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                  SWEDEN

Sweden is the third largest country in the European Union in terms of area, and it has a total population of about 9.2 million. Sweden has a low population density of 21 inhabitants per square kilometre (54 /sq mi) but a considerably higher density in the southern half of the country. About 85% of the population live in urban areas, and it is expected that these numbers will gradually rise as a part of the ongoing urbanization. Sweden's capital is Stockholm, which is also the largest city in the country (population of 1.3 million in the urban area and with 2 million in city area. 

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Sweden has a rich musical tradition, ranging from medieval folk ballads to hip hop music. The music of the pre-Christian Norse has been lost to history, although historical re-creations have been attempted based on instruments found in Viking sites. The instruments used were the  (a sort of trumpet), simple string instruments, wooden flutes and drums. It is possible that the Viking musical legacy lives on in some of the old Swedish folk music.

 

Agnetha Fältskog of Swedish band ABBA performing in 1977.

 

Sweden also has a prominent choral music tradition, deriving in part from the cultural importance of Swedish folk songs. In fact, out of a population of 9.2 million, it is estimated that five to six hundred thousand people sing in choirs.

Sweden is the third largest music exporter in the world, with over 800 million dollars in 2007 years revenue, surpassed only by the US and the UK. ABBA was one of the first internationally well-known popular music bands from Sweden, and still ranks among the most prominent bands in the world, with about 370 million records sold. With ABBA, Sweden entered into a new era, in which Swedish pop music gained international prominence. There have been many other internationally successful bands since, such as Roxette, Ace of Base, Europe, A-teens,The Cardigans and The Hives, to name some of the biggest, and recently there has been a surge of Swedish Indie pop bands such as Loney, Dear, Shout Out Louds and The Radio Dept.. One of the biggest bands in Sweden is the rockband Kent.

Geography and climate.

Sweden has 25 provinces or landscapes, based on culture, geography and history; Bohuslän, Blekinge, Dalarna, Dalsland, Gotland, Gästrikland, Halland, Hälsingland, Härjedalen, Jämtland, Lapland, Medelpad, Norrbotten, Närke, Skåne, Småland, Södermanland, Uppland, Värmland, Västmanland, Västerbotten,                         

Västergötland, Ångermanland, Öland and Östergötland. While these

provinces serve no political or administrative purpose, they play an

important role for people's self-identification.

The provinces are usually grouped together in three large lands,

parts, the northern Norrland, the central Svealand

and southern Götaland. The sparsely populated

Norrland encompasses almost 60% of the country.