Uppsala
Uppsala with its cathedral Uppsala with its cathedral
Uppsala
Coordinates: 59°51′N 17°38′E / 59.85°N 17.633°E / 59.85; 17.633Coordinates: 59°51′N 17°38′E / 59.85°N 17.633°E / 59.85; 17.633
Country	Sweden
Province	Uppland
County	Uppsala County
Municipality	Uppsala Municipality
Area[1]
• Total	48.77 km2 (18.83 sq mi)
Population (31 December 2010)[1]
• Total	140,454
• Density	2,880/km2 (7,500/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)

Uppsala (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈɵpːˈsɑːla]; older spelling Upsala) is the capital of Uppsala County and the fourth largest city of Sweden. It had 140,454 inhabitants in 2010.^[1]

Located 67 km north of the capital, Stockholm, it is also the seat of the Uppsala Municipality. Since 1164, Uppsala has been the ecclesiastical centre of Sweden, being the seat of the Archbishop of the Church of Sweden. Founded in 1477, Uppsala University is the oldest centre of higher education in Scandinavia.

History[link]

Uppsala was originally located a few kilometres to the north, at a location now known as Gamla Uppsala (Old Uppsala). Today's Uppsala was then called Östra Aros. (Old) Uppsala was, according to medieval writer Adam of Bremen, the main pagan centre of Sweden, and the Temple at Uppsala contained magnificent idols of the Æsir gods.^[2][3]

As a replacement for the Scandinavian gods, Uppsala was made into a strong Christian centre. A bishop was soon consecrated, and in 1164 Uppsala was made into an archdiocese, with Stefan, a monk from Alvastra Abbey, being consecrated the first Archbishop of Uppsala and primate of Sweden.

The present-day Uppsala was at that time known as Östra Aros and was a port town of Gamla Uppsala. In 1274, Östra Aros overtook Gamla Uppsala as the main regional centre, and when the cathedral of Gamla Uppsala burnt down, the archbishopric was moved to Östra Aros, where the impressive Uppsala Cathedral was erected; it was inaugurated in 1435. The cathedral is built in the Gothic style and is one of the largest in northern Europe, with towers reaching 118.70 metres.

Uppsala in the 18th century

Uppsala is the site of the oldest university in Scandinavia, founded in 1477. Carolus Linnaeus, one of the renowned scholars of Uppsala University, lived in the city for many years, and both his house and garden can still be visited. Uppsala is also the site of the 16th century Uppsala Castle.^[4] The city was severely damaged by a fire in 1702. Historical and cultural treasures were also lost, as in many Swedish cities, from demolitions during the 1960s and 1970s, but many historic buildings remain, especially in the western part of the city. The arms with the lion can be traced from 1737. It has been modernized several times since, most recently in 1986. The meaning of the lion is not certain but is likely connected to the royal lion, also depicted on the Coat of Arms of Sweden.

Geography[link]

Stora Torget

Situated on the fertile Uppsala flatlands of muddy soil, the city features the small Fyris River (Fyrisån) flowing through the landscape surrounded by lush vegetation. Parallel to the river runs the glacial ridge of Uppsalaåsen at an elevation of circa 30 metres, the site of Uppsala's castle, from which large parts of the town can be seen. The central park Stadsskogen (literally "Town Forest") stretches from the south far into town, with opportunities for recreation for many residential areas within walking distance.

Only some 70 km (43 mi) or 40 minutes by train from the capital, many Uppsala residents work in Stockholm. The train to Stockholm-Arlanda Airport takes only 17 minutes, rendering the city easily accessible by air.

The commercial centre of Uppsala is quite compact. The city has a distinct town and gown divide with clergy, royalty and academia historically residing on the river's western shore, somewhat separated from the rest of the city, and the ensemble of cathedral, castle and university buildings has remained mostly undisturbed until today. While some beautiful buildings remain on the periphery of the central core, retail commercial activity is geographically focused on a small number of blocks around the pedestrianized streets and main square on the eastern side of the river, an area that was subject to a large-scale metamorphosis during the economically booming years in the 1960s in particular. During recent decades, a significant part of retail commercial activity has shifted to shopping malls and stores situated in the outskirts of the city. Meanwhile, the built-up areas have expanded greatly, and some suburbanization has taken place.

