedes"). Norrland was the denomination for all the unexplored northern parts. Österland in Finland, was an integral part of Sweden, but was in 1809 annexed by Russia as the
Grand Duchy of Finland, and since 1917 the independent country
Finland.
At the funeral of King
Gustav Vasa (Gustav I) in
1560 the coats of arms for the provinces were displayed together for the first time, many having been granted for that particular occasion. After the separation of Sweden and Finland the traditions for respective provincial arms diverged, most noticeably following an order by the
Privy Council on
January 18,
1884. This established that that all
Swedish provinces carry ducal crowns, while the
Finnish provincial arms still distinguished between ducal and county dignity. A complication was that the representation of Finnish ducal and county coronets resemble Swedish coronets of a lower order, namely county and baronial. The division of
Lapland necessitated a distinction between the Swedish and the Finnish arms.
For more information, see
Lands of Sweden and
Lands of Finland or articles on respective land.
Götaland
Götaland consists of the following ten provinces, within present-day Sweden. Until 1658, Bohuslän was a part of Norway, while Halland, Skåne and Blekinge were part of Denmark, and thus not part of Götaland.
Svealand
Svealand consists of the following six provinces all within present-day Sweden:
Norrland
Norrland consists today of nine provinces. The development of the Västerbotten and Norrbotten provinces were a gradual shift during the 19th century, and
Swedish Lapland was united with
Finnish Lapland as
Lapland until 1809.
Counted into the historical Norrland, but located in present day Finland, is the province
Österbotten.
Österlanden
In present-day
Finland, the
Österlanden consists of the following seven provinces:
*
Lists of unofficial regions by country*
Lands of Sweden*
Dominions of Sweden*
Historical provinces of Finland*
Counties of Sweden
