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Uppsala

geography Maturity 11-13

Uppsala is a big city in Sweden.

Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG
Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG
It sits near a river. The city has a very large church. It also has a big castle.
Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Many people go to a school there. It is a very old school. Do you want to visit it?

55 words

Uppsala is a big city in Sweden.

Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG
Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG
It sits near a river called the Fyris.

The city has a very large church. It also has a big castle.

Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Uppsala slott-2.jpg
The castle sits on a high hill.

Many people go to a school there. It is a very old school. It is the oldest in its part of the world.

Some famous people lived here. One man studied plants and gardens.

Carl von Linné.jpg
Carl von Linné.jpg
You can still visit his garden today.

Uppsala has cold winters and warm summers. It can be very sunny in the summer. It is a great place to explore!

112 words

Uppsala is a large city in Sweden. It is the fourth largest city in the country.

Uppsala by Sentinel-2, 2020-06-10.jpg
Uppsala by Sentinel-2, 2020-06-10.jpg
The city sits north of the capital, Stockholm. A small river called the Fyris flows through the land. The river splits the city into two main parts. The west side has many old buildings and parks. The east side has shops and newer homes.
Charta öfwer Upsala stad no II.jpg
Charta öfwer Upsala stad no II.jpg

Uppsala is famous for its history. It is home to a very large church called Uppsala Cathedral. This church is one of the biggest in northern Europe. The city also has a grand castle on a high ridge.

Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Many students live here. Uppsala University is the oldest university in Scandinavia. It was started way back in 1477. Famous scholars lived here, like Carl Linnaeus. He was a great scientist who studied plants.
Carl von Linné.jpg
Carl von Linné.jpg
You can even visit his old house and garden today.

The weather in Uppsala changes with the seasons. Summers are warm and very sunny. Winters are cold and often have snow. The city gets a lot of rain throughout the year.

188 words

Uppsala is a major city located in Sweden. It is the fourth-largest city in the country, following Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö.

Uppsala by Sentinel-2, 2020-06-10.jpg
Uppsala by Sentinel-2, 2020-06-10.jpg
The city sits north of the capital, Stockholm. It is built on fertile flatlands with muddy soil. A small river called the Fyris flows through the middle of the landscape.
Charta öfwer Upsala stad no II.jpg
Charta öfwer Upsala stad no II.jpg
This river splits the city into two distinct parts. The west side is the historic quarter with medieval streets and parks. The east side is the modern center for shops and offices.

The city has a very long and interesting history. Long ago, the area was known as Gamla Uppsala, or Old Uppsala. This was a main center for pagan traditions in Sweden.

Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG
Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG
Later, the town was called Aros because it sat at a river mouth. In 1274, the main center moved to what we now call Uppsala. This happened after a fire destroyed the cathedral in the old location. The famous Uppsala Cathedral was then built in the Gothic style. It was finished in 1435 and remains one of the largest in northern Europe.

Many important buildings stand in Uppsala today. Uppsala Castle was built by King Gustav Vasa.

Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Uppsala slott-2.jpg
It once served as a home for Swedish monarchs. The castle sits on a high ridge called Uppsalaåsen. You can see much of the town from this high spot. The city is also a center for the Church of Sweden. Since 1164, it has been the seat of the Archbishop. This makes the city a very important place for religion in the region.

Uppsala is a famous place for learning and science. Uppsala University was founded in 1477. It is the oldest university in Scandinavia.

Carl von Linné.jpg
Carl von Linné.jpg
Many great thinkers have lived and worked here. Carl Linnaeus was a famous scientist who studied how to name living things. You can still visit his old house and his botanical garden.
Linneanum orangery, Botaniska Trädgården, Uppsala.jpg
Linneanum orangery, Botaniska Trädgården, Uppsala.jpg
Other famous people from the city include the filmmaker Ingmar Bergman and the singer Malena Ernman.
Malena Ernman at Eurovision 2009 (cropped).jpg
Malena Ernman at Eurovision 2009 (cropped).jpg
The city is also known for modern medical research and biotechnology.

The weather in Uppsala changes quite a bit between seasons. The city has cold winters and warm summers.

Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Because it is so far north, the amount of sunlight changes a lot. In the summer, the sun stays up for over 18 hours. In the winter, there are less than 6 hours of sunshine. Winters often bring snow, which stays on the ground for about 100 days a year. The city also gets quite a lot of rain, especially between June and November. Even though it can get cold, the Gulf Stream helps keep winters milder than other places at the same latitude.

474 words

Uppsala is a major city located in Sweden. It is the fourth-largest city in the country. Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö are larger than Uppsala. In 2019, the city had 177,074 inhabitants. It sits north of the capital, Stockholm. The city is the seat of Uppsala Municipality and Uppsala County.

