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The Finland Portal

Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, opposite Estonia. Finland covers an area of 338,145 square kilometres (130,559 sq mi) and has a population of 5.6 million. Helsinki is the capital and largest city. The vast majority of the population are ethnic Finns. The official languages are Finnish and Swedish; 84.9 percent of the population speak the first as their mother tongue and 5.1 percent the latter. Finland's climate varies from humid continental in the south to boreal in the north. The land cover is predominantly boreal forest biome, with more than 180,000 recorded lakes.

Finland was first settled around 9000 BC after the last Ice Age. During the Stone Age, various cultures emerged, distinguished by different styles of ceramics. The Bronze Age and Iron Ages were marked by contacts with other cultures in Fennoscandia and the Baltic region. From the late 13th century, Finland became part of Sweden as a result of the Northern Crusades. In 1809, as a result of the Finnish War, Finland was captured from Sweden and became an autonomous grand duchy within the Russian Empire. During this period, Finnish art flourished and the independence movement began to take hold. Finland became the first territory in Europe to grant universal suffrage in 1906, and the first in the world to give all adult citizens the right to run for public office. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, Finland declared its independence. A civil war was fought in Finland the following year, with the Whites emerging victorious. Finland's status as a republic was confirmed in 1919. During World War II, Finland fought against the Soviet Union in the Winter War and the Continuation War, and later against Nazi Germany in the Lapland War. As a result, it lost parts of its territory but retained its independence. (Full article...)

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The Micragirls in September 2008 performing at Tavastia Club in Helsinki

The Micragirls were a Finnish garage rock band. They were active from 2001 to 2010, gaining a cult following both in Finland and abroad. The band released two albums and several EPs and singles. The Micragirls did over 250 concerts, of which some 100 were outside Finland. The band's all-female principal line-up was a trio: drums, electric guitar and combo organ, with all band members singing. (Full article...)

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Photo credit: fi:User:Neofelis Nebulosa
The Central Park of Helsinki during the summer

Did you know (auto-generated)

... that Turku remained the largest city in Finland after three quarters of it burned down?
... that Finnish-American model Selene Mahri married three millionaires and is credited with inventing the saying "Marriage is a question of give and take. You give. I take"?
... that the 1972 Finnish film The Sheep Eaters gathered more than a million viewers opposite the 1975 Ice Hockey World Championships match between Finland and the Soviet Union?
... that Kimmo Leinonen helped establish both the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame and the IIHF Hall of Fame?
... that politician Kalervo Kummola introduced karaoke to Finland?
... that records of transgender people in Finland stretch back to the 19th century?

WikiProjects

You are invited to participate in Finland WikiProject, a WikiProject dedicated to developing and improving articles about Finland.

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...that the Finnish Communist leader Arvo Tuominen broke with the Soviet Union during the Winter War and ordered the Finnish Communists not to assist the Red Army?
...that mobile phone throwing is an international sport in which thrown mobile phones are judged by the distance and choreographics of the throw?
...that the self-taught weapon designer Aimo Lahti designed over 50 weapons of all types prior to and during World War II, including the successful Suomi M-31?
...that Norse sagas record some Finnish campaigns against Sweden in the mid-8th century?
...that Larin Paraske, a Finnish oral poet, could recite over 32,000 verses of poetry?

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This is a Good article, an article that meets a core set of high editorial standards.

A scene of the Kauhajoki vocational college campus a few hours after the shooting

The Kauhajoki school shooting occurred on 23 September 2008 at the Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences (SeAMK) in Kauhajoki, Finland. The gunman, 22-year-old student Matti Juhani Saari, shot and killed ten people with a Walther P22 Target semi-automatic pistol, before shooting himself in the head. He died a few hours later at Tampere University Hospital. One woman was injured but remained in stable condition.

