Swedish Snapshot Trivia Quiz

Answer: Denmark and Norway

An absence of written records makes the regal history of Sweden murky. Sweden emerged from the union of two Germanic peoples, the Geats and the Swedes who inhabited what is now south-central Sweden. There were various claims of monarchy in the region, some of which are unsubstantiated, but what is known is that an independent Swedish state emerged, and was documented, during the early 12th century. However, the bubonic plague killed a third of the people on the Scandinavian peninsula, making Sweden, Denmark and Norway susceptible, both economically and politically, to the powerful Hanseatic League based on the southern Baltic Sea area around modern-day Germany and Poland.

The three Scandinavian countries (including much of present-day Finland ruled then by Sweden, with Norway's overseas colonies of Iceland, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands, as well as the Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland) formed the Kalmar Union in 1397. This brought the three kingdoms into a personal union under a single monarch. The union was not without internal conflict but the union blocked any attempts of German expansion northward into Scandinavia.

Answer: It formed the Swedish Empire and expanded its territories.

Gustav Vasa's election as King of Sweden in 1523 marked Sweden's secession from the Kalmar Union. The Danish king acknowledged Sweden's independence in 1524 at the Treaty of Malmö. Sweden, under the rule of Gustav, seized territories from Russia and the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. Sweden conquered nearly half of the Holy Roman States during the Thirty Years' War to form a formidable Swedish Empire. Gustav wanted to be the new Holy Roman Emperor ruling over a united Scandinavia and the Holy Roman states but he was killed in battle in 1632.

By the mid-17th century, the Swedish Empire was the third-largest country in Europe. It reached its largest territorial extent in 1658. However a state of almost constant warfare and the Great Famine of 1695-1697, killing approximately 20% of Sweden's' people, depleted the capability of the Swedes. It made a fateful attack on Russia at the Battle of Poltava in 1709 but the Russians won decisively. In the Treaty of Nystad in 1721 King Frederick I of Sweden agreed to transfer Estonia, Livonia (Latvia), Ingria (far western Russia), and Southeast Finland to Russia while Russia relinquished most of Finland to Swedish rule. (It lost eastern Sweden [Finland]) to Russia in the Finnish War in 1809).

To re-establish Baltic dominance, Sweden allied with France, in the Napoleonic Wars. In the Battle of Leipzig Sweden forced Denmark-Norway, to cede Norway to the King of Sweden in 1814 in exchange for its northern German provinces. This was ratified in the Treaty of Kiel. This personal union of two separate kingdoms under a common monarch and single foreign policy lasted from 1814 until a peaceful separation in 1905.

Answer: During the Napoleonic Wars

After a massive territory loss to Russia during the Napoleonic wars, Sweden's neutrality began in 1812. This allowed Sweden to distance itself from the transferring military alliances that occurred in Europe during the 19th century. It maintained this position during both World Wars and during the Cold War was seen as a moderating influence between Eastern and Western blocs and remained outside any NATO and Warsaw Pact membership during this time.

In the 90s, Sweden supported efforts to develop a new inclusive European security order based on "conflict prevention and respect for national sovereignty and national borders", as established by the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

However, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2014, Sweden (and Finland) applied to join NATO in 2022, officially ending its long-standing period of neutrality as neutral states cannot rely on allies for military assistance. As such the two countries have adopted EU common foreign and security policy, especially in aspects of of defence cooperation. In another telling move, Sweden reintroduced military conscription in 2018.

Answer: Constitutional monarchy

Sweden is a constitutional monarchy with a king or queen as head of state. In Sweden, the monarch has very limited powers, limited mainly to ceremonial and representative functions.

The head of government in Sweden is the Prime Minister. The prime minister is nominated by the speaker of the Riksdag (Parliament) and is elected by the single chamber by simple majority.

