Västerås ( , , ) is a city in central Sweden on the shore of

Lake Mälaren A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...

in the province of

Västmanland Västmanland ( or ), is a historical Swedish province, or ''landskap'', in middle Sweden. It borders Södermanland, Närke, Värmland, Dalarna and Uppland. Västmanland means "(The) Land of the Western Men", where the "western men" (''väste ...

, west of Stockholm. The city had a population of 127,799 at the end of 2019, out of the municipal total of 154,049. Västerås is the seat of

Västerås Municipality Västerås Municipality (''Västerås kommun'') is a municipality in Västmanland County in central Sweden. Its seat is located in the city of Västerås. The municipality prefers to use the denomination ''Västerås stad'' (''City of Västerås ...

, the capital of

Västmanland County Västmanland County ( sv, Västmanlands län) is a county or '' län'' in central Sweden. It borders the counties of Södermanland, Örebro, Gävleborg, Dalarna and Uppsala. The county also has a stretch of shoreline towards Mälaren (Sweden's ...

and an episcopal see.

History

Västerås is one of the oldest cities in Sweden and Northern Europe. The name originates from ''Västra Aros'' (West Aros), which refers to the river mouth of Svartån. The area has been populated since the Nordic

Viking Age The Viking Age () was the period during the Middle Ages when Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding, colonizing, conquest, and trading throughout Europe and reached North America. It followed the Migration Period The ...

, before 1000 CE. In the beginning of the 11th century it was the second largest city in Sweden, and by the 12th century had become the seat of the bishop.

Anundshög Anundshög (also ''Anundshögen'' and ''Anunds hög'') is a tumulus near Västerås in Västmanland, the largest in Sweden. It has a diameter of and is about high. Assessments of the era of the mound vary between the Bronze Age and the late Ir ...

is located just outside the City of Västerås. Anundshög is Sweden's largest burial mound. "Hög" is derived from the

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic languages, North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and t ...

word ''haugr'' meaning mound or barrow. It was built about 500 CE and is over wide and is almost high. In the ensuing centuries, a

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

and a monastery were built; the Gothic cathedral, rebuilt by

Birger Jarl Birger Jarl, also known as ''Birger Magnusson'' (21 October 1266), was a Swedish statesman, '' jarl'', and a member of the House of Bjelbo, who played a pivotal role in the consolidation of Sweden. Birger also led the Second Swedish Crusade, ...

on an earlier site, and consecrated in 1271, was restored in the 19th century. The first City Arms date from the end of the 13th century. A castle commands the town from an eminence; it was captured by King Gustav I and rebuilt by him, and Eric XIV was confined there from 1573 to 1575. Gustav also called together the riksdag in Västerås. During the riksdag assembly, the decision was made to convert Sweden into a Protestant state and to remove the power of the Catholic Church. '' Rudbeckianska gymnasiet'', the oldest gymnasium ( secondary school) in Sweden, was built in Västerås by Johannes Rudbeckius in 1623. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the growing of

cucumber Cucumber (''Cucumis sativus'') is a widely-cultivated creeping vine plant in the Cucurbitaceae family that bears usually cylindrical fruits, which are used as culinary vegetables. Västerås is predominantly known as an industrial city, but also a retailing and logistics city. The city wants to distinguish itself as ''Västerås – Mälarstaden'', meaning "Västerås—the city by Lake Mälaren", in order to attract tourists and new inhabitants, as well as students to the local

university college In a number of countries, a university college is a college institution that provides tertiary education but does not have full or independent university status. A university college is often part of a larger university. The precise usage varies ...

, Mälardalen University (approximately 16,000 enrolled students in Västerås and in the nearby

Eskilstuna Eskilstuna () is a city and the seat of Eskilstuna Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden. The city of Eskilstuna had 67,359 inhabitants in 2015, with a total population of 100,092 inhabitants in Eskilstuna municipality (2014). Eskilstuna h ...

). To this effect, the city has started using a designed logo as branding in some official contexts, partially replacing the

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 it ...

