unpopular opinions (in terms of the hetalia fandom) from the perspective of a norwegian:
1. the way norway treats/talks to Iceland should be directed towards sweden instead, our countries have a tighter bond and we consider ourselves brothers in real life, often when referring to sweden, norwegians tend to say "we're going on a trip to our sweet brother"
2. Sweden and finland should switch personalities, or at least make finland the more qiet one
The way Europeans see Finland and the way Japan sees Finland is vastly different, and the Hetalia version is def based on the Japanese stereotype of Finnish people. Also, I know we have the stereotype of a party-swede, but Swedish people are true nerds still 👀 Hetalia Sweden reminds me of those Stockholm Swedes.
I've touched upon the Norway and Iceland relationship several times as well, along with how Norway and Sweden should be closer. Sweden is definitively the nation Norway is the closest to in the Nordics, and both bully and tease each other all the time.
Recently saw a picture where someone in Trøndelag (region in Norway) had put up an official looking sign by the Swedish border to Jämtland with "East-Trøndelag" on it instead. Also some farmers in Trøndelag keeps moving the border stones one meter east every year to "reclaim" Jämtland and Härjedalen 😅
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Recently, I saw this poll.
I refuse to believe that there are 91 Swedes in the Hetalia fandom on Tumblr who happened to see this poll, of which 70 voted for Berwald. The voter turnout on the big Hetalia fandom polls is between 1000 and 1500, there's no way nearly 10% of this fandom is Swedish.
But it also reminded me of one of my greatest pet peeves about the Hetalia canon.
I HATE THE NAME "BERWALD OXENSTIERNA" FOR SWEDEN!!!!
Disclaimer: The name "Berwald Oxenstierna" is not offensive. People who choose to use that name are not doing anything wrong beyond annoying me (and anyone else who cares about giving Sweden a name that reflects average Swedes).
Let's take a look at each part of this name. "Berwald" is not a Swedish name. It's not even a first name. This is a last name of German origin. Himaruya probably derived it from the Swedish-German composer Franz Berwald. Nobody in Sweden today has "Berwald" as a first name.
"Oxenstierna", on the other hand, is a Swedish name that has been documented since the 13th century. It's one of the oldest Swedish noble families that still has descendants carrying the name today. Swedes will immediately recognize this name from Axel Oxenstierna, who was the Lord High Chancellor of Sweden from 1612-1654, de facto ruler of Sweden while Queen Christina was a minor, and credited with establishing the foundation of the modern Swedish state.
In Sweden, German last names have a posh reputation, because German immigrants to Sweden were often businessmen and much wealthier than the locals. If you were to use "Berwald Oxenstierna" as a double last name (and I suppose "Carl Oscar Wilhelm 'Nobbe'" as his first names), it would sound like a parody of someone with noble heritage and a posh upbringing.
Even if you don't use "Berwald", using the name "Oxenstierna" for Sweden directly implies that he has noble heritage. Modern Swedish society doesn't have the strict class divisions of the past, but it's still easy to tell if a name is noble or a commoner name. Noble names with living descendants are protected and people can't adopt them without a family connection to the name.
In summary: Unless your Sweden is supposed to come off as a comically pompous aristocrat (or a wannabe) who gets to pick whatever name he wants, don't use "Berwald Oxenstierna". Most non-Swedes can't even spell it anyway.
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