1.
Sweden
–
Sweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and Finland to the east, at 450,295 square kilometres, Sweden is the third-largest country in the European Union by area, with a total population of 10.0 million. Sweden consequently has a low density of 22 inhabitants per square kilometre. Approximately 85% of the lives in urban areas. Germanic peoples have inhabited Sweden since prehistoric times, emerging into history as the Geats/Götar and Swedes/Svear, Southern Sweden is predominantly agricultural, while the north is heavily forested. Sweden is part of the area of Fennoscandia. The climate is in very mild for its northerly latitude due to significant maritime influence. Today, Sweden is a monarchy and parliamentary democracy, with a monarch as head of state. The capital city is Stockholm, which is also the most populous city in the country, legislative power is vested in the 349-member unicameral Riksdag. Executive power is exercised by the government chaired by the prime minister, Sweden is a unitary state, currently divided into 21 counties and 290 municipalities. Sweden emerged as an independent and unified country during the Middle Ages, in the 17th century, it expanded its territories to form the Swedish Empire, which became one of the great powers of Europe until the early 18th century. Swedish territories outside the Scandinavian Peninsula were gradually lost during the 18th and 19th centuries, the last war in which Sweden was directly involved was in 1814, when Norway was militarily forced into personal union. Since then, Sweden has been at peace, maintaining a policy of neutrality in foreign affairs. The union with Norway was peacefully dissolved in 1905, leading to Swedens current borders, though Sweden was formally neutral through both world wars, Sweden engaged in humanitarian efforts, such as taking in refugees from German-occupied Europe. After the end of the Cold War, Sweden joined the European Union on 1 January 1995 and it is also a member of the United Nations, the Nordic Council, Council of Europe, the World Trade Organization and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Sweden maintains a Nordic social welfare system that provides health care. The modern name Sweden is derived through back-formation from Old English Swēoþēod and this word is derived from Sweon/Sweonas. The Swedish name Sverige literally means Realm of the Swedes, excluding the Geats in Götaland, the etymology of Swedes, and thus Sweden, is generally not agreed upon but may derive from Proto-Germanic Swihoniz meaning ones own, referring to ones own Germanic tribe
2.
Lands of Sweden
–
The lands of Sweden are three traditional parts, essentially three collectives of provinces, in Sweden. These lands have no function, and there is no official designation for this subdivision level. Most commonly they are called landsdelar, which translates to parts of the country. Götaland is the southern, most densely populated part, consisting of ten provinces, Norrland is the northern part, which is the largest of the three parts, covering 60 percent of the total Swedish territory with nine provinces. The three northernmost provinces are sometimes called Övre Norrland while the rest of the provinces are then called Nedre Norrland, although they have no administrative functions and no coats of arms, these three subdivisions are used in weather reports. Their boundaries can therefore be seen on maps on television. Areas and populations of the lands, Sweden was historically divided into the four lands, large parts of Norrland was only habitated by the Sami people and the border towards Norway was unclear in the far north. Österland is an old name for southern Finland, the term has been obsolete since the 15th century and is virtually unknown in Sweden today. In most dictionaries, österlandet simply means the orient, Norrland was the name for the annexed lands to the north on both sides of the Gulf of Bothnia. Eventually, the two countries were united under one crown by the Swedish kings at some time between 550–1200, in the Second Treaty of Brömsebro Denmark-Norway ceded the Norwegian provinces of Jämtland and Härjedalen to Sweden. These provinces are counted as part of Norrland, in the Treaty of Roskilde, Denmark-Norway ceded Scania, Blekinge and Halland and Bohuslän to Sweden. These provinces are then counted as parts of Götaland. After the Finnish War, the part of Sweden was ceded to Russia, thus becoming the Imperial Russian Grand Duchy of Finland. The Swedish portion of Norrland still represents more than half of Swedens territory, it remains, however, sparsely populated compared to the south and middle. The town of Stockholm, which earlier had been at the centre of the provinces of Sweden
3.
Svealand
–
Svealand, Swealand or Sweden proper is the historical core region of Sweden. It is located in south central Sweden and is one of three lands of Sweden, bounded to the north by Norrland and to the south by Götaland, deep forests, Tiveden, Tylöskog, and Kolmården, separated Svealand from Götaland. Historically, its inhabitants were called Svear, from which is derived the English Swedes, Svealand consists of the capital region Mälardalen in the east, Roslagen in the north-east, the former mining district Bergslagen in the center, and Dalarna and Värmland in the west. The older name of Sweden in Swedish, Svea rike or the Realm of the Swedes, Swea Region, other forms are Sweoðeod, and Sweorice. As the domains of the Swedish kings grew, the name Svealand began to be used to separate the territory from the new. Since 1634, Sweden has been divided into counties instead of provinces, Svealand was the original Sweden, to which it gave its name. This is supported by linguistics and is based on medieval sources. In Old Norse and in Old English, Svealand and Sweden are synonymous, in Sögubrot af Nokkrum for instance, Kolmården between Svealand and Östergötland is described as the border between Sweden and Östergötland. In Hervarar saga, king Ingold I rides to Sweden through Östergötland, hann reið austr um Smáland ok í eystra Gautland ok svá í Svíþjóð. Sweoland is mentioned in the travels of Ohthere of Hålogaland around 890, the lord Bo Jonsson Grip was probably the one who was best acquainted with the geography of the Swedish kingdom since he owned more than half of it. In 1384, he stated in his will that the kingdom consisted of Swerige, the 15th-century Swedish version of the Þiðrekssaga says that Vilkinaland was formerly a name for Sweden and Götaland, wilcina land som nw är kalladh swerige oc götaland. A campaign to the east started by the kings of Svealand during the 12th century eventually conquered the provinces of Österland, an older name for Finland. In the early Middle Ages the modern province of Gästrikland was part of Tiundaland, for a time in the early 19th century, the province of Värmland belonged to the Court of Appeal for Svealand. Even though Värmland historically belonged to Götaland, it has by custom long been considered part of Svealand, Norrland Götaland Österland Rike Media related to Svealand at Wikimedia Commons
4.
