Älvdalen (

Elfdalian Elfdalian or Övdalian ( or , pronounced in Elfdalian, or in Swedish) is a North Germanic language spoken by up to 3,000 people who live or have grown up in the locality of Älvdalen ('), which is located in the southeastern part of Älvdale ...

: ''Övdaln'' or ''Tjyörtjbynn''; literally meaning ''The River Valley'') is a

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivis ...

and the seat of

Älvdalen Municipality Älvdalen Municipality ( sv, Älvdalens kommun, sma, Älvdaelien tjïelte, Elfdalian: ''Kommun Övdaln'') is a municipality in Dalarna County in central Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Älvdalen. The two parishes ''Särna'' and ''Idr ...

Dalarna County Dalarna County ( sv, Dalarnas län) is a county or '' län'' in central Sweden (Svealand). It borders on the counties of Uppsala, Jämtland, Gävleborg, Västmanland, Örebro and Värmland. It also borders on the Norwegian counties of Hedmark ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

, with 1,810 inhabitants in 2010. The

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

is widely known for being the place of manufacturing, in 1839, of the 4-meter granite vase (called ''Älvdalen Vase''), installed in the

Summer Garden The Summer Garden (russian: Ле́тний сад, ''Letniy sad'') is a historic public garden that occupies an eponymous island between the Neva, Fontanka, Moika, and the Swan Canal in downtown Saint Petersburg, Russia and shares its name w ...

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

(a gift from

Charles XIV John of Sweden sv, Karl Johan Baptist Julius , spouse = , issue = Oscar I of Sweden , house = Bernadotte , father = Henri Bernadotte , mother = Jeanne de Saint-Jean , birth_date = , birth_place = Pau, ...

Nicholas I of Russia Nicholas I , group=pron ( – ) was List of Russian rulers, Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Congress Poland and Grand Duke of Finland. He was the third son of Paul I of Russia, Paul I and younger brother of his predecessor, Alexander I ...

). Nearby is the Hykjebergets Nature Reserve, inaugurated by

Prince Carl Philip A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

and Princess Sofia in 2016.

Language

The indigenous

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of met ...

of Älvdalen is

. Although it contains many

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed entity ...

s it still preserves various

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

traits that have ceased to exist in most other

North Germanic languages The North Germanic languages make up one of the three branches of the Germanic languages—a sub-family of the Indo-European languages—along with the West Germanic languages and the extinct East Germanic languages. The language group is also r ...

.
O'Hagan, Sean: ''Witch hunts, mystics and race cars: inside the weirdest village in Sweden'' (photo-essay on photographer Maja Daniels's three-year sojourn in Älvdalen and her family connection to Elfdalian) The main spoken language in modern times is a Dalecarlian dialect of Swedish language, Swedish, which also is the dominant language in the local administration.

Climate

Älvdalen has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, ge ...

influenced by its location near the furthest interior position on the

Scandinavian Peninsula The Scandinavian Peninsula ( sv, Skandinaviska halvön; no, Den skandinaviske halvøy (Bokmål) or nn, Den skandinaviske halvøya; fi, Skandinavian niemimaa) is a peninsula located in Northern Europe, which roughly comprises the mainlands ...

. As a result, seasonal swings are large and the general climate has strong resemblances to

Skellefteå Skellefteå (, locally ) is a Cities in Sweden, city in Västerbotten County, Sweden. It is the seat of Skellefteå Municipality, which had 73,246 inhabitants in 2021. The city is historically industrial, with mining being a large part of that i ...

much further north at sea level. Being in a river valley, the area is also prone to temperature inversion and harsh freezing. Compared to

Mora Mora may refer to: People * Mora (surname) Places Sweden * Mora, Säter, Sweden * Mora, Sweden, the seat of Mora Municipality * Mora Municipality, Sweden United States * Mora, Louisiana, an unincorporated community * Mora, Minnesota, a city * M ...

about to its southeast, temperature differences are comparatively large since Mora is lower, further south and situated by the slightly moderating lake of Siljan.

References

Municipal seats of Dalarna County Swedish municipal seats Populated places in Dalarna County Populated places in Älvdalen Municipality {{Dalarna-geo-stub

Language

Climate

See also

References