Värnamo (pronounced [ˈvæ̂ːɳaˌmu] ⓘ), historically known as Wernamo, is a town in Jönköping County in the south of Sweden.

[5] Värnamo traces its history back to a village in the medieval age; the first written mention of it stems from the 13th century.

It came into existence as a village to the eastern side of a fordable place over the Lagan, a river that for large parts is difficult to travel by.

As there are also smaller streams to the south and west of this location, it was considered something of a safeguard, leading to its name being amalgamated from the two Swedish words värn, which means safeguard, and mo which is a geographical location reference describing the kind of land on which the town is situated.

The word mo actually means that the soil consists of fine sand, sometimes making the land surrounding the river bog or barren.

Värnamo came to be the centre of Östbo Härad, an archaic form of judicial district, and thus a seat of trade and commerce.

When Värnamo became a köping in 1659 it was given formal rights to host markets, falling under the jurisdiction of the city of Jönköping.

The town of Värnamo was insignificant for a long time, but with the Swedish population growth and industrialization in the 19th century it expanded, becoming an independent köping in 1859.

Apladalen is a nature park and an open-air museum located in the center of Värnamo.

In Apladalen you can also find a statue of the lovers Per and Kersi, a fictional couple who met at the market in Värnamo and fell in love.

It contains the local library, Madame Brasserie & Café, an auditorium with 393 seats, Campus Värnamo, Teknikcenter, a cinema with three screens, Science Park (a business incubator), Skärteknikcentrum ("Cutting technology centre"), Värnamo Näringsliv and a business centre.

It is operated as a training base by the Swedish Air Force and is also used by Värnamo flying club.

Värnamo is located just north west of the junction between the European route E4 and the national road 27.

Värnamo sjukhus is one of three hospitals in Jönköping County and one of the major employers of the town with around 1,300 staff.

[38][39] Värnamo Nyheter is an online and print paid newspaper distributed every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

[46] There is also a community radio association, created in 1982, which since 1985 broadcasts music, the assemblies of Värnamo municipal council, news on Israel and Christian worship.