Uppsala by Sentinel-2, 2020-06-10.jpg
Uppsala by Sentinel-2, 2020-06-10.jpg

The city is built on fertile Uppsala flatlands. These plains have muddy soil. The small Fyris River, or Fyrisån, flows through the landscape. The river is surrounded by lush vegetation. A glacial ridge called Uppsalaåsen runs parallel to the river. This ridge reaches an elevation of about 30 meters. Uppsala Castle sits on this high ridge. From the castle, visitors can see large parts of the town.

Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Uppsala slott-2.jpg

Uppsala has a deep religious and political history. Since 1164, it has been the ecclesiastical centre of Sweden. This means it is the seat of the Archbishop of the Church of Sweden. The city is home to Uppsala Cathedral. This is the largest cathedral in Scandinavia. It was built in the Gothic style. The cathedral was inaugurated in 1435. Until the late 19th century, the Swedish monarch was often crowned here.

Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG
Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG

Historically, the area was known as Gamla Uppsala, or Old Uppsala. Medieval writers say it was a main pagan centre. It contained magnificent idols of Norse gods. The town we know today was once called Aros. This name meant "river mouth" because of its location. It sat at the mouth of the River Fyris in Ekoln. Later, it was called Östra Aros to distinguish it from Västra Aros. In 1274, the regional centre moved from Gamla Uppsala to Östra Aros. This happened because the cathedral at Gamla Uppsala burnt down.

Charta öfwer Upsala stad no II.jpg
Charta öfwer Upsala stad no II.jpg

Uppsala is a world-renowned centre for higher education. Uppsala University was founded in 1477 by Bishop Jakob Ulvsson. It is the oldest university in Scandinavia. The university was originally a Catholic institution. After the Reformation, it became a Lutheran institution in 1595. Many famous scholars are associated with the university. Carl Linnaeus was a famous scientist who developed taxonomy. You can still visit his house and his botanical garden.

Carl von Linné.jpg
Carl von Linné.jpg
Linneanum orangery, Botaniska Trädgården, Uppsala.jpg
Linneanum orangery, Botaniska Trädgården, Uppsala.jpg
Other scholars include Anders Celsius and Jöns Jacob Berzelius.

The city's economy is strong in several sectors. It is well established in medical research. Uppsala is also recognized for its leadership in biotechnology. Many companies operate there, such as Cytiva and Pfizer. The city also hosts the Uppsala Monitoring Centre. This is a collaboration between the WHO and the Swedish government. The city has a distinct divide between different areas. The Fjärdingen neighbourhood holds the clergy, royalty, and academia. The eastern side is the modern commercial centre.

The climate in Uppsala is a humid continental climate. This means the city has cold winters and warm summers. The weather is influenced by its northerly location. During the summer solstice, there are over 18 hours of sunshine. During the winter solstice, there are under 6 hours of sunshine. The Gulf Stream helps keep winters milder than other places at this latitude. For example, the January mean temperature is -1.1°C. In contrast, Fort Smith in Canada is much colder at the same latitude.

Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Uppsala slott-2.jpg

Temperature extremes in Uppsala are quite large. The highest temperature was 34.2°C in July 1933. This was recorded in Ultuna. The lowest temperature was -40.1°C in January 1875. Rainfall is common, especially between June and November. August is the wettest month with 62.2 mm of rain. Snowfall usually occurs between November and March. The city averages about 100 days of snow cover per year. Recent measurements show that the city is warming. The annual increase is around 0.9°C compared to older data series.

636 words
🖼️ Images & Media (9)
File:Charta öfwer Upsala stad no II.jpg
Charta öfwer Upsala stad no II.jpg
File:Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias Martin. Malmö museum.JPG
Utsikt av Uppsala med domkyrka, Elias...
File:Uppsala by Sentinel-2, 2020-06-10.jpg
Uppsala by Sentinel-2, 2020-06-10.jpg
File:Linneanum orangery, Botaniska Trädgården, Uppsala.jpg
Linneanum orangery, Botaniska Trädgården,...
File:Uppsala slott-2.jpg
Uppsala slott-2.jpg
File:Bandyfinal2010 hammarby celebration.jpg
Bandyfinal2010 hammarby celebration.jpg
File:20250905-Nathalie Björn.jpg
20250905-Nathalie Björn.jpg
File:Malena Ernman at Eurovision 2009 (cropped).jpg
Malena Ernman at Eurovision 2009 (cropped).jpg
File:Carl von Linné.jpg
Carl von Linné.jpg
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