Gislaved Municipality is a municipality in Jönköping County in southern Sweden, with its seat located in the town Gislaved. The present municipality was formed in 1974, whenformer municipalities were amalgamated. The number of entities in the area in 1863 was seventeen. It regards itself as being both cultural and industry dominated, as part of the Gnosjö region. The city is being modernized with regards to shopping, eating and education, and to boost tourism in the state of Småland. New stores have moved in and two new commercial centers are to be built in 2015. The local school has moved up in rankings in a list comparing Sweden's schools. In 2006, the school was ranked #248 out of 250. In 2008, the school was ranked #180. The local Gymnasium was the seventh-best in the country, and in September 2008 the local library was announced the best library in Sweden.
History
The municipality has been inhabited for a long time, but without any significant urban areas. At the turn of the 19th century it contained some 700 inhabitants. By 1949 it was eligible to receive rights as a köping, comparable to town rights. A coat of arms was designed for the occasion, traditionally used by the cities of Sweden. When the municipal reform was carried out in the 1970s, Gislaved adapted the still unused coat of arms as the municipal arms. The arms depict the insignia for a historical hostel nearby. There are 19 churches in the municipality, the oldest from 1350. In the small town of Burseryd is a church bell that is even older. Its inscription was made with the Futhark alphabet and reads in translation "The year Anno Domine 1238 was this bell made. Bero wrote the inscription". It is today the second oldest church bell in Sweden.
Geography
There are six nature reserves in the municipality. Rare plants and animals include the provincial flower the Twinflower, the only flower named after the botanist Carl von Linné. Lake Bolmen lies in the south-east part of the municipality, with its main part in the Ljungby Municipality. It is the tenth largest lake in Sweden and offers fishing, canoeing and other nature activities. Gislaved used to have a large tire factory under the same name as the town but it has shut down.
Localities
There are eight urban areas in Gislaved Municipality. In the table the localities are listed according to the size of the population as of December 31, 2015. The municipal seat is in bold characters.
