Gothenburg
Gothenburg (/ˈɡɒθənbɜːrɡ/ ⓘ;[6] abbreviated Gbg;[7][8] Swedish: Göteborg [jœtɛˈbɔrj] ⓘ) is the capital of Västra Götaland County in Sweden. It is the second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. It is situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, with a population of approximately 600,000 in the city proper and about 1.1 million inhabitants in the metropolitan area.[9][10]
This article is about the city in Sweden. For other uses, see Gothenburg (disambiguation).
Gothenburg
Göteborg
Västergötland, Bohuslän and Halland
1621
447.76 km2 (172.88 sq mi)
14.5 km2 (5.6 sq mi) 3.2%
203.67 km2 (78.64 sq mi)
3,694.86 km2 (1,426.59 sq mi)
12 m (39 ft)
603,325
1,300/km2 (3,500/sq mi)
607,882[3]
1,077,128 [2]
Göteborgare/Gothenburger
€79.086 billion (2021)
€73,400 (2021)
(+46) 31
King Gustavus Adolphus founded Gothenburg by royal charter in 1621 as a heavily fortified, primarily Dutch, trading colony. In addition to the generous privileges given to his Dutch allies during the ongoing Thirty Years' War, e.g. tax relaxation, he also attracted significant numbers of his German and Scottish allies to populate his only town on the western coast; this trading status was furthered by the founding of the Swedish East India Company. At a key strategic location at the mouth of the Göta älv, where Scandinavia's largest drainage basin enters the sea, the Port of Gothenburg is now the largest port in the Nordic countries.[11] The presence of the University of Gothenburg and Chalmers University of Technology has led Gothenburg to become home to many students. Volvo was founded in Gothenburg in 1927,[12] with both the original Volvo Group and the separate Volvo Car Corporation still headquartered on the island of Hisingen in the city. Other key companies in the area are AstraZeneca, Ericsson, and SKF.
Gothenburg is served by Göteborg Landvetter Airport 25 km (16 mi) southeast of the city centre. The smaller Göteborg City Airport, 15 km (9.3 mi) from the city centre, was closed to regular airline traffic in 2015. The city hosts the Gothia Cup, the world's largest youth football tournament, and the Göteborg Basketball Festival, Europe's largest youth basketball tournament, alongside some of the largest annual events in Scandinavia. The Gothenburg Film Festival, held in January since 1979, is the leading Scandinavian film festival and attracts over 155,000 visitors each year.[13] In summer, a wide variety of music festivals are held in the city, including the popular Way Out West Festival.
Gothenburg has several parks and nature reserves ranging in size from tens of square meters to hundreds of hectares. It also has many green areas that are not designated as parks or reserves.
Selection of parks:
Education[edit]
Gothenburg has two universities, both of which started as colleges founded by private donations in the 19th century. The University of Gothenburg has about 38,000 students and is one of the largest universities in Scandinavia,[187] and one of the most versatile in Sweden. Chalmers University of Technology is a well-known university located in Johanneberg 2 km (1 mi) south of the inner city, lately also established at Lindholmen in Norra Älvstranden, Hisingen.[188]
In 2015, there were ten adult education centres in Gothenburg: Agnesbergs folkhögskola, Arbetarrörelsens folkhögskola i Göteborg, Finska folkhögskolan, Folkhögskolan i Angered, Göteborgs folkhögskola, Kvinnofolkhögskolan, Mo Gård folkhögskola, S:ta Birgittas folkhögskola, Västra Götalands folkhögskolor and Wendelsbergs folkhögskola.[189]
In 2015, there were 49 high schools in Gothenburg. Some of the more notable schools are Hvitfeldtska gymnasiet, Göteborgs Högre Samskola, Sigrid Rudebecks gymnasium and Polhemsgymnasiet. Some high-schools are also connected to large Swedish corporations, such as SKF Technical high-school owned by SKF and Gothenburg's technical high-school jointly owned by Volvo, Volvo Cars and Gothenburg municipality.[190]
There are two folkhögskola that teach fine arts: Domen and Goteborg Folkhögskola.
International rankings[edit]
Gothenburg has performed well in international rankings, some of which are mentioned below:
The Global Destination Sustainability Index has named Gothenburg the world's most sustainable destination every year since 2016.[211]
In 2019 Gothenburg was selected by the EU as one of the top 2020 European Capitals of Smart Tourism.[212]
In 2020 Business Region Göteborg received the 'European Entrepreneurial Region Award 2020' (EER Award 2020) from the EU.[212]
