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Norrköping ( , ) is a
city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...
in the
province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of Östergötland in eastern
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
and the seat of Norrköping Municipality,
Östergötland County Östergötland County () is a county or '' län'' in southeastern Sweden. It has land borders with the counties of Kalmar to the southeast, Jönköping to the southwest, Örebro to the northwest, and Södermanland to the northeast. It also has a ...
, about 160 km southwest of the national capital
Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
, 40 km east of county seat Linköping and 60 km west of the
Södermanland Södermanland ( ), locally Sörmland, sometimes referred to under its Latinisation of names, Latinized form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a Provinces of Sweden, historical province (or ) on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Österg� ...
capital of Nyköping. The city has a population of 98,229 inhabitants in 2023, out of a municipal total of 144,980,making it Sweden's eleventh largest city and tenth largest municipality. The city is situated by the mouth of the river Motala ström, at Bråviken, an inlet of the
Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
. Water power from the Motala ström and the good
harbour A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be Mooring, moored. The t ...
were factors that facilitated the rapid growth of this once industrial city, known for its
textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...
industry. It has several nicknames such as: "Sweden's
Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...
", " Peking" and "Surbullestan" (Surbulle our bunwas a local nickname for the textile workers, and stan is short for Staden, which means The City or The Town in Swedish).


History

In 1993–1994, archaeological excavations at Borg in Norrköping revealed a farmstead established in the 7th century and continuously used through the Middle Ages, later becoming a royal manor under King Magnus Eriksson in the 14th century. Structures dating from the late 7th century to around 1000 AD were uncovered, along with evidence of ritual activities beginning in the 8th century and a possible cult building. It has been theorized that the farmstead's location, near but not at the highest point in the landscape, may indicate an earlier burial ground adjacent to which the farm was constructed. The city has
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...
foundations by
settler A settler or a colonist is a person who establishes or joins a permanent presence that is separate to existing communities. The entity that a settler establishes is a Human settlement, settlement. A settler is called a pioneer if they are among ...
s around the Motala stream estuary, who used the falls and rapids to power their mills. The stream was also full of fish such as
salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...
. Exact dates are uncertain, but there are mentions of a church in the 12th century. It was dedicated to Saint Olaf, Norway's patron. The first trace of the city's name is from 1283, when Sophia of Denmark donated her rights of salmon fishing to the Skänninge monastery. The town is estimated to have received city status in the early 14th century, although no written documents exist prior to a document from 1384. This document, signed by Albrekt of Sweden is stored in the city archive today.
Köping ''Köping'' was a Swedish denomination for a market town since the Middle Ages, derived from the Old Norse word '' kaupang''. The designation was officially abolished with the municipal reform of 1971, when Sweden was subdivided into the Munic ...
means there was a market there, while Nörr or Norr means "north". There is a smaller town nearby named Söderköping, or "South market". The city was the location of several battles in the ensuing centuries. As a consequence, nothing of the medieval Norrköping remains today. During the
Northern Seven Years' War The Northern Seven Years' War (also known as the ''Nordic Seven Years' War'', the ''First Northern War,'' the ''Seven Years' War of the North'' or the ''Seven Years War in Scandinavia'') was fought between the Kingdom of Sweden (1523–1611), K ...
(1563–1570), the entire southern part of Norrköping was burnt. It was rebuilt by John III of Sweden, who designed the current street pattern. In 1618, a weapon industry was established by supervision of
Gustavus Adolphus Gustavus Adolphus (9 December N.S 19 December">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="/nowiki>Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 19 December15946 November Old Style and New Style dates">N.S 16 November] 1632), also known in English as ...
. The harbour also attracted ships due to its proximity to the industries of Finspång. In addition to the weapon industry, a large scale industry of
textile Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...
was also initiated. An important benefactor was the industrial man Louis De Geer (1587–1652). At De Geer's death, Norrköping had 6,000 inhabitants and was Sweden's second largest city. The city again burnt in 1655, and again in 1719 during the Russian Pillage of 1719-21 when the Russians burnt it to the ground. Stones from the Johannisborg castle were used to build new houses, and today only a few stones remain. During the 18th century it was rebuilt and several industries soon got a stronghold: In the 1740s, Norrköping boasted three sugar refineries; in the 1750s the large scale influential snus industry was established. From this time stems the city churches of Saint Olof and Saint Hedvig, and several other old houses. In 1762, the first theater in Sweden outside of Stockholm was established in the city, the Egges Teater. Norrköping's importance again flourished. In 1769 the Swedish
Riksdag The Riksdag ( , ; also or , ) is the parliament and the parliamentary sovereignty, supreme decision-making body of the Kingdom of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral parliament with 349 members (), elected proportional rep ...
assembled there. In 1800 King Gustav IV of Sweden was crowned in the Church of Saint Olof. In the later 18th and early 19th Centuries, Norrköping was one of the three Swedish cities where
Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
were allowed to live (see History of the Jews in Sweden). The city again suffered fires in 1822 and 1826. Thereafter wooden houses were banned. In 1841 a ship industry was initiated as a branch of Motala Verkstad in
Motala Motala () is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Motala Municipality, Östergötland County, Sweden with a municipal population of 43,717 inhabitants in 2024. It is the third largest city of Östergötland, following Linköping and N ...
. In 1850 the industry had over 600 employees making it Sweden's largest ship industry at the time. During the remaining 19th century, the industries kept expanding. The area by the Motala Stream was developed further with the construction of a
cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...
refinery, and a
paper mill A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags, and other ingredients. Prior to the invention and adoption of the Fourdrinier machine and other types of paper machine that use an endless belt ...
was constructed in 1854, specializing in newspaper, and is still today exporting to customers around the world. The industry, including textile manufacturers, also expanded into the 20th century. In 1950 a total of 54 factories had 6,600 employees in town. By 1956, however, 18 of them had been closed due to competition from countries abroad with lower wages, such as
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
and
Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
. In 1970 only 10 factories and 1,200 employees remained. In that year, the renowned Holmen paper mill, with its 350 years long history, announced closure, and another 900 people were let go. To counter the effects, several governmental authorities were relocated to Norrköping from
Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...
. See also Braviken Paper Mill. As of 2002, Norrköping is now seeing a revival, as a center of culture and education. The Norrköping symbol represents the "new" Norrköping.


