Suomen tasavalta Republiken Finland Republic of Finland
Flag Coat of arms
Anthem: Maamme  (Finnish) Vårt land  (Swedish)
Location of  Finland  (dark green) – on the European continent  (light green & dark grey) – in the European Union  (light green)  —  [Legend]
Capital (and largest city)		Helsinki 60°10′N, 24°56′E
Official languages		Finnish, Swedish
Demonym		Finnish, Finn
Government		Parliamentary republic1
-	President	Tarja Halonen (sd)
-	Prime Minister	Matti Vanhanen (c)
Independence		from Russian Empire
-	Autonomy	March 29, 1809
-	Declared	December 6, 1917
-	Recognised	January 4, 1918
EU accession		January 1, 1995
Area
-	Total	338,145 km² (65th) 130,558 sq mi
-	Water (%)	10,0
Population
-	2008 estimate	5,308,208[1] (111th)
-	2000 census	5,155,000
-	Density	16/km² (201st) 40/sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2005 estimate
-	Total	$163 billion (52nd)
-	Per capita	$34,819 (12th)
GDP (nominal)		2005 estimate
-	Total	$193. List of flags of Finland The flag of Finland, also called Siniristilippu ("Blue Cross Flag" dates from the beginning of the 20th century The Coat of arms of Finland is a crowned lion on a red field the right forepaw replaced with an armoured hand brandishing a sword trampling on a saber with the hindpaws A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history traditions and struggles of its people recognized either by a nation's Our Land, Maamme ( Finnish) or Vårt land ( Swedish) is the title of Finland 's National anthem. Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside Our Land, Maamme ( Finnish) or Vårt land ( Swedish) is the title of Finland 's National anthem. Swedish ( is a North Germanic language spoken by more than nine million people predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in Finland numbers some 53 million inhabitants and has an average population density of 17 inhabitants per square Kilometre. Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. An official language is a Language that is given a special legal status in a particular Country, State, or other territory Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside Swedish ( is a North Germanic language spoken by more than nine million people predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the A demonym or gentilic is a word that denotes the members of a People or the inhabitants of a place The terms Finns and Finnish people ( Finnish: suomalaiset, Swedish: finländare) are used in English to For the government of parliamentary systems see Executive (government. A parliamentary republic or parliamentary constitutional republic is a form of a Republic which operates under a Parliamentary system of government The President of Finland is the Head of State of Finland. Under the Constitution of Finland, executive power is vested in the President and the Tarja Kaarina Halonen ( pronounced) (born 24 December 1943 is the current President of Finland. The Social Democratic Party of Finland (in Finnish: Suomen Sosialidemokraattinen Puolue, SDP) is one of the most influential political parties The Prime Minister (pääministeri Swedish: statsminister) is the Head of Government of Finland. Matti Taneli Vanhanen ( (born November 4 1955) is the current Prime Minister of Finland, as well as Chairman of the Centre Party. The Centre Party (in Finnish: Suomen Keskusta, Kesk, in Swedish: Centern i Finland, C) is a centrist The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya The Grand Duchy of Finland (Magnus Ducatus Finlandiæ Великое княжество Финляндское ' Velikoe knjažestvo finljandskoe) was the Predecessor Events 1461 - Wars of the Roses: Battle of Towton - Edward of York defeats Queen Margaret to become King Year 1809 ( MDCCCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The Finnish declaration of independence was adopted by the Parliament of Finland on 6 December 1917. Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Events 46 BC - Titus Labienus defeats Julius Caesar in the Battle of Ruspina. Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in A Member State of the European Union is any one of the twenty-seven sovereign Nation states that have acceded the European Union (EU since its De facto New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 1995 ( MCMXCV) was a Common year starting on Sunday. Events of 1995 Area is a Quantity expressing the two- Dimensional size of a defined part of a Surface, typically a region bounded by a closed Curve. To help compare Orders of magnitude of different geographical regions we list here Surface areas between 100000 km² and 1000000 km² This is a list of the countries of the world sorted by total area. The square mile is an imperial and US unit of Area equal the area of a square of one statute mile. Water is a common Chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of Life. In Mathematics, a percentage is a way of expressing a number as a Fraction of 100 ( per cent meaning "per hundred" In Biology a population is the collection of inter-breeding organisms of a particular Species; in Sociology List of countries by population in 2005|List of countries by population in 1907This is a list of countries ordered according to Population. Population density (in agriculture standing stock and Standing crop) is a measurement of Population per unit area or unit volume List of countries and dependencies by Population density in inhabitants/km² The purchasing power parity ( PPP) theory uses the long-term equilibrium Exchange rate of two currencies to equalize their Purchasing power. There are three lists of Countries of the world sorted by their Gross domestic product (GDP (the value of all final goods and services produced within a nation Per capita is a Latin phrase meaning for each head with Per meaning 'through' or 'by' This article includes three lists of Countries of the world sorted by their Gross domestic product (GDP at Purchasing power parity (PPP Per capita 491 billion (31st)
-	Per capita	$44,912 (12th)
Gini (2000)		26. PLEASE NO RANDOM FIGURES THERE ARE NO FIGURES BASED ON NATIONAL STATISTICS IN THIS ARTICLE Per capita is a Latin phrase meaning for each head with Per meaning 'through' or 'by' This article includes three lists of Countries of the world sorted by their Gross domestic product Per capita at Nominal values, the The Gini coefficient is a measure of statistical dispersion most prominently used as a measure of inequality of income distribution or inequality of wealth 9 (low)
HDI (2007)		▲ 0. The Human Development Index ( HDI) is an index combining normalized measures of Life expectancy, Literacy, Educational attainment, and GDP 952 (high) (11th)
Currency		Euro (€)² (EUR)
Time zone		EET (UTC+2)
-	Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Internet TLD		.fi, .ax ³
Calling code		+358
1	Semi-presidential system
2	Before 2002: Finnish markka
3	The .eu domain is also used, as it is shared with other European Union member states. This is a list of countries by Human Development Index as included in the United Nations Development Program 's Human Development Report 2007 A currency is a unit of exchange, facilitating the transfer of Goods and/or services It is one form of Money, where money is Please update other articles as well to avoid contradiction within Wikipedia e The euro sign (€ is the Currency sign used for the Euro, the official currency of the European Union (EU ISO 4217 is the International standard describing three-letter codes (also known as the currency code) to define the names of currencies established Eastern European Time ( EET) is one of the names of UTC+2 Time zone, 2 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. Daylight saving time ( DST Eastern European Summer Time ( EEST) is one of the names of UTC+3 Time zone, 3 hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. A country This is a list of country calling codes defined by ITU-T recommendation E The semi-presidential system is a System of government in which a prime minister and a President are both active participants in the day-to-day administration The markka ( Finnish) or mark ( Swedish) was the Currency of Finland from 1860 until February 28, 2002, when The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in

Finland, officially the Republic of Finland^[2] (Finnish: Suomi; Swedish: Finland (help·info)), is a Nordic country situated in Northern Europe. The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe called the Nordic region, consisting of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, It has borders with Sweden to the west, Russia to the east, and Norway to the north, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia ( Eesti or Eesti Vabariik) is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region The Gulf of Finland ( Finnish: Suomenlahti, Russian: Финский залив, Finskiy zaliv, Swedish: Finska viken The capital city is Helsinki. Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland.

Around 5. 3 million people reside in Finland, with the majority concentrated in the southern part of country. ^[1] It is the eighth largest country in Europe in terms of area and the most sparsely populated country in the European Union. List of countries and dependencies by Population density in inhabitants/km² The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in Most Finns are native in Finnish, which is related to Estonian and is one of the few official EU languages not of Indo-European origin. The terms Finns and Finnish people ( Finnish: suomalaiset, Swedish: finländare) are used in English to Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside Estonian (; ˈeːsti ˈkeːl is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1 The languages of the European Union are Languages used by people within the member states of the European Union. The largest minority language, Swedish, is spoken natively by 5.5 percent of the population. Swedish ( is a North Germanic language spoken by more than nine million people predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the Swedish -speaking Finns (often called Finland-Swedes, Finnish Swedes, Fennoswedes or Swedish Finns, see below ( Swedish ^[3] Finland is a democratic, parliamentary republic with a central government and local governments in 415 municipalities. History In ancient times history of India Greece, and Rome had governments similar to constitutional democracies A parliamentary system, also known as parliamentarianism (and parliamentarism in American English) is a System of government in which Republicanism is the Ideology of governing a nation as a Republic, with an emphasis on Liberty, Rule of law, Popular sovereignty Greater Helsinki (including Helsinki, Espoo, and Vantaa) totals a million residents and a third of the GDP. Greater Helsinki (Suur-Helsinki Swedish: Storhelsingfors) Capital Region ( Pääkaupunkiseutu, Huvudstadsregionen) Helsinki Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. Espoo (ˈespoː Esbo ( in Swedish) is the second largest city of Finland, with a population of approximately 240000 Geography Location Vantaa encompasses 243 km² of which 190 km² is water Other major cities include Tampere, Turku, and Oulu. Tampere ( ˈtɑmpɛrɛ Swedish: Tammerfors or) is a city in southern Finland located between two lakes Näsijärvi and Pyhäjärvi Turku, in Swedish Åbo ( pronounced,) is a city and the original capital of Finland on the southwest coast of Finland at the Oulu ( (literally "Flood" ( (literally "Ule River Castle" is a city and municipality of about 130000 inhabitants in the province of

Finland was historically part of Sweden and from 1809 an autonomous Grand Duchy within the Russian Empire. The Grand Duchy of Finland (Magnus Ducatus Finlandiæ Великое княжество Финляндское ' Velikoe knjažestvo finljandskoe) was the Predecessor The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya Finland's declaration of independence in 1917 from Russia was followed by a civil war, wars against the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, and the period of Finlandization during the Cold War. The Finnish declaration of independence was adopted by the Parliament of Finland on 6 December 1917. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The military history of Finland during World War II covers the history of Finland from 1939 to 1945. Finlandization (suomettuminen finlandisering Finnlandisierung is the influence that one powerful country may have on the policies of a smaller neighboring country Cold War is the state of conflict tension and competition that existed between the United States and the Soviet Union (USSR and their respective allies from the Finland joined the European Union in 1995 and participates in the Eurozone. The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in Euro Enlargement of the

Finland has seen excellent results in many international comparisons of national performance such as the share of high-technology manufacturing, the rate of gross domestic product growth, and the protection of civil liberties. Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. ^[4]

History

Main article: History of Finland

Prehistory

According to archaeological evidence, the area now composing Finland was first settled around 8500 BCE during the Stone Age as the ice shield of the last ice age receded. Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos The 9th millennium BC marks the beginning of the Neolithic period The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric time period during which Humans widely used stone for toolmaking An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets The earliest people were hunter-gatherers, living primarily off what the tundra and sea could offer. A hunter-gatherer society is one whose primary subsistence method involves the direct procurement of edible plants and animals from the wild Foraging and Hunting In physical Geography, tundra is an area where the Tree growth is hindered by low temperatures and short growing seasons Pottery is known from around 5300 BCE (see Comb Ceramic culture). During the 6th millennium BC, Agriculture spreads from the Balkans to Italy and Eastern Europe and from Mesopotamia to Egypt. Pit-Comb Ware culture redirects here For the contemporary (ca The arrival of the Battle Axe culture (or Cord-Ceramic culture) in southern coastal Finland around 3200 BCE may have coincided with the start of agriculture. The Corded Ware culture, alternatively characterized as the Battle Axe culture or Single Grave culture is an enormous European Archaeological horizon that Events c 3150 BC — According to the legend Narmer ( First Dynasty) started to rule in Ancient Egypt. However, the earliest certain records of agriculture are from the late third millennium BCE. The 3rd millennium BC spans the Early to Middle Bronze Age. It represents a period of time in which Imperialism, or the desire to conquer grew to prominence Even with the introduction of agriculture, hunting and fishing continued to be important parts of the subsistence economy, especially in the northern and eastern parts of the country.

The Bronze Age (1500–500 BCE) and Iron Age (500 BCE – 1200 CE) were characterised by extensive contacts with other cultures in the Fennoscandian and Baltic regions. The term Bronze Age refers to a period in human cultural development when the most advanced Metalworking (at least in systematic and widespread use included techniques for This article is about the archaeological period known as the Iron Age for the mythological Iron Age see Ages of Man. Fennoscandia and Fenno-Scandinavia are geographic and geological terms used to describe the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula, Karelia Baltic Seven Islandsgif|right|thumb|330px|A contemporary transnational Euroregion encompasses the islands of the Baltic countries There is no consensus on when Finno-Ugric languages and Indo-European languages were first spoken in the area of contemporary Finland. Finno-Ugric (ˌfɪnoʊˈjuːgɹɪk is a grouping of languages in the Uralic language family comprising Finnish, Estonian, Hungarian and

The first verifiable written documents appeared in the 12th century.

Swedish era

Sweden established its official rule of Finland in the 13th century. Second Swedish Crusade was a semi-historical Swedish military expedition to Finland by Birger jarl in the 13th century Swedish became the dominant language of the nobility, administration and education; Finnish was chiefly a language for the peasantry, clergy and local courts in predominantly Finnish-speaking areas. Finland Swedish is a general term for the closely related cluster of Dialects of Swedish spoken in Finland by Swedish-speaking Finns as their Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside A peasant is an agricultural worker who subsists by working a small plot of ground Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given Religion. A court is a forum used by a power base to adjudicate disputes and dispense civil, labour administrative and criminal Justice under its The Bishop of Turku was the most socially pre-eminent person in Finland before the Reformation. The bishop of Turku ( Episcopus Aboensis) was the medieval catholic religious leader of Finland.