Stockholm County
–
Stockholm County is a county or län on the Baltic sea coast of Sweden. It borders Uppsala County and Södermanland County and it also borders Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. The city of Stockholm is the capital of Sweden, Stockholm County is divided by the historic provinces of Uppland and Södermanland. More than one fifth of the Swedish population lives in the county, Stockholm County is also one of the statistical riksområden according to NUTS, SE, Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics within the EU. With more than two inhabitants, Stockholm is the most densely populated county of Sweden. For History, Geography and Culture see also, Uppland, Södermanland, Roslagen, Södertörn, the City of Stockholm then constituted its own administrative entity under the Over-Governor of Stockholm and was not part of Stockholm County. Though outside Stockholm County, the City of Stockholm was its seat, on 1 January 1968, Stockholm County was united with the City of Stockholm. The arms for the County of Stockholm is a combination of the arms of Uppland, Södermanland, when it is shown with a royal crown it represents the County Administrative Board. The county of Stockholm comprises 26 political municipalities, The largest built-up places in the county are shown below and these refer to contiguous settlements and may straddle municipal boundaries. Prior to 1968 the County of Stockholm did not include the City of Stockholm, the City was instead under the Over-Governors Office, and the County included the surrounding countryside. The County had its separate Governor of Stockholm County, the County Administrative Board is a Government Agency headed by a Governor. The local administration of the county is under Stockholm County Council and its main responsibilities are for the public healthcare system and public transport. The county council has 149 members elected by proportional representation through elections held in conjunction with the general elections every four years, the county council itself elects the countys executive committee. The president of the committee also holds the title Commissioner of Finance, the current commissioner is Catharina Elmsäter-Svärd, of the Moderate Party. The members of the executive committee represent both the majority and the opposition, with responsibility for implementing policies approved by the county council. Stockholm County contains two multi-seat constituencies for county council elections, Stockholm Municipality makes up the first constituency while the second makes up the rest of the county. The county council operates most of the hospitals in the county, some of the facilities are. The hospital contains two major facilities, one in Solna and one in Huddinge, södersjukhuset Danderyd Hospital Södertälje Hospital Norrtälje Hospital S, t Erik Ocular Clinic The county council is responsible for the public transport in Stockholm
5.
Nymphaeaceae
–
Nymphaeaceae /ˌnɪmfiːˈeɪsiː/ is a family of flowering plants, commonly called water lilies. They live as rhizomatous aquatic herbs in temperate and tropical climates around the world, the family contains five genera with about 70 known species. Water lilies are rooted in soil in bodies of water, with leaves, the leaves are round, with a radial notch in Nymphaea and Nuphar, but fully circular in Victoria and Euryale. Genera with more parts, Nuphar, Nymphaea, Victoria, have a beetle pollination syndrome, while genera with fewer parts are pollinated by flies or bees. Thus, the number of relatively unspecialized floral organs in the Nymphaeaceae is not an ancestral condition for the clade. Water lilies do not have leaves in the winter time. The leftover of internal pressure is embodied by the constant streams of bubbles that outbreak when rising leaves are ruptured in the spring. Methane is still penetrating the roots and rhizome in the summer, moving fast up the petioles, the Nymphaeaceae are aquatic, rhizomatous herbs. The family is characterized by scattered vascular bundles in the stems. Hairs are simple, usually producing mucilage, stipules are either present or absent. Flowers are solitary, bisexual, radial, with a pedicel and usually floating or raised above the surface of the water. Sepals are 4-12, distinct to connate, imbricate, and often petal-like, petals lacks or 8 to numerous, inconspicuous to showy, often intergrading with stamens. Stamens are 3 to numerous, the innermost sometimes represented by staminodes, carpels are 3 to numerous, distinct or connate. Fruit is an aggregate of nuts, a berry, or an irregularly dehiscent fleshy capsule, seeds are often arillate, more or less lacking sperm. Nymphaeaceae has been investigated systematically for decades because botanists considered their floral morphology to represent one of the earliest groups of angiosperms, modern genetic analyses by the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group researchers has confirmed its basal position among flowering plants. In addition, the Nymphaeaceae are more diverse and geographically dispersed than other basal angiosperms. Nymphaeaceae is placed in the order Nymphaeales, which is the second diverging group of angiosperms after Amborella in the most widely accepted flowering plant classification system, Nymphaeaceae is a small family of three to six genera, Barclaya, Euryale, Nuphar, Nymphaea, Ondinea, and Victoria. The genus Barclaya is sometimes given rank as its own family, Barclayaceae, on the basis of a perianth tube arising from the top of the ovary
6.
