Editing Counties of Sweden (section)

=== Older subdivisions ===
Sweden's [[provinces of Sweden|provinces]], or ''landskap'', and the [[lands of Sweden|"lands"]], or ''landsdelar'', lack political importance today but are common denominations culturally and historically. The provinces had their own laws and justice systems and could have large cultural and religious differences. The province of [[Småland]] (literally ''small land'') historically was several provinces with its own laws. Here burial tradition in the era before the [[Viking Age]] could differ significantly from province to province. The province of [[Norrbotten]] is a relatively recent creation; it was part of [[Västerbotten]] which extended all the way to [[Ostrobothnia (historical province)|Österbotten]] in today's [[Finland]] before 1809. Finnish and Swedish [[Laponia (historical province)|Lapland]] formed a single province until 1809.

Historically, the provinces were grouped in three lands: [[Götaland]], being southern and western Sweden; [[Svealand]] being eastern and south-eastern, and [[Norrland]] being the entire northern half. The names of the first two refer to ancient tribes, and the third is a geographical reference. They are still commonly used as geographical references. The boundaries have changed over time, with the most significant in 1658 (the cession of provinces from Denmark-Norway to Sweden) and 1812 (due to the loss of Finland to Russia in 1809). In 1812, some provinces were moved from [[Götaland]] to [[Svealand]].