Riksdag elections are held every four years. Of the 349 seats, 310 of the members are elected using party-list proportional representation system in each of Sweden's 29 (mainly county-based) electoral constituencies. The last 39 seats are "adjustment seats", distributed amongst the parties in numbers to make sure that the party distribution in the Riksdag matches the national vote distribution as closely as possible.

Answer: Only flag that contains yellow

All Scandinavian flags (and Iceland's) feature a Scandinavian (offset) cross on a plain background. All these flags contain only three colours: Red, white and blue. Except for Sweden's. Sweden is the only one of the five flags that contains yellow - specifically a yellow Scandinavian cross on a dark blue background.

The significance of the two colours is grounded in mythology: In the 12th century, King Eric IX claimed he saw a golden cross in the sky during the First Swedish Crusade in 1157. He interpreted this as a sign from God so then he took the golden cross against a blue background as his banner.

There is also a theory that the Swedish flag was created by King Charles VIII, who introduced the coat of arms of Sweden in 1442. The Swedish national coat of arms is a combination of King Albert's coat of arms from 1364 and King Magnus III's coat of arms from 1275. The blue field is divided into quarters by a golden cross.

Answer: Norway and Finland

By European standards, Sweden is relatively large in area. At 447,425 square kilometres (172,752 sq mi), Sweden is the largest of the four Nordic countries and the fifth-largest largest overall in Europe. The longest border with Norway is 1619 km (1005 mi) making it the longest uninterrupted border within Europe. The Scandinavian mountain chain or Scandes forms much of this western border, particularly in the north. The Swedish-Finnish border is 614km (381 mi) long.

Sweden does not share a border with Russia, as in the north, Norway stretches around the north of Sweden and has a 761 km (472 mi) border with Finland and a short border (198km / 123km) with Russia with a single border crossing. As such Sweden has no maritime access to the north into the Barents Sea.

Answer: False

The statement is wrong for two different reasons:
Sweden lies between latitudes 55 degrees and 70 degrees N and between longitudes 11 degrees and 25 degrees E. The Arctic Circle starts at 66 degrees North meaning a significant portion (about 15%) of Sweden is above the Arctic Circle.

Also, one does not need to be above the Arctic Circle to see the Northern lights but the further north you travel, the greater the chances of seeing them. They are best seen in winter.

Answer: Stockholm and Helsinki are separated by the Gulf of Bothnia

The road from Stockholm to Oslo is 530 km long and heads almost due west dodging around the many lakes that dot the region. The road is a motorway on the outskirts of Stockholm, a two-lane highway for most of the central portion and then finally a tunnel to access central Oslo.

Helsinki is almost due east of Stockholm but the two cities are separated by the Gulf of Bothnia which stretches northward forming Sweden's eastern rocky coast (no fjords here). At the very zenith of the gulf, this forms the start of the land border with Finland which stretches northward until it reaches a tri-point with the Norwegian border.

The 485km road trip to Helsinki includes a 2 1/2 hour ferry ride to the Alands, a 30km drive across these islands and then a 5 hour 125km second ferry ride to Turku on the Finnish west coast followed by a 2-hour drive east to Helsinki on the Finnish mainland. If you want to drive only by road, the trip is an 1800km trip around the gulf.

Answer: Forest and lakes

Sweden is nearly 70% forests and another 9% water, mainly lakes (95, 700 of them). In the sparsely populated north, the landscape consists of large tracts of hilly and mountainous land called the Norrland terrain and is covered with coniferous forests.

As one travels south, the central Swedish lowlands are where the main urban areas are located. This is also where the largest lakes are located. This belt stretches across the entire country at this point. It includes fertile soils and most of the agricultural output of Sweden occurs across this belt. Forests are few but they tend to be of maples, oaks, and ashes rather than conifer forests this far south.

Further south lies the South Swedish highlands which are similar to the Norrland terrain found further north but with shallower valleys and hills rather than mountains. The highest point of these highlands is a mere 377 m (1028 feet). Soil quality in this part of Sweden is poor meaning an increase in dependence on non-agricultural industries.

