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 country located on ...

. 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 go ...

(''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. The political capital and seat of the

Västra Götaland Regional Council The Västra Götaland Regional Council, or, Region Västra Götaland, or ''Västra Götalandsregionen'', is the devolved regional council of Västra Götaland County in Sweden. It was created in 1999 by the merger of the county councils of Gothenbur ...

Vänersborg Vänersborg () is a locality and the seat of Vänersborg Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 23,882 inhabitants (out of a municipal total of 39,591) Until 1997 it was the capital of Älvsborg County, which was dissolved in 1998. Sin ...

. The county was established on 1 January 1998, when

Älvsborg County Älvsborg County ( sv, Älvsborgs län) was a county of Sweden until 1997, when it was merged with the counties of Gothenburg & Bohus and Skaraborg to form Västra Götaland County. The county corresponded to the traditional province of Dals ...

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 a ...

and

Skaraborg County Skaraborg County ( sv, Skaraborgs län ) was a county of Sweden from 1634 until 1997. It was disestablished at the end of 1997 when it was merged with the counties of Gothenburg and Bohus and Älvsborg to form Västra Götaland County. The count ...

were merged.

Provinces

Sweden's counties are generally of greater importance than its

provinces A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

. 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 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 ...

, Bohuslän and

Dalsland Dalsland () is a Swedish traditional province, or ''landskap'', situated in Götaland in southern Sweden. Lying to the west of Lake Vänern, it is bordered by Värmland to the north, Västergötland to the southeast, Bohuslän to the west, and ...

. There is also an insignificant part of the province

Halland Halland () is one of the traditional provinces of Sweden (''landskap''), on the western coast of Götaland, southern Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Småland, Scania and the sea of Kattegat. Until 1645 and the Second Treaty of Brömseb ...

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 Värmland () also known as Wermeland, is a '' landskap'' (historical province) in west-central Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland, and Närke, and is bounded by Norway in the west. Latin name versions are '' ...

Örebro Örebro ( , ) is the sixth-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Örebro Municipality, and capital of the Örebro County. It is situated by the Närke Plain, near the lake Hjälmaren, a few kilometers inland along the small river Svartån, and ...

, 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

. It is also bounded by the

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

county of

Viken Viken may refer to: *Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region *Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020 *Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden *Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta cana ...

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 Värmland i ...

, as well as the strait of

Skagerrak The Skagerrak (, , ) is a strait running between the Jutland peninsula of Denmark, the southeast coast of Norway and the west coast of Sweden, connecting the North Sea and the Kattegat sea area through the Danish Straits to the Baltic Sea. T ...

Administration

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

and

. The seat of residence for the

Governors A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

or ''Landshövding'' is Gothenburg, while the seat of political administration and power is

. The Governor is the head of the

County Administrative Board A county administrative board ( sv, länsstyrelse) is a Swedish Government Agency in each of the counties of Sweden, led by a vice-regal governor ( sv, landshövding) appointed by the government for a term of six years. The lists of gubernatorial o ...

or ''Länsstyrelse''.

Politics

The

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 Irel ...

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 Gotland County ( sv, Gotlands län) is a county or ''län'' of Sweden. Gotland is located in the Baltic Sea to the east of Öland, and is the largest of Sweden's islands. Counties are usually sub-divided into municipalities, but Gotland County ...

Municipalities

* Ale *

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 Västra Götaland County ( sv, Västra Götalands län) is a county or '' län'' on the western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most popul ...

* 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 Falköping is a locality and the seat of Falköping Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 16,350 inhabitants in 2010. History The town of Falköping was first spoken of in the Icelandic ''Rimbegla'' (around 1100 A.D.), and ...

* Färgelanda *

Grästorp Grästorp is a urban areas of Sweden, locality and the seat of Grästorp Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 2,969 inhabitants in 2010. It is the only locality in Grästorp Municipality. Sports The following sports clubs are l ...

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 government ...

Götene Götene is a locality and the seat of Götene Municipality, Västra Götaland County Västra Götaland County ( sv, Västra Götalands län) is a county or '' län'' on the western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most populous of Sw ...

* Gothenburg *

Herrljunga Herrljunga () is a locality and the seat of Herrljunga Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 3,822 inhabitants in 2010. Overview The town grew up around a railway junction. From 1906 it had the status of a ''municipalsamhälle'' ...

