Kinnekulle is a flat-topped mountain in the county of

Västergötland Västergötland (), also known as West Gothland or the Latinized version Westrogothia in older literature, is one of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden (''landskap'' in Swedish), situated in the southwest of Sweden. Väs ...

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 ...

, on the eastern shore of lake

Vänern Vänern ( , also , ) is the largest lake in Sweden, the largest lake in the European Union and the third-largest lake of all Europe after Ladoga and Onega in Russia. It is located in the provinces of Västergötland, Dalsland, and Värmland in ...

. Its highest point is above sea level. The mountain is long and wide at the top.

Geology

Despite its enormous size, Kinnekulle is actually the smaller remnant of a much larger plateau, long ago worn down to a flat plain. Some 550 million years ago, in the Neoproterozoic Era, the bottom-most rock of the plateau was under the sea. Layers of

sedimentary rock Sedimentary rocks are types of rock that are formed by the accumulation or deposition of mineral or organic particles at Earth's surface, followed by cementation. Sedimentation is the collective name for processes that cause these particles ...

formed over that layer from sand, mud, and sea animal remains. About 200 million years ago, during the

Mesozoic era The Mesozoic Era ( ), also called the Age of Reptiles, the Age of Conifers, and colloquially as the Age of the Dinosaurs is the second-to-last Era (geology), era of Earth's Geologic time scale, geological history, lasting from about , comprising ...

, the area was uplifted above the sea. Tectonic activity forced molten

lava Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...

through the sedimentary rock, creating sheetlike layers of

diabase Diabase (), also called dolerite () or microgabbro, is a mafic, holocrystalline, subvolcanic rock equivalent to volcanic basalt or plutonic gabbro. Diabase dikes and sills are typically shallow intrusive bodies and often exhibit fine-graine ...

. These layers, when present, protected the softer sedimentary rock beneath them from erosion, resulting in

mesa A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by ...

-like mountains such as Kinnekulle and its neighbours.

History

The historic town and church of

Husaby Husaby is a village, near Kinnekulle, belonging to Götene Municipality in the province of Västergötland, Sweden. Husaby Church Husaby is most known for Husaby Church (''Husaby kyrka'') a medieval stone church. During the early 11th centu ...

are located on the south side of the Kinnekulle. Tradition says that

Olof Skötkonung Olof Skötkonung, (Old Norse: ''Óláfr skautkonungr'') sometimes stylized as ''Olaf the Swede'' (c. 980–1022), was King of Sweden, son of Eric the Victorious and, according to Icelandic sources, Sigrid the Haughty. He succeeded his father in ...

, the first Christian King of Sweden, was baptized here in 1008 at a well located just north of the church. The mountain of

Kinnefjellet Kinnefjellet is a mountain in Oscar II Land at Spitsbergen, Svalbard. It has peaks with heights of 601 and 544 m.a.s.l. and is located at the southern side of Venernbreen. The mountain is named after the hill of Kinnekulle in the Swedish provinc ...

Spitsbergen Spitsbergen (; formerly known as West Spitsbergen; Norwegian: ''Vest Spitsbergen'' or ''Vestspitsbergen'' , also sometimes spelled Spitzbergen) is the largest and the only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in northern Norw ...

Svalbard Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range ...

, is named after Kinnekulle.

References

External links

{{commons category
Kinnekulle - Turistportal

Sweden travel guide
Hills of Sweden Landforms of Västra Götaland County