Västra Götaland County Explained

Official Name:Västra Götaland County
Settlement Type:County
Flag Size:100px
Blank Emblem Type: 
Blank Emblem Size:150px
Image Map1:Sweden Västra Götaland location map.svg
Map Caption1:Location map of Västra Götaland County in Sweden
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name:Sweden
Established Title:Founded
Established Date:1 January 1998
Seat Type:Capital
Seat:Gothenburg
Parts Type:Municipalities
Parts:49
P1:Ale
P2:Alingsås
P3:Åmål
P4:Bengtsfors
P5:Bollebygd
P6:Borås
P7:Dals-Ed
P8:Essunga
P9:Falköping
P10:Färgelanda
P11:Götene
P12:Gothenburg
P13:Grästorp
P14:Gullspång
P15:Härryda
P16:Herrljunga
P17:Hjo
P18:Karlsborg
P19:Kungälv
P20:Lerum
P21:Lidköping
P22:Lilla Edet
P23:Lysekil
P24:Mariestad
P25:Mark
P26:Mellerud
P27:Mölndal
P28:Munkedal
P29:Öckerö
P30:Orust
P31:Partille
P32:Skara
P33:Skövde
P34:Sotenäs
P35:Stenungsund
P36:Strömstad
P37:Svenljunga
P38:Tanum
P39:Tibro
P40:Tidaholm
P41:Tjörn
P42:Töreboda
P43:Tranemo
P44:Trollhättan
P45:Uddevalla
P46:Ulricehamn
P47:Vänersborg
P48:Vara
P49:Vårgårda
Leader Title:Governor
Leader Name:Lars Bäckström
Leader Title1:Council
Leader Name1:Västra Götaland Regional Council
Area Total Km2:25,247
Population As Of:31 December 2023
Population Footnotes:[1]
Population Total:1,767,016
Population Density Km2:auto
Demographics Type1:GDP
Demographics1 Footnotes:[2]
Demographics1 Title1:Total
Demographics1 Info1:SEK 711 billion
€76.030 billion (2015)
Timezone1:CET
Utc Offset1:+1
Timezone1 Dst:CEST
Utc Offset1 Dst:+2
Iso Code:SE-O
Blank Name Sec2:NUTS Region

Västra Götaland County (Swedish: Västra Götalands län) is a county or län on the western coast of Sweden.

The county is the second most populous of Sweden's counties and it comprises 49 municipalities (kommuner). Its population of 1,616,000 amounts to 17% of Sweden's population. The formal capital and seat of the governor of Västra Götaland County is Gothenburg. The political capital and seat of the Västra Götaland Regional Council is Vänersborg.

The county was established on 1 January 1998, when Älvsborg County, Gothenburg and Bohus County and Skaraborg County were merged.

Provinces

Sweden's counties are generally of greater importance than its provinces. The counties are the main administrative units for politics and population census counts.

Due to its size and young age, the Västra Götaland County has no common heritage. Of cultural and historical significance are the provinces that Västra Götaland County consists of: Västergötland, Bohuslän and Dalsland. There is also an insignificant part of the province Halland within the county.

In addition, the previous counties that were abolished in 1998 had been in use since the 17th century, and therefore have some cultural and historical significance.

Neighbours

Västra Götaland County borders to the counties of Värmland, Örebro, Östergötland, Jönköping and Halland. It is also bounded by the Norwegian county of Østfold both with a land and maritime border, lakes Vättern and Vänern, as well as the strait of Skagerrak.

Administration

Västra Götaland was created in 1998 by a merger of the three former counties of Gothenburg and Bohus County, Älvsborg County and Skaraborg County. The seat of residence for the Governors or Landshövding is Gothenburg, while the seat of political administration and power is Vänersborg. The Governor is the head of the County Administrative Board or Länsstyrelse.

Politics

The Västra Götaland Regional Council or Västra Götalandsregionen is an evolved County Council that for a trial period has assumed certain tasks from the County Administrative Board. Similar trial councils are applied for Skåne County and Gotland County.

Municipalities

Heraldry

The arms for the County of Västra Götaland were granted in 1998 when the county was formed. They are a combination of the provincial arms of Västergötland, Bohuslän and Dalsland and the arms of the city of Gothenburg. When the arms are shown with a royal crown they represent the County Administrative Board, which is the regional presence of (royal) government authority. Blazon: "Quartered, I. the arms of Gothenburg II. the arms of Bohuslän III. the arms of Dalsland turned in courtoisie, IV. the arms of Västergötland."

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Folkmängd i riket, län och kommuner 31 december 2023 och befolkningsförändringar 2023 . . 31 December 2023 . 2 June 2024.
  2. http://stats.oecd.org/ Regions and Cities > Regional Statistics > Regional Economy > Regional GDP per Capita