Know Sweden

A quick orientation before the practical guides — who Sweden actually is as a country, since a lot of newcomers arrive without ever having studied this.

• About 10.6 million people across a country stretching roughly 1,570 km north to south. Capital: Stockholm (~1 million in the city, ~2.4 million metro); other major cities: Gothenburg, Malmö, Uppsala.
• Constitutional monarchy (King Carl XVI Gustaf; Crown Princess Victoria is the heir), parliament is the Riksdag. Sweden is an EU member (unlike Norway) but keeps its own currency, the krona (SEK), and joined NATO in 2024.
• One official language, Swedish, plus recognised minority languages (Finnish, Meänkieli, Sámi, Romani, Yiddish) in certain regions.

A few places come up constantly in everyday Swedish conversation and media — knowing roughly what and where they are helps you follow along.

• Stockholm: Gamla Stan (old town), Djurgården's museums (Vasamuseet, Skansen), the archipelago just a ferry ride away.
• Gothenburg: Sweden's second city, a major port with a laid-back reputation and its own dialect.
• Malmö: closest big city to Copenhagen (connected by the Öresund Bridge), young and diverse.
• Swedish Lapland: Kiruna, the Icehotel, northern lights (Sep–Mar) and the midnight sun in summer. Gotland: the medieval walled town of Visby, a huge summer draw.

A handful of Swedish names and brands come up so often in daily life and conversation that they're worth recognising, even as a total newcomer.

• Global brands born here: IKEA, H&M, Spotify, Volvo, Ericsson.
• Culture: ABBA, author Astrid Lindgren (Pippi Longstocking), crime writer Stieg Larsson, Nobel Prize founder Alfred Nobel (the prizes are still awarded in Stockholm each December, except the Peace Prize in Oslo).
• Sport: footballer Zlatan Ibrahimović, tennis legend Björn Borg.