Gävle ['jɛ:vlə] is a city in Sweden, the seat of Gävle Municipality and the capital of Gävleborg County. It had 68,700 inhabitants in 2005. It is the oldest city in the historical Norrland (Sweden's Northern Lands), having received its charter in 1446 from Christopher of Bavaria.
It is believed that the name Gävle derives from the word gavel, meaning river banks in Old Swedish and referring to the Gavleån (Gävle River). The oldest settlement was ...
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Gävle ['jɛ:vlə] is a city in Sweden, the seat of Gävle Municipality and the capital of Gävleborg County. It had 68,700 inhabitants in 2005. It is the oldest city in the historical Norrland (Sweden's Northern Lands), having received its charter in 1446 from Christopher of Bavaria.
It is believed that the name Gävle derives from the word gavel, meaning river banks in Old Swedish and referring to the Gavleån (Gävle River). The oldest settlement was called Gavle-ägarna, which means "Gavel-owners". This name was shortened to Gavle, then Gefle, and finally Gävle.
For a long time Gävle consisted solely of small, low, turf or shingle roofed wooden buildings. Boat-houses lined the banks of Gavleån, Lillån, and Islandsån. Until the 1700s the town was built, as was the practice then, around the three most important buildings: the church, the regional palace, and the town hall.
Over the last 300 years Gävle has been ablaze on three different occasions. After the fire of 1776 the town was rebuilt...
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