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Piteå () is a locality and the seat of
Piteå Municipality Piteå Municipality (; ) is a municipality in Norrbotten County in northern Sweden. Its seat is located in Piteå. Localities There are 14 localities (or urban areas) in Piteå Municipality: The municipal seat in bold Twin towns – sister ...
in
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 border ...
, Sweden. Piteå is Sweden's 58th largest city, with a population of 23,326.


Geography

Piteå is located at the mouth of the
Pite River The Pite River (''Bidumedno'' in Pite Sami. ''Piteälven'', ''Pite älv'' or ''Piteå älv'' in Swedish.) is a river in northern Sweden, flowing through the Norrbotten County. It is one of the four major rivers in Norrland that have been left mostl ...
( sv, Piteälven), at the shore of the Bay of Bothnia. The central part is located on an islet called Häggholmen, which due to post-glacial rebound almost has become a part of the mainland; the land in northern Sweden rises at a rate of up to per year. Piteå's coastal location, with numerous islands and inlets, is one of the reasons it is a popular place for tourism both in summer and winter. It features a beach resort area called Pite Havsbad, around which there is a
spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneoth ...
, a long sandy beach, a restaurant and a golf course. The area is also suitable for fishing and outdoor activities. In the winter, snow activities such as skiing and winter bathing are common. The water temperatures reportedly being Sweden's warmest during three consecutive summers in the 1950s, the beach then became known as "Norrbotten's Riviera".


Climate

Piteå has a climate that is classified as
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 ...
( Köppen climate classification Dfc), bordering to a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classification Dfb). The warmest months in Piteå are June, July, and August, with high temperatures of . The coldest are December, January, and February, with low temperatures of .


History

Piteå received its city privileges on 12 May 1621. The town was originally situated slightly north of its current location, in present-day Öjebyn. In July 1666, the entire town burnt down, and over the following few years it was rebuilt on ''Häggholmen'', a small island which forms the nucleus of present-day Piteå. In 1721, the new town was burnt down by Russian troops during the Russian Pillage of 1719-1721, and the only building that remained was the church, which is still standing. The town square, where the town hall is located, has kept its structure from the 17th century. It is one of only two squares in Sweden with closed corners; the other one is in Uppsala. Piteå's population has increased rapidly since the 19th century. In the years 1870–1920, Piteå had a population of only 2,500 people. Part of the early population increase is attributed to the 1911 opening of the Älvsbyn-Piteå railway branch, as well as industrial establishments and the harbour. Piteå has traditionally had a strong forestry industry; papermills, sawmills, and its harbour are of some importance.


Culture

Piteå is known for its pitepalt, a food dish consisting of potato dumplings with chopped pork filling. The area is also known for its dialect, called
Pitemål Norrland dialects ( sv, norrländska mål, links=no) is one of the six major dialect groupings of the Swedish language. It comprises most dialects traditionally spoken in Norrland, except for those of Gästrikland and southern Hälsingland, which a ...
, which however is mainly spoken by elders in surrounding villages. Piteå has a fast food drive-thru commonly used by snowmobilers. The restaurant was a McDonald's from February 2002 to November 2007. Several McDonald's restaurants in Norrbotten closed at the time, in the face of competition from Max Hamburgers. The restaurant is now part of the Frasses hamburger chain. The drive-thru has received international coverage, including on The Travel Channel in an episode called "Most Unique McDonald's". Piteå has a sister city in the Caribbean: Gustavia, Saint Barthélemy, Gustavia, capital of Saint Barthélemy, the formerly Swedish possession that is now part of France. The School of music of Luleå University of Technology is located in Piteå.


Cleantech

Piteå has emerged as an important center of cleantech production and research based on cellulose byproducts. Chemrec operates a black liquor gasifier and the world's first BioDME production facility, SunPine has pioneered a renewable diesel process technology using crude tall oil as feedstock, and ETC (Energy Technology Centre in Piteå) is a research and development center for renewable fuels with focus on combustion, gasification and biorefining processes.


Sport

The Piteå IF football team is playing in the fourth highest Swedish division, Swedish Division 2, Division 2 for men; and the Piteå IF ladies team is for their first time playing in the highest league in football, Damallsvenskan. Ice hockey is the big sport in town, even though Piteå HC only plays in the third-highest League (Division I) in Sweden. The club has provided many good players to the National Hockey League, NHL and national team: examples are Tomas Holmström, Mikael Renberg, Mattias Öhlund, Lars Lindgren, Stefan Persson (ice hockey), Stefan Persson, Jan Sandström (ice hockey), Jan Sandström and Mats Lavander. Munksund-Skuthamns SK ladies team is, for their first time, playing in the highest league in Hockey, Riksserien. Rebecka Stenberg became the first woman from Piteå to play for the Sweden women's national ice hockey team, Swedish national team. In cross-country skiing (sport), cross-country skiing the town has a successful club called Piteå Elit, with skiers like Lina Andersson, Magdalena Pajala and Charlotte Kalla. In swimming (sport), competitive swimming, the town has a very successful team called Piteå Sim which is famous all over Norrland especially Norrbotten. One of the most famous swimmers in the club is 13-year-old Heidi Nilsson who got first place in the Junior, Senior and Ladies category in the Piteå Kanalsimmet 2018 which takes place every year on Walpurgis Night, Valborgsmässoafton. Other sports clubs located in Piteå include Storfors AIK, MSSK and the northern paintball team 'Team X-rated'.


People from Piteå

*Christopher Jacob Boström *Nils Edén *Tomas Holmström — NHL player with the Detroit Red Wings *Lars Lindgren — retired former NHL player *Nils Lundkvist, Nils Lundqvist — defenseman with the Dallas Stars *Liza Marklund *Peter Mattei — Swedish baritone opera singer *Mattias Öhlund — NHL player with the Vancouver Canucks *Mikael Renberg — retired former NHL player *Anna Magnusson — Swedish biathlete *Daniel Solander — Explorer


International relations


Twin towns – Sister cities

Piteå is twin towns and sister cities, twinned with: * Kandalaksha, Russia * Grindavík, Iceland * Gustavia, Saint Barthélemy, Gustavia, Saint Barthélemy, France


References


External links


Official website of Piteå


in the 1915 ''Nordisk familjebok'', with images on following page {{DEFAULTSORT:Pitea Piteå, Populated places in Piteå Municipality Norrbotten Coastal cities and towns in Sweden Municipal seats of Norrbotten County Swedish municipal seats Populated places established in 1621 1621 establishments in Sweden Cities in Norrbotten County