Osprey
–
The osprey —also called fish eagle, sea hawk, river hawk, and fish hawk—is a diurnal, fish-eating bird of prey with a cosmopolitan range. It is a raptor, reaching more than 60 cm in length and 180 cm across the wings. It is brown on the upperparts and predominantly greyish on the head, the osprey tolerates a wide variety of habitats, nesting in any location near a body of water providing an adequate food supply. It is found on all continents except Antarctica, although in South America it occurs only as a non-breeding migrant, as its other common names suggest, the ospreys diet consists almost exclusively of fish. It possesses specialised physical characteristics and exhibits unique behaviour to assist in hunting and catching prey, as a result of these unique characteristics, it has been given its own taxonomic genus, Pandion and family, Pandionidae. Four subspecies are recognized, one of which has recently been given full species status. Despite its propensity to nest near water, the osprey is not classed as a sea eagle, the osprey was one of the many species described by Carl Linnaeus in his 18th-century work, Systema Naturae, and named as Falco haliaeetus. The genus, Pandion, is the member of the family Pandionidae, and used to contain only one species. The genus Pandion was described by the French zoologist Marie Jules César Savigny in 1809, the osprey differs in several respects from other diurnal birds of prey. Its toes are of length, its tarsi are reticulate. The osprey and owls are the only raptors whose outer toe is reversible and this is particularly helpful when they grab slippery fish. The Sibley-Ahlquist taxonomy has placed it together with the diurnal raptors in a greatly enlarged Ciconiiformes. The osprey is unusual in that it is a living species that occurs nearly worldwide. Even the few subspecies are not unequivocally separable, there are four generally recognised subspecies, although differences are small, and ITIS lists only the first two. P. h. carolinensis –, North America and this form is larger, darker bodied and has a paler breast than nominate haliaetus. P. h. ridgwayi – Maynard,1887, Caribbean islands and this form has a very pale head and breast compared with nominate haliaetus, with only a weak eye mask. Its scientific name commemorates American ornithologist Robert Ridgway, P. h. cristatus –, coastline and some large rivers of Australia and Tasmania. The smallest and most distinctive subspecies, also non-migratory, recently, P. h. cristatus has been given full species status as eastern osprey
7.
Bream
–
Although species from all of these genera are called bream, the term does not imply a degree of relatedness between them. Fish termed bream tend to be narrow, deep-bodied species, the name is a derivation of the Middle English word breme, of Old French origin. The term sea bream is sometimes used for porgies or pomfrets, porgie fishing Fishing for bream in Australia Yellowfin Bream Black Bream
8.
Daylight saving time
–
Daylight saving time is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months by one hour so that evening daylight lasts an hour longer, while sacrificing normal sunrise times. Typically, regions that use Daylight Savings Time adjust clocks forward one hour close to the start of spring, American inventor and politician Benjamin Franklin proposed a form of daylight time in 1784. New Zealander George Hudson proposed the idea of saving in 1895. The German Empire and Austria-Hungary organized the first nationwide implementation, starting on April 30,1916, many countries have used it at various times since then, particularly since the energy crisis of the 1970s. The practice has both advocates and critics, DST clock shifts sometimes complicate timekeeping and can disrupt travel, billing, record keeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Computer software often adjusts clocks automatically, but policy changes by various jurisdictions of DST dates, industrialized societies generally follow a clock-based schedule for daily activities that do not change throughout the course of the year. The time of day that individuals begin and end work or school, North and south of the tropics daylight lasts longer in summer and shorter in winter, with the effect becoming greater as one moves away from the tropics. However, they will have one hour of daylight at the start of each day. Supporters have also argued that DST decreases energy consumption by reducing the need for lighting and heating, DST is also of little use for locations near the equator, because these regions see only a small variation in daylight in the course of the year. After ancient times, equal-length civil hours eventually supplanted unequal, so civil time no longer varies by season, unequal hours are still used in a few traditional settings, such as some monasteries of Mount Athos and all Jewish ceremonies. This 1784 satire proposed taxing window shutters, rationing candles, and waking the public by ringing church bells, despite common misconception, Franklin did not actually propose DST, 18th-century Europe did not even keep precise schedules. However, this changed as rail transport and communication networks came to require a standardization of time unknown in Franklins day. Modern DST was first proposed by the New Zealand entomologist George Hudson, whose shift work job gave him time to collect insects. An avid golfer, he also disliked cutting short his round at dusk and his solution was to advance the clock during the summer months, a proposal he published two years later. The proposal was taken up by the Liberal Member of Parliament Robert Pearce, a select committee was set up to examine the issue, but Pearces bill did not become law, and several other bills failed in the following years. Willett lobbied for the proposal in the UK until his death in 1915, william Sword Frost, mayor of Orillia, Ontario, introduced daylight saving time in the municipality during his tenure from 1911 to 1912. Starting on April 30,1916, the German Empire and its World War I ally Austria-Hungary were the first to use DST as a way to conserve coal during wartime, Britain, most of its allies, and many European neutrals soon followed suit. Russia and a few other countries waited until the year
9.
Central European Summer Time
–
It corresponds to UTC + two hours. Other names which have been applied to Central European Summer Time are Middle European Summer Time, Central European Daylight Saving Time, and Bravo Time. Since 1996 European Summer Time has been observed between 1,00 UTC on the last Sunday of March and 1,00 on the last Sunday of October, the following countries and territories use Central European Summer Time. In addition, Libya used CEST during the years 1951–1959, 1982–1989, 1996–1997, European Summer Time Other countries and territories in UTC+2 time zone Other names of UTC+2 time zone
10.
