Online Encyclopedia
Lands of Sweden
Sweden was historically divided into four Lands or Landsdelar:
Götaland and Svealand were once rival kingdoms before being united under one Crown by Svealand. Götaland represents southern Sweden and Svealand is to its north in middle Sweden. Österland is the old name for Finland, but today it represents the southern part of that country. Norrland is the name for the lands annexed as the kingdom expanded to the north on both sides of the Gulf of Bothnia. Österland and Norrland literally mean Eastern and Northern lands.
After the Finnish War (1808-1809) the eastern half of Sweden was ceded to Russia, thus becoming the Russian Grand Duchy of Finland, and Norrland was divided into two parts. The Swedish portion of Norrland still represents more than half of Sweden's territory; it remains, however, sparsely populated compared to the south. The Swedish capital Stockholm is geographically located in the south of Sweden, but in the Swedish mindset this is rather more perceived as middle Sweden.