The term "Swedish family" is known in the Russian -speaking environment as a common name for group marriage. According to popular belief, many families in Sweden consist of three or more partners. We checked whether this practice is really widespread in this Scandinavian country.

The concept of "Swedish family" in the meaning of group marriage can often be found in Media, Blogs And social networks. Moreover mention this term in Russian -language journalism can find already in the 1980-1990s. In Wikipedia there is a separate articlededicated to the "Swedish family." From popular everyday life, this phrase penetrated into the Russian scientific literature.

The phrase "Swedish family" is usually used to designate group marriageWhen three or more adults join the Union simultaneously. At the same time, it is worth noting that in English the term “Swedish family” does not apply to non -traditional families, but only means “family from Sweden”. Yes, and the Swedes themselves Do not suspect About the existence of such a term in relation to group marriage.

The history of the concept of “Swedish family” is not known for certain. According to some sources, this term appeared in the everyday life of the inhabitants of the USSR in the mid-1970-1980s. Konstantin Ivanov, author of the book Nine Myths of Sweden, suggestedthat the emergence of the term is connected with the stories that have reached the USSR about representatives of the Left Swedish youth, jointly living in the so -called communes. At the same time, underground Swedish magazines and films of free content began to fall into the USSR, which gave rise to the opinion of the special liberation of the Swedes.

Why is the Swedes, because the liberalization of society occurred in almost all the democratic countries of the West in the 1960-1970s? Perhaps the fact is that in the early 1970s the Sweden government Formed Special Government Committee in order to develop new rules and laws for the pornography industry. The old legislation in this area was considered too Puritan. In 1971, Sweden completely legalized and deregulated pornographic content. Stockholm received a reputation as the capital of liberated glances, attracting thousands of tourists. For almost ten years-before the return of restrictions in the 1980s-the pornography industry was part of the generally accepted economy of Sweden. There were completely legally released films and magazines, which probably struck the minds of Soviet citizens. It is possible that the Swedish groups Avva And Army of Lovers, which gained popularity in about the same period, also contributed to strengthening the stereotype. The compositions of groups (two men and two women in Avva; two men and one woman in Army of Lovers) were just suitable for the Soviet definition of the “Swedish family”. Provocative promoters and relaxed behavior of group members Reinforced The myth of the unbridled Swedes, especially in comparison with the conservative Soviet officialdom. Russian media still often called ABBA group "Musical Swedish Family."

However, in the 1980s, the liberal legislation of Sweden gradually It became More conservative due to increased protests by various social and political groups. As for the family, today the Swedish society adheres to Pretty traditional views. “Swedish families” in Sweden are not common and not legalized. According to statistics, the average Swedish family is a mother, father and two children.

Thus, the concept of “Swedish family” is nothing more than a myth born in the USSR, possibly thanks to Soviet propaganda about the moral decomposition of Western society. In reality, it turns out that the Swedes are not familiar with the term “Swedish family” in Russian -speaking usage and the vast majority prefer traditional family unions.

Image on the cover: ABBA group.