Provinces of Sweden
–
The provinces of Sweden are historical, geographical and cultural regions. Sweden has 25 provinces and they have no function, but remain historical legacies. Dialects and folklore rather follows the borders than the borders of the counties. Several of them were subdivisions of Sweden until 1634, when they were replaced by the counties of Sweden, some were conquered later on from Denmark–Norway. Others, like the provinces of Finland, were lost, Lapland is the only province acquired through colonization. In some cases, the administrative counties correspond almost exactly to the provinces, as is Blekinge to Blekinge County and Gotland, which is a province, county, while not exactly corresponding with the province, Härjedalen Municipality is beside Gotland the only municipality named after a province. In other cases, they do not, which enhances the cultural importance of the provinces. Since 1884 all the provinces are also ceremonial duchies, but as such have no administrative or political functions, the provinces of Sweden are still used in colloquial speech and cultural references, and can therefore not be regarded as an archaic concept. The main exception is Lapland where the see themselves as a part of Västerbotten or Norrbotten. Two other exceptions are Stockholm and Gothenburg, where the see themselves as living in the city. English and other languages occasionally use Latin names as alternatives to the Swedish names, the name Scania for Skåne predominates in English. Some purely English exonyms, such as the Dales for Dalarna, East Gothland for Östergötland, Swedish Lapland for Lappland, swedes writing in English have long used Swedish-language name forms only. The origins of the provincial divisions lay in the petty kingdoms that became more and more subjected to the rule of the Kings of Sweden during the consolidation of Sweden. Until the country law of Magnus Ericson in 1350, each of these still had its own laws with its own assembly. The historical provinces were considered duchies, but newly conquered provinces added to the kingdom either received the status of a duchy or a county, after the separation from the Kalmar Union in 1523 the Kingdom incorporated only some of its new conquests as provinces. Other foreign territories were ruled as Swedish Dominions under the Swedish monarch, Norway, in personal union with Sweden from 1814 to 1905, never became an integral part of Sweden. The division of Västerbotten that took place with the cession of Finland caused Norrbotten to emerge as a county and it was granted a coat of arms as late as in 1995. Some scholars suggest that Sweden revived the concept in the 19th century
11.
Uppland
–
Uppland is a historical province or landskap on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland and it is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea. It has a short and strangely shaped land border with Åland. The name literally means up land, a name which is encountered in especially older English literature. Its Latinised form, which is used, is Uplandia. The traditional provinces of Sweden serve no administrative or political purposes, the corresponding administrative county, or län, is Uppsala County, which occupies the larger part of the territory. The bulk of the population, however, is within Stockholm County, minor parts of the province are also in Västmanland County, Gävleborg County and Södermanland County. Upplands arms were granted in 1560, distinctive in its depiction of a Globus cruciger, historically, Uppland ranked as a duchy and the coat of arms is represented with a ducal coronet. Blazoned thus, Gules, a Royal Orb Or gemmed of the field, despite the fact that the Uppsala län has a different name and a smaller territory it was granted the same coat of arms in 1940. Uppland was historically divided into chartered cities and districts, within Roslagen they were called skeppslag, and in the rest of the province hundreds. The abovementioned districts and cities have no administrative function today, the provincial population corresponds to the different overlapping counties as follows, Uppland is the birth place of Saint Brigitta of Sweden. The earliest unambiguous mention of the province of Uppland comes from the 1296, the Swedish capital of Stockholm is divided between two provinces. The southern half lies in Södermanland and the half in Uppland. Prince Waldemar Princess Ingiburga, his wife Prince Gustav Prince Sigvard Uppsala is the seat of the archbishop of the Lutheran Church of Sweden. The archaeological site Birka and the castle of Drottningholm are UNESCO World Heritage sites, football in the province is administered by Upplands Fotbollförbund. Uppland - Tourist site Uppland - Tourist information
12.
Baltic Sea
–
The Baltic Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean, enclosed by Scandinavia, Finland, the Baltic countries, and the North European Plain. It includes the Gulf of Bothnia, the Bay of Bothnia, the Gulf of Finland, the Gulf of Riga, the sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 10°E to 30°E longitude. The Baltic Sea is connected by waterways to the White Sea via the White Sea Canal. Traffic history Historically, the Kingdom of Denmark collected Sound Dues from ships at the border between the ocean and the land-locked Baltic Sea and they were collected in the Øresund at Kronborg castle near Helsingør, in the Great Belt at Nyborg. In the Little Belt, the site of intake was moved to Fredericia, the narrowest part of Little Belt is the Middelfart Sund near Middelfart. Oceanography Geographers widely agree that the physical border of the Baltic is a line drawn through the southern Danish islands, Drogden-Sill. The Drogden Sill is situated north of Køge Bugt and connects Dragør in the south of Copenhagen to Malmö, it is used by the Øresund Bridge, including the Drogden Tunnel. By this definition, the Danish Straits are part of the entrance, but the Bay of Mecklenburg, another usual border is the line between Falsterbo, Sweden and Stevns Klint, Denmark, as this is the southern border of Øresund. Its also the border between the shallow southern Øresund and notably deeper water, hydrography and biology Drogden Sill sets a limit to Øresund and Darss Sill, and a limit to the Belt Sea. The shallow sills are obstacles to the flow of salt water from the Kattegat into the basins around Bornholm. The Kattegat and the southwestern Baltic Sea are well oxygenated and have a rich biology, the remainder of the Sea is brackish, poor in oxygen and in species. While Tacitus called it Mare Suebicum after the Germanic people called the Suebi, the origin of the latter name is speculative. Adam of Bremen himself compared the sea with a belt, stating that it is so named because it stretches through the land as a belt and he might also have been influenced by the name of a legendary island mentioned in the Natural History of Pliny the Elder. Pliny mentions an island named Baltia with reference to accounts of Pytheas and it is possible that Pliny refers to an island named Basilia in On the Ocean by Pytheas. Baltia also might be derived from belt and mean near belt of sea, meanwhile, others have suggested that the name of the island originates from the Proto-Indo-European root *bhel meaning white, fair. This root and its meaning were retained in both Lithuanian and Latvian. On this basis, a related hypothesis holds that the name originated from this Indo-European root via a Baltic language such as Lithuanian, yet another explanation is that the name originally meant enclosed sea, bay as opposed to open sea. Some Swedish historians believe the name derives from the god Balder of Nordic mythology, in the Middle Ages the sea was known by variety of names
13.
