The Kingdom of Sweden

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The Kingdom of Sweden is, without a doubt, one of the most attractive places in the world. In the north there are mountains and many lakes. To the south and east are central lowlands and south of them are fertile areas of forests, valleys, and plains. Along Swedens rocky coast, chopped up by bays and inlets, are many islands, the largest of which are Gotland and Öland. Because of their position on the globe, the people of northern Sweden experience long days in the summer and long nights in the winter. With these many different geographical settings comes many unique and amazing cultures from all over Sweden.

Sweden, which occupies the eastern part of the Scandinavian peninsula, is the fourth-largest country in Europe. It borders Norway and Finland, both having a great deal of interaction with Sweden throughout history. The great majority of the nations population speaks Swedish and is descended from Scandinavian tribes. Most Swedes belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church.

The Swedish government is that of a constitutional monarchy. It allows very little power to the monarch, and actually involves the state and local governments with many of its national issues. The Swedish government plays a major role in education and the welfare of its people. It is a highly industrialized country and has one the highest living standards in the world. Sweden is one of the few larger nations that managed to maintain a position of neutrality in both world wars.

The educational and cultural level in Sweden is high, and the school system is outstanding. It has a literacy rate of % (Sweden Infoplease.com Encyclopedia). "The Swedish government, in many cases, takes care of its people so well that it will pay for the majority of its youth to achieve a college education." Swedens social welfare is somewhat excessive to the point that it provides maternity benefits as well as allowances for all children. "It is not unusual to see a teenager cleaning the parks or helping in the community. It is just what they do over there, son." (Hult)

Sweden is one of the worlds leading producers of iron ore. "The reason that Hitler did not bother Sweden in World War II is that the Swedes were prepared to destroy their mines if Hitler intruded." This statement expresses just how strong the production of ore is in Sweden. Sweden is also known for its decorative folk arts, fine glassware, and high-quality steel cutlery and blades. The countrys beautiful scenery along with exciting towns and cities attract a large number of tourists, which are very important to Swedish economy. (Hult)

It is likely that Sweden has its greatest impact upon the world through the export of its culture. The functionalist movement, which occurred in the 10s, is the cause of the immaculately clean and sophisticated designs portrayed by Swedish culture. Because Sweden is relatively isolated from continental Europe, the people have developed their own rich and distinctive character. The Swedes have made several contributions to the fields of literature and film. A more notable work of the Swedish people would be Astrid Lindgrens famous character, Pippi Longstocking.

Unique to Sweden is the worlds most highly valued award, the Nobel Prize. Established by Alfred Nobel, the Swedish inventor of dynamite, the prize is awarded each year in five different categories Chemistry, Physics, Medicine or Physiology, Literature, and Peace. In 168, the Swedish National Treasury established a prize for economic science, dedicated to the memory of Alfred Nobel, and it is awarded each year with the other prizes.

Swedish culture, as previously mentioned, is unique because of the nation being somewhat isolated from other major countries of Europe. Over time the Swedes have developed many traditions, at least one for each season. Most of these traditions involve some relation to the fact that Swedish summers offer fewer nighttime hours and the winters offer fewer daylight hours.

In the wintertime, the Swedish people celebrate a holiday known as "Lucia". On the morning of December 1th, well before dawn, a young girl will awaken and dress herself in white. Wearing a crown of lighted candles, she will sing about the darkness of winter and the light about to return. The girl is generally the oldest daughter of the house and, after awakening her family with this song, serves them coffee and saffron-flavored rolls. For that entire day, she is referred to as Lucia. This happens in thousands of homes throughout Sweden. Later that same day, the ceremony will be repeated at offices and other workplaces, with young women serving as the ceremonial Lucia for the remainder of the day.

The Lucia holiday marks the beginning of the Christmas period, which the Swedes celebrate as well. It is at this time that the many feasts will be prepared, the most elaborate being served on Christmas Eve. The feasts commonly include herring and pickled beets, salmon, small meatballs, sausages, liver pate, and some other seasonal specialties such as browned cabbage and lutefish. Unlike the average American family, the Swedes will celebrate New Years Eve by splurging at a fine restaurant. After dinner, the restaurants empty out and the streets, bars, and clubs fill up as the people prepare to observe the well-prepared fireworks displays.

