Swedish Costa Ricans

The first Swedish immigrants settled in Costa Rica in the mid-19th century when the President José María Castro Madriz made new reforms to attract European immigration to the country. During the first decades, the Swedish immigration was limited, because the government had more preference to the German, English, Italian and French immigration, the Swedish community in Costa Rica were mainly traders and Lutheran missionaries.[2] The Swedish immigration in Costa Rica begins to gain importance in the late of the nineteenth century and the early of the twentieth century, when hundreds of Swedes came to the country by a policy, climate and attractive economy. Also, is created the first Swedish consulate in Costa Rica, and the Swedish club and the Swedish school in the country because in this moment, began to grow the number of Costa Rican children of Swedish descent.

Sweden is a main flow of migration of retirees and pensioners in Costa Rica, along with other European countries, United States, Canada and some countries of Latin America. According to an estimate of the ARCR (Association of Residents of Costa Rica), at least 20% of all immigrants in Costa Rica are retirees, in their majority Americans, Canadians, Italians, Dutch, Swedish, Chinese and Australians. The main activity performed by retirees who emigrated, is tourism, because Costa Rica has attractive places as Escazú, Sta. Ana, Cariari, Rohrmoser and San Pedro.[3]

Swedish Costa Ricans, in relation to those of Costa Ricans of Spanish and Italian descent, are less numerous. The majority are concentrated in urban areas while some live in rural areas. Around 8.000 to 13.000 Costa Ricans have Swedish ancestry, some surnames are known in the country: Jonsson, Eriksson, Andersson, Hansson and Berg. Many Swedish immigrants were missionaries of the past, the majority of Swedish Costa Ricans are Protestants, although there are some atheists.

• Swedish diaspora
• Costa Rican people
• Immigration to Costa Rica