Gothenburg (Swedish: ) ) is a city and municipality in the province Västergötland on the west-coast of Sweden. As of 2006, the population amounted to 489,787 in the actual city and 879,000 in the metropolitan area, making it the second largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm. Gothenburg is also a significant university city with Scandinavia's largest university (Gothenburg University) in terms of number of students.

Situated where the Göta Älv discharges into the Kattegat, the river divides Gothenburg in two halves, with the upper part located on the island Hisingen. The inlet of Göta Älv is well suited for a harbor, and Gothenburg has expanded its port into becoming the largest among the Nordic countries.

Name

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The city was named after the Geats (Swedish: Götar varied: Geatas, Gautar, Goths, Gotar, Gøtar, Götar), an old tribe of southern Sweden, which today is famous from Beowulf in the English-speaking world. In Dutch, Scots, German and English - languages with a long history of being spoken in the trade and maritime-oriented city - the name Gothenburg has traditionally been used for the city, while the French form of the city name is Gothembourg. These traditional forms are now sometimes replaced with the use of the Swedish Göteborg, literally "Fortress of Geats".

History

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In the 16th and 17th century, the configuration of Sweden's borders made Gothenburg strategically important as the Swedish gateway to the west, lying on the west coast in the narrow area between the territories of Denmark-Norway. After several failed attempts, Gothenburg was successfully founded in 1621 by King Gustavus Adolphus (Gustaf II Adolf). The city was heavily influenced by the Dutch. Dutch city planners were contracted to build the city as they had the skills needed to build in the marshy areas around the city. The town was planned after Dutch cities to have canals like Amsterdam, and the blueprint for the canals of Gothenburg are actually the same as those used for Jakarta. The Dutchmen initially won political power and it was not until 1652, when the last Dutch politician in the city's council died, that the Swedes acquired political power over Gothenburg. During the Dutch period the town followed Dutch town laws and there were propositions to make Dutch the official language in the town.

The Gothenburg coat of arms was based on the lion of the coat of arms of Sweden, symbolically holding a shield with the national emblem, the Three Crowns, to defend against its enemies.

In the Treaty of Roskilde (1658) Denmark-Norway ceded the then Danish province Halland, to the south, and the Norwegian province of Bohus County or Bohuslän to the north, leaving Gothenburg in a less exposed position. Gothenburg was able to grow into an important port and trade centre on the west coast thanks to the fact that it was the only city on the west coast that was granted, together with Marstrand, the rights to trade with merchants from other countries..

In the 18th century, fishing was the most important industry. However, in 1731...