Climate[link]

Uppsala has a humid continental climate, with cold winters and mild summers.

The climate table below presents weather data from the years 1961 - 1990. According to ongoing measurements, the temperature has increased during the years 1991 - 2011 as compared with the last series. This increase is on annual basis around 1.4 °C. Warming is most pronounced during the winter months, with an increase of more than 2.0 °C (around a 3.6 °F - 4 °F increase) in January.

Economy[link]

Today Uppsala is well established in medical research and recognized for its leading position in biotechnology.

• Abbott Medical Optics (AMO)
• GE Healthcare
• Pfizer (see Pharmacia)
• Phadia, an offshoot of Pharmacia, now a part of Thermo Fisher Scientific
• Fresenius
• Q-Med (bioscience)
• Biotage

Higher education[link]

Universities[link]

• Uppsala University. Founded in 1477, under bishop Jakob Ulvsson. Closed in 1515. Officially reopened in 1595, following the Uppsala Synod in 1593. The university has a famous anatomical theatre, constructed by the scientist and polymath Olof Rudbeck (1630–1702), in the old university building Gustavianum. The building is now a museum. The university has 13 student fraternities, known as "nations", each traditionally representing a geographical region of Sweden.
• Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU, Sveriges Lantbruksuniversitet, main campus).

Other higher education[link]

• Johannelunds Teologiska Högskola. A Lutheran theological seminary established in 1862, located in Uppsala since 1970.

• The Newman Institute. A Catholic institution founded in 2001.
• Pingströrelsens teologiska seminarium. A Pentecostal theological seminary.

Livets Ord Theological Seminary and Pingströrelsens teologiska seminarium do not have accreditation from the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education and thus cannot confer Swedish academic degrees.

Main sights[link]

The Botanical Garden founded by Carl Linnaeus.

The Fyris river (Fyrisån) neatly divides the city into two different parts: the historic quarter to the west of the river and the administrative, residential and commercial area to the east. Most of the features of interest are in the western part, dominated by the cathedral, and with its old streets, river views and parks.

The most outstanding building in Uppsala is the Domkyrka (Uppsala Cathedral), Scandinavia's largest church (118.70 m (389.44 ft) high), which is visible from most parts of town and from the motorway.

Facing the west end of the cathedral is the Gustavianum, built in 1625 to be the main building of the University, and served as such through most of the 19th century. It contains the Museum of Nordic Antiquities, the Victoria Museum (of Egyptian antiquities) and the University's cultural history collections.

It also houses a perfectly preserved 17th-century anatomical theatre (used in its time for public dissections). Across the street from the Gustavianum stands the new main building of the university, erected in 1879–86 in Italian renaissance style. The Uppsala University Coin Cabinet is located in the university main building.

Not far from the University stands the Uppsala University Library (Carolina Rediviva), the largest library in Sweden, with over 5 million volumes and some 60,000 manuscripts. The building was built in 1820–1841.

On a circa 35-metre high hill to the southwest of the University Library stands Uppsala Castle. Its construction was initiated in 1549 by King Gustav Vasa, founder of the Vasa royal dynasty. Today the castle holds several museums, and is the residence of the Governor (landshövding).

5 km north of Uppsala city lies Gamla Uppsala (Old Uppsala), the location of the pre Christian town Uppsala. There are few remains, with the exception of several huge burial mounds of pre-Christian monarchs and the previous cathedral from 1164 A.D., traditionally said to be built over the old heathen temple (and recent archaeological investigations seems to support this notion). After the church burned down around 1240 only parts of it were restored.^[6][7]

Sports[link]

The largest arena in Uppsala is Fyrishov and is Sweden's fourth most visited, specialized in swimming, sports events, meetings and recreation. The facility includes areas for indoor sports, summer sport and a generous waterpark with waterslides, 50-meter pool, training pool, relaxation area and a large outdoor swimming pool. Accommodation is offered at Fyrishov cabin area and at the resort restaurants, a good lunch or dinner can be enjoyed. Fyrishov AB's business also includes the operation of Gottsundabadet in which there is a 25-metre pool, a 10-metre children's pool and gym. The entire facility is open all year round and a large number of meetings and various events are held here annually.

