1. The Kingdom of Sweden Mary Schuck

2. Table of Contents Geography...3 Climate...4 Early History…5 Recent History…6 Population…7 Native Population…8 Language…9 Speak Swedish…10 Communication Styles…11 Values…12 Religion…13 Beliefs…14 Geography...3 Climate...4 Early History…5 Recent History…6 Population…7 Native Population…8 Language…9 Speak Swedish…10 Communication Styles…11 Values…12 Religion…13 Beliefs…14 Celebrating Spring and Summer…15 Christian Celebrations…16 Food…17 Sports and Activities…18 Family and Marriage…19 Customs and Courtesies…20 Comparison of Sweden and America…21 References…22 Celebrating Spring and Summer…15 Christian Celebrations…16 Food…17 Sports and Activities…18 Family and Marriage…19 Customs and Courtesies…20 Comparison of Sweden and America…21 References…22

3. Geography  Sweden: flat or gently rolling lowlands with mountains in the west where it borders Norway  Forests, snowcapped mountains, many lakes and seas.  Bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, Kattegat, and Skagerrak  Slightly larger than California  Lies farther north than the USA

4. Climate  Cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers  Subarctic in north  Fertile plains for farming  Reindeer herding in the North  Summer sun stays up and winter sun never quite rises in the far north

5. Early History  Vikings: 800-1000 AD  Traders, settlers, plunderers, farmers, experienced sailors, craftsmen and shipbuilders  Raided Central Europe for slaves, land and treasure  Christianity & the Kingdom: 1000-2014 AD  Sweden’s Age of Greatness 1611-1721: Rule of the Baltic Sea, grand palaces built Viking House and Ship

6. Recent history  World War II: declared neutrality  Joined EU in 1995; like Britian never adopted the Euro  Currency: Krona, 10.5 Krona in a dollar  Parliamentary system  Emphasis on Equality  Welfare for everyone, Labor laws to protect jobs  Taxes are 17% of GDP in the USA, 51.4% in Sweden Royal Palace

7. Population  9,723,809  85% live in urban areas  People from Nordic countries: citizenship after 2 years  Population growth: immigrants after World War II  Non-nordic immigrants: citizenship after 5 years  Foreign-born or first-generation immigrants: Finns, Yugoslavs, Danes, Norwegians, Greeks, Turks

8. Native Population  Swedes with Finnish and Sami minorities  Sami: 80-100,000, semi-nomadic population, northern Sweden, Reindeer herders,  Native Finn population: 300,000 Sami Reindeer Herders

9. Language  Swedish (official), small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities  Swedish: Germanic, similar to English,evolved from Old Norse, closely related to Norwegian and Danish  English: learning begins in elementary school  Minority languages: Finnish, Sami, Romani (language of the Roma) Yiddish (language of the Jewish) and Meankieli (related to Finnish.)

10. Speak Swedish!  Hello- Hej (hay)  Good bye- Hej da (hey do)  Yes/No- Ja/Ney (yah/nay)  Please- Varsagod (vahrshawgood)  Thank you- Tack  What is your name?- Jag heter du?(Yah hay-ter dew?)  My name is- Jag heter (Yah hay-ter)

11. Communication Styles/Patterns  Abhor loudness and rudeness  Don’t show discomfort for fear of being rude themselves  Live quiet and peaceful lives  Low Context Culture: like North America, information provided verbally

12. Values  A strong sense of fairness  Favor a quieter life and homecooked meals  Love of nature  Don’t like to waste time  Expect timeliness

13. Religion  Sweden’s religious roots: in ancient Norse religions.  Norse religion’s gods: Thor, Odin and Freyr.  First Christian missionary in 829 AD  87% of modern Swedes: nominally Lutheran, with Islam as the second largest religious group.  13%: Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Baptist, Muslim, Jewish, and Buddhist Thor

14. Beliefs  Religion in Sweden: traditional, cultural and functional rather than spiritual  Church of Sweden: Lutheran  Two thirds of Sweden’s population: members of the Church of Sweden  15% believe in Jesus Christ  15% are Athiests (believe in no God)  25% are Agnostics (believe that we can’t know if there is a God)

15. Celebrating Summer and Spring  Music festivals  Fiddle, Nyckelharpa (key harp) and dancing  Popular: singing in choirs  Midsummer’s Eve: beginning of summer, traditions of dancing around the maypole, eating pickled herring, new potatoes with dill and a strawberry dessert

16. Christian Celebrations  Christmas: celebration of Jesus Christ’s birth  Glogg: hot sugared wine drunk with gingerbread around Advent (the weeks leading up to Christmas)  Lucia Day: honors St. Lucia. One girl is chosen as Lucia and she leads a nighttime procession  Easter: celebration of Jesus Christ rising from the dead  Easter Traditions: painting eggs and decorating the house with willow and birch twigs, bunches of colored feathers, figures of farm animals or witches. St. Lucia’s Procession

17. Food  Fresh foods: fruits, berries, mushrooms, vegetables, wild game and farm animals.  National dish: meatballs  Smorgasbord: up to 100 cold and hot dishes spread out on the table  Special occasion cake: Princess cake  Traditional foods: lingonberries from the forest, crisp bread with cheese and meat or butter and shrimp sandwiches.  Fika: daily coffee break Princess Cake

18. Sports and Activities  Primary sports: Ice Hockey, Soccer, Skiing, Tennis, Golf and Soccer  Legal on any private land: Cycling, Swimming and camping  Lakes and rivers: Fishing, canoeing, kayaking and rafting  Winter Activities: Snowmobiling, ice-skating, hockey, cross country and downhill skiing

19. Work  70% of Swedes: work in the service sector, banks, hospitals, retail stores, etc  Emphasize teamwork and creativity more than the U.S  20th century change: from agriculture to industrial  Resources for foreign trade: timber, hydropower, and iron ore

20. Family and Marriage  Average household: 2 children and parents  Unmarried couples: commonly live together and have children  Sambolagen: a law which gives equal rights to unmarried couples  High divorce rate  Students at University receive government aid  Youth more like to live alone with a group of friends

21. Customs and Courtesies Customs and Courtesies  Nordic Ancestry: 85% of Sweden’s population descendents  Tall and blond, with blue eyes and fair skin  Guests: bring gifts to host’s home and would never wear shoes inside  Swedes: characterized as people who enjoy shopping but dislike showiness  Goods are of high quality, but more expensive

22. Resources  Bureau of Labor Statistics. United States department of Labor, Oct 2013. Web. 26 Oct 2014.  Bureau of Labor Statistics. United States department of Labor, Oct 2013. Web. 26 Oct 2014.  Heinrichs, Ann. Sweden. New York: Scholastic Inc, 2014. Print.  Johansson, Ulf, Neppenstrom, Mona and Sandell, Kaj. Sweden. New York: DK Publishing, 2014. Print.  Klopf, Donald, McCroskey, James. Intercultural Communication Encounters. USA: Pearson Education Inc,2007. Print.  Porterfield, Jason. Sweden. New York: Rosen Publishing Group Inc, 2004. Print. CIA World Factbook. CIA, n.d. Web. 26 Oct 2014.  Porterfield, Jason. Sweden. New York: Rosen Publishing Group Inc, 2004. Print. CIA World Factbook. CIA, n.d. Web. 26 Oct 2014. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sw.html  Quickfacts. United States Census Bureau, 08 July 2014. Web. 26 Oct 2014.  Quickfacts. United States Census Bureau, 08 July 2014. Web. 26 Oct 2014.