The forests and large water capacity mean timber and hydroelectric power are major industries. Coal and copper are important mining industries.

Answer: Built on 14 islands in Lake Maleran

Stockholm is a global city of approximately one million people (2021) with 2.4 million in its metropolitan area. Built on 14 islands in a large lake that empties into the Baltic Sea, the city is the cultural, political, and economic centre of Sweden. It hosts important Universities such as Karolinska Institute, Stockholm School of Economics, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Stockholm University. as well as hosting the annual Nobel Prize ceremonies. The Vasa Museum is the most visited museum in Scandinavia. The Stockholm metro has been called the longest art gallery in the world because of its decor when it opened in 1950.

Stockholm is the centre of government and the royal family lives here in Stockholm Palace neighbouring the Riksdag building, or in Drottningholm Palace on the island Lovon on the city outskirts.

Answer: Its port - commerce and trade

Gothenburg was established by King Gustavus Adolphus by royal charter in 1621 primarily to function as a Dutch trading (but fortified) colony. The settlement attracted large numbers of German and Scottish allies to populate Sweden's only town, at that time, on the west coast. The Port of Gothenburg is the largest port in the Nordic countries in the early 21st century and it has attracted industrial giants such as Volvo, AstraZeneca, Ericsson, and SKF. Its proximity to Oslo and Copenhagen has increased its trading capacity enormously. In 2021, over 600 000 people lived in the city with over 1.1 million in its metropolitan area.

Also noted for its green spaces and eclectic neighbourhoods, Gothenburg attracts much of Sweden's tourist trade.

Answer: False

Christianity came to Sweden during the 11th century and displaced Norse paganism. Laws were made forbidding the worship of other deities. In the 1530s, the Catholic Church was abolished after the Protestant Reformation. Lutheranism became the official religion (as the Church of Sweden) but small groups of other protestant groups such as Calvinist Dutch, the Moravian Church and French Huguenots were tolerated. By the 1860s Judaism and Roman Catholicism, were permitted to be practised but it remained illegal for Lutherans to convert to another religion. The right to bypass any religious denomination was established by law on the freedom of religion in 1951, and in 2000, the Church of Sweden was separated from the state.

In 2022, 53% of Swedes belonged to the Church of Sweden but this figure was decreasing annually before the 2022 census. Other Protestants make up a further 3.5% of the population, Catholics make up just over 1% of Swedes, Muslims 2.1% and Eastern Orthodox 1.5%. Nearly 38% of Swedes have no religion.

Answer: False

Sport has always been important in Swedish culture. Winter sports are extremely popular and Swedes feature heavily on Winter Olympic medal tallies. Sweden has been world champion in ice hockey and handball many times.

Sweden hosted the Summer Olympic Games in 1912 (Helsinki hosted them in 1952) and in 1958 when they hosted the FIFA soccer World Cup they were runners-up.

Answer: 24

Between 1974 and 1981, Bjorn Borg became the first man to win 11 Grand Slam singles titles. He won six French Opens between 1974-1981 including four consecutively between 1978-1981 and five consecutively at Wimbledon between 1976-1980. Mats Wilander continued the Swedish domination of the French Open winning in 1982, 1985 and 1988.

He won the Australian Open in 1983,1984 and 1988, and the US Open in 1988. Stefan Edberg was a finalist in the French Open in 1989 but won the other three majors twice each: The Australian in 1985 and 1987; the US in 1991 and 1992; and Wimbledon in 1988 and 1990.

Answer: Coffee and pastries

Nordic food is based on simple fare such as fish, (mainly herring) some meat, potatoes and dairy products. Herbs and spices are scarce and vegetables are not as prominent as in other Western cultures. Swedes tend to eat a light breakfast and lunch and a heavy dinner in the evening. An important concept is Fika which is coffee with pasties (or other light snacks) taken at mid-morning or mid-afternoon.

This is an important social occasion during the working day and is rarely missed.