Västmanland (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈvɛ̂sːtmanˌland] or [ˈvɛ̌sːt-] ) is a historical Swedish province, or landskap, in middle Sweden. It borders Södermanland, Närke, Värmland, Dalarna and Uppland.
Västmanland means "West Man Land" or, less literally, "The Land of the Western Men", where the "western men" (västermännen) were the people living west of Uppland, the core province of early Sweden.
Mälaren (UK: /ˈmɛlərɛn/ MEL-ər-en, US: /ˈmeɪlɑːrən/ MAY-lar-ən, Swedish: [ˈmɛ̂ːlarɛn] or [ˈmɛ̂ːlaɳ]), historically referred to as Lake Malar in English, is the third-largest freshwater lake in Sweden (after Vänern and Vättern). Its area is 1,140 km (440 sq mi) and its greatest depth is 64 m (210 ft). Mälaren spans 120 km (74.6 mi) from east to west. The lake drains, from south-west to north-east, into the Baltic Sea through its natural outlets Norrström and Söderström (as it flows around Stadsholmen island) and through the artificial Södertälje Canal and Hammarbyleden waterway. The easternmost bay of Mälaren, in central Stockholm, is called Riddarfjärden. The lake is located in Svealand and bounded by the provinces of Uppland, Södermanland and Västmanland. The two largest islands in Mälaren are Selaön (91 km (35.1 sq mi)) and Svartsjölandet (79 km (30.5 sq mi)). Mälaren is low-lying and mostly relatively shallow.
Being a quite narrow and shallow lake, Mälaren has bridge crossings between Eskilstuna and Västerås with two crossings on the western end at Kvicksund and three separate bridges between Strängnäs and Enköping in the central part of the lake. On the eastern end, the entirety of Ekerö Municipality is set on islands within Mälaren. That urban area also has a bridge connection to the mainland in Stockholm along with bridges between various islands in the municipality.
Uppland is a historical province or landskap on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea.
The name literally means up land, a name which is commonly encountered in especially older English literature as Upland. Its Latinised form, which is occasionally used, is Uplandia.
Närke (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈnæ̌rːkɛ] ) is a Swedish traditional province, or landskap, situated in Svealand in south central Sweden. It is bordered by Västmanland to the north, Södermanland to the east, Östergötland to the southeast, Västergötland to the southwest, and Värmland to the northwest. Närke has a surface area of 4,126 km² and a total population of 208,376.
Hjälmaren (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈjɛ̂lːmarɛn] or [ˈjɛ̂lːmaɳ]), also spelled Jälmaren, is Sweden's fourth largest lake. It is situated in the Central Swedish lowland and drains through Eskilstunaån into the adjacent Lake Mälaren, which in turn drains into the Baltic Sea, west of Stockholm. It is connected by waterway with Stockholm by the 13 kilometres long Hjälmare kanal.
It is bounded by the provinces of Södermanland, Närke, and Västmanland.
Värmland (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈvæ̌rmland] ) is a landskap (historical province) in west-central Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland, and Närke, and is bounded by Norway in the west.
Dalarna (Swedish: [ˈdɑ̂ːlaɳa] ; lit. 'the Dales' or 'the Valleys'), also referred to by the English exonyms Dalecarlia and the Dales, is a landskap (historical province) in central Sweden.
Dalarna adjoins Härjedalen, Hälsingland, Gästrikland, Västmanland and Värmland. It is also bordered by Norway in the west. The province's borders mostly coincide with the modern administrative Dalarna County (län).
Södermanland (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈsø̂ːdɛrmanˌland] or [ˈsø̌ː-] ), locally Sörmland, sometimes referred to under its Latinized form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a historical province (or landskap) on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Östergötland, Närke, Västmanland and Uppland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea.
Södermanland means "(The) Land of the Southern Men", where the "southern men" (södermännen) were the people living south of Uppland.
Västerås (Swedish: [vɛstɛˈroːs] ) is a city in central Sweden on the shore of Lake Mälaren in the province of Västmanland, 100 kilometres (62 miles) west of Stockholm. The city had a population of 127,799 at the end of 2019, out of the municipal total of 158,653, over 100,000 more than the next largest of the 17 localities included in the Västerås Municipality.Västerås is the seat of Västerås Municipality, which is the capital of Västmanland County and an episcopal see.
Gästrikland (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈjɛ̌sːtrɪkland] ) is a historical province or landskap on the eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Uppland, Västmanland, Dalarna, Hälsingland and the Gulf of Bothnia. Gästrikland is the southernmost and the most densely populated of the Norrland provinces.
The Latin name of the province is Gestricia. Before 1900, the spelling Gestrikland was also used in Swedish.