Main sights

The Motala ström river flows through the city has a parade annexed. In connection to the latter is the industrial landscape where the old textile industries once were situated. In the summer, there is a cactus plantation in ''Carl Johans Park''. 25,000 cacti are planted there every summer. Kolmårdens Djurpark is a zoo located north of Norrköping. In connection to the large outdoor zoo, there is also Tropicariet, an aquarium, where for example snakes, crocodiles and sharks can be seen. The archipelagos away from Norrköping are called St Anna and Gryt. Other locations of note includes a campus of Linköping University, its own symphonic orchestra, an airport called Kungsängen with 170,000 traveling (2006), a high-tech industry park called Norrköping Science Park, and Petroglyphs from the
Nordic Bronze Age The Nordic Bronze Age (also Northern Bronze Age, or Scandinavian Bronze Age) is a period of Scandinavian prehistory from . The Nordic Bronze Age culture emerged about 1750 BC as a continuation of the Late Neolithic Dagger period, which is root ...
.


Climate

Norrköping had 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 ...
( Dfb) for the reference period of 1961–1990, but it was borderline four-season oceanic (Cfb) during that period and has since more resembled the latter, with somewhat warmer temperatures year-round. In spite of it being located near the
Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...
, Norrköping has a relatively dry climate with precipitation levels averaging between 1961 and 1990. That would in turn be very low for a marine climate, but some way above more arid climates. The humidity for most of the year combined with there being no pronounced dry season keeps the surroundings green in spite of the rain shadow effect. Winter precipitation is quite low, but often falls as snow. On August 26, 2016, Norrköping set a nationwide record for the hottest temperature in the latter parts of August with during a sudden and brief burst of extreme heat. The warmest temperature on record was set in July 2022 with .


