Västra Götaland County is a
countyThe Counties of Sweden are the first level administrative and political subdivisions of Sweden. Sweden is divided into 21 counties. The counties were established in 1634 on Count Axel Oxenstierna's initiative, superseding the historical provinces of Sweden to introduce a modern administration...
or
länLän and lääni refer to the administrative divisions used in Sweden and previously in Finland. The provinces of Finland were abolished on January 1, 2010....
on the western coast of
SwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
The county is the second largest (in terms of population) of Sweden's counties and it is subdivided into 49
municipalitiesThe municipalities of Sweden are the local government entities of Sweden. The current 290 municipalities are organized into 21 counties...
(
kommuner). Its population of 1,550,000 amounts to 17% of Sweden's population. The capital and governmental seat of Västra Götaland County is
GothenburgGothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
.
The county was established as recently as 1998, when
Älvsborg CountyÄlvsborg County, or Älvsborgs län, was a county of Sweden until December 31, 1998 when it was merged with the counties of Gothenburg and Bohus and Skaraborg to form the county of Västra Götaland...
,
Gothenburg and Bohus CountyThe County of Gothenburg and Bohus, or Göteborgs och Bohus län, was a county of Sweden until December 31, 1998 when it was merged with the counties of Skaraborg and Älvsborg to form the county of Västra Götaland....
and
Skaraborg CountySkaraborg County, or Skaraborgs län, was a county of Sweden until December 31, 1998 when it was merged with the counties of Gothenburg and Bohus and Älvsborg to form Västra Götaland County....
were merged.
Provinces
Sweden's counties are generally of greater importance than its
provincesThe provinces of Sweden, landskap, are historical, geographical and cultural regions. Sweden has 25 provinces and they have no administrative function, but remain historical legacies and the means of cultural identification....
. The counties are the main administrative units for politics, population counts.
Due to its size and young age, the Västra Götaland County has no common inheritance. Of cultural and historical significance are the provinces that Västra Götaland County consists of:
Västergötland', English exonym: West Gothland, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden , situated in the southwest of Sweden. In older English literature one may also encounter the Latinized version Westrogothia....
,
Bohuslän' is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Götaland on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the west, and the county of Østfold in Norway to the north...
and
DalslandDalsland is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Götaland in southern Sweden. Lying to the west of Lake Vänern, it is bordered by Värmland to the north, Västergötland to the southeast, Bohuslän to the west, and Norway to the northwest....
. There is also an insignificant part of the province
Halland' is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden , on the western coast of Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Småland, Scania and the sea of Kattegat.-Administration:...
within the county.
In addition, the previous counties that were abolished in 1999 had been in use since the 17th century, and therefore have some cultural and historical significance.
Neighbours
Västra Götaland County borders to the counties of
VärmlandVärmland County is a county or län in west central Sweden. It borders the Swedish counties of Dalarna, Örebro and Västra Götaland, as well as the Norwegian counties of Østfold, Akershus and Hedmark to the west.- Province :...
,
ÖrebroÖrebro County is a county or län in central Sweden. It borders the counties of Västra Götaland, Värmland, Dalarna, Västmanland, Södermanland and Östergötland.- Province :...
,
ÖstergötlandÖstergötland County is a county or län in southeastern Sweden. It borders the counties of Kalmar to the southeast, Jönköping to the southwest, Västra Götaland to the west, Örebro to the northwest, Södermanland to the northeast, and the Baltic Sea to the east.Östergötland County has a population of...
,
JönköpingJönköping County is a county or län in southern Sweden. It borders the counties of Halland, Västra Götaland, Östergötland, Kalmar and Kronoberg. The capital is Jönköping.- Provinces :...
and
HallandHalland County is a county on the western coast of Sweden. It corresponds roughly to the cultural and historical province of Halland. The capital is Halmstad....
. It is also bounded by the
NorwegianNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
county of
Østfoldis a county in southeastern Norway, bordering Akershus and southwestern Sweden , while Buskerud and Vestfold is on the other side of the bay. The seat of the county administration is Sarpsborg, and Fredrikstad is the largest city.Many manufacturing facilities are situated here. Moss and...