During the Reformation, the Finns gradually converted to Lutheranism. The Protestant Reformation was a reform movement in Europe that began in 1517 though its roots lie further back in time Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the teachings of the sixteenth-century German reformer Martin Luther In the 16th century, Mikael Agricola published the first written works in Finnish. Mikael Agricola ( (c 1510 &ndash April 9, 1557) was a Finnish clergyman who became de facto founder of written Finnish and The first university in Finland, The Royal Academy of Turku, was established in 1640. The Royal Academy of Turku/Åbo (Regia Academia Aboensis Turun akatemia Åbo Kungliga Akademi was the name of the University of Helsinki until 1809 when it was In the 18th century, wars between Sweden and Russia led to the occupation of Finland twice by Russian forces, known to the Finns as the Greater Wrath (1714–1721) and the Lesser Wrath (1742–1743). The terms Finns and Finnish people ( Finnish: suomalaiset, Swedish: finländare) are used in English to The Great Northern War (1700-21 was fought between Russia and Sweden for supremacy in the Baltic Sea. The Russo-Swedish War of 1741–1743, known as the Hats' Russian War in Sweden and the Hats' War in Finland, which resulted in the Lesser By this time Finland was the predominant term for the whole area from the Gulf of Bothnia to the Russian border. The Gulf of Bothnia (Pohjanlahti Bottniska viken ie Bottenviken + Bottenhavet is the northernmost arm of the Baltic Sea.

Russian Empire era

Main article: Grand Duchy of Finland

See also: Finland's language strife and Russification of Finland

On March 29, 1809, after being conquered by the armies of Alexander I of Russia in the Finnish War, Finland became an autonomous Grand Duchy in the Russian Empire until the end of 1917. The Grand Duchy of Finland (Magnus Ducatus Finlandiæ Великое княжество Финляндское ' Velikoe knjažestvo finljandskoe) was the Predecessor The language strife was one of the major conflicts of Finland's national history and domestic politics The Russification of Finland (1899-1905 1908-1917 sortokaudet/sortovuodet (times/years of oppression in Finnish) was a governmental policy of the Russian Empire Events 1461 - Wars of the Roses: Battle of Towton - Edward of York defeats Queen Margaret to become King Year 1809 ( MDCCCIX) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year Alexander I of Russia ( Russian: Александр I Павлович / Aleksandr I Pavlovich (23 December 1777 – November 19 1825 served as Emperor of The Finnish War was fought between Sweden and Russia from February 1808 to September 1809 The Grand Duchy of Finland (Magnus Ducatus Finlandiæ Великое княжество Финляндское ' Velikoe knjažestvo finljandskoe) was the Predecessor The Russian Empire ( Pre-reform Russian: Pоссійская Имперія Modern Russian: Российская Империя translit: Rossiyskaya During the Russian era, the Finnish language started to gain recognition. From the 1860s onwards, a strong Finnish nationalist movement, known as the Fennoman movement, grew. Ethnic nationalism is a form of Nationalism wherein the " Nation " is defined in terms of Ethnicity. The Fennomans were the most important political movement in the 19th century Grand Duchy of Finland. Milestones included the publication of what would become Finland's national epic, the Kalevala, in 1835, and the Finnish language achieving equal legal status with Swedish in 1892. A national epic is an epic poem or similar work which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular Nation; not necessarily a The Kalevala is a book and epic poem which the Finn Elias Lönnrot compiled from Finnish and Karelian Folklore in the nineteenth

The Finnish famine of 1866–1868 killed 15 percent of the population, making it the last and one of the worst famines in European history. The Famine of 1866–1868 was the last Famine in Finland and northern Sweden, and the last major naturally caused famine in Europe. The famine led the Russian Empire to ease financial regulations, and investment rose in following decades. Economic and political development was rapid. ^[6] The GDP per capita was still a half of United States and a third of Great Britain. ^[6]

In 1906, universal suffrage was adopted in the Grand Duchy of Finland. Universal suffrage (also universal adult suffrage, general suffrage or common suffrage) consists of the extension of the right to vote to However, the relationship between the Grand Duchy and the Russian Empire soured when the Russian government made moves to restrict Finnish autonomy. An autonomous area is an area of a Country that has a degree of Autonomy, or freedom from an external authority For example, the universal suffrage was, in practice, virtually meaningless, since the emperor did not have to approve any of the laws adopted by the Finnish parliament. Desire for independence gained ground, first among radical nationalists and socialists.

Civil war and early independence

Main articles: Finland's declaration of independence and Finnish Civil War

On December 6, 1917, shortly after the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, Finland declared its independence, which was approved by Bolshevist Russia. The Finnish declaration of independence was adopted by the Parliament of Finland on 6 December 1917. The Finnish Civil War was a part of the national and social turmoil caused by World War I (1914&ndash1918 in Europe Events 1060 - Béla I of Hungary is crowned king of Hungary 1240 - Mongol invasion of Rus: Kiev Year 1917 ( MCMXVII) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year The October Revolution (Октябрьская революция Oktyabrskaya revolyutsiya) also known as the Soviet Revolution The Finnish declaration of independence was adopted by the Parliament of Finland on 6 December 1917. Bolshevist Russia or Bolshevik Russia is a common term for the Bolshevik side in the Russian Civil War, or more specifically the Russian

Months after in 1918, the violent wing of the Social Democratic Party started a coup, which led a brief but bitter civil war that affected domestic politics for many decades afterwards. The Social Democratic Party of Finland (in Finnish: Suomen Sosialidemokraattinen Puolue, SDP) is one of the most influential political parties The Finnish Civil War was a part of the national and social turmoil caused by World War I (1914&ndash1918 in Europe The civil war was fought between "the Whites", who were supported by Imperial Germany, and "the Reds", supported by Bolshevist Russia. The White Guards is one translation of the Finnish term Suojeluskunta ( Plural: Suojeluskunnat, Finland-Swedish: The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification The Red Guards (Punakaarti formed the army of Red Finland during the Finnish Civil War in 1918 Eventually, the Whites overcame the Reds. The deep social and political enmity between the Reds and Whites remained. The civil war and activist expeditions (see Heimosodat) to the Soviet Union strained Eastern relations. For nationalist movements in general see Nationalism. For other meanings of activism see Activism. The Finnish term heimosodat is in English literally " Kindred Nations Wars " " Wars for kindred peoples " or " Kinship Wars "

After a brief flirtation with monarchy, Finland became a presidential republic, with Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg elected as its first president in 1919. The Kingdom of Finland was a short-lived attempt following Finnish independence from Russia to establish Prince Frederick of Hesse as the Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg ( January 28, 1865 – September 22, 1952) was a prominent Jurist and Academic, who played a The Finnish–Russian border was determined by the Treaty of Tartu in 1920, largely following the historic border but granting Pechenga (Finnish: Petsamo) and its Barents Sea harbour to Finland. The Treaty of Tartu ( Russian: Тартуский мирный договор, Finnish: Tarton rauha) between Finland and Soviet Russia was Pechenga (Пече́нга Finnish and Petsamo Petsjenga Beahcán Peäccam is an Urban-type settlement in Pechengsky District, Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside The Barents Sea (Barentshavet Баренцево море is a part of the Arctic Ocean located north of Norway and Russia. Finnish democracy didn't see any more Soviet coup attempts and survived the anti-Communist Lapua Movement. Lapua Movement (Lapuan liike sometimes referred to as " Lapua Fascism " named after the then Municipality and modern days town of Lapua The relationship between Finland and the Soviet Union was tense. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 Finnish ethnicity was targeted by genocides in the Soviet Union. Germany's Nazism led to a deterioration of relations with Germany. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German Military was trained in France instead and relations to Western Europe and Sweden were strengthened.

In 1917 the population was 3 million. Credit-based land reform was enacted after the civil war, increasing the proportion of capital-owning population. Land reforms (also Agrarian reform, though that can have a broader meaning is an often- controversial alteration in the societal arrangements whereby government ^[6] About 70% of workers were occupied in agriculture and 10% in industry. ^[7] The largest export markets were the United Kingdom and Germany. The Great Depression in the early 1930s was relatively light in Finland.

World War II

Main article: Military history of Finland during World War II

During World War II, Finland fought the Soviet Union twice: in the Winter War of 1939–40 after the Soviet Union had attacked Finland and in the Continuation War of 1941–44, following Operation Barbarossa, in which Nazi Germany invaded the Soviet Union. The military history of Finland during World War II covers the history of Finland from 1939 to 1945. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The Winter War (Talvisota Советско-финляндская война - official Зимняя война - unofficial Vinterkriget began when the The Continuation War (Jatkosota Fortsättningskriget Советско-финская война ( 25 June 1941 &ndash 19 September 1944) Operation Barbarossa ( Unternehmen Barbarossa) was the Codename for Nazi Germany 's invasion of the Soviet Union during World War II Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers Following German losses on the Eastern Front and the subsequent Soviet advance, Finland was forced to make peace with the Soviet Union. The Eastern Front of World War II (die Ostfront 1941-1945, der Rußlandfeldzug 1941-1945 (Russian campaign or der Ostfeldzug 1941-1945 (Eastern Campaign This was followed by the Lapland War of 1944–45, when Finland forced the Germans out of northern Finland. The Lapland War (Finnish Lapin sota) were the hostilities between Finland and Nazi Germany between September 1944 and April 1945 fought in the Finland's

The treaties signed in 1947 and 1948 with the Soviet Union included Finnish obligations, restraints, and reparations as well as further Finnish territorial concessions (cf. the Moscow Peace Treaty of 1940). The Moscow Peace Treaty was signed by Finland and the Soviet Union on March 12, 1940, and the ratifications were exchanged on March 21 Finland ceded most of Finnish Karelia, Salla, and Pechenga, which amounted to ten percent of its land area and twenty percent of its industrial capacity. Historical province of Karelia in Finlandpng|right|150px|thumb|Historical province of Karelia in modern Finland(the borders of modern provinces with pink colour and the modern border of Finland Salla (former name Kuolajärvi until 1936 is a municipality of Finland and is located in Lapland. Pechenga (Пече́нга Finnish and Petsamo Petsjenga Beahcán Peäccam is an Urban-type settlement in Pechengsky District, Some 400,000 evacuees, mainly women and children, fled these areas. Evacuation of Finnish Karelia was the resettlement of the population of Finnish Karelia and other territories ceded by Finland to the Soviet Union into the remaining During World War II some 70000 Finnish children (sotalapset were evacuated from Finland to Scandinavia, chiefly to Sweden. Some were left behind and were not able to immigrate in Finland until the Soviet Union collapsed (after which they formed a large immigrant group).

Finland had to reject Marshall aid. The Marshall Plan (from its enactment officially the European Recovery Program, ERP) was the primary plan of the United States for rebuilding and creating a stronger United States shipped secret development aid such as much of welding equipment and helped the still non-communist SDP in hope of saving Finland's independence. ^[8] Establishing trade with the Western powers, such as the United Kingdom, and the reparations to the Soviet Union caused Finland to transform itself from a primarily agrarian economy to an industrialised one. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture is a process of social and economic change whereby a human group is transformed from a Pre-industrial society into an industrial one Even after the reparations had been paid off, Finland continued to trade with the Soviet Union in the framework of bilateral trade. This article is about the political term for the term as used in Biology, see symmetry (biology.

Cold War

In 1950 half of the Finnish workers were occupied in agriculture and a third lived in urban areas. ^[9] The new jobs in manufacturing, services and trade quickly attracted people to the towns. The average number of births per woman declined from a baby boom peak of 3. A baby boom is any period of greatly increased birth rate during a certain period and usually within certain geographical bounds and when the birth rate exceeds 2% of the population 5 in 1947 to 1. 5 in 1973. ^[9] When baby boomers entered the workforce, the economy did not generate jobs fast enough and hundreds of thousands emigrated to the more industrialized Sweden, with emigration peaking in 1969 and 1970 (today 4. 7 percent of Swedes speak Finnish). ^[9] The 1952 Summer Olympics brought international visitors. The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an International Multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland Finland took part in trade liberalization in the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. The World Bank is an internationally supported Bank that provides financial and technical assistance to developing countries for development programs (e The International Monetary Fund ( IMF) is an International organization that oversees the Global financial system by following the Macroeconomic The 'General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade' (typically abbreviated 'GATT' was the outcome of the failure of negotiating governments to create the International Trade Organization (ITO

Officially claiming to be neutral, Finland lay in the grey zone between the Western countries and the Soviet Union. For other uses of Neutral and Neutrality see Neutral A neutral country takes no side in a War between other parties The term Western world, the West or the Occident ( Latin: occidens -sunset -west as distinct from the Orient) can have multiple meanings The YYA Treaty (Finno-Soviet Pact of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance) gave the Soviet Union some leverage in Finnish domestic politics. The Agreement of Friendship Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, also known as the YYA Treaty from the Finnish Ystävyys- yhteistyö- ja avunantosopimus This was extensively exploited by President Urho Kekkonen against his opponents. Kekkonen redirects here For other uses see Kekkonen (disambiguation. He maintained an effective monopoly on Soviet relations from 1956 on, which was crucial for his continued popularity. In politics, there was a tendency of avoiding any policies and statements that could by interpreted as anti-Soviet. This phenomenon was given the name "Finlandisation" by the German press (fi. Finlandization (suomettuminen finlandisering Finnlandisierung is the influence that one powerful country may have on the policies of a smaller neighboring country suomettuminen). Self-censorship vis-à-vis anything negative associated with the Soviet Union was prevalent in the media. Public libraries pulled from circulation thousands of books that were considered anti-Soviet, and the law made it possible for the authorities to directly censor movies with supposedly anti-Soviet content. Asylum-seeking Soviet citizens were frequently returned to the Soviet Union by the Finnish authorities.

Despite close relations with the Soviet Union, Finland remained a market economy. Various industries benefited from trade privileges with the Soviets, which explains the widespread support that pro-Soviet policies enjoyed among business interests in Finland. Economic growth was rapid in the postwar era, and by 1975 Finland's GDP per capita was the 15th highest in the world. In the 1970s and 1980s, Finland built one of the most extensive welfare states in the world. This article refers specifically to the Welfare state of the United Kingdom. In 1981, President Urho Kekkonen's failing health forced him to retire after holding office for 25 years. Kekkonen redirects here For other uses see Kekkonen (disambiguation.

Miscalculated macroeconomic decisions, a banking crisis, the collapse of the Soviet Union and a global economic downturn caused a deep recession in Finland in the early 1990s. The depression bottomed out in 1993, and Finland has seen steady economic growth ever since.

