National Day of Sweden

The National Day of Sweden (Swedish: Sveriges nationaldag) is a national holiday observed annually in Sweden on 6 June. Prior to 1983, the day was celebrated as Swedish Flag Day (Swedish: Svenska flaggans dag). At that time, the day was renamed the Swedish National Day by the Riksdag.[1]

National Day of Sweden
National Day celebrations at Kungsträdgården in Stockholm
Official nameSveriges nationaldag
Date6 June
Next time6 June 2021 (2021-06-06)
Frequencyannual

History
King Carl XVI Gustav and Queen Silvia at Skansen in 2009

The tradition of celebrating this date began 1916 at the Stockholm Olympic Stadium, in honour of the election of King Gustav Vasa in 1523, as this was considered the foundation of modern Sweden. Some question the validity of this as a national holiday, as it was not observed as a holiday until decades later. However this event does signify the end of the Danish-ruled Kalmar Union, so in a sense it is a marking of Swedish independence, though the event occurred so long ago that it does not have as strong of a presence in the social consciousness as does, for example, the Norwegian Constitution Day, Syttende Mai.[2]

In 2005, it became an official Swedish public holiday, replacing Whit Monday. This change led to fewer days off from work (more working-days) as 6 June will periodically fall on the weekend, unlike Whit Monday, which was always celebrated on a Monday. Among newer traditions that have emerged since National Day turned red day is an invitation from the King to the public to visit large parts of Stockholm Palace all day without the usual entry fees.[3]

  • National Day Celebration at Stockholm Palace
    2009
  • Entrance to Stockholm Palace
    2013
  • Swedish UN soldiers awarded medals at on National Day
    2012.
  • National Day Celebration at Stockholm Palace outer court
    2013

See also

References
  1. "Sveriges nationaldag". nordiskamuseet.se. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  2. Klara Bové, Henrik Ekengren Oscarsson. "Fler firar den svenska nationaldagen" (PDF). SOM-institutet. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  3. Bové, Klara and Ekengren Oscarsson, Henrik, "Fler firar den svenska nationaldagen" in Larmar och gör sig till : SOM-undersökningen 2016 (PDF). SOM-institutet. 28 June 2017. ISBN 978-91-89673-39-7. Retrieved 15 December 2017. "Mellan 2011 och 2016 ökade andelen som firar nationaldagen från 25 till 31 procent."
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