Vetlanda Municipality Facts for Kids

Vetlanda Municipality is a special area in southern Sweden, located in Jönköping County. It's like a local government area, and its main town is Vetlanda.

This municipality was formed in 1971. Before that, the main town, Vetlanda, became a city in 1920. In the past, around 1863, this area had more than 20 smaller local areas that later joined together.

Did you know that Vetlanda is the hometown of Johan Franzén? He's a professional ice hockey player who used to play for the Detroit Red Wings in the National Hockey League.

Exploring Vetlanda's Geography
- Towns and Villages in Vetlanda
Vetlanda's History
Sports in Vetlanda
Images for kids
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Exploring Vetlanda's Geography

Vetlanda Municipality is the largest municipality in Jönköping County. It's located on the South Swedish highlands, which is an area about 250 meters (or 820 feet) above sea level. This region also includes Eksjö Municipality and Nässjö Municipality. The nature here is very beautiful and many tourists visit just to see the amazing scenery.

Vetlanda is about 300 kilometers (186 miles) away from Sweden's three biggest cities: Malmö (to the southwest), Gothenburg (to the west), and Stockholm (to the northeast).

Towns and Villages in Vetlanda

Vetlanda Municipality has 12 main urban areas, which are also called Tätorter or localities. These are places where many people live close together.

The table below lists these places based on how many people lived there as of December 31, 2005. The main town, Vetlanda, is shown in bold.

#	Locality	Population
1	Vetlanda	12,691
2	Ekenässjön	1,551
3	Landsbro	1,454
4	Holsbybrunn	780
5	Korsberga	731
6	Myresjö	644
7	Kvillsfors	560
8	Sjunnen	417
9	Skede	345
10	Björköby	312
11	Pauliström	257
12	Nye	203

Vetlanda's History

The history of Vetlanda goes back a long time, at least to the medieval age. Back then, it was an important place where local meetings called þing (or "thing") were held. These meetings were where people would discuss laws and important community matters.

There was a myth, started by Petter Rudebeck (who lived from 1660 to 1710), that Vetlanda was once known as Vitala. He imagined it as the center of a magical, ancient kingdom. However, scientists and archaeologists have looked for evidence of this kingdom but haven't found any. Even though it's just a myth, it was very popular in the 1700s and 1800s. You can still see its influence in the names of some businesses and places around the municipality today.

Sports in Vetlanda

Vetlanda is home to some very successful sports teams! They have great clubs in two exciting sports:

Bandy: The team is called Vetlanda BK. Bandy is a winter sport played on ice, similar to ice hockey but with a ball instead of a puck.
Motorcycle speedway: The team is called Vetlanda Speedway. This is a thrilling motorsport where riders race motorcycles around an oval track.