Uppsala Castle

In addition to activities within the arena Fyrishov AB runs Tävlingsstdaden Uppsala in a collaboration between the sports organizers, Fyrishov AB, Uppsala, Uppsala Tourism and hotel business. Co-founded in 2006 by Fyrishov AB under the name SM-town Uppsala in 2007 but was expanded to include international events and competitions at high national level. The project aims to develop Uppsala, a leading sports town in Sweden. Year 2009 there were 24 SM-competitions and major national and international competitions in Uppsala.

At Fyrishov the city's basketball team Uppsala Basket also plays, former KFUM Uppsala, their home games in the Swedish basketball league. There are also athletic club Uppsala, Uppsala, fencing club, Uppsala Judo Club, Sweden's oldest judo club, Uppsala volleyball companion, Upsala weightlifting club and Upsala Simsällskap, one of the world's oldest swimmingclubs. The sport that draws the most audience is floorball. Uppsala's two teams in the Swedish Super League, Storvreta IBK and IK Sirius IBK, have Fyrishov as there home.

One of the most classical sports events, the Swedish bandy champions final, has taken place at Studenternas IP since 1991. It usually attracts a spectator crowd of more than 20,000.^[8]

Once every year, the Uppsala Union of Science and Engineering Students arrange a river rafting in the Fyris river with rafts built from styrofoam.

Other sports clubs located in Uppsala include:

• Almtuna IS
• Gamla Upsala SK
• IF Vindhemspojkarna
• IK Sirius
• IK Sirius Fotboll
• Unik FK
• Upsala IF
• Uppsala Judoklubb

Notable natives[link]

Dag Hammarskjöld, Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Carolus Linnaeus, scientist

• Anders Jonas Ångström
• Svante Arrhenius
• Ingmar Bergman (1918–2007), film director
• Jöns Jakob Berzelius
• Hans Blix
• Arvid Carlsson
• Anders Celsius (1701–1744)
• Adiam Dymott
• Ulf Ekman, pastor
• Stefan Eriksson
• Martin Eriksson (E-Type)
• Malena Ernman
• Torsten Hallman, former motocross world champion
• Lars Hollmer
• Dag Hammarskjöld
• Mattias Klum
• Carl-Bertil Laurell
• Dave Lepard (1980–2006), musician
• Ruben Liljefors
• Viveca Lindfors (1920–1995), actress
• Carolus Linnaeus (1707–1778)
• Veronica Maggio
• Håkan Nesser
• Stefan Parkman
• Emma Rendel (1976-), artist
• Hans Rosling
• Olaus Rudbeckius
• Dina Schneidermann
• Roine Stolt
• Owe Thörnqvist
• Rebecka Törnqvist

Of these, Arrhenius, Bergman, Blix, Carlsson, Celsius, Dymott, both Erikssons, Hallman, Klum, Laurell, Liljefors, Parkman, Rosling, Stolt, Dave Lepard, Thörnqvist and Törnqvist were born in Uppsala.

See also[link]

• Uppsala Municipality - Uppsala "kommun"
• Upsala-Lenna Jernväg
• Gamla Uppsala - Old Uppsala in Norse mythology
• Temple at Uppsala - The Temple of Old Uppsala in Norse Mythology
• UppCon - One of Scandinavia's biggest youth events
• Fyrishov - Fyrishov Water Park
• Upsala Nya Tidning - Newspaper for Uppsala city and county
• Uppsalatidningen - Free local newspaper
• Upplands Lokaltrafik - operator of local public transport
• Ärna - Uppsala airport
• Area code 018
• Disting
• Upsala College - Former private college in East Orange, New Jersey, USA, founded in 1893
• Battle of Fýrisvellir
• Uppsala Central Station
• ALPHA 60, alternative rock band based in Uppsala
• Uppsala Konsert & Kongress
• Lund

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Uppsala

Wikisource has the text of the Encyclopaedia Britannica (9th ed.) article Upsala.