Magelungen
–
Magelungen is one of the biggest lakes in Stockholm, Sweden, located between the municipalities of Stockholm and Huddinge. It is considered as of great value and is popular for bathing, yachting, and fishing in summers. It is bordering two nature reserves, Fagersjöskogen/Farstanäset and Rågsved Open-Air Area, less than half of the catchment area is composed of forest and open grasslands. Some 10 per cent is wetlands and parks, and the area is covered by one-family houses. Two bridges cross the lake, several major roads pass through the catchment area, as do the ground tracks of the metro. South of the lake is a continuous forest, a golf course. Besides the nature reserve, areas on the side are used for riding. The primary catchment area is small and composed of three ditches — Magelungsdiket, Kräppladiket, and Djupån — together contributing about 3 million cubic metres annually. Stormwater is brought to the lake via a number of pipes together bringing about 10 million cubic metre. The remaining catchment area brings less than 1 million cubic metres annually, most of the phosphorus discharged into the lake, totalling 1,800 kg/year, is brought from the lake Ågestasjön through the Norrån river, while the primary catchment area brings some 500 kg. Of the 25 tons of nitrogen brought annually to the lake, about 18 tons comes from Norrån, the deepest south-eastern part of the lake suffers from oxygen deficiency and hydrogen sulphide which causes high levels of phosphorus. Most of the zinc and copper comes from roofs, while levels of metals have been reported in stormwater from a local industrial area. Zooplankton are only found in small quantities, striking when it comes to aquatic plants is the abundance of spiked water-milfoil and rigid hornswort in the north-western part of the lake. An inventory in 1998 also documented Chara globularis, common waterweed, white water-lily, yellow water-lily, branched bur-reed, flowering rush, an inventory of the fauna in 1997 documented some 55 species, which was considered a relatively high diversity. Most prevalent was freshwater gastropods, caddisflies, leeches, and beetles, common fishes are perch, silver bream, roach, and zander, but burbot, European smelt, and eel have also been reported. Zander, grass carp, and trout have been introduced, angling is thus popular in the lake. Crayfish plague struck the lake in 1978 but signal crayfish were reintroduced in 1984, a number of birds breed along the north-western shore, including Eurasian coot, common moorhen, mallard, and great crested grebe. Lesser spotted woodpecker have been reported in the surrounding forest and the lake is the home of a couple of marsh harriers
14.
Stockholm
–
The city is spread across 14 islands on the coast in the southeast of Sweden at the mouth of Lake Mälaren, by the Stockholm archipelago and the Baltic Sea. The area has settled since the Stone Age, in the 6th millennium BC. It is also the capital of Stockholm County, Stockholm is the cultural, media, political, and economic centre of Sweden. The Stockholm region alone accounts for over a third of the countrys GDP and it is an important global city, and the main centre for corporate headquarters in the Nordic region. The city is home to some of Europes top ranking universities, such as the Stockholm School of Economics, Karolinska Institute and it hosts the annual Nobel Prize ceremonies and banquet at the Stockholm Concert Hall and Stockholm City Hall. One of the citys most prized museums, the Vasa Museum, is the most visited museum in Scandinavia. The Stockholm metro, opened in 1950, is known for its decoration of the stations. Swedens national football arena is located north of the city centre, Ericsson Globe, the national indoor arena, is in the southern part of the city. The city was the host of the 1912 Summer Olympics, and hosted the equestrian portion of the 1956 Summer Olympics otherwise held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Stockholm is the seat of the Swedish government and most of its agencies, including the highest courts in the judiciary, and the official residencies of the Swedish monarch and the Prime Minister. The government has its seat in the Rosenbad building, the Riksdag is seated in the Parliament House, and the Prime Ministers residence is adjacent at the Sager House. After the Ice Age, around 8,000 BCE, there were already a number of people living in the present-day Stockholm area. Thousands of years later, as the ground thawed, the climate became tolerable, at the intersection of the Baltic Sea and lake Mälaren is an archipelago site where the Old Town of Stockholm was first built from about 1000 CE by Vikings. They had a positive impact on the area because of the trade routes they created. Stockholms location appears in Norse sagas as Agnafit, and in Heimskringla in connection with the legendary king Agne, the earliest written mention of the name Stockholm dates from 1252, by which time the mines in Bergslagen made it an important site in the iron trade. The first part of the name means log in Swedish, although it may also be connected to an old German word meaning fortification, the second part of the name means islet, and is thought to refer to the islet Helgeandsholmen in central Stockholm. Stockholms core, the present Old Town was built on the island next to Helgeandsholmen from the mid 13th century onward. The city originally rose to prominence as a result of the Baltic trade of the Hanseatic League, Stockholm developed strong economic and cultural linkages with Lübeck, Hamburg, Gdańsk, Visby, Reval, and Riga during this time
15.
