Jokkmokk Municipality (, fi, Jokimukan kunta, se, Johkamohkki gielda, fit, Jokinmukka) is a

municipality 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 ...

Norrbotten County Norrbotten County ( sv, Norrbottens län; se, Norrbottena leatna, fi, Norrbottenin lääni) is the northernmost county or ''län'' of Sweden. It is also the largest county by land area, almost a quarter of Sweden's total area. It shares borders ...

in northern

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 ...

. Its

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense. Types of seat The following are examples of different kinds of seat: * Armchair, a chair ...

is located in Jokkmokk. The name ''Jokkmokk'' is

Sami Acronyms * SAMI, ''Synchronized Accessible Media Interchange'', a closed-captioning format developed by Microsoft * Saudi Arabian Military Industries, a government-owned defence company * South African Malaria Initiative, a virtual expertise ...

for the words "

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...

" and "bend", since the town is situated close to a bend in the nearby river. It's Sweden's poorest municipality. The municipality is the second largest in area of all Swedish municipalities and is, with an area of 19,477 km² (approximately 7,520 square miles) slightly smaller than

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

or the US

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delawa ...

. It has never been amalgamated with another entity, having been that large ever since municipalities were established in Sweden in 1863.

History

The name Jokkmokk is present in the Jokkmokk Lapland Court District, a historical jurisdiction. When the municipality was given its current borders in 1971, its municipal

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

were made to depict the hydro plant, the symbol of

Luleå Luleå ( , , locally ; smj, Luleju; fi, Luulaja) is a city on the coast of northern Sweden, and the capital of Norrbotten County, the northernmost county in Sweden. Luleå has 48,728 inhabitants in its urban core (2018) and is the seat of Lu ...

(to which Jokkmokk belonged until 1673), and the traditional

hammer A hammer is a tool, most often a hand tool, consisting of a weighted "head" fixed to a long handle that is swung to deliver an impact to a small area of an object. This can be, for example, to drive nails into wood, to shape metal (as wi ...

Geography

The municipality is situated in the

Scandinavian Mountains The Scandinavian Mountains or the Scandes is a mountain range that runs through the Scandinavian Peninsula. The western sides of the mountains drop precipitously into the North Sea and Norwegian Sea, forming the fjords of Norway, whereas to th ...

in Swedish Lapland and is sparsely populated. A large part of the area has been the habitat of

reindeer Reindeer (in North American English, known as caribou if wild and ''reindeer'' if domesticated) are deer in the genus ''Rangifer''. For the last few decades, reindeer were assigned to one species, ''Rangifer tarandus'', with about 10 subs ...

herding Sami people for thousands of years and has for that reason been protected as a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

under the name

Laponian area The Laponian area is a large mountainous wildlife area in the Lapland province in northern Sweden, more precisely in Gällivare Municipality, Arjeplog Municipality and Jokkmokk Municipality. It was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996; t ...

. The Laponian area is roughly divided into the eastern flatlands and the western mountainous region. There are several well-structured and well-maintained starting locations for those interested in experiencing the majestic

wilderness Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...

. For instance, the

Kvikkjokk Kvikkjokk () is a small village situated in Jokkmokk Municipality, Norrbotten County, Sweden. It is located 120 km northwest of Jokkmokk. Several hiking trails start in Kvikkjokk. Kungsleden passes through the village and it is a popular sta ...

basecamp provides excursions and has a high quality

hostel A hostel is a form of low-cost, short-term shared sociable lodging where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed in a dormitory, with shared use of a lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex and have private or share ...

. Due to the northern location, the

aurora borealis An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

can be experienced all through winter (November to March), and the

midnight sun The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When the midnight sun is seen in the Arctic, ...

can be experienced during June and July. The Lule River and the Lesser Lule River flows through the district. The rivers are heavily regulated for

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined an ...

, most of all in Sweden. 6 of the 10 largest hydroelectric plants are located in the area. This includes the 977 MW Harsprånget, the 480 MW Porjus, and the 460 MW Messaure. There's a total of 11 hydroelectric plants in the area, 9 over 100 MW, 8 over 200 MW, and 4 over 400 MW.

Localities

There are three official localities (or urban areas) in Jokkmokk Municipality. The municipal seat is bolded: Additional small settlements within the municipality include the Sami

reindeer herding Reindeer herding is when reindeer are herded by people in a limited area. Currently, reindeer are the only semi-domesticated animal which naturally belongs to the North. Reindeer herding is conducted in nine countries: Norway, Finland, Sweden, Rus ...

camp Udtja and the village of Puottaure.

Attractions

National parks

The four

national park A national park is a natural park in use for conservation purposes, created and protected by national governments. Often it is a reserve of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that a sovereign state declares or owns. Although individual ...

s in Jokkmokk Municipality all have their own distinct identity. The national parks are

Sarek Sarek is a fictional character in the ''Star Trek'' media franchise. He is a Vulcan astrophysicist, the Vulcan ambassador to the United Federation of Planets, and father of Spock. The character was originally played by Mark Lenard in the epis ...

