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Bohuslän | |
|---|---|
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 | |
| Coordinates:58°14′53″N11°53′13″E / 58.248°N 11.887°E /58.248; 11.887 | |
| Country |  Sweden |
| Land | Götaland |
| County | Västra Götaland County |
| Area | |
• Total | 4,400 km2 (1,700 sq mi) |
| Population (31 December 2023)[1] | |
• Total | 315,240 |
| • Density | 72/km2 (190/sq mi) |
| Ethnicity | |
| • Language | Swedish |
| • Dialect | Götamål |
| Culture | |
| • Flower | European honeysuckle |
| • Animal | Harbour seal |
| • Bird | Eurasian oystercatcher |
| • Fish | Mackerel |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
Bohuslän (Swedish pronunciation:[ˈbûːhʉːsˌlɛːn]ⓘ) is aSwedish province inGötaland, on the northernmost part of the country's west coast. It is bordered byDalsland to the northeast,Västergötland to the southeast, theSkagerrak arm of theNorth Sea to the west, and the county ofØstfold, in Norway, to the north. In English it literally meansBohus County, although it shared counties with the city ofGothenburg prior to the 1998 county merger and thus was not an administrative unit in its own right.
Bohuslän is named after the medieval Norwegian castle ofBohus (Norwegian:Båhus). Under the nameBåhuslen (Bohuslen in Danish), it was aNorwegiancounty from the Norwegian conquest of the region from theGeats and subsequentunification of the country in the 870s until theTreaty of Roskilde in 1658, when the union ofDenmark–Norway was forced to cede this county, as well asSkåneland (part of Denmark proper), to Sweden.
As of 31 December 2016[update], the number of inhabitants was 299,087,[1] giving apopulation density of 68 inhabitants per square kilometre (180/sq mi).
Theprovinces of Sweden serve no administrative function. That function is served by thecounties of Sweden instead. For centuries, the administrative county for Bohuslän wasGothenburg and Bohus County, and, as its name implies, it consisted of the entire Bohuslän province together with the cityGothenburg. In 1998, some Swedish counties were merged to reduce administration costs. Gothenburg and Bohus County were merged into the new, much largerVästra Götaland County.
Bohuslän was granted its arms at the time of the funeral forCharles X Gustav of Sweden in 1660. It was identical to the arms of the Town ofKungälv. In 1962 the higher claim of the town was established and a variation for the arms of the county was introduced. The coat of arms is surmounted by a ducal coronet. Blazon: 'Argent, a Castle embattled Gules with one embattled Tower of the same and two doors Or hinged Sable between a Sword point upwards and Lion rampant holding the Tower both Azure langued and armed Or."
Bohuslän is distinguished by its rocky coast bordering anarchipelago: there are about 3,000 islands and 5,000 islets (skerries). These make up the northern part of theGothenburg archipelago, Sweden's second largest afterStockholm archipelago. In the past, the seascape was renowned for its many reefs and sunken rocks which caused many shipwrecks. Two of the largest islands,Orust andTjörn, are their own municipalities. Both islands have a distinct culture and history. The highest point isBjörnepiken at 222 meters.
Sweden's only threshold fjord,Gullmarn orGullmarsfjorden, is located nearLysekil.[2] It is 25 kilometres (16 mi) long and 1 to 3 kilometres (0.62 to 1.86 mi) wide with a maximum depth of 118.5 metres (389 ft). The fjord is home to unique marine life.[3]
Bohuslän's coastline was ranked 7th among the world's last great wilderness areas byCNN Travel.[4]
Unlike other parts of Sweden, there are relatively few lakes or streams in Bohuslän: out of a total land area of 4,500 square kilometres (1,700 sq mi) freshwater covers only 177 square kilometres (68 sq mi). Although lakes are common, they tend to be small in size. The largest lakes are the northern and southernBullaren lakes, with a combined area of about 40 square kilometres (15 sq mi).
Most of the coast is made up byBohus granite formed in the aftermath of theSveconorwegian orogeny.[5] In detail these granites have been eroded as to contain abundant small rock basins, some of them filled with clay andsilt of combinedglacial and marine origin.[6]
The coast of Bohuslän is ajoint valley landscape.[7] Studies ofdenudation chronology suggest Bohuslän lies at the westernmost reaches of theSub-Cambrian peneplain;[8] however, there is some uncerntainty on whether the hilltops areremnants of the peneplain.[9] Rather than Sub-cambrian most of the province is made up of a relief unit known as theSub-Mesozoic hilly peneplain.[10]
Bohuslän'schartered cities are:
Their central areas are now non-administrativeurban areas.
In addition there are several other notable settlements:
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During the2nd millennium BCE, theNordic Bronze Age began (c. 1700–500 BCE), includingrock art such as the examples found throughout Bohuslän. During theMigration Period (300–700 CE) and theViking Age (700–1000 CE), the area was part ofViken, and was actually known as two entities:Rånrike in the north andElfsyssel in the south. It has been claimed that KingHarald Fairhair made it part of the unified Norway in about 872, but contemporary sources give rise to doubt that Harald actually ever held the Viken area properly. The earliest proof of Båhus lands being in Norway's hands is from the 11th century.
As long as Norway was a kingdom of its own, the province prospered, and Båhus castle was one of the key fortresses of the kingdom. When Norway was united withDenmark in 1537, the province began its decline in wealth; the area was frequently attacked by Swedish forces as part of the larger border skirmishes. The Norwegian fortress,Båhus, was built to protect this territory. Being a border zone towards the Swedish kingdom, and to a lesser extent against Danish lands in Halland, the Båhus region was disproportionately populated by soldier families.
Båhuslen belonged toDenmark-Norway until it was ceded to Sweden in theTreaty of Roskilde in 1658. The fortress ofCarlsten was built in Marstrand during the 17th century. For a period, Marstrand was also afree port (porto Franco), with a free religious practice and, as such, home to the onlysynagogue in Sweden at the time.
The commercial fishing ofherring increased in the 18th century, and the province flourished during a major herring period around 1747–1809. Many small fishing communities grew up around the coast.
Before the large scale fishing of herring started, Bohuslän had a considerable forest cover. Timber was once the largest export product and main source of income in Bohuslän. But with the increased importance of fishing, more wood was needed as construction material for houses and boats, and as fuel for herring oil boilers (trankokerier). Deforestation during the 19th century gave rise to today's rugged, rocky landscape.
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A version of theGötaland dialect ofSwedish is spoken in Bohuslän. The province was a part of Norway until 1658 as mentioned above. Traces of Norwegian remain in the dialect. 'Bohuslän', literally means the 'Fief of Bohus', referring toBohus Fortress andlän.
TheNordic Bronze Age (c. 1700–500 BCE) producedrock art showing scenes from the daily life and religious rituals, such as the examples found in Bohuslän. Therock art at Tanum, possibly made earlier, c. 2,500 to 3,000 years ago, have been entered as a site in theUNESCOWorld heritage program.Rock carvings can be found scattered throughout Bohuslän. The carvings portray the life of an agricultural society with images of daily life, with human figures, religious rituals, ships, circular objects, soles, animals, and fertility figures (e.g.phalluses); and the creation of shallow bowls.
Hundreds of Sweden were sub-divisions of the Swedish provinces until the early 20th century. Bohuslän's hundreds were:
Despite the non-administrative status of Bohuslän, some historical functions still remain with football being administered byBohusläns Fotbollförbund.
People from Bohuslän are known asbohusläningar.
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