Nations in Swedish universities

The student nations or nationer at the two ancient universities in Uppsala and Lund, of which there are now thirteen at each university, are the oldest student societies in Sweden. The Uppsala nations have a history stretching back to around 1630-1640, and were probably formed under the influence of the Landsmannschaften in existence at the northern German universities frequented by Swedish students. The nations in Lund were formed at the time of the foundation of the university (1666) or shortly thereafter.

Traditionally, students were required to be members of the nations whose area one came from, but with one exception (Södermanland-Nerikes nation at Uppsala); this requirement is now voided. International students are also free to choose whichever nation they desire. The nations are in charge of the kind of social activities which are at other universities normally handled by the student unions, such as bars, clubs, theatre companies, orchestras, sports societies, and also some housing.

The nations take the names from the Swedish provinces from which they traditionally recruited their members, but do not always adhere to the strict practice of limiting membership according to those principles. These are named on regional lines, where the nations in Lund take their names from provinces and areas in southern Sweden, and those in Uppsala take their names from all over Sweden, except for the Scanian lands, the traditional catchment area for Lund, which was founded in 1666 to provide higher education for the youth in the newly-conquered areas. (There is a "Skånelandens nation" in Uppsala, but it has no activity, and only exists as a legal fiction for those students who do not wish to take part in the activities of the other nations.)

In addition to Uppsala and Lund, student nations were also formed at the University of Tartu and Royal Academy of Turku (now University of Helsinki), the second and third oldest universities in the Swedish Empire. Nowadays there are 15 student nations in the University of Helsinki and one in the Helsinki University of Technology.

Swedish educational institutions also have student unions, political and religious student societies, etc. Student nations exists at other Swedish universities as well, but they are strictly social organisations and membership is not required to be a student.

See also

• Nation (university)
• Uppsala University
  • List of Uppsala University Nations
• Lund University
  • List of Lund University Nations
• University of Helsinki
• University of Tartu
• Student nations at the University of Paris
• Inspektor