Muddus Muddus (; smj, Muttos) is a national park in northern Sweden. It is situated in the province Lapland, with its largest part in the Gällivare Municipality. Furthermore, it belongs to the largely untouched UNESCO World Heritage classified Lapo ...

Padjelanta Padjelanta ( sv, Padjelanta nationalpark) is a national park in Norrbotten County in northern Sweden. Established in 1963, it is the largest national park in Sweden with an area of , and part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Laponia establi ...

and

Stora Sjöfallet Stora Enso Oyj (from sv, Stora and fi, Enso ) is a manufacturer of pulp, paper and other forest products, headquartered in Helsinki, Finland. The majority of sales takes place in Europe, but there are also significant operations in Asia and S ...

. These national parks are popular with tourists all year around but the darkest and coldest months (November to January) are not recommended for beginners. The best period for sunshine and winter activities is from February all through April, when the

snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughou ...

lies deep and the days are long. This time of year the national parks are easily accessible by

snowmobile A snowmobile, also known as a Ski-Doo, snowmachine, sled, motor sled, motor sledge, skimobile, or snow scooter, is a motorized vehicle designed for winter travel and recreation on snow. It is designed to be operated on snow and ice and does not ...

and

ski A ski is a narrow strip of semi-rigid material worn underfoot to glide over snow. Substantially longer than wide and characteristically employed in pairs, skis are attached to ski boots with ski bindings, with either a free, lockable, or partia ...

s. Visitors should understand and respect that the wilderness is just that, and snowmobiles are not allowed in the parks at any time. The summer in Jokkmokk Municipality is short but intense. The ground is free of snow from May until late October, early November. As with most areas in the

Nordic countries The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sw ...

, the actual warm period is quite short, but as Jokkmokk Municipality has a

continental climate Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in the middle latitudes (40 to 55 north), within large landmasses where prevailing winds blow overland bringing so ...

, the temperature can top 30 degrees Celsius in the summer and reach as low as -40 degrees Celsius in the winter. During the summer months

hikers Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histo ...

and other friends of nature converge in the national parks and this is also the time when most of the parks are most easily accessed. Visitors should be warned that the amount of

mosquito Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning " gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "li ...

es can be difficult to those not used to them and driving has an added danger in the reindeer that seek shelter from the mosquitoes. Collisions with reindeer are frequent in most of the northern parts of the Nordic countries and drivers should keep an eye out. Fall is also short and the shifting colors of the wide forests make the surroundings burn with color. This is a good time for hiking but due to the shifting temperatures the mountainous parts of the national parks can be treacherous for those unprepared.

Other attractions

Jokkmokk is known for its Sami market held the first weekend every February. This market has been held for more than 400 consecutive years. Initially a gathering of traders from the entire region the market has long since grown to be more than a simple gathering of traders and is now a week-long cultural event with lectures, art exhibitions, concerts and much more.

Mining

There are

iron ore Iron ores are rocks and minerals from which metallic iron can be economically extracted. The ores are usually rich in iron oxides and vary in color from dark grey, bright yellow, or deep purple to rusty red. The iron is usually found in the ...

deposits in the region, and the proposed Kallak mine, which has been met with resistance by activists, lies within the municipality. Mining exploration by British company Beowulf Mining has identified a potential mining site between the (non-Sami) villages of Björkholmen and Randijaur, which forms part of the

winter grazing lands of the Sami community of Jåhkågasska tjiellde.

Elections

Riksdag The Riksdag (, ; also sv, riksdagen or ''Sveriges riksdag'' ) is the legislature and the supreme decision-making body of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral legislature with 349 members (), elected proportionally and se ...

These are the results of the elections to the Riksdag since the 1972 municipal reform.

Norrbotten Party The Norbotten Party (''Norrbottenspartiet'') was a minor, regional party in Sweden. The base of the party was in the most northern Swedish province, Norrbotten County, and in the local and regional parties, the Kiruna Party and the Norrbotten Heal ...

also contested the

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nels ...

election but due to the party's small size at a nationwide level SCB did not publish the party's results at a municipal level. The same applies to the Sweden Democrats between 1988 and 1998. "Turnout" denotes the percentage of eligible voters casting any ballots, whereas "Votes" denotes the number of actual valid ballots cast. Blocs This lists the relative strength of the socialist and centre-right blocs since 1973, but parties not elected to the Riksdag are inserted as "other", including the Sweden Democrats results from 1988 to 2006, but also the Christian Democrats pre-1991 and the Greens in 1982, 1985 and 1991. The sources are identical to the table above. The coalition or government mandate marked in bold formed the government after the election. New Democracy got elected in 1991 but are still listed as "other" due to the short lifespan of the party.