Falun
| Falun | |||
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  Falun
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Sweden | ||
| Province | Dalarna | ||
| County | Dalarna County | ||
| Municipality | Falun Municipality | ||
| Charter | 1641 | ||
| Area[1] | |||
| - Total | 26.40 km2 (10.2 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2005-12-31)[1] | |||
| - Total | 36,447 | ||
| - Density | 1,380/km2 (3,574.2/sq mi) | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| - Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
Falun (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈfɑːlʉn]) is a city and the seat of Falun Municipality in Dalarna County, Sweden, with 36,447 inhabitants in 2005.[1] It is also the capital of Dalarna County. Falun forms, together with Borlänge, a metropolitan area with close to 100,000 inhabitants.
Falun was originally famous for its copper mine, and is today an important service and industrial city even though the mine is closed (since 1992).
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History
The town of Falun is known to have existed in the 14th century as a market place for the surrounding lands. Mining for copper had been a local business since the mid-13th century, or possibly as early as 1000,[2] and the organisation for the extracting of copper and gold from the Great Copper Mountain is believed to be the oldest still-existing enterprise in the world, proved active since 1347, when its charter was granted by King Magnus IV of Sweden. The first share in the company is dated as early as 1288.
However, an enterprise at that time was nothing more than a cooperation among the owners, each contributing with a share of money for constructions, tools, etc., necessary to run the organisation. Depending on their contribution they could use the facilities and share the profit according to the relative share they contributed.
The city of Falun received its privileges in 1641. By then Falun was already one of the largest cities in Sweden.
Falun is located in the Bergslagen district, and the mining area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which also was the name of the mining company of Falun, is today a part of Stora Enso.
Today
For education, the city holds part of the University College of Dalarna (Högskolan Dalarna).
In sports, Falun hosts the annual Swedish Ski Games at its skiing arena Lugnet, Falun. The city's most successful sport team is the bandy team Falu BS which has played in the Swedish top division for many years. Also, IBF Falun, the floorball male and female teams have been very successful.
Lugnet, Falun Stadion has also hosted the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships three times: 1954, 1974, and most recently in 1993.
The city lost out to Calgary, Canada, in 1981 for the 1988 Winter Olympics. Again, Falun applied for the 1992 Winter Olympics but lost out to Albertville, France, in 1986. The city lost despite the best efforts of one of ABBA's singers who recorded a single in support of the bid.
Falun is the hometown of The Battle, one of the world's most famous snowboard competitions.
Iron and Copper byproducts from the mine are still used as a paint ingredient, in the production of the nationally well known and culturally important Falu Red paint, particularly used on wooden houses.
Notable residents and former residents of Falun
- Ferdinand Boberg, architect
- Björn Dixgård, musician
- Mattias Ekström, racing driver
- Mattias Flink, mass murderer
- Maria Hjorth, golfer
- Patrick Johansson, drummer
- Tomas Jonsson, ice hockey player
- Anders Kallur, ice hockey player
- Jenny Kallur, athlete, World Championships finalist 2005 in 100 m hurdles
- Susanna Kallur, athlete holding the world indoor record on 60 m hurdles
- Lina Leandersson, actress
- Marcus Ljungqvist, road bicycle racer
- Thomas Quick, serial murderer
- Sabaton, power metal band
- Ulf Stenlund, tennis player
- Gunnar Säve-Söderbergh, palaeontologist
- Ernst Rolf, actor and singer
- Georg Skarstedt, actor
- Georg Stiernhielm, civil servant, linguist and poet
- Putte Wickman, jazz clarinetist
- Walter Steiner, ski jumper
In popular culture
The short story "Die Bergwerke zu Falun" ("The Mines of Falun") was published by E. T. A. Hoffmann in 1819.
See also
- Great Copper Mountain
- Biathlon World Championships
- Thomas Quick
- Mattias Flink
- Falukorv
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Tätorternas landareal, folkmängd och invånare per km2 2000 och 2005" (in Swedish) (xls). Statistics Sweden. http://www.scb.se/statistik/MI/MI0810/2005A01B/T%c3%a4torternami0810tab1.xls. Retrieved 2009-05-09.
- ↑ [1]
External links
Media related to Falun at Wikimedia Commons- Falun - Official site
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Falun is one of 133 places with the historical city status in Sweden. |
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