Västra Götaland County ( sv, Västra Götalands län) is a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

or '' län'' on the western coast of

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 countries, Nordic c ...

. The county is the second most populous of Sweden's counties and it comprises 49

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...

(''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 Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...

. 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 Gothenburg and Bohus County ( sv, Göteborgs och Bohus län) was a county of Sweden until 1997, when it was merged with Skaraborg County and Älvsborg County to form Västra Götaland County. The county was named after the city of Gothenburg and ...

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 Jönköping (, ) is a city in southern Sweden with 112,766 inhabitants (2022). Jönköping is situated on the southern shore of Sweden's second largest lake, Vättern, in the province of Småland. The city is the seat of Jönköping Municipa ...

and Halland. It is also bounded by the Norwegian county of Viken both with a land and maritime border, lakes

Vättern Vättern ( , ) is the second largest lake by surface area in Sweden, after Vänern, and the sixth largest lake in Europe. It is a long, finger-shaped body of fresh water in south central Sweden, to the southeast of Vänern, pointing at the tip ...

and

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 Värmlan ...

, as well as the strait of Skagerrak.

Administration

Västra Götaland was created in 1998 by a merger of the three former counties of

, Älvsborg County and Skaraborg County. The seat of residence for the Governors or ''Landshövding'' is

, 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 A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Ireland The county councils created under British rule in 1899 continue to exist in Irela ...

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

Ale Ale is a type of beer brewed using a warm fermentation method, resulting in a sweet, full-bodied and fruity taste. Historically, the term referred to a drink brewed without hops. As with most beers, ale typically has a bittering agent to bala ...

Alingsås Alingsås () is a locality and the seat of Alingsås Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 24,482 inhabitants in 2010. Geography Geographically the city is situated by the outlet of the small rivulet Säveån into lake Mjö ...

Bengtsfors Bengtsfors () is a locality and the seat of Bengtsfors Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name ...

* Bollebygd *

Borås Borås ( , , ) is a city (officially, a locality) and the seat of Borås Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 66,273 inhabitants in 2010. Geography Borås is located at the point of two crossing railways, among them th ...

* Dals-Ed * Essunga * Falköping * Färgelanda * Grästorp *

Gullspång Gullspång is a locality and one of two seats of the Gullspång Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. As of 2010 it had 1,167 inhabitants. History Gullspång provided the name for a new municipality created through the local governme ...

Götene Götene is a locality and the seat of Götene Municipality, Västra Götaland County, 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 K ...

* Herrljunga *

Hjo Hjo () is a locality and the seat of Hjo Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 6,094 inhabitants in 2010. The town is located on the west coast of Vättern. Etymology The place is named after Hjoån 'Hjo river'. The meaning of ...

* Härryda * Karlsborg * Kungälv *

Lerum Lerum is a locality and the seat of Lerum Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 16,855 inhabitants in 2010. Overview Lerum has a station on the Gothenburg commuter rail system and is a suburb of Gothenburg. The river of Säv ...

* Lidköping * Lilla Edet * Lysekil *

Mariestad Mariestad () is a locality and the seat of Mariestad Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 16,611 inhabitants in 2019. Until 1997 it was the capital of the former Skaraborg County and an episcopal see in the Church of Sweden bet ...

Mark Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Finn ...

Mellerud Mellerud is a locality and the seat of Mellerud Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is th ...

Munkedal Munkedal is a locality and the seat of Munkedal Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 3,718 inhabitants in 2010. Joakim Andersson, an ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on ...

* Mölndal * Orust *

Partille Partille () is a former urban area in the county of Västra Götaland in 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 Sw ...

* Skara * Skövde * Sotenäs * Stenungsund * Strömstad *

Svenljunga Svenljunga is a locality and the seat of Svenljunga Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name i ...

* Tanum * Tibro * Tidaholm * Tjörn * Tranemo * Trollhättan *

Töreboda Töreboda is a locality and the seat of Töreboda Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is ...

* Uddevalla * Ulricehamn *

Vara Vara or VARA may refer to: Geography *Vara (river), in Liguria, Italy * Vara Parish, former municipality in Tartu County, Estonia * Vara, Estonia, village in Peipsiääre Parish, Tartu County, Estonia *Vara Municipality, municipality in western Sw ...

* Vårgårda * Vänersborg * Åmål * Öckerö

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."

References and notes

External links

List of Västra Götaland Governors A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby union ...

Region Västra Götaland

Västra Götaland County Administrative Board

Gothenburg Regional Association of Local Authorities

Sjuhärad Regional Association of Local Authorities

Skaraborg Regional Association of Local Authorities

Fyrbodals Regional Association of Local Authorities
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vastra Gotaland County Counties of Sweden Bohuslän Dalsland Västergötland States and territories established in 1998 1998 establishments in Sweden