Leksand () is a locality and the seat of

Leksand Municipality Leksand Municipality () is a municipality in Dalarna County in central Sweden. Its seat is located in the town of Leksand. In 1974 "old" Leksand was amalgamated with ''Ål'' and reunited with ''Siljansnäs'' (which had been separated from it in ...

Dalarna County Dalarna County () is a county or '' län'' in central Sweden (Svealand). It borders on the counties of Uppsala, Jämtland, Gävleborg, Västmanland, Örebro and Värmland. It also borders on the Norwegian counties of Hedmark and Trøndelag to ...

, Sweden, with 5,934 inhabitants in 2010. Leksand is situated on the southern branch of lake Siljan, where it flows into river Österdalälven.

Sport

Leksand is famous for the Leksands IF ice hockey team, who have won four Swedish Championships. Leksand is also home to the Leksands Baseball and Softball Club, the oldest and one of the more successful baseball clubs in Sweden, having won 20 national championships in baseball and 7 in softball. The club was founded in the late 1950s and currently has about 130 members. Additionally, Leksand is home to the Baseball Academy Leksand, a

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

(MLB)-sponsored academy established in 2006. The academy is part of a broader drive by MLB to develop European talent through a system of baseball academies across the continent, and is the only such academy in Sweden. As of March 2010, Baseball Academy Leksand comprised 22 Swedish players and was managed by Tony Klarberg.

Climate

Leksand has a

humid continental climate A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers, and cold ...

(

Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...

''Dfb''). The influence of the Siljan lake is relatively minor on the local climate due to its modest size and freezing over every winter. However, some potential for

lake-effect snow Lake-effect snow is produced during cooler atmospheric conditions when a cold air mass moves across long expanses of warmer lake water. The lower layer of air, heated by the lake water, picks up water vapor from the lake and rises through colde ...

causing excessive accumulation is possible when there is open water. This resulted in a notable freak

blizzard A blizzard is a severe Winter storm, snowstorm characterized by strong sustained winds and low visibility, lasting for a prolonged period of time—typically at least three or four hours. A ground blizzard is a weather condition where snow th ...

of the middle of May 2008 that left of snow on the ground. Winters and springs are influenced by the inland position, with January being quite a bit colder than coastal areas to the east in Gävleborg but spring warming up sooner with a very low

seasonal lag Seasonal lag is the phenomenon whereby the date of maximum average air temperature at a geographical location on a planet is delayed until some time after the date of maximum daylight (i.e. the summer solstice). This also applies to the minimum ...

Industry

Local industry in Leksand includes Leksandsbröd, a producer of traditional Swedish Crispbread.

Notable people

* Per-Olov Brasar - Former

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

(NHL) forward, active 1977 to 1982 * Kristian Matsson -

The Tallest Man on Earth Kristian Matsson (born 30 April 1983) is a Swedish singer-songwriter who performs under the stage name The Tallest Man on Earth. Matsson grew up in Leksand, and began his solo career in 2006, having previously been the lead singer of the Indepen ...

, folk musician * Johan Hedberg - Former NHL goalkeeper with the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

Dallas Stars The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. The Stars compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The Stars ...

Atlanta Thrashers The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League (NHL) on June 25, 1997, and became the League's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 NHL sea ...

and

New Jersey Devils The New Jersey Devils are a professional ice hockey team based in Newark, New Jersey. The Devils compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The club w ...

* Anders J. Dahlin - Internationally acclaimed tenor and opera singer * Victor Rask - Former NHL forward with the

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Con ...

Minnesota Wild The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Confer ...

, and

Seattle Kraken The Seattle Kraken are a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle. The Kraken compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. The t ...

, currently plays for

HC Fribourg-Gottéron HC Fribourg-Gottéron is a professional ice hockey team based in Fribourg, Switzerland, which competes in the National League (ice hockey), National League (NL). The team was the sixth most attended team in Switzerland for the 2015–16 season wit ...

in the Swiss National League

Sister cities

Aurora, Ontario Aurora ( 2021 population: 62,057) is a town in central York Region in the Greater Toronto Area, within the Golden Horseshoe of Southern Ontario, Canada. It is located north of the City of Richmond Hill and is partially situated on the Oak Ridge ...

, Canada *

Tōbetsu, Hokkaido is a List of towns in Japan, town located in Ishikari Subprefecture, Ishikari, Hokkaido, Japan. As of July 31, 2023 the town had an estimated population of 15,347, and a population density, density of 36.3 persons per km2. The total area is 422 ...

, Japan

References

External links

* Municipal seats of Dalarna County Swedish municipal seats Populated places in Leksand Municipality Populated lakeshore places in Sweden {{Dalarna-geo-stub