SWEDEN 



5645 



SWEDEN 



THE STORY OF SWEDEN 



WE 'DEN, a kingdom of Northern Eu- 

 rope, occupying the eastern and larger portion 

 of the Scandinavian Peninsula. Because of the 

 great number of lakes, rivers and watery lanes 

 in Sweden, the country has been called a "vast 

 fresh-water archipelago," and there is an old 

 saying that when God divided the water from 

 the land, Sweden was overlooked. 



Size and Location. Having an area of 172,- 

 963 square miles, Sweden is a little less than 

 three times the size of the state of Michigan, 

 and is about one-half as large as British Colum- 

 bia. It is almost 200 miles longer than the 

 state of California, but is not so wide. About 

 one-twelfth of the total area is under water. 

 The seacoast extends 1,400 miles when meas- 

 ured in a straight line, but although the bays 

 and indentations are not so numerous or deep 

 as those of Norway, the coast is penetrated by 

 many inlets, and over 4,700 miles are washed 

 by the sea. The Gulf of Bothnia and the Bal- 

 tic Sea separate Sweden and Russia, and the 

 Cattegat and Skagerrack lie between the south- 

 ern end of Sweden and that of Norway. 



The People. The Swedes are an enlightened 

 and educated people, and with the other Scan- 

 dinavians are in the front ranks of the world's 

 progressive peoples. They are more vivacious 

 and light-hearted than their western kinsmen, 

 the Norwegians, but they have the same repu- 

 tation for frankness, honesty and industry. If 

 one expects to see the picturesque national cos- 

 tume of Sweden in its modern cities, he will 

 be disappointed, for except on festival days 

 and in a few rural communities, it is no longer 

 worn. 



Large numbers of Swedes have emigrated to 

 the northwestern states of the American Union. 

 Nevertheless, the population has doubled in the 

 last century. In 1910 the inhabitants num- 

 bered 5,522,403, and in 1914 the population was 

 estimated at 5,679,607. With the exception of 

 25,300 Finns, 7,100 Lapps and 1,000 foreigners, 



the entire population is Scandinavian. A large 

 proportion of the inhabitants live in the rural 

 districts. The largest cities are Stockholm, the 

 capital, Gothenburg, Malmo and Norrkoping. 



Religion and Language. The Swedish people 

 are very religious, and are much interested in 

 all phases of Christian social work. All but one 

 per cent of the population are members of the 

 Swedish Lutheran Church, which is the State 

 Church. The clergy are supported by the par- 

 ishes and the proceeds from the sale of Church 

 lands. With the exception of the Mormons, 

 who were expelled in 1912, all denominations 

 are tolerated. Among the dissenters, the Meth- 

 odists and Baptists are most numerous. 



The Swedish language is a North-Germanic 

 tongue, and it closely resembles the Danish, It 

 has, however, a more delicate and musical ac- 

 cent than the Danish, and not only the correct 

 pronunciation, but the very meaning of the 

 word depends upon the accent or variation in 

 the tone of the voice. 



Literature. Sweden has produced some of 

 the world's greatest thinkers and literary men, 

 among whom are Bellman, the national poet, 

 Swedenborg, a religious philosopher, and Lin- 

 naeus, the naturalist. Swedish literature had 

 its beginning in the written laws of the thir- 

 teenth century, and the earliest verse consisted 

 of the popular ballad and folk song of the fif- 

 teenth century. The Renaissance and Refor- 

 mation, which so greatly influenced the litera- 

 ture of continental Europe and England, were 

 scarcely felt in Sweden and Norway. Swedish 

 literature reached its height during the reign 

 of Gustavus III, himself a writer and great 

 patron of learning. This was the age of Bell- 

 man, Swedenborg and Linnaeus. At the close 

 of the nineteenth century, which produced tbe 

 poets Tegner, Stagnelius and Runeberg, tV- 

 modern spirit of realism swept over Sweden, 

 The greatest writers of the modem .period in- 

 clude Strindberg, the radical dramatist, and 