, as well as rebuilding several old harbor areas to make them more attractive to live in. Västerås has the largest lakeside commercial and recreational port in Scandinavia on Lake Mälaren. The lake has many islands, and there are tourist boats that go out to them daily in the summer. The city also has a

skyscraper A skyscraper is a tall continuously habitable building having multiple floors. Modern sources currently define skyscrapers as being at least or in height, though there is no universally accepted definition. Skyscrapers are very tall high-ri ...

colloquially nicknamed " Skrapan" ( en, The Scraper) which has Sweden's highest-located cocktail bar, called Sky Bar, on the 24th floor of the building. Until 2017, Västerås hosted Power Big Meet, an annual event for owners and enthusiasts of classic American cars. The event moved to Lidköping in 2017, with arrangers citing having outgrown the available facilities in Västerås. Long-time Power Big meet collaborator Klas Brink instead arranged the competing Västerås Summer Meet at the same location as Power Big Meet had been arranged for years.

Climate

According to the

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

, Västerås experiences 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 freez ...

bordering, according to the original isotherm, an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

(''Dfb''/''Cfb'') with cold winters and warm summers. Summers tend to be quite unpredictable with sunny spells but with a risk of sudden showers. The sunniest weather usually occurs when high-pressure systems are blocking the low-pressure systems that usually move in from the Atlantic Ocean. Daytime temperatures in July mostly hover around , but may sometimes exceed and occasionally even . Winters are usually cold with a snow cover that lasts for several months. Some winters can be mild with longer spells without snow on the ground. The weather differs a lot whether the air masses are coming from the Atlantic Ocean or from the Eurasian continent. In the first case, temperatures over might be expected. In the second case, the temperature may not rise above in the middle of the day.

is usually frozen from December until the end of March. 3000' ovanför Västerås

The highest official temperature reading of was recorded on July 9, 1966. The lowest temperature of was recorded on January 24, 1875. The Åkesta observatory stands 4km to the north of the town, in Åkesta.

Demographics

Economy

Industry

In 1891, the Turbine House, a small hydroelectric dam was built on Svartån, in central Västerås. This early electrification encouraged

ASEA ''Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget'' ( English translation: General Swedish Electrical Limited Company; Swedish abbreviation: ASEA) was a Swedish industrial company. History ASEA was founded in 1883 by Ludvig Fredholm in Västerås as ...

, a large electricity equipment manufacturer, to concentrate its operations in Västerås, shifting focus away from

Arboga Arboga () is a locality and the seat of Arboga Municipality in Västmanland County, Sweden with 10,330 inhabitants in 2010. Overview The city of Arboga is known to have existed as a town since the 13th century but the area has been inhabited s ...

. After the 1988 merger with the power systems company

Brown, Boveri & Cie Brown, Boveri & Cie. (Brown, Boveri & Company; BBC) was a Swiss group of electrical engineering companies. It was founded in Zürich, in 1891 by Charles Eugene Lancelot Brown and Walter Boveri who worked at the Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon. In ...

became

ABB Group ABB Ltd. is a Swedish-Swiss multinational corporation headquartered in Zürich, Switzerland. The company was formed in 1988 when Sweden's Allmänna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget (ASEA) and Switzerland's Brown, Boveri & Cie merged to create ...

. As a result, Västerås is home to its ABB AB Swedish subsidiary headquarters. ABB in Västerås produces e.g. robots and drive systems for the industry, high-voltage direct current transmission and power grids. Asea hq

A number of business units have been spun out of ABB. Principal among them is Hitachi Energy (

Hitachi () is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...

). Since the Westinghouse takeover of ABB's nuclear business it is owned by

Westinghouse Electric Company Westinghouse Electric Company LLC is an American nuclear power company formed in 1999 from the nuclear power division of the original Westinghouse Electric Corporation. It offers nuclear products and services to utilities internationally, includi ...

. It is situated mainly in Finnslätten, an industrial area in the northern part of Västerås. Westinghouse Sweden produces nuclear fuel and offers nuclear services for

Boiling Water Reactor A boiling water reactor (BWR) is a type of light water nuclear reactor used for the generation of electrical power. It is a design different from a Soviet graphite-moderated RBMK. It is the second most common type of electricity-generating nuc ...

s and

Pressurized water reactor A pressurized water reactor (PWR) is a type of light-water nuclear reactor. PWRs constitute the large majority of the world's nuclear power plants (with notable exceptions being the UK, Japan and Canada). In a PWR, the primary coolant (water) is ...

s. , Westinghouse Sweden had more than 1000 employees. The plant has provided fuel for Ukraine since 2005. On 11 April 2014, after the Russian annexation of Crimea, the contract with Energoatom for the South Ukraine Nuclear Power Plant was extended through 2020.

Mälarenergi Mälarenergi AB is a city-owned electric power and district heating provider based in Västerås, Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal n ...