Recent history

Like other Nordic countries, Finland has liberalized its economy since the late 1980s. Financial and product market regulation was loosened. Some state enterprises have been privatized and there have been some modest tax cuts. Finland joined the European Union in 1995, and the Eurozone in 1999. The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in Euro Enlargement of the

The population is aging with the birth rate at 10. This is a list of countries by crude Birth rate, based on the United Nations Population Division's quinquennial estimates and projections 42 births per 1,000 population, or a fertility rate of 1. The total fertility rate ( TFR, sometimes also called the fertility rate, period total fertility rate (PTFR or total 8. ^[9] With a median age of 41. 6 years, Finland is one of the oldest countries;^[10] half of voters are estimated to be over 50 years old. Like most European countries, without further reforms or much higher immigration, Finland is expected to struggle with demographics, even though macroeconomic projections are healthier than in most other developed countries.

Etymology

The name Suomi (Finnish for "Finland") has uncertain origins but a strong candidate for a cognate is the proto-Baltic word *zeme, meaning "land". Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside According to an earlier theory the name was derived from suomaa (fen land) or suoniemi (fen cape).

The exonym Finland has resemblance with, e. An exonym (from Greek el ἔξω exo = out el ὄνομα onoma = name is a name for a place that is not used within that place by the local g. , the Scandinavian placenames Finnmark, Finnveden and hundreds of other toponyms starting with Fin(n) in Sweden and Norway. The North Germanic languages or Scandinavian languages make up one of the three branches of the Germanic languages, a sub-family of the Indo-European languages or Finnmárku ( Sami language) is a county in the extreme northeast of Norway. Finnveden or Finnheden is one of the ancient small lands of Småland. Some of these names are obviously derived from finnr, a Germanic word for a wanderer/finder and thus supposedly meaning nomadic "hunter-gatherers" or slash and burn agriculturists as opposed to the Germanic sedentary farmers and sea-faring traders and pirates. A hunter-gatherer society is one whose primary subsistence method involves the direct procurement of edible plants and animals from the wild Foraging and Hunting Slash and burn consists of cutting and burning of Forests or Woodlands to create fields for Agriculture or Pasture for Livestock, or It is unknown how, why and when Finnr started referring to the people of Finland Proper in particular (from where the name spread from the 15th century onwards to refer to the people of the entire country). Finland Proper or Southwest Finland (Varsinais-Suomi Egentliga Finland is a region in south-western Finland.

Among the first documents to mention "a land of the Finns" are two rune-stones. There is one in Söderby, Sweden, with the inscription finlont (U 582) and one in Gotland, a Swedish island in the Baltic Sea, with the inscription finlandi (G 319), dating from the 11th century. The Baltic expeditions runestones are Varangian Runestones in memory of men who took part in peaceful or warlike expeditions across the Baltic Sea, where Finland is a county, province and municipality of Sweden and the largest Island in the Baltic Sea. The Baltic expeditions runestones are Varangian Runestones in memory of men who took part in peaceful or warlike expeditions across the Baltic Sea, where Finland ^[11]

Geography and environment

Main article: Geography of Finland

See also: List of cities and towns in Finland, List of lakes in Finland, and List of national parks of Finland

Topography and geology

Finland is a country of thousands of lakes and islands – 187,888 lakes (larger than 500 m²) and 179,584 islands to be precise. The geography of Finland differs from that of other Nordic countries. This is a list of towns in Finland. In the year 1977 the juridical difference between cities towns and municipalities were removed There are 187888 Lakes in Finland larger than 5 Ares (500 square metres There are 35 National parks in Finland. They are all managed by the Metsähallitus. ^[12] One of these lakes, Saimaa, is the fifth largest in Europe. Saimaa ( IPA:) or Saimen in Swedish, is a lake in southeastern Finland. The Finnish landscape is mostly flat with few hills, and its highest point, the Halti at 1,324 meters, is found in the extreme north of Lapland at the border between Finland and Norway. The Halti mountain is the highest point in Finland, at 1324 m above sea level The Province of Lapland ( Lappi in Finnish and Sami Lappland in Swedish is one of the Provinces of Finland. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional

The landscape is covered mostly (seventy-five percent of land area) by coniferous taiga forests and fens, with little arable land. Taiga (ˈtaɪgə from Turkic or Mongolian) is a Biome characterized by Coniferous forests In Geography, arable land (from Latin arare, to Plough) is an agricultural term meaning land that can be used for The most common type of rock is granite. Granite (ˈɡrænɪt is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, Felsic, igneous rock. It is a ubiquitous part of the scenery, visible wherever there is no soil cover. Moraine or till is the most common type of soil, covered by a thin layer of humus of biological origin. Moraine refers to any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris (soil and rock which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions such as those Till is unsorted glacial sediment Glacial drift is a general term for the coarsely graded and extremely heterogeneous Sediments of glacial origin Humus (Origin 1790–1800 Latin: earth ground) is the organic material in Soil lending it a dark brown or black colouration The greater part of the islands are found in the southwest in the Archipelago Sea, part of the archipelago of the Åland Islands, and along the southern coast in the Gulf of Finland. Archipelago Sea ( Finnish Saaristomeri, Swedish Skärgårdshavet) is a part of the Baltic Sea between the Gulf of Bothnia An archipelago (ɑrkəˈpɛləgoʊ is a chain or cluster of Islands The word archipelago literally means "chief Sea " from Italian The Gulf of Finland ( Finnish: Suomenlahti, Russian: Финский залив, Finskiy zaliv, Swedish: Finska viken

Finland is one of the few countries in the world whose surface area is still growing. Owing to the post-glacial rebound that has been taking place since the last ice age, the surface area of the country is growing by about 7 square kilometres (2. Post-glacial rebound (sometimes called continental rebound, isostatic rebound, isostatic adjustment or post-ice-age isostatic recovery) An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets 7 square miles) a year. ^[13]

The distance from the most Southern point – Hanko – to the most northern point of Finland – Nuorgam – is 1,445 kilometres (898 miles) (driving distance), which would take approximately 18. Hanko (ˈhɑŋko in Finnish Hangö in Swedish, and Гангут in Russian) is a Bilingual port town on the south coast Nuorgam (Njuorggán is a village in the Utsjoki municipality in the province of Lapland, Finland. The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States 5 hours to drive. This is very similar to Great Britain (Land's End to John o' Groats – 1,404 kilometres (872 miles) and 16. Land's End ( Cornish name Penn an Wlas) is a headland on the Penwith Peninsula, located near Penzance in Cornwall John o' Groats ( Taigh Iain Ghròt in Scottish Gaelic) ( is a village in the Highland council area of Scotland 5 h).

Flora and fauna

Phytogeographically, Finland is shared between the Arctic, Central European and Northern European provinces of the Circumboreal Region within the Boreal Kingdom. Phytogeography, also called geobotany is the branch of Biogeography that is concerned with the geographic distribution of Plant Species, or more generally Vaccinium vitis-idaea 20060824 003jpg|thumb|right| Vaccinium vitis-idaea ]]Alnus-viridis Rhododendron-palustreJPG|thumb|right| Rhododendron tomentosum ]]The Boreal Kingdom or Holarctic Kingdom ( Holarctis) is a Floristic kingdom According to the WWF, the territory of Finland can be subdivided into three ecoregions: the Scandinavian and Russian taiga, Sarmatic mixed forests and Scandinavian Montane Birch forest and grasslands. An ecoregion ( ecological region) sometimes called a bioregion, is an ecologically and geographically defined area smaller than a "realm" or " Scandinavian and Russian taiga is an Ecoregion within the Boreal forests/taiga zone as defined by the WWF classification (ecoregion PA0608 Sarmatic mixed forests constitute an Ecoregion within the Temperate broadleaf and mixed forests zone according to the WWF classification (ecoregion PA0436 The Scandinavian Montane Birch forests and grasslands PA 1110 is one of the Terrestrial ecoregions as defined by the World Wildlife Fund.

All terrestrial life in Finland was completely wiped out during the last ice age that ended some 10,000 years ago, following the retreat of the glaciers and the appearance of vegetation. An ice age is a period of long-term reduction in the Temperature of the Earth 's surface and atmosphere resulting in an expansion of continental Ice sheets

Today, there are over 1,200 species of vascular plant, 800 bryophytes and 1,000 lichen species in Finland, with flora being richest in the southern parts of the country. Vascular plants (also known as tracheophytes or higher plants) are those Plants that have lignified tissues for conducting Bryophytes are all Embryophytes ('land Plants) that are non-vascular: they have tissues and enclosed reproductive systems but they lack Vascular tissue Lichens (ˈlaɪkən or /lɪtʃən/ are symbiotic associations of a Fungus (the mycobiont with a photosynthetic partner (the photobiont also known as Plant life, like most of the Finnish ecology, is well adapted to tolerate the contrasting seasons and extreme weather. Ecology (from Greek grc οἶκος oikos, "house(hold" and grc -λογία -logia) is the scientific study of Many plant species, such as the Scots Pine, spruce, and birch, spread throughout Finland from Norway and only reached the western coast less than three millennia ago. The Scots Pine ( Pinus sylvestris L family Pinaceae) is a species of Pine native to Europe and Asia, ranging from Spruce refers to Trees of the genus Picea, a genus of about 35 species of Coniferous Evergreen trees in the Family Pinaceae Birch is the name of any Tree of the genus Betula ( Bé-tu-la) in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Oak and maple grows in nature only in the southern part of Finland. The term oak can be used as part of the common name of any of about 400 species of Trees and Shrubs in the Genus Quercus (from Latin Acer ( maple) is a Genus of Trees or Shrubs They are variously classified in a family of their own the Aceraceae, or

Similarly, Finland has a diverse and extensive range of fauna. There are at least sixty native mammalian species, 248 breeding bird species, over seventy fish species and eleven reptile and frog species present today, many migrating from neighbouring countries thousands of years ago. Mammals ( class Mammalia) are a class of Vertebrate Animals characterized by the presence of Sweat glands, including sweat glands

Large and widely recognised wildlife mammals found in Finland are the Brown Bear (the national animal), Gray Wolf, elk (moose) and reindeer. The Brown Bear ( Ursus arctos) is an Omnivorous Mammal of the family Ursidae, distributed across much of northern Eurasia and The grey wolf or gray wolf ( Canis lupus) also known as the timber wolf or simply wolf, is a Mammal of the order Carnivora The moose (North America or elk (Europe Alces alces, is the largest extant Species in the Deer family. Other common mammals include the Red Fox, Red Squirrel, and Mountain Hare. The Red Fox ( Vulpes vulpes) is a Mammal of the order Carnivora. The red squirrel or Eurasian red squirrel ( Sciurus vulgaris) is a Species of Tree squirrel ( Genus Sciurus The Mountain Hare ( Lepus timidus) is a Hare, which is largely adapted to polar and mountainous habitats Some rare and exotic species include the flying squirrel, Golden Eagle, Saimaa Ringed Seal and Arctic fox. The Siberian Flying Squirrel ( Pteromys volans) is an Old World flying squirrel with a range from western Finland and the Baltic states to The Golden Eagle ( Aquila chrysaetos) is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere The Saimaa Ringed Seal ( Pusa hispida saimensis, saimaannorppa is a subspecies of Ringed Seal ( Pusa hispida). The Arctic Fox ( Vulpes lagopus) also known as the White Fox or Snow Fox, is a small Fox native to cold Arctic regions of the Two of the more striking birds are the Whooper Swan, a large European swan and the national bird of Finland, and the Capercaillie, a large, black-plumaged member of the grouse family. The Whooper Swan ( Cygnus cygnus) is a large Northern Hemisphere Swan. The Capercaillie ( Tetrao urogallus) also known as the Wood Grouse or more specifically Western Capercaillie is the largest member of the Grouse Grouse are a group of birds from the order Galliformes. Often considered a family Tetraonidae, the American Ornithologists' Union The latter is considered an indicator of old-growth forest connectivity, and has been declining due to landscape fragmentation. Ancient Woodland Old growth forest, (also termed primary forest, ancient forest, virgin forest, primeval forest, frontier ^[14] The most common breeding birds are the Willow Warbler, Chaffinch and Redwing. The Willow Warbler, Phylloscopus trochilus, is a very common and widespread Leaf warbler which breeds throughout northern and temperate Europe and The Chaffinch, Fringilla coelebs, is a small Passerine Bird in the Finch family Fringillidae also called a spink. The Redwing ( Turdus iliacus) is a Bird in the thrush family Turdidae native to Europe and Asia, slightly smaller than the related ^[15] Of some seventy species of freshwater fish, the northern pike, perch and others are plentiful. The northern pike (known as the pike in Britain Esox lucius, is a Species of carnivorous Fish of the genus Esox (the pikes Perca is the genus of fish referred to as perch or sometimes yellow perch, a group of freshwater Fish belonging to the family Percidae Atlantic salmon remains the favorite of fly rod enthusiasts. Atlantic salmon, known scientifically as Salmo salar, is a species of Fish in the family Salmonidae, which is found in the northern Fly fishing is a distinct and ancient Angling method most renowned as a method for catching Trout and Salmon, but employed today for a wide variety of

The endangered Saimaa Ringed Seal, one of only three lake seal species in the world, exists only in the Saimaa lake system of southeastern Finland, down to only 300 seals today. Saimaa ( IPA:) or Saimen in Swedish, is a lake in southeastern Finland. It has become the emblem of the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation. ^[16]

Due to hunting and persecution in history, many animals such as the Golden Eagle, Brown Bear and Eurasian Lynx all experienced significant declines in population. The Golden Eagle ( Aquila chrysaetos) is one of the best known birds of prey in the Northern Hemisphere The Brown Bear ( Ursus arctos) is an Omnivorous Mammal of the family Ursidae, distributed across much of northern Eurasia and The Eurasian lynx ( Lynx lynx) is a medium-sized cat native to European and Siberian forests where it is one of the predators However, their numbers have increased again in the 2000s, mainly as a result of careful conservation and the establishment of vast national parks. There are 35 National parks in Finland. They are all managed by the Metsähallitus.

