Country name:
conventional long form: Kingdom of Sweden
conventional short form: Sweden
local long form: Konungariket Sverige
local short form: Sverige
etymology: name ultimately derives from the North Germanic Svear tribe, which inhabited central Sweden and is first mentioned in the first centuries A.D.

Government type:
parliamentary constitutional monarchy

Capital:
name: Stockholm
geographic coordinates: 59 20 N, 18 03 E
time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
etymology: "stock" and "holm" literally mean "log" and "islet" in Swedish, but there is no consensus as to what the words refer to

Administrative divisions:
21 counties (lan, singular and plural); Blekinge, Dalarna, Gavleborg, Gotland, Halland, Jamtland, Jonkoping, Kalmar, Kronoberg, Norrbotten, Orebro, Ostergotland, Skane, Sodermanland, Stockholm, Uppsala, Varmland, Vasterbotten, Vasternorrland, Vastmanland, Vastra Gotaland

Independence:
6 June 1523 (Gustav VASA elected king of Sweden, marking the abolishment of the Kalmar Union between Denmark, Norway, and Sweden)

National holiday:
National Day, 6 June (1983); note - from 1916 to 1982 this date was celebrated as Swedish Flag Day

Constitution:
history: several previous; latest adopted 1 January 1975
amendments: proposed by Parliament; passage requires simple majority vote in two consecutive parliamentary terms with an intervening general election; passage also requires approval by simple majority vote in a referendum if Parliament approves a motion for a referendum by one third of its members; amended several times, last in 2014 (changes to the "Instrument of Government") (2016)

Legal system:
civil law system influenced by Roman-Germanic law and customary law

International law organization participation:
accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

Citizenship:
citizenship by birth: no
citizenship by descent only: the father must be a citizen of Sweden; in the case of a child born out of wedlock, the mother must be a citizen of Sweden and the father unknown
dual citizenship recognized: no, unless the other citizenship was acquired involuntarily
residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
[see also: Suffrage country ranks ]

Executive branch:
chief of state: King CARL XVI GUSTAF (since 15 September 1973); Heir Apparent Princess VICTORIA Ingrid Alice Desiree (daughter of the monarch, born 14 July 1977)
head of government: Prime Minister Stefan LOFVEN (since 3 October 2014); Deputy Prime Minister Isabella LOVIN (since 25 May 2016); note - Prime Minister Stefan LOFVEN was ousted in a no-confidence vote on 25 September 2018 and headed a caretaker government until the next government was formed; LOFVEN was reelected as Prime Minister and took office on 21 January 2019
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister
elections/appointments: the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually becomes the prime minister

Legislative branch:
description: unicameral Parliament or Riksdag (349 seats; 310 members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by closed, party-list proportional representation vote and 39 members in "at-large" seats directly elected by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)
elections: last held on 9 September 2018 (next to be held in 2022)
election results: percent of vote by party - SAP 28.3%, M 19.8%, SD 17.5%, C 8.6%, V 8%, KD 6.3%, L 5.5%, MP 4.4%, other 1.6%; seats by party - SAP 100, M 70, SD 62, C 31, V 28, KD 22, L 20, MP 16; composition - men 188, women 161, percent of women 46.1%

Judicial branch:
highest courts: Supreme Court of Sweden (consists of 16 justices, including the court chairman); Supreme Administrative Court (consists of 18 justices, including the court president)
judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court and Supreme Administrative Court justices nominated by the Judges Proposal Board, a 9-member nominating body consisting of high-level judges, prosecutors, and members of Parliament; justices appointed by the Government; following a probationary period, justices' appointments are permanent
subordinate courts: first instance, appellate, general, and administrative courts; specialized courts that handle cases such as land and environment, immigration, labor, markets, and patents

Political parties and leaders:
Center Party (Centerpartiet) or C [Annie LOOF]
Christian Democrats (Kristdemokraterna) or KD [Ebba Busch THOR]
Green Party (Miljopartiet de Grona) or MP [Isabella LOVIN and Per BOLUND]
Left Party (Vansterpartiet) or V [Jonas SJOSTEDT]
Liberal Party (Liberalerna) or L [Jan BJORKLUND]
Moderate Party (Moderaterna) or M [Ulf KRISTERSSON]
Swedish Social Democratic Party (Socialdemokraterna) or SAP [Stefan LOFVEN]
Sweden Democrats (Sverigedemokraterna) or SD [Jimmie AKESSON]

International organization participation:
ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council, Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CD, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MINUSMA, MONUSCO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, Schengen Convention, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMISS, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UN Security Council (temporary), UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
Ambassador Karin Ulrika OLOFSDOTTER (since 17 September 2017)
chancery: The House of Sweden, 2900 K Street NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 536-1500
FAX: [1] (202) 536-1501
consulate(s) general: New York, San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Pamela TREMONT (since April 2019)
telephone: [46] (08) 783 53 00
embassy: Dag Hammarskjolds Vag 31, SE-11589 Stockholm
mailing address: American Embassy Stockholm, US Department of State, 5750 Stockholm Place, Washington, DC 20521-5750
FAX: [46] (08) 661 19 64

Flag description:
blue with a golden yellow cross extending to the edges of the flag; the vertical part of the cross is shifted to the hoist side in the style of the Dannebrog (Danish flag); the colors reflect those of the Swedish coat of arms - three gold crowns on a blue field

National symbol(s):
three crowns, lion; national colors: blue, yellow

National anthem:
name: "Du Gamla, Du Fria" (Thou Ancient, Thou Free)
lyrics/music: Richard DYBECK/traditional
note: in use since 1844; also known as "Sang till Norden" (Song of the North), is based on a Swedish folk tune; it has never been officially adopted by the government; "Kungssangen" (The King's Song) serves as the royal anthem and is played in the presence of the royal family and during certain state ceremonies