There are many stories to tell about the Katthult farm and the prankster known as Emil Svensson. Emil of Lönneberga (from Swedish: Emil i Lönneberga) is a series of children’s novels by Astrid Lindgren. The twelve books were written between 1963 and 1997.
The stories revolve around five-year-old Emil Svensson (Jan Ohlsson), who lived in Lönneberga in Smaland together with mother Alma, father Anton, sister Ida, farmhand Alfred, maid Lina, Krösa-Maja and many animals on the Katthult farm.
The real Katthult farm is not in Lönnberga, but near the small town of Gybberyd, only a few minutes’ drive from Vimmerby. Katthult is one of four farms in the village of Gibberyd. Just as Astrid Lindgren describes it, the farm is beautifully situated between cherry trees and lilacs.
Entrance to the courtyard is 40 kroner, almost all buildings are accessible, except for the house, which is used privately. The hut of Emil’s best friend, farmhand Alfred, and the outhouse are still there today =)
As it should be on a real farm, animals also live on Katthult. There are horses, pigs, sheep, rabbits and chickens on the farm and in summer cows graze in the adjacent meadows. That’s why you can even hear the “piglet” grunt 😍
Adress: 598 92 Katthult
Opening hours: 10.00 – 18.00 Uhr
Phone Number: +4649640042
Card: MHQ3+X6 Katthult
In Germany, we know Emil as Michel aus Lönneberga, because we have another Emil: the boy Emil Tischbein in Erich Kästner’s Emil und die Detektive from the 1920s.
While there are no specific dates mentioned on the historical setting, several references are made to swedish cultural, social and military phenomenons that ended in the early 1900s. A comet is mentioned, most likely Halley’s Comet which passed Earth in 1910. There is also a mention of a great earthquake in America, an obvious reference to the San Francisco earthquake of 1906.
Thank you for reading! If you would like to read another Blog Post – Klick here – Topic: Stockholm Winter Walk – Staying active during the cold days
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