The shooting took place at the Kauhajoki School of Hospitality, owned by the Seinäjoki Municipal Federation of Education. The facilities and campus were shared between SeAMK and the Seinäjoki Vocational Education Centre – Sedu. Saari was a second-year student in a Hospitality Management undergraduate degree programme. The incident was the second school shooting in less than a year in Finland, the other being the Jokela school shooting in November 2007, in which nine people including the gunman died. The first similar incident in the country's history was the Raumanmeri school shooting in Rauma in 1989, leaving two people dead. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various Finland-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1People gathered in the Senate Square for a demonstration against the February Manifesto in March 1899. (from History of Finland)
Image 2Eero Järnefelt, Burning the Brushwood, 1893 (from History of Finland)
Image 3Alvar Aalto, Viipuri Library (1927–35) (from Culture of Finland)
Image 4President K. J. Ståhlberg in his office in 1919 (from History of Finland)
Image 5Turku Cathedral and its surroundings from 1814 (from History of Finland)
Image 6An old drawing of the city of Turku in the 18th century (from History of Finland)
Image 7The area of Finland in the years 1920–1940. The 1935 county and municipality division on the map. (from History of Finland)
Image 8Linus Torvalds, a famous Fennoswede software engineer, best known for initiating the development of the Linux kernel (from Culture of Finland)
Image 9Finnish Guards' Rifle Battalion, 1850s (from History of Finland)
Image 10A summer cottage (mökki) on a lake island (from Culture of Finland)
Image 11Three Finnish Romani women in Helsinki, Finland, in 1930s (from Culture of Finland)
Image 12Pieces of the Antrea Net (8,300 BC), the oldest-known fishing net in the world. (from History of Finland)
Image 13In the sauna, by Pekka Halonen, 1925 (from Culture of Finland)
Image 14Prehistoric red ochre painted rock art of moose, human figures, and boats in Astuvansalmi, Finland, from ca. 3800–2200 BC (from Culture of Finland)
Image 15The part of Finland controlled by the Reds at its largest in February–March 1918 (from History of Finland)
Image 16The Finno-Soviet Treaty (from History of Finland)
Image 17S/S Urania in Hanko harbor in 1893, with 509 emigrants on board on their way to America (from History of Finland)
Image 18A reconstruction of a 12th-century Perniö costume (from History of Finland)
Image 19A smoke sauna (savusauna) in Enonkoski (from Culture of Finland)
Image 20Portrait of Finnish poet Elias Lönnrot who wrote "the Kalevala" (1802 - 1884) (from History of Finland)
Image 21Women dressed in Finnish folk costumes (from Culture of Finland)
Image 22Painting of Lalli killing Henry. Painting by C. A. Ekman. (from History of Finland)
Image 23Women in sauna with Vihtas
Image 24The public education system founded during earlier Swedish rule resulted the literacy of Grand Duchy of Finland being higher than its host country Russian Empire (map of 1897 census literacy data) (from History of Finland)
Image 25A view of Pohjoisesplanadi in the center of Helsinki in 1891 (from History of Finland)
Image 26(1809 Diet of Porvoo) The sovereign's pledge, printed in Finnish (from History of Finland)
Image 27A peasant girl and a woman in traditional dress from Ruokolahti, eastern Finland, as depicted by Severin Falkman in 1882 (from Culture of Finland)
Image 28Wehrmacht soldiers with a local Sámi reindeer herder, Lappland, Sodankylä, Finland 1942 (from History of Finland)
Image 29Stone Age dwelling named Kierikki 5000–3000 BC (from History of Finland)
Image 30Apocalyptica's Perttu Kivilaakso playing metal music live (from Culture of Finland)
Image 31Grand Duchy of Finland, 75 kopek assignat (1824) (from History of Finland)
Image 32Winter War Monument in Suomussalmi, Kainuu, Finland (from History of Finland)
Image 33Mikael Agricola hands over the Finnish Translation of the New Testament to King Gustav Wasa. (from History of Finland)
Image 34Identification document and tag of a Finnish war child (from History of Finland)
Image 35Map of Finnish areas ceded to the Soviet Union in 1944, after the Continuation War (from History of Finland)
Image 36Kastelli Giant's Church in Pattijoki by Pöljä culture [fi] (from History of Finland)
Image 37Students on Helsinki's Esplanadi wearing their caps on Vappu (from Culture of Finland)
Image 38Captain Aarne Juutilainen at the front at Kollaa during the Winter War (from History of Finland)
Image 39Marshal of Finland Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim visit in Germany, 1942 (from History of Finland)
Image 40Battle of Gangut (Hanko) was part of the Great Northern War during 1700–1721. (from History of Finland)
Image 41Paavo Nurmi at the 1920 Summer Olympics (from Culture of Finland)
Image 42Memorial of the Mannerheim Cross Knights of Parikkala, Finland (from History of Finland)
Image 43Midsummer bonfire (kokko) in Mäntsälä (from Culture of Finland)
Image 44Battle of Valkeala was part of the Russo-Swedish War (1788–1790). (from History of Finland)
Image 452007 Formula One World Champion Kimi Räikkönen celebrating victory at the 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix (from Culture of Finland)
