Sweden Flag

Description

Sweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a country in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north and Finland to the east and is connected to Denmark in the southwest by a bridge tunnel across the Öresund Strait. At 450,295 square kilometres (173,860 sq mi), Sweden is the largest country in Northern Europe, the third-largest country in the European Union and the fifth-largest country in Europe by area. The capital city is Stockholm. Sweden has a total population of 10.3 million of which 2.5 million have a foreign background. Persons who have foreign backgrounds are defined as persons who are foreign-born, or born in Sweden with foreign-born parents. It has a low population density of 22 inhabitants per square kilometre (57/sq mi) and the highest urban concentration is in the central and southern half of the country.

The flag of Sweden consists of a yellow or gold Nordic cross (i.e. an asymmetrical horizontal cross, with the crossbar closer to the hoist than the fly, with the cross extending to the edge of the flag) on a field of blue. The Nordic cross design traditionally represents Christianity. The design and colours of the Swedish flag are believed to have been inspired by the present coat of arms of Sweden of 1442, which is blue divided quarterly by a cross pattée of gold, and modelled on the Danish flag. Blue and yellow have been used as Swedish colours at least since Magnus III’s royal coat of arms of 1275. The blue which makes up the background of Sweden’s flag is said to symbolise justice, loyalty, and truth. The yellow on the cross represents generosity.