a maritime laen of Sweden, bounded on the W. by the Kattegat, and on the other sides by the laens of Göteborg, Wenersborg, Jonköping, Wexiö, and Christiansstad. Area, 1900 square miles. The coast is in some parts sandy, in others bold and rocky, and is much indented, forming several considerable bays. The eastern part is mountainous, but the western is generally level and sandy. The soil is poor, stony, and ill cultivated, so that about one-third of the corn required for food has to be imported. The fisheries and cattle-rearing chiefly engage the attention of the inhabitants. Pop. (1850) 51,382. The capital is of the same name, and stands at the mouth of the Nissa, 76 miles S.S.E. of Gothenburg. It has some trade in deals, pitch, and tar, an important salmon fishery, and about 1900 inhabitants.