Climate

The climate in Southern Finland is a northern temperate climate. Climate encompasses the temperatures humidity rainfall atmospheric particle count and numerous other meteorogical factors in a given region over long periods of In Northern Finland, particularly in the Province of Lapland, a subarctic climate dominates, characterised by cold, occasionally severe, winters and relatively warm summers. The Province of Lapland ( Lappi in Finnish and Sami Lappland in Swedish is one of the Provinces of Finland. Regions having a subarctic climate (also called boreal climate) are characterized by long usually very cold winters and brief warm summers The main factor influencing Finland's climate is the country's geographical position between the 60th and 70th northern parallels in the Eurasian continent's coastal zone, which shows characteristics of both a maritime and a continental climate, depending on the direction of air flow. For the superstate in George Orwell 's novel see Nations of Nineteen Eighty-Four. An oceanic climate (also called marine west coast climate and maritime climate) is the Climate typically found along the west coasts at the middle latitudes Continental climate is a Climate that is characterized by Winter Temperatures cold enough to support a fixed period of Snow cover each Year Finland is near enough to the Atlantic Ocean to be continuously warmed by the Gulf Stream, which explains the unusually warm climate considering the absolute latitude. The Gulf Stream, together with its northern extension towards Europe the North Atlantic Drift, is a powerful warm and swift Atlantic Ocean current that Latitude, usually denoted symbolically by the Greek letter phi ( Φ) gives the location of a place on Earth (or other planetary body north or south of the

A quarter of Finland's territory lies above the Arctic Circle, and as a consequence the midnight sun can be experienced – for more days, the farther north one travels. The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. The midnight sun is a phenomenon occurring in Latitudes north and nearby to the south of the Arctic Circle and south and nearby to the north of the At Finland's northernmost point, the sun does not set for 73 consecutive days during summer, and does not rise at all for 51 days during winter.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Finland

Population

Finland currently numbers 5,302,778 inhabitants and has an average population density of 17 inhabitants per square kilometre. Finland numbers some 53 million inhabitants and has an average population density of 17 inhabitants per square Kilometre. Square Kilometre ( US spelling square kilometer) symbol km2, is a decimal multiple of the SI unit of ^[1] This makes it, after Norway and Iceland, the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Iceland, officially the Republic of Iceland ( ( Ísland or Lýðveldið Ísland ( Finland's population has always been concentrated in the southern parts of the country, a phenomenon even more pronounced after 20th century urbanisation. Urbanizationn (also spelled urbanisation) is the physical growth of Urban areas into rural or natural land as a result of population in-migration to an existing The biggest and most important cities in Finland are the cities of the Greater Helsinki metropolitan area – Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa. Greater Helsinki (Suur-Helsinki Swedish: Storhelsingfors) Capital Region ( Pääkaupunkiseutu, Huvudstadsregionen) Helsinki A metropolitan area is a large population center consisting of a large Metropolis and its adjacent zone of influence or of more than one closely adjoining neighboring central Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. Espoo (ˈespoː Esbo ( in Swedish) is the second largest city of Finland, with a population of approximately 240000 Geography Location Vantaa encompasses 243 km² of which 190 km² is water Other large cities include Tampere, Turku and Oulu. Tampere ( ˈtɑmpɛrɛ Swedish: Tammerfors or) is a city in southern Finland located between two lakes Näsijärvi and Pyhäjärvi Turku, in Swedish Åbo ( pronounced,) is a city and the original capital of Finland on the southwest coast of Finland at the Oulu ( (literally "Flood" ( (literally "Ule River Castle" is a city and municipality of about 130000 inhabitants in the province of

The share of immigrants in Finland is among the lowest of the European Union countries. Immigration refers to the movement of people among countries While the movement of people has existed throughout human history at various levels modern immigration implies long-term Foreign citizens comprise 2. 3 percent of the population. ^[18] Most of them are from Russia, Estonia and Sweden. ^[18]

Language

Main articles: Finnish language, Finland Swedish, and Languages of Finland

See also: Finnish alphabet, Finnish grammar, and Finnish phonology

Most of the Finnish people (92 percent^[19]) speak Finnish as their mother tongue. Finnish ( or suomen kieli) is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland (92% As of 2006) and by ethnic Finns outside Finland Swedish is a general term for the closely related cluster of Dialects of Swedish spoken in Finland by Swedish-speaking Finns as their The two official languages of Finland are Finnish and Swedish. The Finnish alphabet is based on the Latin alphabet, and especially its Swedish extension This article deals with the Grammar of the Finnish language. It is probably best to read the main article first This article deals with the sound patterns of the Finnish language. The terms Finns and Finnish people ( Finnish: suomalaiset, Swedish: finländare) are used in English to Finnish is a member of the Baltic-Finnic subgroup of the Uralic languages and is typologically between inflected and agglutinative languages. The Baltic-Finnic languages, spoken around the Baltic Sea by about 7 million people are a branch of Finnic languages belonging to the Finno-Ugric group The Uralic languages (jʊˈrælɨk constitute a language family of 39 Languages spoken by approximately 20 million people Morphological typology is a way of classifying the languages of the world (see Linguistic typology) that groups languages according to their common morphological structures In Grammar, inflection or inflexion is the way language handles grammatical relations and relational categories such as tense, mood, voice An agglutinative language is a Language that uses Agglutination extensively most Words are formed by joining Morphemes together It modifies and inflects the forms of nouns, adjectives, pronouns, numerals and verbs, depending on their roles in the sentence. In Grammar, inflection or inflexion is the way language handles grammatical relations and relational categories such as tense, mood, voice In Grammar, an adjective is a word whose main syntactic role is to modify a Noun or Pronoun, giving more information about the In Linguistics and Grammar, a pronoun is a Pro-form that substitutes for a (including a noun phrase consisting of a single Noun) with or For English usage of verbs see the wiki article English verbs. In practice, this means that instead of prepositions and prefixes there is a great variety of different suffixes and that compounds form a considerable percentage of the vocabulary of Finnish. In Grammar, a preposition is a Part of speech that introduces a prepositional phrase. An affix is a Morpheme that is attached to a stem to form a word In Grammar, a suffix (also postfix, ending) is an Affix which is placed at the end of a word In Linguistics, a compound is a Lexeme (less precisely a Word) that consists of more than one stem. It has been estimated that approximately 65–70 percent of all words in Finnish are compounds. ^[20] A close linguistic relative to the Finnish language is Estonian, which, though similar in many aspects, is not mutually intelligible with it. Estonian (; ˈeːsti ˈkeːl is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1 These languages, together with Hungarian (all members of the Uralic language family), are the primary non-Indo-European languages spoken in Europe. Hungarian ( magyar nyelv) is a Uralic language (more specifically a Ugric language) unrelated to most other languages in Europe. The Uralic languages (jʊˈrælɨk constitute a language family of 39 Languages spoken by approximately 20 million people Finland, together with Estonia and Hungary, is one of three independent countries where a Uralic language is spoken by the majority. Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia ( Eesti or Eesti Vabariik) is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region Hungary (Magyarország 'mɔɟɔrorsaːg) officially in English the Republic of Hungary ( Magyar Köztársaság, literally Magyar (Hungarian Republic The Uralic languages (jʊˈrælɨk constitute a language family of 39 Languages spoken by approximately 20 million people

The largest minority language is Swedish, which is the second official language in Finland, spoken by 5. Swedish ( is a North Germanic language spoken by more than nine million people predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the 5 percent of the population. ^[19] Other minority languages are Russian (0. Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages 8 percent^[19]) and Estonian (0. Estonian (; ˈeːsti ˈkeːl is the official language of Estonia, spoken by about 1 3 percent^[19]). To the north, in Lapland, are also the Sami people, numbering around 7,000^[21] and recognized as an indigenous people. The Province of Lapland ( Lappi in Finnish and Sami Lappland in Swedish is one of the Provinces of Finland. The Sami people are the Indigenous people of northern Europe inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of northern Sweden, Norway The term Indigenous Peoples or autochthonous peoples can be used to describe any Ethnic group who inhabit a geographic region with which they have the earliest historical About a quarter of them speak a Sami language as their mother tongue. Sami or Saami is a general name for a group of Finnic languages spoken by the Sami people in parts of northern Finland, Norway ^[3] There are three Sami languages that are spoken in Finland: Northern Sami, Inari Sami and Skolt Sami. Northern or North Sami ( Davvisápmi, formerly Davvisámi or Davvisaami; improperly Lappish or Lapp) is the most widely Inari Sámi ( anarâškielâ) is a Finno-Ugric, Sami Language spoken in Finland by some 300-400 people the majority of which ^[22] Other minority languages are Finnish Romani, Finnish Sign Language (spoken natively by 4,000–5,000 people^[23]) and Finland-Swedish Sign Language (spoken natively by about 150 people). Finnish Sign Language is the Sign language most commonly used in Finland. The rights of minority groups (in particular Sami, Swedish-speaking Finns and Romani people) to cherish their culture and language is protected by the constitution. SAMI (Synchronized Accessible Media Interchange is a Microsoft accessibility initiative released in 1998 Swedish -speaking Finns (often called Finland-Swedes, Finnish Swedes, Fennoswedes or Swedish Finns, see below ( Swedish The Romani people (singular Rom, plural Roma as a Noun; also known as Romanies or Roma people) are an ethnic group with origins ^[24]

In a 2005 Eurobarometer survey studying languages of the European Union, 60% percent of residents claimed to know English, 38% claimed to know Swedish, and 17% claimed to know German. Eurobarometer is a series of surveys regularly performed on behalf of the European Commission since 1973 The languages of the European Union are Languages used by people within the member states of the European Union. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Swedish ( is a North Germanic language spoken by more than nine million people predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along the The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. ^[25] Ranking those claiming a knowledge of English, Finland ranked fifth behind Malta, the Netherlands (86%), Sweden (85%), and Denmark (83%). Relatively many Finns knew German, while relatively few knew French or Spanish.

Religion

Main articles: Religion in Finland, Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland, and Finnish Orthodox Church

See also: Roman Catholicism in Finland, Judaism in Finland, Islam in Finland, and Hinduism in Finland

Religion in Finland
religion			percent
Lutheran			84. Most Finns are members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (82 The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (in Finnish Suomen evankelis-luterilainen kirkko; in Swedish Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan Structure and organization Along with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland the Orthodox Church of Finland has a special position in Finnish law The Catholic Church in Finland is part of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the Pope and Curia in Rome Finnish Jews are Jews who are Citizens of Finland. The country is home to the approximately 1300 Jews Islam was introduced to Finland by Baltic Tatars at the end of the 19th century Hinduism is a very minor religious faith in Finland. The main established religion in Finland is Christianity, especially Lutheran Christianity 2%
Unaffiliated			15. 1%
Other			1. 2%
Orthodox			1. 1%

Most Finns are members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (84. The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland (in Finnish Suomen evankelis-luterilainen kirkko; in Swedish Evangelisk-lutherska kyrkan 2 percent). ^[26] A minority belong to the Finnish Orthodox Church (1. Structure and organization Along with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland the Orthodox Church of Finland has a special position in Finnish law 1 percent; see Eastern Orthodox Church). The Eastern Orthodox Church is the second largest single Christian Communion in the world Other Protestant denominations and the Roman Catholic Church in Finland are significantly smaller, as are the Muslim, Jewish and other non-Christian communities (totaling 1. Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. Judaism (from the Greek Ioudaïsmos, derived from the Hebrew יהודה Yehudah, " Judah " in Hebrew יַהֲדוּת Yahedut 2 percent). 15. 1 percent^[27] of the population is unaffiliated. The main Lutheran and Orthodox churches are constitutional national churches of Finland with special roles in ceremonies and often in school morning prayers. The term national church is usually a reference to a church organization in Christianity that claims pastoral jurisdiction over a Nation. Politicians to Lutheran Church assemblies are selected in church elections every four years.

Over half of Finns say they pray at least once a month, the highest proportion in Nordics. ^[28] However, the majority of Lutherans attend church only for special occasions like Christmas, weddings and funerals. ^[29] According to a 2005 Eurobarometer poll, 41 percent of Finnish citizens responded that "they believe there is a god"; 41 percent answered that "they believe there is some sort of spirit or life force"; and 16 percent that "they do not believe there is any sort of spirit, god, or life force". Eurobarometer is a series of surveys regularly performed on behalf of the European Commission since 1973 ^[30]

Family structure

Finnish family life is centered on the nuclear family. The term nuclear family developed in the Western world to distinguish the Family group consisting of parents most commonly a Father and Mother Relations with the extended family are often rather distant, and Finnish people do not form politically significant clans, tribes or similar structures. Extended family (or Joint family) is a term with several distinct meanings According to UNICEF, Finland ranks fourth in the world in child well-being. The United Nations Children's Fund (or UNICEF) was created by the United Nations General Assembly on December 11, 1946 ^[31]

Health

There are 307 residents for each doctor. ^[32] About 18. 9 percent of health care is funded directly by households and 76. 6 percent by public and other insurances. Finland limits medicine sales to the around 800 licensed pharmacies. Some significant institutions include Ministry of Health and National Public Health Institute. National Public Health Institute of Finland (NPHI in Finnish Kansanterveyslaitos (KTL has a duty to promote Health and prevent disease

The life expectancy is 82 years for women and 75 years for men. Life expectancy is the average number of years of life remaining at a given age After having one of the highest death rates from heart disease in the world in the 1970s, improvements in the Finnish diet and exercise have paid off. Heart disease is an Umbrella term for a variety for different diseases affecting the Heart. The cuisine of Finland is notable for the use of Wholemeal products ( Rye, Barley, Oats and berries (such as blueberries Finland has exceptionally low smoking rates: 26% for males and 19% for females. ^[33]

Finland's health problems are similar to other developed countries: circulatory diseases make up about half of all causes of death and cancer is the second most common cause of death. Cancer (medical term Malignant Neoplasm) is a class of Diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled ^[34]

The total annual consumption of pure alcohol of residents is lower than other European countries, even though heavy drinking is common at parties on the weekend. However, becoming intoxicated has remained the central characteristic of Finnish drinking habits. ^[35] In the working-age population, diseases or accidents caused by alcohol consumption have recently surpassed coronary artery disease as the biggest single cause of death. ^[36]

National Public Health Institute claims 54% male obesity and 38% female obesity, while other estimates put obesity rates at 70% and 50%. ^[37] The rate of diabetes is predicted to grow to 15% by 2015. Diabetes mellitus (ˌdaɪəˈbiːtiːz or /ˌdaɪəˈbiːtəs/ /məˈlaɪtəs/ or /ˈmɛlətəs/ often referred to simply as diabetes ( Ancient Greek: grc ^[37] Finland has the world's highest rate of Type I diabetes. Diabetes mellitus type 1 (Type 1 diabetes Type I diabetes T1D T1DM IDDM juvenile diabetes is a form of Diabetes mellitus. Suicide mortality in Finland has generally been one of the highest in Europe, especially significant among males under 35 years.

