As Sweden approaches the 2026 election, questions about identity, belonging, integration and what it means to be Swedish are increasingly present in public debate.
This raises a simple question:
What does Swedishness actually mean?
When we ask, “What does being Swedish mean to you?”, we are asking an individual question. The answer should therefore reflect that person’s own experiences, relationships, history, culture and sense of belonging.
Instead, the question is often answered as though there is one definition of Swedishness that applies to everyone.
That distinction is important.
There is a difference between saying, “This is what Swedishness means to me,” and saying, “This is what Swedishness means, and therefore this is what you must be to be Swedish.”
Swedishness can mean different things to different people. For some, it may be language, traditions, family history, childhood memories, nature or particular social values. For others, it may be the country where they built their life, formed relationships, raised children, worked, contributed to society or developed a sense of home.
For many people, Swedishness may also exist alongside other cultural identities. Identity is rarely one-dimensional. People can have different backgrounds, experiences and connections while still sharing a sense of belonging to the same society.
Culture matters. Language matters. Traditions and shared values matter. They create connections between people and contribute to a sense of community. At the same time, culture is not static. It changes across generations and through the experiences of the people who live within a society.
Perhaps this is where our understanding of Swedishness needs greater reflection.
Are we describing Swedishness, or are we prescribing it?
When Swedishness becomes a checklist of behaviours, beliefs, traditions or characteristics that everyone must meet, it risks turning belonging into something that must be earned or constantly proven.
A society can have a shared culture without requiring every individual to express that culture in exactly the same way.
Swedishness is a lived sense of belonging to Sweden, shaped by history, culture, relationships, experiences and values. It is not a checklist, and it does not belong exclusively to one group of people.
As we prepare to vote, perhaps we should ask not only:
“Who is Swedish?”
but also:
“Who gets to define Swedishness?”
And perhaps most importantly:
“Can there be more than one way to belong to Sweden?”