AB is a city-owned district heating and electric power provider for Västerås and surrounding area. Mälarenergi owns and operates a number of plants of which the biggest one is the heat and power plant in Västerås. It is Sweden's largest combined heat and power plant, and the latest unit (number 6) uses waste as fuel. Other major industries include

Bombardier Transportation Bombardier Transportation was a Canadian-German rolling stock and rail transport manufacturer, headquartered in Berlin, Germany. It was one of the world's largest companies in the rail vehicle and equipment manufacturing and servicing indus ...

, which is active in railway business with production of propulsion systems for trains with worldwide customers,

GE Power GE Power (formerly known as GE Energy) is an American energy technology company, owned by General Electric. Structure As of July 2019, GE Power is divided into the following divisions: * GE Gas Power (formerly Alstom Power Turbomachines), bas ...

Sweden, Enics , Quintus Technologies AB (high pressure metal working and material densification equipment for the manufacturing industry) and Northvolt AB which designs, develops and manufactures lithium-ion battery cells and complete battery systems for electric vehicles, heavy transport, mining, and energy industries, as well as portable devices.

Retailing and trade

One of the historical reasons that made Västerås a city is its trading-friendly location by the river Svartån and lake Mälaren. The city remains one of the main logistical centers in Sweden due to its central location in the densely populated region Mälardalen and favourable infrastructure connections with railways, waterways and highways. Amongst others,

ICA AB ICA Gruppen AB (publ) (; "ICA Group"; from ''Inköpscentralernas aktiebolag'', ) (formerly Hakon Invest AB) is a Swedish retailer franchise with a focus on food and health. The group also owns a bank, real estate division and a pharmacy chain. T ...

has one of its main distribution centres located in Västerås. Västerås is the birthplace of multinational clothing retailer H&M. Their first store was opened in the town centre in 1947. Erikslund Shopping Center, on the outskirts of Västerås, was Sweden's biggest mall until

Mall of Scandinavia Westfield Mall of Scandinavia is a shopping mall located in Solna in Stockholm, Sweden. It was inaugurated on November 12, 2015, and is the second largest mall in the Nordic countries with 224 stores, many of them with double-height storefronts ...

opened in 2015, and the

retail park A retail park is a type of shopping centre found on the fringes of most large towns and cities in the United Kingdom and other European countries. They form a key aspect of European retail geographies, alongside indoor shopping centres, standalo ...

is the third biggest in sales after Kungens Kurva and Barkarby.

Sports

Sandvikens_AIK_vs_Västerås_SK_2015-03-14_44

* De grönvita (The Green and White), Västerås SK – Founded on 29 January 1904, "The Green and White" is the most successful

bandy Bandy is a winter sport and ball sport played by two teams wearing ice skates on a large ice surface (either indoors or outdoors) while using sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal. The international governing body for bandy is ...

team in Sweden, with 22 Swedish Championships won (20 male, 2 female). They have the largest permanent indoor arena for bandy in Sweden,

ABB Arena Syd ABB Arena is the common name for the two biggest indoor arenas in Västerås, Sweden. Venues Arena Nord ABB Arena Nord is the ice hockey arena and VIK Västerås HK's home arena. It was renovated in September 2007 and has a capacity of 4,902 ...

. The

Bandy World Championship The Bandy World Championship is a competition between bandy-playing nations' men's teams. The tournament is administrated by the Federation of International Bandy. It is distinct from the Bandy World Cup, a club competition, and from the W ...

have been played in Västerås several times. *

VIK Västerås HK Vik (Old Norse: vík) means wick or bay in Norwegian and Swedish (''vig'' in Danish), and it may refer to the following: Places Iceland * Vík í Mýrdal, a village in southern Iceland Iran *Vik, Iran, a village in Zanjan Province, Iran Norway * ...

, known as VIK Västerås Hockey Klubb. The club had its greatest moment in 1992/1993 when the club won the regular series in the Swedish Elitleague (VIK reached quarter finals in the playoff). In 2000 the club was degraded from the league and faced a financial crisis. The club was declared bankrupt. During the fall of 2000 the club restarted in the lowest division which the team won. Today (2019) they are playing in

Hockeyallsvenskan HockeyAllsvenskan (previously Allsvenskan and SuperAllsvenskan) is a professional ice hockey league, and the second-highest league in the Swedish ice hockey system (after the SHL). Since the 2009–10 season, the league consists of fourteen teams ...