Schools teach sports, health and hands-on cooking classes. Finnish schoolchildren have one of the lowest amounts of sport classes in the European Union and according to National Public Health Institute only a third of adults exercise enough. ^[37]

Administrative divisions

Main article: Administrative divisions of Finland

Main articles: Provinces of Finland and Historical provinces of Finland

Main articles: Regions of Finland, Sub-regions of Finland, and Municipalities of Finland

The state organisation is divided into six administrative provinces (lääni, pl. läänit), though they have little significance. |||}As of 1 January 2005, Finland is divided into 6 provinces ( Finnish lääni, Swedish Län The state of Finland consists of 6 provinces ( Finnish: läänit, Swedish: län) The historical provinces (historialliset maakunnat singular historiallinen maakunta, historiska landskap of Finland is a legacy of the country's joint history with Finland is divided into 20 regions ( maakunta in Finnish, landskap in Swedish) In 2005 Finland is divided into 77 sub-regions ( seutukunta in Finnish, ekonomisk region in Swedish) ||-||}The municipalities ( kunta in Finnish, kommun in Swedish) represent the local level of administration in Finland and The state of Finland consists of 6 provinces ( Finnish: läänit, Swedish: län) Plural is a Grammatical number, typically referring to more than one of the Referent in the real world ^[38] Police, prosecutors, and other state services operate under the administration of the province, which is again divided to admistratively insignificant districts. After 1997 reforms the provinces have been Southern Finland, Western Finland, Eastern Finland, Oulu, Lapland, Åland. The Province of Southern Finland is a province of Finland. It borders the provinces of Western Finland and Eastern Finland. The Province of Western Finland is a province of Finland. It borders the provinces of Oulu, Eastern Finland and Southern Finland. The Province of Eastern Finland is a province of Finland. It borders the provinces of Oulu, Western Finland and Southern Finland. The Province of Oulu is a province of Finland. It borders the provinces of Lapland, Western Finland and Eastern Finland. The Province of Lapland ( Lappi in Finnish and Sami Lappland in Swedish is one of the Provinces of Finland. The province of Åland Islands is autonomous. Self-governance is an abstract concept that refers to several scales of Organization.

Municipalities (which may also call themselves towns or cities) account for half of public spending. Spending is financed by municipal income tax, state subsidies, and other revenue. As of 2008, there were 415 municipalities and most were under 5,000 residents. In Finland, state has started the Municipality and Service Structure Reform Program to reform the complex and expensive municipal system, but initiatives have encountered much opposition from local bureaucrats and interest groups. People often identify with their municipality.

In addition to municipalities, there are complex other arrangements. Municipalities co-operate in seventy-four sub-regions and twenty regions. In 2005 Finland is divided into 77 sub-regions ( seutukunta in Finnish, ekonomisk region in Swedish) Finland is divided into 20 regions ( maakunta in Finnish, landskap in Swedish) These are governed by the member municipalities. The Åland region has a permanent, democratically elected regional council as a part of the autonomy. In the Kainuu region, there is a pilot project underway, with regional elections. Kainuu (Kajanaland is a region ( maakunta / landskap) of Finland. Sami people have a semi-autonomous Sami Domicile Area in Lapland for issues on language and culture. The Sami people are the Indigenous people of northern Europe inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of northern Sweden, Norway Sami Domicile Area ( Saamelaisten kotiseutualue in Finnish Sámiid ruovttuguovllu in Sami language, Samernas hembygdsområde in Swedish The Province of Lapland ( Lappi in Finnish and Sami Lappland in Swedish is one of the Provinces of Finland.

In the following chart, the number of inhabitants includes those living in the entire municipality (kunta/kommun), not just in the built-up area. A municipality is an administrative entity composed of a clearly defined territory and its population and commonly denotes a City, Town, or Village, or The land area is given in km², and the density in inhabitants per km² (land area). The figures are as of January 1, 2007. New Year See also New Year The Ancient Romans began their consular year on January 1st since 153 BC Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Notice that the capital region – comprising Helsinki, Vantaa, Espoo and Kauniainen (see Greater Helsinki) – forms a continuous conurbation of one million people. Capital Region, also National Capital Region, is a common term for the region or district surrounding the Capital city a country or any other administrative division Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. Geography Location Vantaa encompasses 243 km² of which 190 km² is water Espoo (ˈespoː Esbo ( in Swedish) is the second largest city of Finland, with a population of approximately 240000 History Around 10000 years ago after the Ice Age, only a few islets were visible in the Yoldia Sea, heights that today form the highest peaks of the area that Greater Helsinki (Suur-Helsinki Swedish: Storhelsingfors) Capital Region ( Pääkaupunkiseutu, Huvudstadsregionen) Helsinki A conurbation is an Urban area or Agglomeration comprising a number of Cities, large Towns and larger urban areas that through Population However, common administration is limited to voluntary cooperation of all municipalities, e. g. in Helsinki Metropolitan Area Council. The Helsinki Metropolitan Area Council ( Pääkaupunkiseudun yhteistyövaltuuskunta, or YTV, in Finnish Huvudstadsregionens samarbetsdelegation in Swedish

Municipality	Population	Land area	Density
Helsinki	&0000000000570848. Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. 000000570,848	&0000000000000184. 470000184. 47	&0000000000003061. 0000003,061. 00
Espoo	&0000000000239645. Espoo (ˈespoː Esbo ( in Swedish) is the second largest city of Finland, with a population of approximately 240000 000000239,645	&0000000000000312. 000000312. 00	&0000000000000751. 6. 0E+5751. 60
Tampere	&0000000000207836. Tampere ( ˈtɑmpɛrɛ Swedish: Tammerfors or) is a city in southern Finland located between two lakes Näsijärvi and Pyhäjärvi 000000207,836	&0000000000000523. 4. 0E+5523. 40	&0000000000000393. 9. 0E+5393. 90
Vantaa	&0000000000193738. Geography Location Vantaa encompasses 243 km² of which 190 km² is water 000000193,738	&0000000000000240. 540000240. 54	&0000000000000780. 4. 0E+5780. 40
Turku	&0000000000175058. Turku, in Swedish Åbo ( pronounced,) is a city and the original capital of Finland on the southwest coast of Finland at the 000000175,058	&0000000000000243. 4. 0E+5243. 40	&0000000000000720. 5. 0E+5720. 50
Oulu	&0000000000131984. Oulu ( (literally "Flood" ( (literally "Ule River Castle" is a city and municipality of about 130000 inhabitants in the province of 000000131,984	&0000000000000369. 430000369. 43	&0000000000000351. 4. 0E+5351. 40
Lahti	&0000000000099594. Lahti ( Swedish: Lahtis) is a city and Municipality in Finland. 00000099,594	&0000000000000134. 950000134. 95	&0000000000000730. 1. 0E+5730. 10
Kuopio	&0000000000091099. Kuopio is a Finnish City and Municipality located in the province of Eastern Finland and the region of Northern Savonia. 00000091,099	&0000000000001127. 4. 0E+51,127. 40	&0000000000000081. 00000081. 00
Jyväskylä	&0000000000085312. Jyväskylä (ˈjyvæsˌkylæ is a City and Municipality located in Central Finland, 147 km from Tampere and 270 km from Helsinki 00000085,312	&0000000000000105. 9. 0E+5105. 90	&0000000000000789. 000000789. 00
Pori	&0000000000076306. Pori ( Björneborg in Swedish) is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. 00000076,306	&0000000000000503. 170000503. 17	&0000000000000150. 830000150. 83
Lappeenranta	&0000000000059323. Lappeenranta ( Villmanstrand in Swedish) is a city and municipality that resides on the shore of the lake Saimaa in South-Eastern 00000059,323	&0000000000000758. 000000758. 00	&0000000000000077. 7. 0E+577. 70
Rovaniemi	&0000000000058866. History There has probably been continuous settlement in the Rovaniemi area since the Stone Age. 00000058,866	&0000000000007600. 7300007,600. 73	&0000000000000007. 6. 0E+57. 60
Vaasa	&0000000000057919. Vaasa ( Swedish: Vasa) is a city on the west coast of Finland. 00000057,919	&0000000000000183. 000000183. 00	&0000000000000311. 2. 0E+5311. 20
Joensuu	&0000000000057495. Joensuu is a city and municipality in North Karelia in eastern Finland. 00000057,495	&0000000000001173. 4. 0E+51,173. 40	&0000000000000049. 1. 0E+549. 10
Kotka	&0000000000054631. Kotkan kaupunki 00000054,631	&0000000000000270. 740000270. 74	&0000000000000203. 000000203. 00

Further information: List of Finnish municipalities, List of Finnish municipalities by population, List of Finnish municipalities by area, and Former municipalities of Finland

State-level politics and administration

Politics

Main article: Politics of Finland

See also: List of political parties in Finland

The Constitution of Finland defines the political system. For the constitution of the Grand Duchy of Finland see Swedish Constitution of 1772 The Constitution of Finland (in Finnish Finland is a representative democracy with a semi-presidential parliamentary. The semi-presidential system is a System of government in which a prime minister and a President are both active participants in the day-to-day administration A parliamentary system, also known as parliamentarianism (and parliamentarism in American English) is a System of government in which Aside from state-level politics, residents use their vote in municipal elections and in the European Union elections. Elections in the European Union take place every five years by universal adult suffrage.

According to the Constitution, the President is the head of state and responsible for foreign policy (which excludes affairs related to the European Union) in cooperation with the cabinet. The President of Finland is the Head of State of Finland. Under the Constitution of Finland, executive power is vested in the President and the Head of state is the generic term for the individual or collective office that serves as the chief public representative of a Monarchic or Republican Nation-state According to the latest constitution of 2000 the President (currently Tarja Halonen) leads foreign policy in cooperation with the government (currently Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in A cabinet is a body of high-ranking members of Government, typically representing the executive branch. Other powers include Commander-in-Chief, decree, and appointive powers. A commander-in-chief is the Commander of a nation's Military forces or significant element of those forces Direct vote is used to elect the president for a term of six years and maximum two consecutive terms. The current president is Tarja Halonen (SDP). Tarja Kaarina Halonen ( pronounced) (born 24 December 1943 is the current President of Finland.

The 200-member unicameral Parliament of Finland exercises the supreme legislative authority in Finland. Unicameralism is the practice of having only one legislative or Parliamentary chamber The Eduskunta (in Finnish) or the Riksdag (in Swedish) is the Parliament of Finland. The parliament may alter laws, the constitution, bring about the resignation of the Council of State, and override presidential vetoes. A veto, Latin for "I forbid" is used to Denote that a certain party has the right to stop unilaterally a certain piece of Legislation. Its acts are not subject to judicial review. Various parliament committees listen to experts and prepare legislation. Proportional vote in multi-seat constituencies is used to elect the parliament for a term of four years. The Speaker of Parliament, the first person in the presidential line of succession, is currently Sauli Niinistö (National Coalition Party). The Speaker of the Parliament of Finland ( Finnish Eduskunnan puhemies, Swedish Riksdagens talman) along with two Deputy Speakers is elected Sauli Väinämö Niinistö (born August 24, 1948, Salo, Finland) is the Speaker of the Parliament of Finland. The cabinet (the Finnish Council of State) exercises most executive powers. The Council of State ( Finnish: Valtioneuvosto Swedish: Statsrådet; officially rendered Finnish Government) is Finland It is headed by the Prime Minister of Finland and includes other ministers and the Chancellor of Justice. The Prime Minister (pääministeri Swedish: statsminister) is the Head of Government of Finland. In some countries the Chancellor of Justice is a government official responsible for supervising the lawfulness of government actions Parliament majority decides its composition and a vote of no confidence can be used to modify it. The current prime minister is Matti Vanhanen (Centre Party). Matti Taneli Vanhanen ( (born November 4 1955) is the current Prime Minister of Finland, as well as Chairman of the Centre Party.

Since equal and common suffrage was introduced in 1906, the parliament has been dominated by the Centre Party (former Agrarian Union), National Coalition Party, and Social Democrats, which have approximately equal support, and represent 65–80 percent of voters. Universal suffrage (also universal adult suffrage, general suffrage or common suffrage) consists of the extension of the right to vote to The Centre Party (in Finnish: Suomen Keskusta, Kesk, in Swedish: Centern i Finland, C) is a centrist The National Coalition Party (in Finnish Kansallinen Kokoomus, Kok The Social Democratic Party of Finland (in Finnish: Suomen Sosialidemokraattinen Puolue, SDP) is one of the most influential political parties After 1944 Communists were a factor to consider for a few decades. The Communist Party of Finland (Suomen kommunistinen puolue Finlands kommunistiska parti abbreviated SKP was a Communist Political party in Finland. The relative strengths of the parties vary only slightly in the elections due to the proportional election from multi-member districts, but there are some visible long-term trends. The autonomous Åland islands has separate elections, where Liberals for Åland was the largest party in 2007 elections. The Liberals for Åland (Liberalerna på Åland is a liberal party of the Åland Islands. The Åland Islands held legislative elections on 21 October, 2007 for the Lagting, the regional parliament of Åland

After the parliamentary elections on March 18, 2007, the seats were divided among eight parties as follows:

Party	Seats	Net Gain/Loss	% of seats	% of votes
Centre Party	51	–4 ▼	25. The 2007 Finnish parliamentary election was held on March 18 2007. The Centre Party (in Finnish: Suomen Keskusta, Kesk, in Swedish: Centern i Finland, C) is a centrist 5	23. 1
National Coalition Party	51	+10 ▲	25. The National Coalition Party (in Finnish Kansallinen Kokoomus, Kok 0	22. 3
Social Democratic Party	45	–8 ▼	22. The Social Democratic Party of Finland (in Finnish: Suomen Sosialidemokraattinen Puolue, SDP) is one of the most influential political parties 5	21. 4
Left Alliance	17	–2 ▼	8. The Left Alliance ( Vasemmistoliitto or Vänsterförbundet) is a green socialist political party in Finland. 5	8. 8
Green League	14	+1 ▲	7. This article refers to the political party for the university environmental performance table see The People & Planet Green League The Green League (in 5	8. 5
Swedish People's Party	9	+1 ▲	4. The Swedish Peoples' Party (Svenska folkpartiet (SFP Ruotsalainen kansanpuolue (RKP is a Swedish-speaking minority and mainly liberal party in Finland 5	4. 5
Christian Democrats	7	0 ▬	3. The Christian Democrats (Kristillisdemokraatit KD; Kristdemokraterna is a political party in Finland. 5	4. 9
True Finns	5	+2 ▲	2. True Finns ( Perussuomalaiset in Finnish or Sannfinländarna in Swedish) is a political party in Finland, founded in 1995 5	4. 1
Others	1*	0 ▬	0. 5	2. 4

* Province of Åland representative.