• Uppsala - Official site
• Destination Uppsala - Visit Uppsala. Official tourism site
• Uppsala cityguide - Cityguide
• Upsala Nya Tidning - Newspaper
• Ancient See of Upsala - Article from the Catholic Encyclopedia
• Uppsala travel guide from Wikitravel

v t e Municipalities and seats of Uppsala County Municipalities Älvkarleby Enköping Håbo Heby Knivsta Östhammar Tierp Uppsala Municipal seats Bålsta Enköping Heby Knivsta Östhammar Skutskär Tierp Uppsala Counties of Sweden Sweden

v t e Administrative seats of Swedish counties (län) Falun (Dalarna) Gävle (Gävleborg) Gothenburg (Västra Götaland) Halmstad (Halland) Härnösand (Västernorrland) Jönköping (Jönköping) Kalmar (Kalmar) Karlskrona (Blekinge) Karlstad (Värmland) Linköping (Östergötland) Luleå (Norrbotten) Malmö (Skåne) Nyköping (Södermanland) Örebro (Örebro) Östersund (Jämtland) Stockholm (Stockholm) Sundsvall (Västernorrland) Umeå (Västerbotten) Uppsala (Uppsala) Västerås (Västmanland) Växjö (Kronoberg) Visby (Gotland)

v t e 50 most populous urban areas in the Nordic countries  Denmark  Finland  Iceland  Norway  Sweden 1.  Stockholm 1,372,565 2.  Copenhagen 1,199,224 3.  Helsinki 1,061,798 4.  Oslo 907,288 5.  Gothenburg 549,839 6.  Malmö 280,415 7.  Turku 253,332 8.  Aarhus 252,107 9.  Bergen 234,800 10.  Stavanger 221,616 11.  Tampere 215,337 12.  Reykjavik 195,000 13.  Odense 167,615 14.  Trondheim 160,072 15.  Oulu 144,114 16.  Uppsala 140,454 17.  Jyväskylä 132,115 18.  Fredrikstad 126,971 19.  Aalborg 124,921 20.  Västerås 110,877 21.  Örebro 107,038 22.  Linköping 104,232 23.  Lahti 102,383 24.  Drammen 100,023 25.  Kuopio 97,610 26.  Helsingborg 97,122 27.  Jönköping 89,396 28.  Kouvola 87,548 29.  Norrköping 87,247 30.  Skien 86,923 31.  Pori 83,156 32.  Lund 82,800 33.  Umeå 79,594 34.  Joensuu 73,807 35.  Lappeenranta 72,156 36.  Esbjerg 71,576 37.  Gävle 71,033 38.  Kristiansand 67,547 39.  Hämeenlinna 67,293 40.  Tromsø 66,669 41.  Borås 66,273 42.  Eskilstuna 64,679 43.  Södertälje 64,619 44.  Karlstad 61,685 45.  Täby 61,272 46.  Rovaniemi 60,699 47.  Randers 60,656 48.  Vaasa 60,491 49.  Seinäjoki 58,836 50.  Halmstad 58,577

Lars Vilks
Lars Vilks at the site of Nimis in Kullaberg
Birth name	Lars Endel Roger Vilks
Born	(1946-06-20)20 June 1946 Helsingborg, Sweden
Nationality	Swedish
Field	Conceptual art Sculpture
Works	Nimis (1980-) Arx (1991-) The Muhammad Drawings (2007)

Lars Endel Roger Vilks (born 20 June 1946) is a Swedish artist. He is best known for his drawings of Muhammed, prophet of Islam.

Personal background[link]

Vilks was born in Helsingborg, Sweden. His father is from Latvia and his mother is Swedish.^[1][2] He earned a Ph.D. in art history from Lund University in 1987, and worked at the Oslo National Academy of the Arts from 1988 to 1997. From 1997 to 2003, he was a professor in art theory at the Bergen National Academy of the Arts. As an art theorist, Vilks is a proponent of the institutional theory of art.^{[citation needed]}

Artistic career[link]