Sweden is also highly involved in winter sports such as snow skiing and snowboarding. It is one of the few places in the world that can actually anticipate their snowfall. They are so confident that they will guarantee snowfall, or otherwise offer refunds to travelers.

The spring is a highly spiritual, or highly superstitious, time for the Swedish natives. They once believed that the spring was a time when evil forces would spread mischief across the land, and today this myth is expressed in the tradition of the "Easter Witch". On the Thursday before Easter, young girls will paint their faces, put on scarves and long skirts, then roam from house to house collecting candy. On the hillsides, people light bonfires to scare off the evil spirits. The blasts of firecrackers can be heard as revelers simulate shooting witches from the sky. Also, the traditional Christian holiday of Easter is intertwined with these supernatural festivities. The Swedish symbol of Easter is a birch twig decorated with colored feathers.

Following Easter comes another tradition that was conjured by ancient belief. On April 0, Walpurgis Night, crowds of Swedish men and women gather on hilltops around roaring bonfires. Many wear white caps with lyre emblems, symbolizing present and former students. As the fires blaze they sing songs applauding springs arrival. Originally, the fires were meant to scare off witches, but today they remind distant watchers of warmer months that are soon to come. On the evening of April 0, there is a traditional meal served called gravlax. Gravlax is simply fresh salmon marinated in salt, sugar, and fresh dill.

Summer days are long and warm in Sweden. In the northern parts, the sky darkens only to twilight, but quickly lightens again. During this time of warmth, the Swedes have a Midsummer party. Midsummer celebrations occur on the Friday through Sunday closest to June 4, the official Midsummers Day. As this weekend approaches, thousands of Swedes head for the country, where they arrive at an open field. There, they raise a "Midsummer pole," or maypole, which is decorated with leaves, flowers, and flags. They sing and dance around the pole. The rest of the evening consists of traditional games, foods, beverages, and a swim.

Another Swedish summer tradition is called a crayfish party. To residents of the lowcountry, the terms crawfish, crawdad, and crawdiddy might be more familiar. All of these refer to the same savory animal. As the name implies, the crayfish party consists of devouring dozens of crayfish. The interesting fact about modern crayfish parties is that most of the crayfish must be imported to Sweden because of a disease recently annihilating virtually all of Swedens rare crayfish.

Towards the end of August, the Swedish sky begins to darken again. Because of the lack of light, the eels in the water can hardly see the fishing nets. Therefore, a great number of eels are caught. Of course, Sweden marks this wonderful event with an eel party. Similar in spirit to the crayfish parties, eel parties feature eel as the main delicacy, and it is served in every form smoked, grilled, stuffed, and more. Restaurants will typically host contests to see who can lift the most live eels out of a barrel, then crown the winner the "eel king".

Swedens last major fall tradition is the eating of goose in the southernmost province of Skane on November 10th, known as St. Martins Day. This is the time when the geese the fattest. The meal, which is in honor of the saint, is accompanied by their sweet and sour "black soup" as well as an impressive meringue tower called a spettkaka. This is a cake make of egg yolks and sugar. Yummm.

Sweden, all in all, is an amazing place with unique people and a wide variety in cultures. "The single greatest thing about Sweden would probably be their love for all other countries." I feel that many countries could learn a few things from the general ethics of Swedish society. They love other people, they love their country, and they love themselves. I think I just might have to move. (Hult)

Bibliography

Hult, Mr. Donald H., Thomas Heyward Academy History teacher, former

resident of Sweden

Sweden - InfoPlease.com Almanac

http//www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0108008.html

Sweden - InfoPlease.com Encyclopedia

http//www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A08474.html

Sweden A Great Country for Design and Architecture

http//www.swetourism.se/7intfa/design000.htm

Sweden Information Smorgasbord, The

http//www.sverigeturism.se/smorgasbord/index.html

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