Judicial system and law enforcement

The judicial system of Finland is a civil law system divided between courts with regular civil and criminal jurisdiction and administrative courts with responsibility for litigation between the individuals and the administrative organs of the state and the communities. Under the Constitution of Finland, everyone is entitled to have their case heard by a court or an authority appropriately and without undue delay Civil law or Romano-Germanic law or Continental law is the predominant system of law in the world. A court is a forum used by a power base to adjudicate disputes and dispense civil, labour administrative and criminal Justice under its Finnish law is codified and based on Swedish law and in a wider sense, civil law or Roman law. Roman law is the legal system of Ancient Rome. As used in the West the term commonly refers to legal developments prior to the Roman/Byzantine state's adopting Its court system consists of local courts, regional appellate courts, and the Supreme Court. Under the Constitution of Finland, everyone is entitled to have their case heard by a court or an authority appropriately and without undue delay The administrative branch of justice consists of administrative courts and the Supreme Administrative Court. Under the Constitution of Finland, everyone is entitled to have their case heard by a court or an authority appropriately and without undue delay In addition to the regular courts, there are a few special courts in certain branches of administration. There is also a High Court of Impeachment for criminal charges against certain high-ranking offices. Under the Constitution of Finland, everyone is entitled to have their case heard by a court or an authority appropriately and without undue delay

A general court of first instance (käräjäoikeus) has professional judges and in complex cases, includes non-professional lay judges (lautamies) appointed by municipal councils. Administrative courts, appeals courts and supreme courts consist of professional judges only. Like the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, Finland has no constitutional court, and courts may not strike down laws or pronounce on their constitutionality. The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located In principle, the constitutionality of laws in Finland is verified by parliament's constitutional committee and a simple vote in the parliament.

Around 92% of residents are confident in Finland's security institutions. ^[39] Crime in Finland has some unique features. Crime in Finland. In Finland 101 crimes per 1000 people are reported annually which is per capita third highest in the world. The overall crime rate of Finland is not high in the EU context. The European Union ( EU) is a political and economic union of twenty-seven member states, located primarily in Some crime types are above average, notably the highest homicide rate in Western Europe. List of countries by homicide rate Homicide ( Latin homicidium, homo human being + caedere to cut kill refers to the act of killing another ^[40] Crime is prevalent among lower educational groups and is often committed by intoxicated persons. A day fine system is in effect and also applied to offences such as speeding. The day-fine is a unit of fine payment that above a minimum fine is based on the daily Personal income. Fines and jail sentences tend to be among the world's lowest, with an official emphasis on rehabilitation.

Finland has successfully fought against the corruption which was larger in the 1970s and 1980s. ^[41] For instance, economic reforms and EU membership introduced stricter requirements for open bidding and many public monopolies were abolished. ^[41] Today Finland has a very low number of corruption charges; Transparency International ranks Finland as one of the least corrupted countries. Transparency International ( TI) is a leading international Non-governmental organization addressing corruption Also, Finland's public records are among the world's most transparent. In one court case, a line was drawn when judge was convicted for accepting a 10-euro lunch. Finland has not implemented central corruption monitoring systems or agencies recommended by GRECO, citing that local corruption is too small. However, Finland is not totally free from corruption. Even some famous irregularities in the municipal sector rarely lead to investigations.

Finland has strict libel standards, and in one case a blogger was convicted for incitement to hatred when referring to statistics about an ethnic group. Incitement to racial or Ethnic hatred is a crime under the laws of a number of countries The voluntary Internet censorship list, similar to other Nordic countries, is classified "nominal" censorship by the ONI. Internet censorship is control or suppression of the publishing or accessing of information on the Internet. The Nordic countries make up a region in Northern Europe called the Nordic region, consisting of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, The OpenNet Initiative is a joint project whose goal is to monitor and report on internet filtering and surveillance practices by nations Nevertheless, Worldwide Press Freedom Index 2007 edition ranked Finland (along with Belgium and Sweden) fifth out of 169 countries. The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation.

Foreign relations

Main article: Foreign relations of Finland

According to the latest constitution of 2000, the President (currently Tarja Halonen) leads foreign policy in cooperation with the government (currently Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen and Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb), except that the government leads EU affairs. According to the latest constitution of 2000 the President (currently Tarja Halonen) leads foreign policy in cooperation with the government (currently Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen Tarja Kaarina Halonen ( pronounced) (born 24 December 1943 is the current President of Finland. Matti Taneli Vanhanen ( (born November 4 1955) is the current Prime Minister of Finland, as well as Chairman of the Centre Party. Cai-Göran Alexander Stubb (born April 1 1968 in Helsinki) is a Finnish Politician and Minister for Foreign Affairs from 4 April 2008 In surveys, most diplomats and foreign policy experts consider the current constitution flawed because it is often unclear who is in charge. ^[42] The Ministry of Foreign Affairs implements the foreign policy.

During the Cold War, Finland conducted its foreign policy in association with the Soviet Union and simultaneously stressed Nordic cooperation (as a member of the Nordic Council). The Nordic Council and the Nordic Council of Ministers is an intergovernmental forum for co-operation between the Nordic countries. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Finland freed itself from the last restrictions imposed on it by the Paris peace treaties of 1947 and the Finno-Soviet Agreement of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance. The Soviet Union 's collapse into independent nations began early in 1985 The Paris Peace Conference ( July 29 to October 15, 1946) resulted in the Paris Peace Treaties signed on February 10, 1947 The Agreement of Friendship Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, also known as the YYA Treaty from the Finnish Ystävyys- yhteistyö- ja avunantosopimus Although opposed by socialists and agrarians, the government filed an EU membership application three months after the dissolution of the USSR and became a member in 1995. Unlike all other post-Soviet countries in the Baltic sea and elsewhere, Finland did not attempt to join NATO, and even opposed defence cooperation.

President Martti Ahtisaari and the coalition governments led Finland closer to the core EU in the late 1990s. Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari ( pronounced) (born on June 23 1937 is a former President of Finland (1994–2000 2008 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Finland was considered a cooperative model state, and Finland did not oppose proposals for a common EU defence policy. ^[42] This was reversed in the 2000s, when the socialist-wing trio of Tarja Halonen and Erkki Tuomioja made Finland's official policy to resist other EU members' plans for common defense. Tarja Kaarina Halonen ( pronounced) (born 24 December 1943 is the current President of Finland. Erkki Sakari Tuomioja (born 1 July 1946) was the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland between 2000 and 2007 This received some criticism, because many considered that Finland would have been the largest beneficiary of defense cooperation. ^[42] However, Halonen allowed Finland to join European Union Battlegroups in 2006 and the NATO Response Force in 2008. European Union battlegroups (EU BGs are military forces under the direct control of the European Council, each consisting of at least 1500 combat soldiers The NATO Response Force (NRF is a "coherent high readiness joint multinational force package" of approximately 25000 troops that is "technologically advanced Relations with most countries except Russia have been good.

Relations with Russia are cordial and common issues include bureaucracy (particularly at the Vaalimaa border crossing), airspace violations, development aid Finland gives to Russia (especially in environmental problems that affect Finland), and Finland's energy dependency on Russian gas and electricity. Vaalimaa is a border crossing between Finland and Russia. It is located in the Virolahti municipality Behind the scenes, the administration has witnessed a resurrection of Soviet-era tactics. The National Security Agency, SUPO, estimates that the known number of Russian agents from SVR and GRU now exceeds Cold War levels and there are unknown numbers of others. Suojelupoliisi (in Finnish, Supo informally or Skyddspolisen (in Swedish, Skypo informally is Finland's security Foreign Intelligence Service ( Russian: Служба Внешней Разведки (or SVR) is Russia 's primary external intelligence agency GRU is the English transliteration of the Russian Acronym ГРУ, which stands for "Гла́вное Разве́дывательное ^[43] Old methods such as KGB-style connections have been restored. Internet brigades target Finnish Internet forums. To combat Russian agents' connections with Finnish politicians, Finland has limited the time Russian diplomats can stay in the country. Analysts have hinted worry about Finland's ability to maintain sovereignty, for instance, if Russian leadership decides to start a crisis such as the ones experienced in Estonia and elsewhere in the Eastern Europe. Socialists are more willing to formulate policy based on Russia's preferences and maintain that NATO should be just an "option" or strongly rejected, though there is a small pro-NATO socialist opposition. Some socialists and agrarians want to exit the EU. ^[44] Right-wing politicians are more supportive of integration, with the current Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb one of the most pro-EU politicians in Finnish history and one of the first Finnish politicians to have openly supported NATO membership. Cai-Göran Alexander Stubb (born April 1 1968 in Helsinki) is a Finnish Politician and Minister for Foreign Affairs from 4 April 2008 After socialist parties lost elections in 2007, the term "non-allied" was dropped from the official policy publication (replicated by Sweden just months later). ^[42]

The electorate is polarized between internationalists and isolationists. Isolationism is a Foreign policy which combines a non-interventionist military policy and a political policy of Economic nationalism ( Protectionism Support for international cooperation, global markets, and European integration is common among the young, right-wing, urban electorate. ^[45][44] Nevertheless, the old, left-wing, rural electorate contributes to Finland's extraordinary levels of opposition to the EU, NATO, and immigration. ^[45][44] Studies indicate that few have knowledge about the EU or NATO, and many of the electorate's conceptions date back to the Soviet Era when both were opposed as too Western institutions. Critics sometimes call the current political era a "paused era". ^[42]

Defence Forces

Main article: Finnish Defence Forces

See also: Military history of Finland and List of Finnish wars

The Finnish Defence Forces is a cadre army of 16,500, of which 8,700 are professional soldiers (officers), with a standard readiness strength of 34,700 people in uniform (27,300 Army, 3,000 Navy, and 4,400 Air Force). The Finnish Defence Forces is responsible for defence of Finland. Prehistory Finland was first settled around 8300 BC and the prehistoric era lasted there until around AD 1200 This is a list of Wars fought by independent Finland between 1917 and 1945: The Civil War ( 1918) The "kinship En cadre or cadre (ɛnˈkɑːdɚ in the United Kingdom, but sometimes /ɛnˈkædreɪ/ in the United States) is a French expression originally A universal male conscription is in place, under which all men above 18 years of age serve for 6, 9, 11 (unarmed service) or 12 months. Conscription (also known as the draft, the call-up or national service) is a general term for involuntary labor demanded by some established authority Alternative non-military service and volunteer service by women (chosen by around 500 annually^[46]) are possible. A conscientious objector (CO is an individual who on religious moral or ethical grounds refuses to participate as a combatant in war or in some cases to take any role that would support

Finland is the only non-NATO EU country bordering Russia. Finland's official policy states that the 350,000 reservists with mostly ground weaponry are a sufficient deterrent. The military strategy is to hide in forests when attacked, perhaps abandon some regions, and attempt to defeat the enemy from forests in planned places. ^[47] Most military experts call for NATO membership, but are careful to avoid politics. Finland's defence budget equals about 2 billion euro or 1. 4–1. 6 percent of the GDP. In international comparisons the defense expenditure is around the third highest in the EU. ^[48] The voluntary overseas service is highly popular and troops serve around the world in UN, NATO and EU missions. Residents claim around 80% homeland defense willingness, one of the highest rates in Europe. ^[47]

The Finnish Defence Forces are under the command of the Chief of Defence (currently Juhani Kaskeala), who is directly subordinate to the President of the Republic in matters related to the military command. The Chief of Defence ( puolustusvoimain komentaja) is the commander of the Finnish Defence Forces, under the authority of the Commander in Chief President Admiral Pauli Juhani Kaskeala (born 26 July[[ 946]] Kuopio) is a senior Finnish naval officer and the current Chief of Defence The President of Finland is the Head of State of Finland. Under the Constitution of Finland, executive power is vested in the President and the The military branches are the Finnish Army, Finnish Navy and Finnish Air Force. The Finnish Army ( Finnish: Maavoimat, Swedish: Armén) is the land forces branch of the Finnish Defence Forces The Finnish Navy ( Finnish: Suomen merivoimat, Swedish: Finlands sjöstridskrafter) is one of the branches of the The Finnish Air Force (FAF ( Finnish: Ilmavoimat, Swedish: Flygvapnet) is one of the branches of the Finnish Defence Forces. The Border Guard is under the Ministry of the Interior but can be incorporated into the Defence Forces when required by defence readiness. The Border Guard ( Finnish: Rajavartiolaitos, Swedish: Gränsbevakningsväsendet) of Finland is the Finnish security authority

Economy

Main article: Economy of Finland

See also: List of Finnish companies and Helsinki Stock Exchange

Finland has a highly industrialized, free-market economy with a per capita output equal to that of other western economies such as France, Germany, Sweden or the UK. Finland has a highly industrialized free-market economy with a Per capita output equal to that of other western economies such as France, Germany, Sweden This is a list of Finnish Corporations Ahlstrom, pulp and paper Alma Media, media Amer Sports, sport The Helsinki Stock Exchange ( Finnish: Helsingin Pörssi, Swedish: Helsingforsbörsen) is a Stock exchange located in Per capita is a Latin phrase meaning for each head with Per meaning 'through' or 'by' This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The largest sector of the economy is services at 65. 7 percent, followed by manufacturing and refining at 31. 4 percent. Primary production is at 2. 9 percent. ^[49] With respect to foreign trade, the key economic sector is manufacturing. International trade is exchange of Capital, Goods, and Services across International borders or Territories. Manufacturing (from Latin manu factura, "making by hand" is the use of tools and labor to make things for use or sale The largest industries^[50] are electronics (21. Electronics refers to the flow of charge (moving Electrons through Nonmetal conductors (mainly Semiconductors, whereas electrical 6 percent), machinery, vehicles and other engineered metal products (21. 1 percent), forest industry (13. 1 percent), and chemicals (10. 9 percent). Finland has timber and several mineral and freshwater resources. Lumber or timber is Wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural Material for Construction, or Forestry, paper factories, and the agricultural sector (on which taxpayers spend around 2 billion euro annually) are politically sensitive to rural residents. Forestry is the Art and Science of managing forests tree Plantations and related Natural resources. Agriculture refers to the production of goods through the growing of plants and fungi and the raising of domesticated Animals The study of agriculture The Greater Helsinki area generates around a third of GDP. Greater Helsinki (Suur-Helsinki Swedish: Storhelsingfors) Capital Region ( Pääkaupunkiseutu, Huvudstadsregionen) Helsinki In a 2004 OECD comparison, high-technology manufacturing in Finland ranked second largest after Ireland. Knowledge-intensive services have also ranked the smallest and slow-growth sectors – especially agriculture and low-technology manufacturing – second largest after Ireland. Investment was below expected. ^[51] Overall short-term outlook was good and GDP growth has been above many EU peers.

