Borlänge is a locality in Dalarna County, Sweden with 43,423 inhabitants as of 2019. It is the seat of the Borlänge Municipality with a total population of 51,604 inhabitants as of 2017.
History
Originally Borlänge was the name of a tiny village, and the first historical information about it is from 1390. The village was insignificant up until about 1870. In 1872 the construction of Domnarfvets Jernverk, the ironworks of neighbouring village Domnarvet started.[4] In 1875 a railway between Falun and Ludvika, via Borlänge was inaugurated. Thanks to its railway station the village of Borlänge became highly important in servicing the ironworks.
Economy
Employers
Borlänge has always been an industrial town surrounding the iron mill of Domnarvet (SSAB) and the paper mill of Kvarnsveden (Stora Enso). As a city with a structure heavily divided by rails and roads, with a modern city center, Borlänge also houses the head office for a state authority – the National Swedish Transport Administration Trafikverket.
Shopping
Borlänge promotes itself as a shopping centre in Dalarna. This is possible due to the Kupolen area, situated about 1 kilometer west of the city centre. The Kupolen area includes Kupolen (‘The Dome‘) Shopping Centre, IKEA and a lot of other stores. Though the district was first built to catch the interest from bypassers it has withdrawn the focus from the nearby downtown.
In the city centre you will find about 80 shops and 40 restaurants and cafés. Some with a long history; such as Qwarnströms, Almas Café, Tyllströms and Lindés Ur och Guld, but also newer ones like Selected Style, Brädgårn, Sara 1896 and Önskehuset.
Sport
The city boasts a football team that has been successful in the past, although it is currently going through some hard times. IK Brage, named after the Norse god, has a history of 18 seasons in the Swedish Premier Division (Allsvenskan). Brage plays in green and white and hosts its home games at Domnarvsvallen Stadium in Borlänge, with a seating capacity of 6,500. Another Borlänge team which has had a great deal of success in the sport, with both domestic and foreign fans following their progress, is the multicultural soccer team Dalkurd FF.
Other sports clubs located in Borlänge include:
In 2013, a Somali national bandy team was formed in Borlänge with the goal of participating in the 2014 Bandy World Championship.
The 2008 Women’s Bandy World Championship was also arranged with Borlänge as the main venue.
In 1999 the large orienteering competition O-Ringen was held around Borlänge, gathering 15 238 participants.
The 1993 World Gliding Championships were held at the Borlänge Airport, east of the town.
Music
As is the case with its twin city, Falun, music is an important part of Borlänge. It has been the hometown of many new young musicians in Sweden such as Mando Diao, Sugarplum Fairy and Miss Li and offers the possibility to get a degree in popular music at BoomTown Music Education, a branch of the School of Music at Luleå University of Technology.
The stoner rock band STONEWALL NOISE ORCHESTRA (stylized S*N*O) was formed 2004 in Borlänge.
The annual Peace & Love music festival is hosted in Borlänge.
The power metal band Twilight Force has several members from Borlänge and Falun.
Education
- Dalarna University College
- Soltorgsgymnasiet