Image 46Imagery collage of Birger Jarl conquering Häme and the construction of Häme Castle (from History of Finland)
Image 47The decision of the Soviet of the People's Comissars' to recognise Finnish independence, signed by Vladimir Lenin, Leon Trotsky, Grigory Petrovsky, Joseph Stalin, Isaac Steinberg, Vladimir Karelin, and Alexander Schlichter (from History of Finland)
Image 48Pekka Halonen's painting "against persecutors" from 1896 depicts the warfare of the ancient Finns. (from History of Finland)
Image 49This 1825 map of the Grand Duchy of Finland is from a larger work, geographical atlas of the Russian Empire. (from History of Finland)
Image 50Kalmar Union in 1400s (from History of Finland)
Image 51The area controlled by Finland at its largest, in 1942 (from History of Finland)
Image 52Helsinki Accords Treaty (from History of Finland)
Image 53Jussipaita (transl. Jussi sweater); a traditional sweater from the Finnish region of Southern Ostrobothnia (from Culture of Finland)
Image 54A group of Finnish soldiers operating a Bofors gun during the Continuation War in 1943 (from History of Finland)
Image 55Erkki Karu, one of the pioneers of the Finnish cinema, with cinematographer Eino Kari in 1927 (from Culture of Finland)
Image 56A triptych by Akseli Gallen-Kallela, depicting the Aino Story of Kalevala on three panes (from Culture of Finland)
Image 57Lapua Movement supporters beating the "red officer" Eino Nieminen in front of the Vaasa courthouse during the 4 June 1930 riot. (from History of Finland)
Image 58Jean Sibelius at work in his study (from History of Finland)
Image 59Karjalanpiirakka, a traditional Finnish pastry (from Culture of Finland)
Image 60Finland Ostrobothnia regiment uniforms in 1705 (from History of Finland)
Image 61Ancylus Lake covered major part of Finland (7,500–6,000 BC) (from History of Finland)
Image 62Stone Age stone axe engraved with human face found from Kiuruvesi. (from History of Finland)
Image 63The ruins of Vammala burned by the Reds, during the Civil war (from History of Finland)
Image 64The Finnish composer Jean Sibelius (1865–1957), a significant figure in the history of classical music (from Culture of Finland)
Image 65Northern Europe in 814 (from History of Finland)
Image 66Badge of the Finnish White/Civil Guard (from History of Finland)
Image 67Finnish folk dancers in a 1907 postcard sent from Mustamäki, Finland (from Culture of Finland)
Image 68Signing the Helsinki Accords are the West German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, East Germany's leader Erich Honecker, US president Gerald Ford and the Austrian chancellor Bruno Kreisky (from History of Finland)
Image 69President Urho Kekkonen's funeral procession in 1986 (from History of Finland)
Image 70Homann's map of the Scandinavian Peninsula and Fennoscandia with their surrounding territories: northern Germany, northern Poland, the Baltic region, Livonia, Belarus, and parts of Northwest Russia. Johann Baptist Homann (1664–1724) was a German geographer and cartographer; map dated around 1730. (from History of Finland)
Image 71In 2011 figure skater Kiira Korpi was ranked 4th in the world. (from Culture of Finland)
Image 72Sámi / Laplander family in traditional costumes from Finland. (from Culture of Finland)
Image 73Kreeta Haapasalo Playing the Kantele in a Peasant Cottage (1868), by Robert Wilhelm Ekman (from History of Finland)
Image 74Janne Ahonen is considered one of the best and most successful currently active ski jumpers. (from Culture of Finland)
Image 75The Swedish empire at its largest. Most of present-day Finland was part of Sweden proper, rike, shown in dark green. (from History of Finland)
Image 76The first government of independent Finland. P. E. Svinhufvud, the first Prime Minister of Finland, sitting at the head of the table. (from History of Finland)
Image 77In the middle is the patron saint of Finland, Saint Henry, on the right side of him is Bishop Konrad Bitz and on the left is Dean Magnus Stjernkors; from Missale Aboense (1488) (from History of Finland)

In the news

26 July 2024 – Finland–Russia relations: Finland reports that a Russian Navy Baltic Sea fleet vessel trespassed on Finnish territorial waters in the eastern Gulf of Finland. (Reuters)
12 July 2024 – Finland–Russia relations, Russian emigration during the Russian invasion of Ukraine: The Parliament of Finland passes a law allowing border guards to restrict trafficked asylum seekers from crossing the Finland–Russia border. (CNN)
22 May 2024 – Russia–NATO relations: The Russian Ministry of Defence proposes to unilaterally adjust Russia's maritime border in the Baltic Sea, prompting comments of concern made by Baltic members of NATO, including Finland and Lithuania. The Ministry of Defense later retracts the proposal. (Reuters) (BBC News)
2 April 2024 – Viertola school shooting: A student is killed and two others are injured in a shooting at a school in Vantaa, Uusimaa, Finland. A 12-year-old student is detained. (AP) (Yle)
1 March 2024 – 2024 Finnish presidential election: Alexander Stubb is sworn in as the 13th President of Finland. (Reuters)
11 February 2024 – 2024 Finnish presidential election: Alexander Stubb is elected President of Finland with 51.6% of the vote.(Yle)

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Panoramic photo shot of Helsinki, Finland

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