, lakes
VätternVättern is the second largest lake in Sweden, after Lake Vänern and the sixth largest lake in Europe. It is a long, finger-shaped body of fresh water in south central Sweden to the southeast of Vänern pointing at the tip of Scandinavia....
and
VänernVänern is the largest lake in Sweden, the largest lake in the EU and the third largest lake in Europe after Ladoga and Onega in Russia. It is located in the provinces of Västergötland, Dalsland, and Värmland in the southwest of the country.- History :...
, as well as the strait of
SkagerrakThe Skagerrak is a strait running between Norway and the southwest coast of Sweden and the Jutland peninsula of Denmark, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea area, which leads to the Baltic Sea.-Name:...
.
Administration
Västra Götaland was created in 1998 by a merger of the three former counties of
Gothenburg and Bohus CountyThe County of Gothenburg and Bohus, or Göteborgs och Bohus län, was a county of Sweden until December 31, 1998 when it was merged with the counties of Skaraborg and Älvsborg to form the county of Västra Götaland....
,
Älvsborg CountyÄlvsborg County, or Älvsborgs län, was a county of Sweden until December 31, 1998 when it was merged with the counties of Gothenburg and Bohus and Skaraborg to form the county of Västra Götaland...
and
Skaraborg CountySkaraborg County, or Skaraborgs län, was a county of Sweden until December 31, 1998 when it was merged with the counties of Gothenburg and Bohus and Älvsborg to form Västra Götaland County....
. The seat of residence for the
Governors or
Landshövding is
GothenburgGothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, while the seat of political administration and power is
VänersborgVänersborg is a locality and the seat of Vänersborg Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 21,672 inhabitants in 2005. Until 1997 it was the capital of Älvsborg County, which was dissolved in 1998. Since 1999 Vänersborg is the seat of the regional parliament of Västra Götaland County...
. The Governor is the head of the
County Administrative BoardA County Administrative Board is a Government appointed board of a County in Sweden. It is led by a Governor or Landshövding appointed for a term of six years and the list of succession, in most cases, stretches back to 1634 when the counties were created...
or
Länsstyrelse.
Politics
The
Västra Götaland Regional CouncilThe Västra Götaland Regional Council, or Västra Götalandsregionen, is the devolved County Council of Västra Götaland County in Sweden. It was created in 1999 by the merger of the county councils of Gothenburg and Bohus, Älvsborg, and Skaraborg Counties coupled with the devolution of power from the...
or
Västra Götalandsregionen is an evolved
County CouncilA county council, or landsting, is an elected assembly of a county in Sweden. A county council is a political entity, elected by the county electorate and typically its main responsibilities lie within the public health care system. In each county there is also a county administrative board which...
that for a trial period has assumed certain tasks from the County Administrative Board. Similar trial councils are applied for
Skåne CountySkåne County is the southernmost administrative county or län, of Sweden, basically corresponding to the historical province Scania. It borders the counties of Halland, Kronoberg and Blekinge. The seat of residence for the Skåne Governor is the town of Malmö...
and
Gotland CountyGotland County is a county or län of Sweden. Gotland is located in the Baltic Sea to the east of Öland, and is the largest of Sweden's islands. Counties are usually sub-divided into municipalities, but Gotland County only consists of one municipality: Gotland Municipality. Gotland County at...
.
Municipalities
- Ale
Ale Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Nödinge-Nol....
- Alingsås
Alingsås Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Alingsås....
- Bengtsfors
Bengtsfors Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Bengtsfors....
- Bollebygd
Bollebygd Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Bollebygd....
- Borås
Borås Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Borås.In 1971 the City of Borås was made a municipality when the unitary type of local government unit was introduced in Sweden. Three years later a lot of surrounding...
- Dals-Ed
Dals-Ed Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden, on the border to Norway. Its seat is located in the town of Ed....
- Essunga
Essunga Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Nossebro.The 1952 municipal reform in Sweden saw the creation of Essunga Municipality out of eight original entities...
- Falköping
Falköping Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Falköping....
- Färgelanda
Färgelanda Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Färgelanda....
- Grästorp
Grästorp Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Grästorp....
- Gullspång
Gullspång Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the towns of Gullspång and Hova....