Although an academically trained art theorist, Vilks is a self-taught artist. In the 1970s, he started painting, and in 1984, he embarked on creating the idiosyncratic sculptures that have been his hallmark, starting with Nimis. At this time, in the early 1980s, postmodernism made its definite entry into the Swedish art scene, using inspiration from e.g. the French art philosopher Jean-François Lyotard. Conceptual artists took the place of the earlier modernists on the contemporary art scene. These conceptual artists did not want their art to have any aesthetic or programmatic content, but instead often focused on the artist's self. Vilks was part of this movement in Sweden, and among other things turned himself in as a piece of art to the spring saloon at Vikingsberg in Helsingborg, and turned his own car into a piece of art at the fall exhibition at Skånes konstförening.^[3]

[edit] Nimis and Arx

Nimis. Wood sculptures by Vilks at Kullaberg.

Vilks became known in 1980 as the creator of the wooden sculptures Nimis and Arx, made entirely of drift wood, which are now located in the Kullaberg nature reserve in Höganäs Municipality, Skåne. In 1996, the small area where the sculptures are located was proclaimed by Vilks as an independent country named Ladonia. Nimis was sold to Joseph Beuys as a means to circumvent the Swedish building code laws concerning unlawful building process. The sculpture of Nimis is now owned by concept artist Christo; the legal document documenting the sale is on display at the Swedish Museum of Sketches.

Critical reception and media attention[link]

Vilks has characterized his own skill in the actual crafts involved in sculpture as quite limited, and although his artistic ideas can be seen as characteristic for his generation of Swedish conceptual artists, he has remained something of an outsider in the Swedish art scene for most of his career. He and his works have typically been treated with silence by the Swedish art establishment, as they have been deemed as not interesting enough, and seen mostly as the product of simple provocation. One of the few works of Vilks to be incorporated into a collection is the concrete sculpture Omphalos, measuring 1.6 meters high and weighing one tonne, which is owned by Moderna Museet after it was first bought by fellow artist Ernst Billgren for 10 000 Swedish kronor.^[3]

Vilks' long-standing controversies with different authorities due to his activities in the nature reserve Kullaberg, where Nimis, Arx and Landonien are all located, have on the other hand received significant attention in Swedish media over the years. Media has mostly portrayed Vilks' actions as specifically designed to provoke. This media attention has turned the area into something of a tourist attraction.^[3]

In Vilks' activity as an art theorist, he also comments on his own artistic activities as if it was conducted by another person. His different works of art, Vilks as a person, his actions, actions by those authorities with whom Vilks has been in conflict, and the media attention, is brought together in a Gesamtkunstwerk in line with the postmodern conceptual art tradition in which Vilks has been active throughout his career.^[3]

Vilks has described himself as an "equal opportunity offender" in his critical depictions of religion. In addition to his depictions of Muhammad, he also once drew Jesus as a pedophile. ^[4]

Muhammad drawings controversy[link]

In 2007 Vilks was embroiled in an international controversy after he made a series of drawings depicting the Islamic prophet Muhammad as a roundabout dog. The drawings were initially intended to be shown at a local art exhibition at Tällerud just outside Karlstad in Värmland, Sweden in July 2007 but were removed from the exhibition by the organisers, citing security concerns and fear of violence from Muslims, shortly before its opening.^[5] Following the first refusal, Vilks submitted the drawings to several other art galleries in Sweden, including the distinguished Gerlesborg School of Fine Art in Bohuslän where Vilks is a frequent lecturer, but all declined to show the drawings for the same reason.

The controversy gained international attention after the Örebro-based regional newspaper Nerikes Allehanda published one of the drawings on 18 August to illustrate an editorial on self-censorship and freedom of religion.^[6] While several other leading Swedish newspapers had published the drawings at this time, this publication led to protests from Muslim organizations in Sweden as well as condemnations from several foreign governments including Iran,^[7] Pakistan,^[8] Afghanistan,^[9] Egypt,^[10] and Jordan,^[11] as well as by the inter-governmental Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC), which also called for the Swedish government to take "punitive actions" against Vilks.^[12] Following this controversy, Vilks has been forced to live under police protection after having received several death threats, including a statement by the al-Qaeda-affiliated Islamic State of Iraq which has offered up to $150,000 for his assassination.^[13][14][15]

Assassination plot[link]

