Västernorrland County ( sv, Västernorrlands 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 ...

('' län'') in the north of Sweden. It is bordered by the counties of Gävleborg, Jämtland, Västerbotten and the Gulf of Bothnia. The name ''Västernorrland'' means "Western

Norrland Norrland (, "Northland", originally ''Norrlanden'' or "the Northlands") is the northernmost, largest and least populated of the three traditional lands of Sweden, consisting of nine provinces. Although Norrland does not serve any administ ...

", as it was in the western part of the original Norrland (northern Sweden and northern Finland).

Province

''For History, Geography and Culture, see:

Ångermanland Ångermanland ( or ) is a historical province (''landskap'') in the northern part of Sweden. It is bordered (clockwise from the north) by Swedish Lapland, Västerbotten, the Gulf of Bothnia, Medelpad and Jämtland. The name is derived from ...

or Medelpad'' Västernorrland County covers approximately the historical provinces of Ångermanland (Angermannia) and Medelpad.

Administration

The main aim 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 ...

– a government agency headed by a governor – is to fulfil the goals set out in national politics by the Riksdag and the

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

, to coordinate the interests of the county, to promote the development of the county, to establish regional goals and safeguard the due process of law in the handling of each case. See List of Västernorrland governors.

Politics

The

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 ...

of Västernorrland is the '.

Riksdag elections

The table details all Riksdag election results of Västernorrland County since the unicameral era began in

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (''Extreme''). Between 10,000 and ...

. The blocs denote which party would support the Prime Minister or the lead opposition party towards the end of the elected parliament.

Municipalities

''In Medelpad Province:'' * Sundsvall * Timrå * Ånge ''In

Province:'' *

Härnösand Härnösand () is a locality and the seat of Härnösand Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden with 17,556 inhabitants in 2010. It is called "the gate to the High Coast" because of the world heritage landscape just a few miles north of H ...

Kramfors Kramfors () is a locality and the seat of Kramfors Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden. It had a population of 5,990 inhabitants in 2010. The town grew on the western bank of the Ångerman river in the 19th century as harvested logs we ...

* Sollefteå *

Örnsköldsvik Örnsköldsvik (, ) is a locality and the seat of Örnsköldsvik Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden, with 32,953 inhabitants in 2017. Its natural harbour and archipelago is in the Gulf of Bothnia and the northern boundaries of the Hig ...

Demographics

Foreign background

SCB have collected statistics on backgrounds of residents since 2002. These tables consist of all who have two foreign-born parents or are born abroad themselves. The chart lists election years and the last year on record alone.

History

Västernorrland County was formed in 1634, when counties were introduced, replacing the older provinces. Västernorrland then included parts of Sweden north of the city of Gävle, except Jämtland and

Härjedalen Härjedalen (; no, Herjådalen or ) is a historical province (''landskap'') in the centre of Sweden. It borders the Norwegian county of Trøndelag as well as the provinces of Dalarna, Hälsingland, Medelpad, and Jämtland. The province origi ...

– which belonged to Norway – and except Finland. The county grew and shrank significantly since its creation. The boundary adjustments: * Västerbotten County was separated in 1637. * Jämtland and Härjedalen joined in 1657, but they both separated as

Jämtland County Jämtland County ( sv, Jämtlands län, ) is a county or ''län'' in the middle of Sweden consisting of the provinces of Jämtland and Härjedalen, along with minor parts of Hälsingland and Ångermanland, plus two small uninhabited strips of ...

in 1810. * Gävleborg County separated in 1762. * Other minor changes have taken place. Even though the name ''Västernorrland'' literally means "Western

", it is today situated on the eastern coast of Swedish Norrland. The "west" in its name (') arose due to the fact that, at the time, Norrland was a much larger region, including northern Finland as well. Västernorrland was therefore in the western "arm" of Norrland in its broadest sense.

Heraldry

The arms for the County of Västernorrland are a combination of those of

and Medelpad. When it is shown with a royal crown, it represents the

. Blazon: "Parted per pale, the arms of Angermannia and the arms of Medelpad."

Miscellaneous topics

Local

public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typi ...

in the county is provided by Din Tur.

References and notes

External links

Västernorrland County Administrative BoardVästernorrland County Council
*Regional Association of Local Authorities in Västernorrland {{DEFAULTSORT:Vasternorrland County Counties of Sweden Ångermanland Medelpad