As an economic environment, Finland's judiciary is efficient and effective. Finland is highly open to investment and free trade. Finland has top levels of economic freedom in many areas, although there is a heavy tax burden and inflexible job market. Finland is ranked 16th (ninth in Europe) in the 2008 Index of Economic Freedom. The Index of Economic Freedom is a series of 10 economic measurements created by the Wall Street Journal and The Heritage Foundation to measure the degree of Economic freedom ^[52] Recently, Finland has topped the patents per capita statistics, and overall productivity growth has been strong in areas such as electronics. While the manufacturing sector is thriving, OECD points out that the service sector would benefit substantially from policy improvements. ^[53] The data-based IMD World Competitiveness Yearbook 2007 ranked Finland 17th most competitive, next to Germany, and lowest of the Nordics. The International Institute for Management Development ( IMD) is a non profit business school located in Lausanne, Switzerland. Competitiveness is a comparative concept of the ability and performance of a firm sub-sector or country to sell and supply goods and/or services in a given Market ^[54] The World Economic Forum report, based on loose opinion polls, has ranked Finland the most competitive country. The World Economic Forum (WEF is a Geneva -based Non-profit foundation best known for its Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland ^[55] The central government has officially given many promised such as emphasis on information technology, but critics question the central government's competency to deliver much. Information technology ( IT) as defined by the Information Technology Association of America (ITAA is "the study design development implementation support For instance, Finland did not have an Internet-based tax filing system as of 2007. ^[56] Finland is one of the most fiscally responsible EU countries. From a Keynesian point of view a balanced Budget in the Public sector is achieved when the government has enough fiscal discipline to be able to equate Inflation has been low, averaging 1. 8 percent between 2004 and 2006.

Finland is highly integrated in the global economy, and international trade is a third of GDP. The European Union makes 60 percent of the total trade. The largest trade flows are with Germany, Russia, Sweden, United Kingdom, USA, Netherlands and China. Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Netherlands ( Dutch:, ˈnedərlɑnt is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which consists of the Netherlands the Netherlands China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Trade policy is managed by the European Union, where Finland has traditionally been among the free trade supporters, except for agriculture. Finland is the only Nordic country to have joined the Eurozone. Euro Enlargement of the

Income and consumption

Notable companies in Finland include Nokia, the market leader in mobile telephony; Stora Enso, the largest paper manufacturer in the world; Neste Oil, an oil refining and marketing company; UPM-Kymmene, the third largest paper manufacturer in the world; Aker Finnyards, the manufacturer of the world's largest cruise ships (such as Royal Caribbean's Freedom of the Seas); Instrumentarium Imaging, the creator of the Orthopantomograph (Pan X-Ray machine) and world innovative leader of dental imaging systems and software. Nokia Corporation (pronunciation /'nɔkiɑ/),,) is a Finnish multinational Communications Corporation, headquartered Stora Enso Oyj () is a Finnish &ndash Swedish pulp and paper manufacturer, formed by the merger of Swedish mining and forestry products company Neste Oil is an independent Finnish Oil refining and marketing company producing mainly traffic fuels and other Petroleum products UPM-Kymmene Oyj (usually referred to simply as UPM;,) is a Finnish pulp paper and timber manufacturer. Aker Yards Oy, or Aker Yards' Finnish yards is a Finnish Shipbuilding company Royal Caribbean International () is a Norwegian / American Cruise line company based in Miami Florida. "Freedom of the Seas" redirects here For the concept in international and admiralty law see Freedom of the seas, and for the play and film of this title see ; KONE, a manufacturer of elevators and escalators; Wärtsilä, a producer of power plants and ship engines; and Finnair, the largest Helsinki-Vantaa based international airline. Kone Corporation, founded in 1910 and headquartered in Espoo, Finland, is an international engineering and service company employing some 30000 personnel worldwide Wärtsilä is a Finnish manufacturer of large ( Diesel) engines and Power plants The core business of Wärtsilä is marine diesel engines Finnair Plc is Finland 's largest Airline and the Flag carrier, with its headquarters in Vantaa, Finland and its main hub at Helsinki-Vantaa Helsinki-Vantaa Airport in Vantaa, Finland, is the main Airport of the Helsinki metropolitan region and the whole of Finland An airline provides air transport services for Passengers or Freight, generally with a recognized operating certificate or license ^[57] Finland has sophisticated financial markets comparable to UK in efficiency. ^[52] The largest foreign-headquartered companies included names such as ABB, Tellabs, Carlsberg, and Siemens. Tellabs Inc ( designs and manufactures telecommunications equipment for service providers The Carlsberg Group (ˈkɑrlzbɚɡ is a large Brewing company founded in 1847 by J ^[58]

Finland has approximately 1. 8 million private sector workers, who make an average 25. 1 euro per hour (before the approximately 60% median tax wedge) in 2007. The tax wedge is the deviation from equilibrium price/quantity as a result of a taxation which results in consumers paying more and suppliers receiving less ^[59] In 2003 residents worked a high average of 10 years for the same employer. ^[60] 62 percent worked for small and medium-size enterprises. ^[61] Female employment rate was relatively high, perhaps affected by the individual taxation (as opposed to family taxation) and other policies. Gender segregation between male-dominated professions and female-dominated professions was higher than in the US. ^[62] In 1999 the proportion of part-time workers was one of the lowest in OECD. ^[62]

Unemployment rate was 6. 8% and employment rate 68% in early 2008. ^[63] Unlike in Sweden, where pension savers can manage their investments, in Finland employer chooses a pension fund for the employee. The pension funding rate is much higher than in most Western European countries, but still only a portion of is funded and pensions exclude health insurances and other unaccounted promises. ^[64] Directly held public debt has been reduced to around 32 percent in 2007. Government debt (also known as public debt or national debt) is Money (or credit) owed by any level of government either Central government ^[65] In 2007, the average household savings rate was -3. 8 and household debt 101 percent of annual disposable income, a typical level in Europe. Consumer debt is Consumer credit which is outstanding In macroeconomic terms it is debt which is used to fund consumption rather than ^[66]

In 2006, around 2,381,500 households resided in Finland and the average size was 2. 1 persons. Around 40 percent of households consisted of a single person, 32 percent two persons and 28 percent three or more persons. There were 1. 2 million residential buildings in Finland and the average residential space was 38 square meters per person. The average residential property (without land) cost 1,187 euro per sq metre (without land) and residential land on 8. 6 euro per sq metre. Consumer energy prices were 8-12 euro per kilowatt hour. ^[67] 74 percent of households had a car. There were 2. 5 million cars and 0. 4 other vehicles. ^[68] Around 92 percent has mobile phone and 58 percent Internet connection at home. This is a list of countries by number of Internet users. The average total household consumption was 20,000 euro, out of which housing at around 5500 euro, transport at around 3000 euro, food and beverages excluding alcoholic at around 2500 euro, recreation and culture at around 2000 euro. Upper-level white-collar households (409,653) consumed an average 27,456 euro, lower-level white-collar households (394,313) 20,935 euro, and blue-collar households (471,370) 19,415 euro euro. ^[69]

Education, science and technology

Main article: Education in Finland

See also: List of universities in Finland

Even though many or most schools were started as private schools, today only around 3% students are enrolled in private schools (mostly Helsinki-based schools such as SYK) compared to around 8% in Sweden, 10% in the US, and 70% in Netherlands. The Finnish education system is an egalitarian Nordic system with no Tuition fees for full-time students Institutions of higher education are designated universities by Finnish legislation most importantly the University Act ( Yliopistolaki, 645/1997 Helsingin Suomalainen Yhteiskoulu, commonly abbreviated SYK, is a free Finnish private school located in the district of Etelä-Haaga in the city of Helsinki ^[70] Pre-school education is rare compared to other EU countries. Formal education is usually started at the age of 7. The primary school takes normally 6 years, the lower secondary school 3 years, and most schools are managed by municipal officials. The flexible curriculum is set by the Ministry of Education and the Education Board. Attendance is compulsory between the ages of 7 and 16, and free meals are served. According to PISA assessments of the age group 15, students had high average results and low variation between schools or students. ^[71] McKinsey has attributed the result distribution to high teacher education (Master's degree), high continuing teacher training, and emphasis on laggards. Homogeneous population may also contribute. ^[72] After lower secondary school, students apply to further studies. Trade schools prepare for professions, though they can be used to enter tertiary education as well. ATTENTION *** This article is not "Vocational education in the United States" Academically-oriented Gymnasiums prepare for Abitur and further tertiary education. A gymnasium (pronounced with ɡ- in several languages is a type of school providing Secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar Abitur (from Latin abire = go away go off is a designation used in Germany and Finland for final exams that young adults take at the end of

In tertiary education, two, mostly separate and non-interoperating sectors are found: the profession-oriented higher vocational schools and the research-oriented universities. A university is an institution of Higher education and Research, which grants Academic degrees in a variety of subjects Finns used to take student loans and scholarships, but for the past decades the financial risk has been moved solely to the government. There are 20 universities and 30 polytechnics in the country. The World Economic Forum ranks Finland's tertiary education #1 in the world. The World Economic Forum (WEF is a Geneva -based Non-profit foundation best known for its Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland ^[73] Around 33% of residents has a tertiary degree, similar to Nordics and more than in most other OECD countries except Canada (44%), United States (38%) and Japan(37%). ^[74]

Finnish researchers are leading contributors to such fields as forest improvement, new materials, the environment, neural networks, low-temperature physics, brain research, biotechnology, genetic technology and communications. ^[75]

Energy

See also: Nordic energy market

See also: Nuclear power in Finland

Anyone can enter the free and largely privately-owned Nordic energy market traded in Nord Pool exchange, which has provided competitive prices compared to other EU countries. Nordic energy market is a common market for Energy in Nordic countries. As of 2008 Finland 's Nuclear power program has four Nuclear reactors in two power plants. Nordic energy market is a common market for Energy in Nordic countries. Nord Pool (the Nordic Power Exchange) is the single power market for Norway Denmark Sweden and Finland

In 2006, the energy market was around 90 terawatt hours and the peak demand around 15 gigawatts in winter. The watt (symbol W) is the SI derived unit of power, equal to one Joule of energy per Second. Industry and construction consumed 51% of total consumption. ^[76][77] Finland's hydrocarbon resources are limited to peat and wood, while neighboring Norway has oil and Estonia oil shale. In Organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an Organic compound consisting entirely of Hydrogen and Carbon. Peat is an accumulation of partially Decayed Vegetation matter. Wood is hard fibrous lignified structural tissue produced as secondary Xylem in the stems of Woody plants notably trees but also shrubs Norway ( Norwegian: Norge ( Bokmål) or Noreg ( Nynorsk) officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Constitutional Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia ( Eesti or Eesti Vabariik) is a Country in Northern Europe in the Baltic region Finland has little hydropower capacity compared to Sweden or Norway. Hydropower, hydraulic power or water power is power that is derived from the Force or Energy of moving water which may Most energy demand is satisfied with fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas. Fossil fuels or mineral fuels are fossil source Fuels that is Hydrocarbons found within the top layer of the Earth’s crust. Finland has four privately-owned nuclear reactors producing 18 percent of the country's energy. ,^[78] one research reactor in Otaniemi campus, and the fifth AREVA-Siemens-built reactor – the world's largest at 1600 MWe and a focal point of Europe's nuclear industry – is scheduled to be operational by 2011. Otaniemi ( Otnäs in Swedish is a district in Espoo, Finland. AREVA ( is a French public Multinational industrial conglomerate that is mainly known for Nuclear power; it also has interests in other The watt (symbol W) is the SI derived unit of power, equal to one Joule of energy per Second. Renewable energy forms (industrial and consumer wood, peat, industrial residue, garbage) make high 25 percent compared to the EU average 10 percent. Renewable energy is Energy generated from Natural resources mdashsuch as Sunlight, Wind, Rain, tides and geothermal A varying amount (5–17 percent) of electricity has been imported from Russia (at around 3 gigawatt power line capacity), Sweden and Norway. A new submarine power cable from Russia has been considered a national security issue and one permit application has already been rejected. The HVDC Russia-Finland (also Kernovo-Mussalo cable was a project to build 1000 MW HVDC submarine power cable between Kernovo, Leningrad Oblast ( Russia National security is the entire scope of measures undertaken by the Governments of Nation-states in providing assurance of national Sovereignty

Finland negotiated itself expensive Kyoto and EU emission terms. They are causing a sharp increase in energy prices and 1-2 billion euro annual cost, amplified by the aging and soon commissioned capacity. ^[79] Nuclear power is by far the most inexpensive energy form and energy companies are already ready to file applications for several new reactors. Each reactor requires a permit from the parliament, where The Green League and a sect of The Centre Party are particularly opposed, and the discussion about the permit can take years. Some industries are excepted to exit because of the rising energy costs.