Notable natives

* Thecla Åhlander – stage and film actress * Hannes Alfvén – physicist, Nobel Prize winner * Joannes Olaus Alnander – 18th Century author * Johannes Årsjö – heavy weight champion * Malin Baryard – Olympic equestrian * Amy Diamond – singer * Eldkvarn – music group * Eva Gothlin – historian * Elin Grindemyr – model * Peter Harryson – actor, entertainer *
Ove Kindvall Bengt Ove Kindvall (born 16 May 1943) is a Swedish former professional footballer who played as a striker. He started his career at IFK Norrköping, where he played until he joined Feyenoord in 1966 and became professional. The same year, he ...
- soccer player * Markus Krunegård – solo singer and member of Laakso * Laakso – music group * Charlotta Löfgren – poet * Mats Löfving – police chief * Fredrik Lundberg – entrepreneur * Herman Theodor Lundgren – entrepreneur * Marduk – music group * Moa Martinson – author * Ture Nerman – poet and socialist politician * Christoffer Nyman - professional footballer * Betty Olsson - suffragist and peace activist * Magnus Pääjärvi-Svensson – NHL hockey player * Slagsmålsklubben – electronic popgroup * Carl Swartz – former prime minister * Jeffery Taylor – basketball player * Michael B. Tretow – producer and audio engineer * Pernilla Wiberg – alpine skier, double Olympic gold medalist * 23 Till – music group * Georg Aberg - Long and Triple Jumper * Johan "Toxjq" Quick - 2 Times QuakeCon champion


Sports

* HC Vita Hästen (
Ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...
) * IFK Norrköping (
Association football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
) * Norrköping Dolphins (
Basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
) * Norrköpings KK (
Swimming Swimming is the self-propulsion of a person through water, such as saltwater or freshwater environments, usually for recreation, sport, exercise, or survival. Swimmers achieve locomotion by coordinating limb and body movements to achieve hydrody ...
), who swim at the Medley Centralbadet. * NRK Troján ( Rugby) Speedway *
Motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four clockwise, anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that ...
takes place at the Norrköping Motorstadion, the stadium hosts the speedway team Vargarna. The team participate in the
Swedish Speedway Team Championship The Swedish Speedway Team Championship is the team championship of motorcycle speedway, speedway in Sweden. History The Championship was introduced in 1950. In 1982 the Championship was renamed with a new league called the Elitserien (speedwa ...
and are six times champions of Sweden, they raced at one former venue; the old Norrköping Motorstadion in Dagsbergsfältet (the site of the modern day Medley Centralbadet) from 1948 to 1963. The Dagsbergsfältet track staged a qualifying round of the Speedway World Championship in 1954.


Government agencies

As part of the Swedish government decentralisation policies of the 1960s and 1970s, a number of government agencies saw their national headquarters relocated from Stockholm to other parts of the country. A government inquiry suggested in 1970 that six such agencies should be relocated to Norrköping, with a particular focus on maritime and aviation transport and related services. After parliamentary debate, five agencies were established in Norrköping over a period of years in the early 1970s. While reorganized, restructured and renamed, in general, the same agencies are still headquartered in Norrköping, namely: * Air Navigation Services of Sweden * Swedish Maritime Administration * Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute * Swedish Migration Agency * Swedish Prison and Probation Service The establishment of government agencies in Norrköping was partly understood as a response to the decline in the textile industry, which had struck Norrköping hard in the 1960s. The city needed new jobs. The relocation of government jobs, however, also meant a major shift in the structure of the city labour market. Unqualified or highly structured industrial work in the private sector was replaced by more than 1 400 qualified and independent work positions in the public sector. At a later point, the Norrköping cluster of transport authorities was augmented by one more: * Swedish Transport Agency () In 1997, a state university also opened a subsidiary campus in Norrköping, again, relating to the industry changes and being an important part of the government response to unemployment and labour market policy. Although not a headquarter, it is the seventh government agency stationed in Norrköping, and with more than 5 000 students on campus it is a major hub of activities in the city. * Linköping University, Campus Norrköping


Logistics and Infrastructure

With a deep sea harbour, a position on the Southern Main Line railway, Norrköping Airport and being the intersection of European route E4 and European route E22, Norrköping is particularly well situated for logistics related business. This is further underlined by the presence of three transport related government agencies, the national weather services and Linköping University transports and logistics research and education programmes in place. Norrköping is highly involved in the East Link, ''Ostlänken'', which will increase travel speed and freight capacity on the Southern Main Line. As preparation, the ''Kardonbanan'' freight feeder line from Norrköping Harbour to the Southern Main Line was inaugurated in February 2021. A new freight railway terminal and a relocation of Norrköping Central Station is currently being studied. Norrköping is one of two Swedish cities (the other being
Gothenburg Gothenburg ( ; ) is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, second-largest city in Sweden, after the capital Stockholm, and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated by the Kattegat on the west coast of Sweden, it is the gub ...
) that retained its tram system after the 1967 conversion to right-hand drive, see Norrköping Tramway.


