Dalsland is one of the traditional Swedish provinces (landskap), in the south west of Sweden. It borders Bohuslän to the south-west, Norway to the west, Värmland to the north and north-east, lake Vänern to the east, and Västergötland to the east and south.

Dalsland offers a scenic landscape with lakes in the east and dense forests in the north-western uplands. One town of significant size, Åmål. Dalsland has a low population density of about 14 inhabitants / km² and a total of 50,000 inhabitants; uninhabited area is dominated by forests and lakes, and the epithet for Dalsland is "Sweden's lake province".

Its Latinized name, which was used in older prints and sometimes still encountered, is Dalia.

Administration

The traditional provinces of Sweden serve no administrative or political purposes, but are historical and cultural entities. Dalsland formed the northern part of the administrative county Älvsborg County until 1999 when the present Västra Götaland County was formed. A very small and insignificant part of the province is in Värmland County.

Heraldry

Dalsland was granted its arms at the time of the funeral of Gustav Vasa in 1560. In the 16th century Dalsland had the status of a County (Comitatus) and was represented with an Earl's coronet. On January 18, 1884 the Privy Council gave all provinces the right of use to a Dukal coronet for their coat of arms. Blazon: "Argent an Ox passant armed and hoofed Or."

Geography

No other part of Sweden has its area covered with as many lakes as Dalsland does. Of its total area, around 450 km² is water, but a part of lake Vänern (Sweden's largest lake) is also belonging to the province.

From the shores of Vänern, one can sail through the river systems up to the mythical lake Stora Le. Stora Le has a length of 66km, whereof 37km are within Dalsland, and the remaining part within the Värmland province, with a bay into Norway.

The terrain consists of 1/4 agricultural lands and 2/3 forested lands. The province's southern part are suitable for agriculture, but there is a shortage of man-power to cultivate it.
Tresticklan is a national park in Dalsland. There are also several nature reserves.

The Dalsland canal was completed in 1868 and has 28 locks in its length of 254 km.

Sub-divisions

Municipalities are local districts of administration, with elected councils.
Within Dalsland's borders these are the municipalities:

• Bengtsfors Municipality

• Dals-Ed Municipality

• Färgelanda Municipality

• Mellerud Municipality

• Åmål Municipality

• Parts of Munkedal, Säffle, Vänersborg and Årjäng Municipalities.

Dalsland was historically divided into one chartered city and five hundreds. The hundreds were provincial sub-divisions from the Middle Ages, but were discontinued in the early 20th century.

Dalsland's chartered city was Åmål (royal charter in 1643). Its hundreds were: Nordal Hundred, Sundal Hundred, Tössbo Hundred, Valbo Hundred and Vedbo Hundred.

History

The original name of Dalsland was "Dal" – "Dalsland" was not used until 19th century. Dal literally means "Valley".

The area has around 5,000 localized ancient remains. They indicate the origin of the inhabitants to stem from the south and the province Bohuslän; dialectal studies and social aspects have came to a similar conclusion. [1]

Since ancient times the description "Lives on Dal" has been the description used by the inhabitants themselves to describe where they live, instead of the usual "lives in ...". Speculation has it, this is due to the remote and isolated location of the province. [1]

In the 13th century the inhabitants were referred to as "The West gothics west of lake Vänern" by King Magnus Ladulås. A provincial law of 1442 called them "The West Gothics of Dal". All sources point to them being a – remote – part of the Västergötland (West Gothia) province.

Its exposed location near the Norwegian border made it subject to invasion, although to a lesser degree than the southern Bohuslän and Västergötland. It was first conquered around 1100 by the Norwegian Magnus Barefoot, who only held until King Valdemar Atterdag re-drew the provincial borders. [1]

The Nordic Seven Years' War was particularly hard, especially 1568 when 281 farms were burnt. Other feuds that were negative for the province were those of 1611-1612 and 1644-1645. Furthermore, in the Scanian War 1675-1679, Charles XII of Sweden used the recently built fortress of Västra Ed to launch his invasion towards Norway. [1].

Culture

People in the western part of Dalsland were believed to have migrated from Bohuslän, although probably long before that area was Norwegian. A distinctive feature in the Högsäter-area of Valbo Hundred was an inclination to brown eyes and dark hair, and a slightly rounder facial shape. [1]

The municipalities in Dalsland still makes frequent use of the provincial name, as the means to distinguish their history and culture from the rest of West Sweden. Culturally, Dalsland is as connected to Värmland as it is to the other neighbouring provinces Västergötland and Bohuslän.

Tongue

The dialect is a Swedish language variety known as the Dalbo-dialect. It is a variation of the Götaland tongue, and closest related to the other Götaland provinces, although it differs from them in the absence of a guttural R.

Its location by the Norwegian border has also added some features. The dialects vary over the province, since it is mostly hilly but has some more densely populated areas near its borders. These areas have been influenced by the neighbour areas.