Sweden: geography
At 449,964 km² (173,720 square miles), Sweden is the 55th largest country in the world, the 3rd largest in Europe and the 1st largest in Northern Europe. The country is somewhat larger than the U.S. state of California, and in 2006 it had a population of 9.1 million people.
East of Sweden lies the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Bothnia, providing a long coastline, and mellowing the climate. To the west is the Scandinavian mountain chain (Skanderna), a range that separates Sweden from Norway.
The southern part of the country is predominantly agricultural, with forests covering a larger percentage of the land the further north one goes. Population density is also higher in southern Sweden, with centres being in the valley of lake Mälaren and the Öresund region.
Gotland and Öland are the largest islands of Sweden.
Sweden enjoys a mostly temperate climate despite its northern latitude, mainly because of the Gulf Stream. In the south of Sweden, leaf-bearing trees are prolific, further north pines, spruces and in the very north hardy birches dominate the landscape. In the mountains of northern Sweden a sub-Arctic climate predominates. North of the Arctic Circle, the sun never sets for part of each summer, and in the winter, night is unending for a corresponding period.
Source: Wikipedia