United Kingdom of Sweden and Finland

[Sweden-Finland]

United Kingdom of Sweden and Finland Förenade konungariket Sverige och Finland (Swedish) Ruotsin ja Suomen yhdistynyt kuningaskunta (Finnish)

National Anthem: Thou ancient, Thou free

Royal Anthem: Song of the King

Capital (and largest city): Stockholm

Official languages: Swedish, Finnish

Recognised national languages: Sámi, Meänkieli, Karelian, Romani, Yiddish, Gutnish, Elfdalian

Ethnic groups: 79.97% Swedish-Finnish (Incl. Sámi, Romani and Jewish people), 20.03% Others

Religion: 59.08% Church of Sweden and Finland, 4.76% Other Christian, 34.16% No Religion, 2% Others

Demonym(s): Swedish-Finnish, Swedish, Finnish, Swede, Finn

Government: Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy Monarch: Carl XVI Gustaf Speaker of the Parliament: Andreas Norlén Prime Minister: Sanna Marin

Legislature: Parliament

Area: Total: 786,468 km2 Water: 9.28%

Population: 2022 Estimate: 16,333,000 Density: 20.76/km2

GDP (PPP): 2022 estimate Total: $1.014 trillion Per capita: $62,100

GDP (nominal): 2022 estimate Total: $890.14 billion Per capita: $54,500

Currency: Swedish-Finnish crown (SFK)

Driving side: right

Sweden-Finland, officially the United Kingdom of Sweden and Finland, is a Nordic country located on the Fennoscandian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west, Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Finland to the south, across from Estonia, and and is connected to Denmark in the southwest by a bridge–tunnel across the Öresund. At 786,468 square kilometers, Sweden-Finland is the largest Nordic country, and one of the largest in Europe. The capital and largest city is Stockholm. Sweden-Finland has a total population of 16.3 million, and a low population density of 20.76 inhabitants per square kilometer, with around 86% Swedish-Finnish residing in urban areas, in the central and southern half of the country.

Nature in Sweden-Finland is dominated by forests and many lakes, including some of the largest in Europe. Many long rivers run from the Scandes range through the landscape, primarily emptying into the northern tributaries of the Baltic Sea. It has an extensive coastline and most of the population lives near a major body of water. The climate of Sweden-Finland is diverse due to the length of the country. The usual conditions are mild for the latitudes with a maritime south, continental centre and subarctic north. Snow cover is variable in the densely populated south, but reliable in higher latitudes. Furthermore, the rain shadow of the Scandes results in quite dry winters and sunny summers in much of the country.

Germanic peoples have inhabited Sweden since prehistoric times, emerging into history as the Geats and Swedes and constituting the sea peoples known as the Norsemen. Finland, in contrast, was first inhabited around 9000 BC after the Last Glacial Period. The Stone Age introduced several different ceramic styles and cultures. The Bronze Age and Iron Age were characterized by contacts with other cultures in Fennoscandia and the Baltic region. From the late 13th century, Finland forever became a part of Sweden as a consequence of the Northern Crusades. Thus, an independent Swedish-Finnish state emerged during the early 12th century. After the Black Death in the middle of the 14th century killed about a third of the Fennoscandian population, the dominance of the Hanseatic League in Northern Europe threatened Fennoscandia economically and politically. This led to the forming of the Fennoscandian Kalmar Union in 1397, which Sweden-Finland left in 1523. When Sweden-Finland became involved in the Thirty Years' War on the Protestant side, an expansion of its territories began, forming the Swedish-Finnish Empire, which remained one of the great powers of Europe until the early 18th century.

Swedish-Finnish territories outside the Fennoscandian Peninsula began to be gradually lost during the 18th and 19th centuries to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Russia. During World War II, Sweden-Finland fought the Soviet Union in the Winter War and the Continuation War, and Germany in the Lapland War. It subsequently lost parts of its territory once more, but firmly maintained its independence. Sweden-Finland has otherwise maintained an official policy of neutrality during wartime and non-participation in military alliances during peacetime, although Sweden-Finland secretly relied on ... nuclear submarines during the Cold War. In 1906, Sweden-Finland became one of the first European states to grant universal suffrage, and among the first in the world to give all adult citizens the right to run for public office.

Sweden-Finland is a highly developed country according to the Human Development Index, it is a constitutional monarchy and a parliamentary democracy, with legislative power vested in the 549-member unicameral Parliament. It is a unitary state, currently divided into 40 counties and 600 municipalities. Sweden-Finland maintains a Nordic social welfare system that provides universal health care and tertiary education for its citizens. It has among the world's highest GDP per capitas and ranks very highly in quality of life, health, education, protection of civil liberties, economic competitiveness, income equality, gender equality and prosperity.