Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad created the Swedish ensemble ABBA in Stockholm in 1972 (formerly known as Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida). The group’s name is an acronym made up of the palindrome first letters of their first names. They became one of the best-selling musical acts in the history of popular music, dominating the charts globally from 1974 to 1982 and in 2022. They are one of the most well-known and prosperous musical ensembles of all time.
The group was ranked third best-selling singles artists in the United Kingdom with a total of 11.3 million singles sold as of 3 November 2012. ABBA is one of the most successful musical acts in history, with record sales estimated to be between 150 million and 385 million globally. The first non-English-speaking group to consistently top the charts in English-speaking nations, such as the United Kingdom, Australia, United States, Republic of Ireland, Canada, New Zealand, and South Africa, was ABBA.
They are both the best-selling band from continental Europe and the best-selling band ever from Sweden. In the UK, ABBA had eight straight albums that peaked at number one. The trio recorded a number of their hit songs in Spanish and experienced similar success in Latin America. In 2002, ABBA was admitted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. As the first and only recording artist from a non-Anglophone nation, the group was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2010.
