Ten Things You Didn't Know About Sweden

My married name, Jonasson, is a Swedish name which means son of Jonas.  Today I looked up ten things you didn't know about Sweden. 

1.  Sweden is the third largest country in Europe with an area of 450,000 square kilometres.  Ninety-two percent of the land is rural, full of lakes, mountains and forests.

2.  By the early 1900's, 1.2 million Swedes had immigrated to the United States; today there are 10 million Swedish-Americans.

3.  Red houses in Sweden are very red due to the pigmentation from the copper mines.

4.  Sweden is the third largest music exporter.

5.  Sweden is considered the strongest trademark in the world.

6.  Swedes drink more coffee than all other Europeans except Finns.

7.  The Swedish flag comes from the coat of arms which has a blue shield and a golden lion.  Most Swedish gardens fly the blue flag with the gold cross.

8.  Sweden has between 300,000 and 400,000 moose, which cause many serious accidents.  In autumn, hunters kill 100,000 of these animals.

9.  Seven and a half percent of Swedes play golf (600,000).  Sweden has 500 golf courses, only surpassed by England in Europe.

10.  The Vikings were Swedish, a group of explorers, warriors and pirates who sailed around the world conquering other lands from the 8th to the 11th century.

Image courtesy http://2.bp.blogspot.com.