, the second tier. Among hockey players from Västerås you find:

Nicklas Lidström Erik Nicklas Lidström (; born 28 April 1970) is a Swedish former professional ice hockey defenceman and current vice president of hockey operations for the Detroit Red Wings. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Detr ...

, Tommy Salo, Patrik Berglund,

Mikael Backlund Mikael Backlund (born 17 March 1989) is a Swedish professional ice hockey centre and alternate captain for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League (NHL). Backlund was a first round selection, 24th overall, of the Flames in the 2007 N ...

and many more. * Västerås SK, currently plays in the second tier of Swedish football,

Superettan Superettan (; meaning the super first (division)) is an association football league and the second highest league in the league system of Swedish men's football. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with All ...

. Having mostly been playing in the higher divisions of Swedish football. The last time the club was in the premier division was in 1997. * IFK Västerås FK, football club in

Division 4 ''Division 4'' is an Australian television police drama series made by Crawford Productions for the Nine Network between 1969 and 1975 for 301 episodes. Synopsis The series was one of the first dramas to follow up on the enormous success ...

Västmanland * IK Franke, football club in

Division 3 In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football * Belgian Th ...

Norra Svealand *

Skiljebo SK Skiljebo SK is a Swedish football club located in Västerås. Background Since their foundation on 4 March 1944 Skiljebo SK has participated mainly in the middle and lower divisions of the Swedish football league system The Swedish football ...

, football club in Division 2 Norra Svealand *

Västerås IK Västerås IK (''Västerås Ishockey klubb'') is an ice hockey club from Västerås, Sweden. The team is currently playing in the second-tier league in Sweden, Hockeyallsvenskan. Västerås IK played 12 seasons in the top Swedish league Elitser ...

, football club in

Norra Svealand *

Syrianska IF Kerburan Syrianska IF Kerburan is a Swedish based football club in the city of Västerås. The club, formed in 1977 by Aramean (Syriac) immigrants, has advanced through the league system and is currently playing in the fourth highest Swedish league, D ...

, football club in

Norra Svealand * Gideonsbergs IF football club in

Norra Svealand

Notable natives

* Ana Diaz, musician *

Axenstar Axenstar (formerly called Powerage) is a Swedish power metal band from Västerås, founded in 1998 by Peter Johansson and Magnus Ek. Band members Current *Magnus Winterwild - vocals, bass, keyboards (1999–Present) *Joakim Jonsson - guitar (200 ...

power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contra ...

band *

Bobo Stenson Bobo Stenson (born Bo Gustav Stenson; 4 August 1944) is a Swedish jazz pianist. The Bobo Stenson Trio, formed in collaboration with Anders Jormin (bass) and Jon Fält (drums), has been in existence for four decades. Career Stenson studied with ...

, jazz pianist *

Dagmar Lange Dagmar Maria Lange (31 March 1914, Västerås – 9 October 1991, Nora) was a Swedish author of crime fiction under the pen name Maria Lang. She was one of the first detective novelists in the Swedish language, and her books helped make the genr ...

, author under the pen name Maria Lang *

Embee Embee is a Swedish hip hop DJ and producer. He was born Magnus Bergkvist on February 24, 1977 in Badelunda, Västmanland, Sweden. He is best known for his work with Swedish hip-hop group Looptroop Rockers. His first solo album ''Tellings from ...

, hip hop deejay and producer *

Esbjörn Svensson Bror Fredrik "Esbjörn" Svensson (16 April 1964 – 14 June 2008) was a Swedish jazz pianist and founder of the jazz group Esbjörn Svensson Trio, commonly known as e.s.t. Svensson became one of Europe's most successful jazz musicians at the tu ...

, jazz pianist * Fredrik Johansson, musician * Frida Hansdotter, alpine skier *

Olof Thunberg Fritz-Olof Thunberg (21 May 1925 – 24 February 2020) was a Swedish actor and director, perhaps best known as the voice of the cartoon character Bamse. Life and career Thunberg was born Fritz-Olof Thunberg in Västerås, where he forme ...

, actor * Fronda, rapper * Gary Sundgren, football player *

Gerda Ahlm Gerda Maria Ahlm (May 24, 1869 – 1956) was a Swedish-born painter and art conservator. Biography Gerda Maria Ahlm was born in Västerås, Sweden. She studied at the Royal Swedish Academy of Art in Stockholm (1889-91) and later studied etching ...