Culture


Film and Visualization

From the 1960s, the municipality film club ''Harlekin'' is hosted at the Norrköping Museum of Arts, before being established as Cnema in 2010, neighbouring Visualization Center C and Linköping University. The latter provide research in visualization and 3D technique as well as interactive experiences in an 8K 3D dome cinema. The film collective Crazy Pictures, founded in 2008, is based in Norrköping, and has produced its two full length feature films '' The Unthinkable'' (''Den Blomstertid nu kommer, 2018)'' and '' UFO Sweden'' in Norrköping. Author Emelie Schepp sets her crime novels in and around Norrköping, with Jana Berzelius of the Norrköping Public Prosecution Area Office as the main character. The 2024 crime drama '' Jana: Marked for Life'' based on Schepp's novel with the same name, was filmed in Norrköping.


Museums

Norrköpings konstmuseum (''Norrköping Museum of Art'') focusing on Swedish modernism and contemporary art. The museum building is designed by city architect Kurt von Schmalensee, situated at Kristinaplatsen next to the City Library. It was founded by a private donation in 1901, and is operated by Norrköping municipality. Norrköpings stadsmuseum, founded in 1981, tells the history of the city with a focus on its industrial history. Situated in the old industrial quarter on the river Strömmen, the permanent expositions describes the development of Norrköping from
Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
to the early 17th century industrial era. The museum is also curator of numerous Bronze Age petroglyphs and ancient monuments situated in and around the city. Next to Norrköpings stadsmuseum, the Museum of Work (''Arbetets museum'') is located in iconic building ''Strykjärnet'', a former weaving mill operated by Holmens Bruk until 1962. The museum documents work and everyday life by collecting personal stories about people's professional lives. Since 2009, the museum also houses the EWK – Center for Political Illustration Art, based on the work of satirist Ewert Karlsson. The museum is operated by a charity established by national trade union centers LO and TCO, two popular education organizations and the consumer cooperative KF. Ståhl Collection opened in October 2020, and hosts the private collection of local housing magnate Mikael Ståhl. The museum is located in the old industrial area of Norrköping city centre, and mainly features paintings and sculptures, from the 1950s to contemporary works. Ståhl commenced his collection in 1981. The museum is privately held and operated.


Music

The Norrköping Symphony Orchestra (''Norrköpings symfoniorkester, SON'') is a professional
symphony orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...
, consisting of 85 musicians and based at the concert hall De Geerhallen, in the city center.


Theatre

Norrköping has a long theatre and revue tradition, with Östgöta Theatre, opened in 1908, being Sweden's biggest regional theatre. ''Egges Theatre'' hosting the first Scandinavian performance of
Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...
's
Romeo and Juliet ''The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet'', often shortened to ''Romeo and Juliet'', is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare about the romance between two young Italians from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's ...
in 1776. Arbisteatern, dating from 1865, takes its name from ''Norrköpings Arbetareförenings teater'', meaning ''The theatre of Norrköping's worker society.'' A 2016 Swedish drama/documentary, ''Sextemplet'' (''Sex Temple''),''Sextemplet''
on Vimeo
tells the story of Arbisteatern as a burlesque stage in the 2010s.


See also

* Church of Saint Bridget, Norrköping


References


External links

* *
Norrköping Tourism

Local event guide for Norrköpin

{{DEFAULTSORT:Norrkoping Municipal seats of Östergötland County Swedish municipal seats Populated places in Norrköping Municipality Port cities and towns of the Baltic Sea Market towns in Sweden Coastal cities and towns in Sweden Cities in Sweden