Sweden is officially called the Kingdom of Sweden.

The land area of Sweden is the 4th largest in Europe.

The main official language of Sweden is Swedish (svenska), but the country also has 5 other official languages - Finnish, Yiddish, Sami, Meänkieli and Romani.

Sweden shares a land border with it's Scandinavian counterparts Finland and Norway, and is connected to Denmark by a bridge.

The capital and largest city in Sweden is Stockholm, other notable cities include Gothenburg, Malmö and Uppsala.

Sweden has a population of 9.5 million people (9,555,893) as of 2012.

Low unemployment, a low birth rate, a highly developed welfare system and one of the world's longest life expectancies all contributes to modern Sweden having one of the highest standards of living in the world.

Forests cover over 50% of Sweden, there are also around 100,000 lakes and over 24,000 islands throughout the country. Sweden's right to public access laws allows these areas to be fully accessible by the public.

The Swedish Vikings of the 8th-10th centuries were a fearsome group, highly skilled at warfare they invaded and settled throughout Northern and Eastern Europe. During the 17th century Sweden again emerged as a great power in Europe with the Swedish Empire gaining territories in Eastern Europe.

While it was once a great military power. Sweden has remain neutral in all wars since 1814, including World Wars I and II. Despite the country's peaceful nature Swedes over 19 years still have to complete up to 15 months of military service.

While being part of the EU Sweden has retained its own currency the krona.

Sweden is renown for producing great pop bands and singers, including ABBA, The Cardigans, Ace of Base, Europe and The Hives. Sweden is the world's 3rd largest exporter of music after the United States and United Kingdom.

A number of prominent manufacturing and technology company's were founded in Sweden including Ericsson, Volvo, Saab, Scania trucks, IKEA and Electrolux.

A traditional and famous dish of Sweden is Swedish meatballs, served with gravy, boiled potatoes and lingonberry jam.

A crayfish party (kräftskiva) is a traditional summer eating and drinking celebration in August. It involves boiled crayfish served with boiled potato and dill.

Ice hockey and football (soccer) are Sweden's main sports, other popular sports include handball, golf, gymnastics, athletics and cross country skiing.

For more information, check out maps of Sweden or take a closer look at the Swedish flag.