Värnamo

Värnamo traces its history back to a village in the medieval age; the first written mention of it stems from the 13th century. It came into existence as a village to the eastern side of a fordable place over the Lagan, a river that for large parts is difficult to travel by. As there are also smaller streams to the south and west of this location, it was considered something of a safeguard, leading to its name being amalgamated from the two Swedish words värn, which means safeguard, and mo which is a geographical location reference describing the kind of land on which the town is situated. The word mo actually means that the soil consists of fine sand, sometimes making the land surrounding the river bog or barren.

Värnamo came to be the centre of Östbo Härad, an archaic form of judicial district, and thus a seat of trade and commerce. When Värnamo became a köping in 1659 it was given formal rights to host markets, falling under the jurisdiction of the city of Jönköping.

The town of Värnamo was insignificant for a long time, but with the Swedish population growth and industrialization in the 19th century it expanded, becoming an independent köping in 1859. Dense forests and industrial water power spurned the furniture industry and forges run by water power. The Swedish railroad nets spurred to enhance its industrial life, leading to a population increasing from 1,141 people in 1910 to 3,664 in 1920,[3] and making it significant enough to get the title of a city on November 1, 1920, whereby it became one of the now only historical Cities of Sweden. The chosen city arms depicts the traditional location by the Lagan.

Apladalen is a nature park and an open-air museum located in the center of Värnamo. It has some preserved buildings from the 18th and 19th centuries, a handicraft shop, a café and a large playground. There are also live animals, such as sheep, goats, rabbits and hens. In Apladalen you can also find a statue of the lovers Per and Kersi, a fictional couple who met at the market in Värnamo and fell in love.

• Swedish singer Elize Ryd of Amaranthe was born in Värnamo
• Bruno Mathsson, furniture designer
• Soccer player Jonas Thern also grew up in the city and currently resides there
• Soccer player Viktor Claesson
• Racing driver Felix Rosenqvist is from Värnamo, although he lives in Monaco.[4]
• City Mayor since 2008, Hans-Göran Johansson

The town is home to IFK Värnamo who currently play in the Superettan, the second tier of Swedish football.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Värnamo.

Media related to Värnamo at Wikimedia Commons

• Värnamo Kommun, homepage for the municipality of Värnamo
• Visitvarnamo.se, Värnamo tourist information