- Götene
Götene Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Götene....
- Gothenburg
Gothenburg Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Gothenburg....
- Herrljunga
Herrljunga Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Herrljunga....
- Hjo
Hjo Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Hjo.The municipality was created in 1971, when the City of Hjo was amalgamated with a part of the rural municipality Värsås...
- Härryda
Härryda Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Mölnlycke, with about 15,000 inhabitants....
- Karlsborg
Karlsborg Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Karlsborg....
- Kungälv
Kungälv Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Kungälv....
- Lerum
Lerum Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden, situated just east of Gothenburg. Its seat is located in the town of Lerum....
- Lidköping
Lidköping Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Lidköping....
- Lilla Edet
Lilla Edet Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Lilla Edet....
- Lysekil
Lysekil Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Lysekil....
- Mariestad
Mariestad Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Mariestad....
- Mark
Mark Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Kinna.The municipality was created with the municipal reform of 1971 by the amalgamation of eight previous entities. Most of them had themselves been formed by the 1952 municipal...
- Mellerud
Mellerud Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County by Lake Vänern in Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Mellerud....
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- Munkedal
Munkedal Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Munkedal....
- Mölndal
Mölndal Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden, just south of Gothenburg...
- Orust
Orust Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Henån, with an approximate population of 1,800....
- Partille
Partille Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in Partille, which constitutes a part of the contiguously built-up Gothenburg urban area....
- Skara
Skara Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Skara.The area of the municipality consists of 16 original local government entities. The municipal reform of 1952 grouped them into four new entities...
- Skövde
Skövde Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Skövde....
- Sotenäs
Sotenäs Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Kungshamn, with around 3,500 inhabitants....
- Stenungsund
Stenungsund Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Stenungsund...
- Strömstad
Strömstad Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Strömstad....
- Svenljunga
Svenljunga Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Svenljunga....
- Tanum
Tanum Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Tanumshede, with 1,600 inhabitants....
- Tibro
Tibro Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Tibro.-Sports:The following sports clubs are located in Tibro Municipality:* Tibro AIK FK...
- Tidaholm
Tidaholm Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Tidaholm.The municipality is located on the banks of the river Tidan....
- Tjörn
Tjörn Municipality is a municipality that covers the island of Tjörn in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Skärhamn.Tjörn is the sixth largest Swedish island...
- Tranemo
Tranemo Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Tranemo....
- Trollhättan
Trollhättan Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Trollhättan....
- Töreboda
Töreboda Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Töreboda....
- Uddevalla
Uddevalla Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Uddevalla....
- Ulricehamn
Ulricehamn Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Ulricehamn....
- Vara
Vara Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Vara.The present municipality consists of 25 original local government entities . Between 1974 and 1982 the territory of present Essunga Municipality was also included.-External...
- Vårgårda
Vårgårda Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Vårgårda....
- Vänersborg
Vänersborg Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Vänersborg.The present municipality was created during the local government reform in the early 1970s...
- Åmål
Åmål Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Åmål.The present municipality was created in 1971 through the amalgamation of the former City of Åmål and the former rural municipality of Tössbo .-Geography and natural...
- Öckerö
Öckerö Municipality is a municipality in Västra Götaland County in western Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Öckerö on the main island, which is also called Öckerö....
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Heraldry
The arms for the County of Västra Götaland was granted in 1999 when the county was formed. It a combination of the provincial arms of
Västergötland', English exonym: West Gothland, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden , situated in the southwest of Sweden. In older English literature one may also encounter the Latinized version Westrogothia....
,
Bohuslän' is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Götaland on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered by Dalsland to the northeast, Västergötland to the southeast, the Skagerrak arm of the North Sea to the west, and the county of Østfold in Norway to the north...
and
DalslandDalsland is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Götaland in southern Sweden. Lying to the west of Lake Vänern, it is bordered by Värmland to the north, Västergötland to the southeast, Bohuslän to the west, and Norway to the northwest....
with the arms for the city of
GothenburgGothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
. When the arms is shown with a royal crown it represents the County Administrative Board, which is the regional presence of (royal) government authority. Blazon: "Quartered, I. the arms of Gothenburg, II. the arms of Bohuslän, III. the arms of Dalsland turned in courtoisie, IV. the arms of Västergötland."
External links