Swedish is natively spoken by about 10 million people, primarily in Sweden, where it is the official language, and among Swedish-speaking communities in Finland and Estonia. It is integral to Swedish cultural identity, known for its design, literature (including works by Strindberg and Lagerlöf), and contributions to social welfare. Written in the Latin alphabet, Swedish grammar features a subject-verb-object (SVO) word order, definite and indefinite articles attached to nouns, and a system of verb conjugations that indicate tense, mood, and aspect.