Tyresta National Park
–
Tyresta National Park is a national park with a surrounding nature reserve in Sweden, located in Haninge and Tyresö municipalities in Stockholm County. About 20 km from central Stockholm are the Tyresta National Park, the area is characterised by a rift valley landscape which is typical for central Sweden but unique in an international perspective. The national park has an area of 19.7 km2, and it has been protected to preserve its noted natural values, e. g. one of the largest sections of untouched forest in southern Sweden, and to safeguard its importance for recreation. The park also has deciduous forests, open arable land. A typical feature of primeval forest is the number of plant. Up to 8.000 species of animals can be found here which is four times as many as in managed forests, many species are also completely dependent on primeval forest as their habitats and can not survive under other conditions. In August 1999, about 10% of the park area was consumed in a large fire. Although the cause of the remains unknown, the hot. Swedens National Parks, Tyresta National Park from the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency Tyresta National Park and Nature Reserve
16.
Stone Age
–
The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make implements with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 8700 BCE and 2000 BCE with the advent of metalworking, bone tools were used during this period as well but are rarely preserved in the archaeological record. The Stone Age is further subdivided by the types of tools in use. According to the age and location of the current evidence, the cradle of the genus is the East African Rift System, especially toward the north in Ethiopia, where it is bordered by grasslands. The closest relative among the living primates, the genus Pan, represents a branch that continued on in the deep forest. The rift served as a conduit for movement into southern Africa and also north down the Nile into North Africa and through the continuation of the rift in the Levant to the vast grasslands of Asia. The oldest indirect evidence found of stone tool use is fossilised animal bones with tool marks, the oldest stone tools were excavated from the site of Lomekwi 3 in West Turkana, northwestern Kenya, and date to 3.3 million years old. Prior to the discovery of these Lomekwian tools, the oldest known stone tools had been found at sites at Gona, Ethiopia, on the sediments of the paleo-Awash River. All the tools come from the Busidama Formation, which lies above a disconformity, or missing layer, the oldest sites containing tools are dated to 2. 6–2.55 mya. One of the most striking circumstances about these sites is that they are from the Late Pliocene, excavators at the locality point out that. the earliest stone tool makers were skilled flintknappers. The possible reasons behind this seeming abrupt transition from the absence of tools to the presence thereof include. The species who made the Pliocene tools remains unknown, fragments of Australopithecus garhi, Australopithecus aethiopicus and Homo, possibly Homo habilis, have been found in sites near the age of the Gona tools. Innovation of the technique of smelting ore ended the Stone Age, the first most significant metal manufactured was bronze, an alloy of copper and tin, each of which was smelted separately. The Chalcolithic by convention is the period of the Bronze Age. The Bronze Age was followed by the Iron Age, the transition out of the Stone Age occurred between 6000 BCE and 2500 BCE for much of humanity living in North Africa and Eurasia. Note the Rudna Glava mine in Serbia, Ötzi the Iceman, a mummy from about 3300 BCE carried with him a copper axe and a flint knife. In regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa, the Stone Age was followed directly by the Iron Age, the Middle East and southeastern Asian regions progressed past Stone Age technology around 6000 BCE. Europe, and the rest of Asia became post–Stone Age societies by about 4000 BCE, the proto-Inca cultures of South America continued at a Stone Age level until around 2000 BCE, when gold, copper and silver made their entrance
17.
Neolithic
–
It ended when metal tools became widespread. The Neolithic is a progression of behavioral and cultural characteristics and changes, including the use of wild and domestic crops, the beginning of the Neolithic culture is considered to be in the Levant about 10, 200–8800 BC. It developed directly from the Epipaleolithic Natufian culture in the region, whose people pioneered the use of wild cereals, which then evolved into true farming. The Natufian period was between 12,000 and 10,200 BC, and the so-called proto-Neolithic is now included in the Pre-Pottery Neolithic between 10,200 and 8800 BC. By 10, 200–8800 BC, farming communities arose in the Levant and spread to Asia Minor, North Africa, Mesopotamia is the site of the earliest developments of the Neolithic Revolution from around 10,000 BC. Early Neolithic farming was limited to a range of plants, both wild and domesticated, which included einkorn wheat, millet and spelt, and the keeping of dogs, sheep. By about 6900–6400 BC, it included domesticated cattle and pigs, the establishment of permanently or seasonally inhabited settlements, not all of these cultural elements characteristic of the Neolithic appeared everywhere in the same order, the earliest farming societies in the Near East did not use pottery. Early Japanese societies and other East Asian cultures used pottery before developing agriculture, unlike the Paleolithic, when more than one human species existed, only one human species reached the Neolithic. The term Neolithic derives from the Greek νέος néos, new and λίθος líthos, stone, the term was invented by Sir John Lubbock in 1865 as a refinement of the three-age system. In the Middle East, cultures identified as Neolithic began appearing in the 10th millennium BC, early development occurred in the Levant and from there spread eastwards and westwards. Neolithic cultures are attested in southeastern Anatolia and northern Mesopotamia by around 8000 BC. The total excavated area is more than 1,200 square yards, the Neolithic 1 period began roughly 10,000 years ago in the Levant. A temple area in southeastern Turkey at Göbekli Tepe dated around 9500 BC may be regarded as the beginning of the period. This site was developed by nomadic tribes, evidenced by the lack of permanent housing in the vicinity. At least seven stone circles, covering 25 acres, contain limestone pillars carved with animals, insects, Stone tools were used by perhaps as many as hundreds of people to create the pillars, which might have supported roofs. Other early PPNA sites dating to around 9500–9000 BC have been found in Jericho, Israel, Gilgal in the Jordan Valley, the start of Neolithic 1 overlaps the Tahunian and Heavy Neolithic periods to some degree. The major advance of Neolithic 1 was true farming, in the proto-Neolithic Natufian cultures, wild cereals were harvested, and perhaps early seed selection and re-seeding occurred. The grain was ground into flour, emmer wheat was domesticated, and animals were herded and domesticated
18.