, artist * Jonny Rödlund, football player *

Lars Wallin Lars Wallin (born 1965) is a Swedish fashion designer. He made his debut on the Swedish fashion stage in 1990 after graduating from Beckmans. Since then he has received many prestigious assignments, designing for Miss World and the Eurovision So ...

, fashion designer *

Lars Ekborg Lars Åke Rupert Ekborg (6 June 1926 – 7 October 1969) was a Swedish actor, comedian, and singer. Ekborg was the father of actors Dan and Anders Ekborg. He died of liver cancer in 1969. He may be heard as the recitor in the 1956 recording o ...

, comedian * Linda Rosing, singer, politician, model * Loreen, singer *

Magnus Lindgren Magnus Lindgren (born 13 August 1974 in Västerås, Sweden) is a Swedish jazz musician. He studied at the Västerås Music College. He then attended the Royal Swedish Academy of Music in Stockholm, Sweden, and began working with the Soul Ente ...

, jazz musician *

Mai Zetterling Mai Elisabeth Zetterling (; 24 May 1925 – 17 March 1994) was a Swedish film director, novelist and actor. Early life Zetterling was born in Västerås, Sweden to a working class family. She started her career as an actor at the age of 17 at ...

, actress and film director * Maria Bonnevie, actress *

Maria Montazami Maria Brigitte Anita Montazami (born 13 November 1965) is a Swedish housewife and television personality in the series ''Svenska Hollywoodfruar'', which is currently airing its thirteenth season in Sweden. Montazami has also appeared in commercial ...

, television personality * Markus Oscarsson, Olympic gold medalists in canoeing 2004 * Mattias Andréasson, singer *

, ice hockey player *

, ice hockey player * Ola Sandström, singer, songwriter and musician *

Pandora In Greek mythology, Pandora (Greek: , derived from , ''pān'', i.e. "all" and , ''dōron'', i.e. "gift", thus "the all-endowed", "all-gifted" or "all-giving") was the first human woman created by Hephaestus on the instructions of Zeus. As Hes ...

, singer * Patrik Berglund, ice hockey player * Patrik Isaksson, swimmer * Pontus Kåmark, football player *

Promoe Promoe (Mårten Edh, born Nils Mårten Ed; 28 April 1976) is a Swedish rapper, and member of Swedish hip hop group Looptroop Rockers, formed in Västerås, Sweden, 1992. He released his fourth album in 2009 entitled ''Kråksången'', and later ...

, rapper *

Pugh Rogefeldt Pugh Rogefeldt, real name Anders Sture Torbjörn Rogefeldt (, ; born 2 March 1947 in Västerås, Sweden), is a Swedish singer, musician, guitarist and songwriter. Musical career Rogefeldt made his breakthrough in the late 1960s with albums such ...

, musician * Stefan Pettersson, footballer *

Tomas Tranströmer Tomas Gösta Tranströmer (; 15 April 1931 – 26 March 2015) was a Swedish poet, psychologist and translator. His poems captured the long Swedish winters, the rhythm of the seasons and the palpable, atmospheric beauty of nature. Tranströmer's ...

, poet * Tommy Salo, ice hockey player * Victor Lindelöf, footballer * Joakim "Jocke" Götberg, heavy metal musician and singer *

Åsa Svensson Åsa Svensson (born Carlsson; 16 June 1975) is a former tennis player from Sweden, who turned professional in 1992. She won two singles and seven doubles titles in her career. The right-hander reached her highest individual ranking on the WTA ...

, tennis player

Travel

* Stockholm-Västerås Airport *

Västerås Central Station Västerås ( , , ) is a city in central Sweden on the shore of Lake Mälaren in the province of Västmanland, west of Stockholm. The city had a population of 127,799 at the end of 2019, out of the municipal total of 154,049. Västerås is the ...

References

External links

*
Local portal for Västerås, articles, pictures etc

– Article in the

Catholic Encyclopedia The ''Catholic Encyclopedia: An International Work of Reference on the Constitution, Doctrine, Discipline, and History of the Catholic Church'' (also referred to as the ''Old Catholic Encyclopedia'' and the ''Original Catholic Encyclopedia'') i ...

Pictures from Anundshög, Västerås, Sweden; www.remains.se
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vasteras County seats in Sweden Municipal seats of Västmanland County Populated lakeshore places in Sweden Populated places in Västmanland County Populated places in Västerås Municipality Swedish municipal seats Cities in Västmanland County