Hjo Hjo () is a Urban areas in Sweden, 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 r ...

Härryda Härryda () is a locality situated in Härryda Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 968 inhabitants in 2010. Despite its name it is not the seat of the municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division ...

* Karlsborg *

Kungälv Kungälv () (old no, Konghelle) is a city and the seat of Kungälv Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 22,768 inhabitants in 2010. In 2021, the main Kungälv - Ytterby - Kareby conurbation had a combined population approachin ...

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 Säve ...

Lidköping Lidköping () is a locality and the seat of Lidköping Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had about 40 000 inhabitants in 2021. It is situated on the southern shore of Lake Vänern and sometimes refers to itself as "Lidkö ...

Lilla Edet Lilla Edet is a locality and the seat of Lilla Edet Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. It had 4,862 inhabitants in 2010. Lilla Edet was the smallest of three settlements that were burnt down in Sweden on 25 June 1888. The wooden to ...

* 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 be ...

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 * F ...

Mellerud Mellerud is a locality and the seat of Mellerud Municipality, Västra Götaland County Västra Götaland County ( sv, Västra Götalands län) is a county or '' län'' on the western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most populous of ...

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 player for the Detroit Red Wings, grew up in Munkedal. Olympian Erland Koch was born ...

Mölndal Mölndal () is the seat and administrative centre of Mölndal Municipality, located just south of Gothenburg on the west-coast of Sweden. About 40,000 of the municipality's 60,000 inhabitants live in Mölndal proper. Geography Mölndal is locate ...

Orust Orust () is an island in western Sweden, and Sweden's third largest island. In 2014 Statistics Sweden declared it to instead be the fourth largest island, under a definition which adds artificial canals to the possible bodies of water surrounding ...

Partille Partille () is a former urban area in the 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 ...

Skara Skara is a locality and the seat of Skara Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 18,580 inhabitants in 2013. Despite its small size, it is one of the oldest cities in Sweden, and has a long educational and ecclesiastical history. O ...

Skövde Skövde () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and urban centre in Skövde Municipality and Västra Götaland County, in the Västergötland, Västergötland (Western Gothland region) in central Southern Sweden. Skövde is situated some 150 ...

* Sotenäs * Stenungsund *

Strömstad Strömstad is a locality and the seat of Strömstad Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 6,288 inhabitants in 2010. For historical reasons, Strömstad is called a ''city'' despite its small population. Strömstad became part of S ...

* Svenljunga * Tanum * Tibro *

Tidaholm Tidaholm () is a locality and the seat of Tidaholm Municipality in Västergötland Province within Västra Götaland County, Sweden. The city consists of 520 square kilometers, or a little more than 200 square miles. It is located on the Tidan Rive ...

Tjörn Tjörn () is the sixth largest island in Sweden, located on the Swedish West coast in the province of Bohuslän. The area of the island is , and the area of the municipality is . The population, as of 2017, was 15,774 people. Geography Tjörn i ...

* Tranemo *

Trollhättan Trollhättan () is the 23rd-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Trollhättan Municipality, Västra Götaland County. It is situated by Göta älv, near the lake Vänern, and has a population of approximately 50,000 in the city proper. It is loc ...

Töreboda Töreboda is a locality and the seat of Töreboda Municipality, Västra Götaland County Västra Götaland County ( sv, Västra Götalands län) is a county or '' län'' on the western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most populous ...

Uddevalla Uddevalla (old no, Oddevold) is a town and the seat of Uddevalla Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden. In 2015, it had a population of 34 781. It is located at a bay of the south-eastern part of Skagerrak. The beaches of Uddevalla ar ...

Ulricehamn Ulricehamn is a locality and the seat of Ulricehamn Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden, with 9,787 inhabitants in 2010. History Ulricehamn, originally known as ''Bogesund'', has been populated at least since the Middle Ages. The town h ...

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 S ...

Vårgårda Vårgårda is a locality and the seat of Vårgårda 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 t ...

Åmål Åmål () is a locality and the seat of Åmål Municipality in Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 9,065 inhabitants in 2010. It is situated on the western shore of Vänern. In 2005 Åmål received second prize in the international competition ...

Öckerö Öckerö () is an island and a locality and the seat of Öckerö Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 3,488 inhabitants in 2010. Sports The following sports clubs are located in Öckerö: * Öckerö IF Öckerö IF is a Swedish ...

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