Viking Age
–
The Viking Age is the period from the late 8th century to the mid-11th century in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, following the Germanic Iron Age. It is the period of history when Scandinavian Norsemen explored Europe by its seas and rivers for trade, raids, colonisation and conquest. Three Viking ships had beached in Weymouth Bay four years earlier, the Viking devastation of Northumbrias Holy Island was reported by the Northumbrian scholar Alcuin of York, who wrote, Never before in Britain has such a terror appeared. Vikings were portrayed as violent and bloodthirsty by their enemies. The chronicles of medieval England portrayed them as rapacious wolves among sheep, the first challenges to the many anti-Viking images in Britain emerged in the 17th century. Pioneering scholarly works on the Viking Age reached a readership in Britain. Archaeologists began to dig up Britains Viking past, linguistics traced the Viking-Age origins of rural idioms and proverbs. New dictionaries of the Old Norse language enabled more Victorians to read the Icelandic Sagas, the Vikings who invaded western and eastern Europe were chiefly pagans from Denmark, Norway and Sweden. They also settled in the Faroe Islands, Ireland, Iceland, peripheral Scotland, Greenland and their North Germanic language, Old Norse, became the mother-tongue of present-day Scandinavian languages. By 801, a central authority appears to have been established in Jutland. In Norway, mountainous terrain and fjords formed strong natural boundaries, communities there remained independent of each other, unlike the situation in Denmark which is lowland. By 800, some 30 small kingdoms existed in Norway, the sea was the easiest way of communication between the Norwegian kingdoms and the outside world. It was in the 8th century that Scandinavians began to build ships of war, the North Sea rovers were traders, colonisers and explorers as well as plunderers. There are various theories concerning the causes of the Viking invasions, for people living along the coast, it would seem natural to seek new land by the sea. Another reason was that during this period England, Wales and Ireland, the Franks, however, had well-defended coasts and heavily fortified ports and harbours. Pure thirst for adventure may also have been a factor, a reason for the raids is believed by some to be over-population caused by technological advances, such as the use of iron, or a shortage of women due to selective female infanticide. Although another cause could well have been caused by the Frankish expansion to the south of Scandinavia. Consequently, these Vikings became raiders, in search of subsistence, There is ongoing debate among scholars as to why the Scandinavians began to expand during the 8th through 11th centuries
19.
Runestone
–
A runestone is typically a raised stone with a runic inscription, but the term can also be applied to inscriptions on boulders and on bedrock. The tradition began in the 4th century and lasted into the 12th century, most runestones are located in Scandinavia, but there are also scattered runestones in locations that were visited by Norsemen during the Viking Age. Runestones are often memorials to dead men, Runestones were usually brightly coloured when erected, though this is no longer evident as the colour has worn off. The tradition of raising stones that had runic inscriptions first appeared in the 4th and 5th century, in Norway and Sweden, the earliest Danish runestones appeared in the 8th and 9th centuries, and there are about 50 runestones from the Migration Period in Scandinavia. Most runestones were erected during the period 950-1100 CE, and then they were raised in Sweden. —The Ynglinga saga What may have increased the spread of runestones was an event in Denmark in the 960s, King Harald Bluetooth had just been baptised and in order to mark the arrival of a new order and a new age, he commanded the construction of a runestone. The runestone has three sides of two are decorated with images. On one side, there is an animal that is the prototype of the animals that would be commonly engraved on runestones. Shortly after this stone had been made, something happened in Scandinavias runic tradition, scores of chieftains and powerful Norse clans consciously tried to imitate King Harald, and from Denmark a runestone wave spread northwards through Sweden. In most districts, the fad died out after a generation, but, in the central Swedish provinces of Uppland and Södermanland, there are about 3,000 runestones among the about 6,000 runic inscriptions in Scandinavia. The runestones are unevenly distributed in Scandinavia, Denmark has 250 runestones, Sweden has as many as between 1,700 and 2,500 depending on definition. The Swedish district of Uppland has the highest concentration with as many as 1,196 inscriptions in stone, outside of Scandinavia, the Isle of Man stands out with its 30 runestones from the 9th century and early 11th century. Scattered runestones have also found in England, Ireland, Scotland. Runestones were placed on selected spots in the landscape, such as locations, roads, bridge constructions. In medieval churches, there are often runestones that have been inserted as construction material, in southern Scania, runestones can be tied to large estates that also had churches constructed on their land. In the Mälaren Valley, the appear to be placed so that they mark essential parts of the domains of an estate, such as courtyard, grave field. Runestones usually appear as single monuments and more rarely as pairs, in some cases, they are part of larger monuments together with other raised stones. However, although scholars know where 95% of all runestones were discovered, the remainder have been found in churches, roads, bridges, graves, farms, and water routes
20.