On 9 March 2010, Colleen R. LaRose from the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania suburbs had her federal indictment unsealed charging her with trying to recruit Muslims to murder Vilks.^[16]

The same day, seven people were arrested in Ireland over an alleged plot to assassinate Vilks.^[17] However, to the consternation of US and Swedish authorities four of the suspects were released without charge after 3 days in custody (they could have been held for questioning for up to seven days) and before investigations into their possible involvement in any assassination plot were completed.^[18]

Violent attacks[link]

On 11 May 2010, Muslim protesters assaulted Vilks while he was giving a lecture about free speech at Uppsala University. The attacks started when a film about Islam and homosexuality that had been banned from YouTube was shown. The film in question was Iranian artist Sooreh Hera's Allah ho gaybar. Vilks' glasses were broken but he did not suffer any serious injuries, and was escorted to safety by security, while a few of the protesters were detained by police. Despite previous death threats, this was the first time violence against Vilks occurred.^[19]

A few days later, on 15 May 2010, Vilks' house in southern Sweden was attacked by arsonists.^[20] They smashed the windows and threw in bottles of gasoline.^[20] There was a small fire, but the house was not burned to the ground. Vilks was not at home at the time of the attack.^[20] Two Kosovan-Swedish brothers were arrested, and July 15 they were sentenced to two and three years, respectively, of imprisonment. ^[21]

On 24 November 2010, a video produced by the Somali Islamic organization Al-Shaabab was sent out. In the video, a Swedish speaking voice appeals to "all the Somali brothers and sisters" in Sweden, to leave that country and come to Somalia to fight for Al-Shabaab. He also announces a death threat against Lars Vilks.

On 12 December 2010, a suicide bomber in Stockholm said in a message to media and the Swedish Security Police that "Now will your children, daughters and sisters die the same way our brothers and sisters die. Our actions will speak for themselves. As long as you don't end your war against Islam and degradation against the prophet and your foolish support for the pig Vilks."

On 10 September 2011, three men were arrested on suspicion of preparing to commit terrorist crimes in Gothenburg, Sweden.^[22] Two days after the arrest, the crime classification was changed to conspiring to murder.^[23] It was revealed a few days later that Vilks was the intended target of the three men.^[24][25]

Writings[link]

• (1987) Konst och konster (in Swedish; dissertation), Malmö: Wedgepress & Cheese, ISBN 91-85752-57-6.
• (1993) Att läsa Arx (in Swedish), Nora: Nya Doxa, ISBN 91-88248-43-7.
• (1993) Arx : en bok om det outsägliga (in Swedish), Nora: Nya Doxa, ISBN 91-88248-47-X.
• (1994) Nimis och Arx (in Swedish), Nora: Nya Doxa, ISBN 91-88248-50-X.
• (1995) Konstteori : kameler går på vatten (in Swedish), Nora: Nya Doxa, ISBN 91-88248-94-1.
• (1999) Det konstnärliga uppdraget? : en historia om konsthistoria, kontextkonst och det metafysiska överskottet (in Swedish), Nora: Nya Doxa, ISBN 91-578-0331-5.
• (2002) T.O.A. : [teori om allting] (in Swedish), Malmö: Galleri 21, ISBN 91-631-2330-4.
• (2003) Myndigheterna som konstnärligt material : den långa historien om Nimis, Arx, Omfalos och Ladonien (in Swedish), Nora: Nya Doxa, ISBN 91-578-0429-X (hardback).
• (2004) Spartips : 34 tips för konstnärer, kommuner, vissa obemedlade samt underbetalda (in Swedish), Nora: Nya Doxa, ISBN 91-578-0451-6.
• (2005) Hur man blir samtidskonstnär på tre dagar : handbok med teori (in Swedish; co-author: Martin Schibli), Nora: Nya Doxa, ISBN 91-578-0459-1.

See also[link]

• Theo van Gogh
• Kurt Westergaard
• Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy

References[link]

External links[link]

• Lars Vilks' blog
• Second blog
• Ladonia
• Profile at Svenska konstnärer
• YouTube video of the May 11, 2010 incident
• Lars Vilks Mohammad drawing
• Sooreh Hera - Allah Ho Gaybar!