Ingjald
–
Ingjald illråde or Ingjaldr hinn illráði was a legendary Swedish king of the House of Ynglings, son and successor of king Anund, and the father and predecessor of king Olof Trätälja. Ingjald is mentioned in medieval historiographical sources including Ynglinga saga, Historia Norvegiæ, Hervarar saga, Upplendinga Konungum, Þorsteins saga Víkingssonar, the setting of Þorsteins saga Víkingssonar is roughly the 7th century. Johannes Magnus in his 16th-century list of kings places Ingjald in AD883, snorri Sturluson gave an extensive account on the life of Ingjald in the Ynglinga saga which is part of the Heimskringla. The Ynglinga saga, a part of the Heimskringla relates that the viceroy of Fjädrundaland was named Ingvar, Svipdag the Blind was the viceroy of Tiundaland, the province of Uppsala where the Tings and the Yule sacrifices were held. One Midwinter, when Ingjald and Alf were six years old, Alf and Ingjald played, but Ingjald found that he was the weaker boy and became so angry that he almost started to cry. His foster-brother Gautvid led him to his foster-father Svipdag the Blind and told Svipdag about Ingjalds lack of manliness, Svipdag said that it was a shame and the next day he gave Ingjald a roasted wolfs heart to eat. From that day, Ingjald became a very ferocious person and had a bad disposition, Anund arranged a marriage for his son Ingjald with Gauthild, the daughter of the Geatish king Algaut, who was the son of Gautrek the Mild and the grandson of Gaut. Gautrek consented as he believed that Ingjald had inherited his fathers disposition, gauthilds maternal grandfather was Olof the Sharp-sighted, the king of Närke. Snorri Sturluson relates that when his father Anund had died, Ingjald became the king of Sweden, the descendants of these two kings had spread, cleared land and settled new territories, until there were several petty kings. In honour of his own ascendance to the throne, Ingjald invited the kings and it was called the hall of the seven kings and had seven high seats. The kings filled all seven seats but one, all the prominent people of Sweden had seats, except for Ingjalds own court whom he had sent to his old hall in Uppsala. According to the custom of the time for those who inherited kings and jarls, then he was supposed to stand up, take the beaker and make solemn vows, after which he would ascend his fathers high seat. When all the prominent guests were drunk, he ordered Svipdags sons, Gautvid and Hylvid, to arm themselves and their men, outside, they set fire to the building which burnt down and those who tried to escape were killed. Thus Ingjald made himself the ruler of the domains of the murdered kings. Granmar won allies in his son-in-law the sea-king Hjörvard of the Ylfings and they successfully withstood Ingjalds invasion where Ingjald realised that the men from the provinces he had conquered were not loyal to him. After a long standstill there was peace for as long as the three kings lived, however, one night Ingjald and his men surrounded a farm where Granmar and Hjörvard were at a feast and burnt the house down. He later disposed of five kings, and he thus earned the name Illråde as he fulfilled his promise. Snorri Sturluson tells that it was a saying that Ingjald killed twelve kings by deceiving them that he only wished for peace
21.
Arson
–
Arson is a crime of intentionally, deliberately and maliciously setting fire to buildings, wildland areas, abandoned homes, vehicles or other property with the intent to cause damage. It may be distinguished from other such as spontaneous combustion, accidental fires. Arson often involves fires deliberately set to the property of another or to own property in order to collect insurance compensation. A person who commits this crime is called an arsonist, more often than not, arsonists use accelerants to ignite, propel and directionalize fires. It is not required that the defendant acted intentionally or willfully for the purpose of burning a dwelling, burning – at common law charring to any part of dwelling was sufficient to satisfy this element. No significant amount of damage to the dwelling was required, any injury or damage to the structure caused by exposure to heat or flame is sufficient. Of the dwelling – dwelling refers to a place of residence, the destruction of an unoccupied building was not considered arson, since arson protected habitation, the burning of an unoccupied house did not constitute arson. Dwelling includes structures and outbuildings within the curtilage, dwellings were not limited to houses. A barn could be the subject of arson if it was occupied as a dwelling, moreover, for purposes of common law arson, possession or occupancy rather than title determines whose dwelling the structure is. Thus a tenant who sets fire to his house would not be guilty of common law arson. In many states, arson is divided into degrees, depending sometimes on the value of the property but more commonly on its use, first-degree arson – The act in which the arsonist sets fire to an occupied domain or building such as a school. Second-degree arson – The act in which the arsonist sets fire to a building such as an empty barn. Third-degree arson – The act in which the arsonist sets fire to a building or an abandoned area of space such as a field. Many statutes vary the degree of the according to the criminal intent of the accused. In the United States, the common law elements of arson are often varied in different jurisdictions, for example, the element of dwelling is no longer required in most states, and arson occurs by the burning of any real property without consent or with unlawful intent. Arson is prosecuted with attention to degree of severity in the alleged offense, first degree arson generally occurs when persons are harmed or killed in the course of the fire, while second degree arson occurs when significant destruction of property occurs. While usually a felony, arson may also be prosecuted as a misdemeanor, criminal mischief, burglary also occurs, if the arson involved a breaking and entering. A person may be sentenced to death if arson occurred as a method of homicide, as was the case in California of Raymond Lee Oyler, in New York, arson is charged in five degrees