Transportation

Main article: Transport in Finland

See also: Highways in Finland, List of airports in Finland, and Public transport in Helsinki

The extensive road system is utilized by most internal cargo and passenger traffic. The transport system of Finland is well-developed The extensive road system is utilized by most internal cargo and passenger traffic Highways in Finland ( valtatiet in Finnish, riksvägar in Swedish) are all paved and have at least two lanes further they receive better upkeep List of Airports in Finland, sorted by location See also Transport in Finland List of airports by ICAO Public transport in Helsinki consists of Bus, Tram, metro, Train, and Ferry services As of 2005, the country's network of main roads has a total length of 13,258 km and all public roads 78,186 km, of which 50,616 km are paved. The motorway network totals 653 km. Motorway is a term for both a type of Road and a classification or designation The annual road network expenditure of around 1 billion euro is paid with vehicle and fuel taxes which amount to around 1. 5 billion euro and 1 billion euro.

The main international passenger gateway is Helsinki-Vantaa Airport with over 13 million passengers in 2007. Helsinki-Vantaa Airport in Vantaa, Finland, is the main Airport of the Helsinki metropolitan region and the whole of Finland About 25 airports have scheduled passenger services. Many airports are semi-privatized. The Helsinki-Vantaa based Finnair (known for an Asia-focused strategy), Blue1 and Finncomm Airlines sell air services both domestically and internationally. Finnair Plc is Finland 's largest Airline and the Flag carrier, with its headquarters in Vantaa, Finland and its main hub at Helsinki-Vantaa Blue1 Oy is an Airline based in Helsinki, Finland. It is a Regional airline feeding into the Scandinavian Airlines System Finnish Commuter Airlines Oy, trading as Finncomm Airlines, is a regional Airline based in Seinäjoki, Finland. Helsinki has an optimal location for great circle routes between Western Europe and the Far East. A great circle is a Circle on the surface of a Sphere that has the same circumference as the sphere dividing the sphere into two equal Hemispheres. Western Europe at its most general meaning means 'all the countries in the West of Europe ' The Far East is a term often used by people in the Western world to refer to the countries of East Asia. Hence, many international travelers visit Helsinki on a stop-over between Asia and Europe.

Despite low population density, taxpayers spend annually around 350 million euro in maintaining 5,865 km railway tracks even to many rural towns. Operations are privatized and currently the only operator is VR. VR or VR Group (VR-Yhtymä Oy VR-Group Ab is a state-owned Railway company in Finland, and formerly known as Suomen Valtion Rautatiet It has 5 percent passenger market share (out of which 80 percent are urban trips in Greater Helsinki) and 25 percent cargo market share. ^[80] Helsinki has an urban rail network.

The majority of international cargo utilizes ports. Port logistics prices are low. Vuosaari harbour is the largest container port after completion in 2008. Vuosaari Harbour ( Vuosaaren satama in Finnish; Nordsjö hamn in Swedish) is a Seaport facility in Helsinki, There is passenger traffic from Helsinki and Turku, which have ferry connections to Tallinn, Mariehamn, Sweden and several other destination. Tallinn (historically known by the German, Swedish and Danish name Reval or the Polish name Rewal, among other names Demographics A chart on population growth Sister cities Mariehamn is twinned with Visby, Sweden Kópavogur "Sverige" redirects here For other uses see Sweden (disambiguation and Sverige (disambiguation. The busy Helsinki-Tallinn route is also served by a helicopter line.

Nordic model

See also: Nordic model

Finnish politicians have often emulated other Nordics and the Nordic model. The Nordic model refers to the economic and Social models of the Nordic countries ( Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway) The Nordic model refers to the economic and Social models of the Nordic countries ( Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway) ^[81] Nordics have been free-trading and relatively welcoming to skilled migrants for over a century, though in Finland immigration is relatively new. The level of protection in commodity trade has been low, except for agricultural products. ^[81]

Economists attribute much growth to reforms in the product markets. According to OECD, only four EU-15 countries have less regulated product markets (UK, Ireland, Denmark and Sweden) and only one has less regulated financial markets (Denmark). Product market is a mechanism that allows people easily to buy and sell Products Services are often included in the scope of the term In Economics, a financial market is a mechanism that allows people to easily buy and sell ( Trade) financial Securities (such as stocks and bonds Nordic countries were pioneers in liberalizing energy, postal, and other markets in Europe. ^[81] The legal system is clear and business bureaucracy less than most countries. ^[82] For instance, starting a business takes an average of 14 days, compared to the world average of 43 days and Denmark's average of 6 days. Property rights are well protected and contractual agreements are strictly honored. ^[52] Finland is rated one of the least corrupted countries in Corruption Perceptions Index. Since 1995, Transparency International has published an annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI ordering the countries of the world according to "the degree Finland is rated 13th in the Ease of Doing Business Index. The Ease of Doing Business Index is an index created by the World Bank. It indicates exceptional ease to trade across borders (5th), enforce contracts (7th), and close a business (5th), and exceptional hardship to employ workers (127th) and pay taxes (83rd). ^[83]

According to OECD, the job market is the most inflexible among Nordic countries. Labour economics seeks to understand the functioning of the Market and dynamics for labour. ^[81] Finland increased job market regulation in the 1970s to provide stability to manufacturers. In the 90s, Denmark liberalized its job market, Sweden moved to more decentralized contracts, and Finnish trade unions blocked most reforms. Finnish law forces all workers to obey the lengthy and bureaucracy-imposing country-wide contracts that are drafted every few years for each profession (copy machinist, metallurgical engineer, etc. ) and seniority level, usually in Comprehensive Income Policy Agreement. The Comprehensive Income Policy Agreement (tulopoliittinen kokonaisratkaisu often called tupo; inkomstpolitiskt avtal is a tri-lateral treaty crafted by the Finnish ^[81] Along with tax rates, the system is a key contributor to unemployment and distorted prices, and possibly slows down structural change as there are less incentives to acquire better skills. ^[51][81] Trade unions have traditionally lobbied for anti-immigrant policies, but Finland has now made some effort to improve the economy's competitiveness and marketing as a destination for skilled workers.

The middle income worker suffers from a nearly 60 percent tax wedge^[81] and effective marginal tax rates are very high. The tax wedge is the deviation from equilibrium price/quantity as a result of a taxation which results in consumers paying more and suppliers receiving less The term "effective marginal tax rates" often abbreviated as EMTR refers to the combined effect of Income tax and Means testing of government welfare ^[51] Value-added tax is 22 percent for most items. Value added tax ( VAT) or goods and services tax ( GST) is a consumption Tax levied on value added. Capital gains tax and corporate tax are 26 percent, about the EU median. A capital gains tax (abbreviated CGT) is a Tax charged on Capital gains the profit realized on the sale of a non-inventory Asset that was purchased Corporate tax refers to a Tax levied by various jurisdictions on the Profits made by companies or associations. Property taxes are low, but there is a stamp duty of 4% for home sellers. Property tax, or millage tax, is an Ad valorem tax that an owner pays on the value of the property being taxed Stamp duty is a form of Tax that is levied on documents Historically a physical stamp (a Tax stamp) had to be attached to or impressed upon the document to denote ^[51] Alcoholic beverages are separately taxed and highly restricted. For instance, McKinsey estimates that a worker has to pay around 1600 euro for another's 400 euro service^[84] - restricting service supply and demand - though some taxation is avoided in the black market and self-service culture. Another study by Karlson, Johansson & Johnsson estimates that the percentage of the buyer’s income entering the service vendor’s wallet (inverted tax wedge) is slightly over 15%, compared to 10% in Belgium, 25% in France, 40% in Switzerland and 50% in the United States. ^[85] Tax cuts have been in every post-depression government's agenda and the overall tax burden is now around 43% of GDP compared to 51. 1% in Sweden, 34. 7% in Germany, 33. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. 5% in Canada, and 30. Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page 5% in Ireland. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world ^[86] State and municipal politicians have struggled to cut their consumption, which is very high at 51. 7% of GDP compared to 56. 6% in Sweden, 46. 9 in Germany, 39. 3 in Canada, and 33. 5% in Ireland. Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world ^[52] Much of the taxes are spent on public sector employees, many of which are jobs-for-life and amount to 124,000 state employees and 430,000 municipal employees. ^[51] That is 113 per 1000 residents (over a quarter of workforce) compared to 74 in the US, 70 in Germany, and 42 in Japan (8% of workforce). ^[87] The Economist Intelligence Unit's ranking for Finland's e-readiness is high at 13th, compared to 1st for United States, 3rd for Sweden, 5th for Denmark, and 14th for Germany. The Economist Intelligence Unit ( EIU) is part of The Economist Group. E-Readiness is the ability to use Information and Communication Technologies (ICT to develop one's economy and to foster one's welfare Also, early and generous retirement schemes have contributed to high pension costs. ^[51] Social spending such as health or education is around OECD median. ^[51] Social transfers are also around OECD median. In 2001 Finland's outsourced proportion of spending was below Sweden's and above most other Western European countries. Outsourcing to free market has saved costs and increased customer satisfaction. For instance, Finland's health care is more bureaucrat-managed than in most Western European countries, though many use private insurance or cash to enjoy private clinics. Better access to private services is is very popular among voters and small reforms toward more equal marketplace have been made in 2007-2008. ^[88] In education, child nurseries, and elderly nurseries private competition is bottom-ranking compared to Sweden and most other Western countries. ^[81] Some public monopolies such Alko remain, and are sometimes challenged by the European Union. Alko is the national Alcoholic beverage retailing monopoly in Finland.

Tourism

Main article: Tourism in Finland

In 2005, Finnish tourism grossed over €6. Finland attracted over 4 million Tourists in 2005, with most coming from Sweden. Tourism is Travel for Recreational or Leisure purposes The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people who "travel 7 billion with a five percent increase from the previous year. Much of the sudden growth can be attributed to the globalisation and modernisation of the country as well as a rise in positive publicity and awareness. Globalization (or globalisation) in its literal sense is the process of transformation of local or regional phenomena into global ones The idea of modernization comes from a view of societies as having a standard Evolutionary pattern as described in the Social evolutionism theories There are many attractions in Finland which attracted over 4 million visitors in 2005.

The Finnish landscape is covered with thick pine forests, rolling hills and complemented with a labyrinth of lakes and inlets. This article is about the tree For other uses of the term "pine" see Pine (disambiguation. An inlet is a narrow body of water between islands or leading inland from a larger body of water often leading to an enclosed body of water such as a sound, bay, Much of Finland is pristine and virgin as it contains 35 national parks from the Southern shores of the Gulf of Finland to the high fells of Lapland. The Gulf of Finland ( Finnish: Suomenlahti, Russian: Финский залив, Finskiy zaliv, Swedish: Finska viken Fell (from the Old Norse fjall, 'mountain' is a word used to refer to Mountains or certain types of mountainous landscape in Scandinavia The Province of Lapland ( Lappi in Finnish and Sami Lappland in Swedish is one of the Provinces of Finland. It is also an urbanised region with many cultural events and activities.

Commercial cruises between major coastal and port cities in the Baltic region, including Helsinki, Turku, Tallinn, Stockholm and Travemünde, play a significant role in the local tourism industry. The Baltic Sea is crossed by several Cruiseferry lines Some important shipping companies are Viking Line, Silja Line, Tallink and Baltic Seven Islandsgif|right|thumb|330px|A contemporary transnational Euroregion encompasses the islands of the Baltic countries Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. Turku, in Swedish Åbo ( pronounced,) is a city and the original capital of Finland on the southwest coast of Finland at the Tallinn (historically known by the German, Swedish and Danish name Reval or the Polish name Rewal, among other names ('stɔkhɔlm is Sweden 's Capital and its largest City. It is the site of the national Swedish government, the parliament, and the Travemünde is a borough of Lübeck, Germany, located at the mouth of river Trave in Lübeck Bay. Finland is regarded as the home of Saint Nicholas or Santa Claus, living in the northern Lapland region. Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, or simply " Santa " is the The Province of Lapland ( Lappi in Finnish and Sami Lappland in Swedish is one of the Provinces of Finland. Above the Arctic Circle, there is a polar night, a period when the sun doesn't rise for days or weeks, or even months. The Arctic Circle is one of the five major circles of latitude that mark maps of the Earth. The polar night is the night lasting more than 24 hours usually inside the Polar circles The opposite phenomenon when the sun stays above the horizon for a long time is called Lapland, the extreme north of Finland, is so far north that the Aurora Borealis, atmospheric fluorescence, is seen regularly in winter. The Province of Lapland ( Lappi in Finnish and Sami Lappland in Swedish is one of the Provinces of Finland. Fluorescence is a Luminescence that is mostly found as an

Outdoor activities range from Nordic skiing, golf, fishing, yachting, lake cruises, hiking, kayaking among many others. Nordic skiing is a Winter sport that encompasses all types of Skiing where the heel of the boot cannot be fixed to the ski For the computer security term see Phishing. Fishing is the activity of catching Fish. Yachting is an activity involving boats It may be racing Sailing boats cruising to distant shores or day-sailing along a coast The word 'hiking' is understood in all English-speaking countries but there are differences in usage Kayaking is the use of a Kayak for moving across water Kayaking is generally differentiated from Canoeing by the sitting position of the paddler and the number of At Finland's northernmost point, in the heart of summer, the Sun does not completely set for 73 consecutive days. Wildlife is abundant in Finland. Bird-watching is popular for those fond of flying fauna, however hunting is also popular. Birdwatching or birding is the observation and study of Birds with the naked eye or through a visual enhancement device like Binoculars. Hunting is the practice of pursuing Animals for Food, Recreation, or Trade. Elk, reindeer and hare are all common game in Finland. The moose (North America or elk (Europe Alces alces, is the largest extant Species in the Deer family. Hares and jackrabbits are Leporids belonging to the Genus Lepus. There are many churches, cathedrals, museums and castles. Olavinlinna in Savonlinna hosts the annual Savonlinna Opera Festival. Olavinlinna (known as Olofsborg in Swedish, which is St Olaf's Castle in English) is a 15th century three-tower castle located in Savonlinna ( Nyslott in Swedish, literally Newcastle, or Нейшлот (Neishlott in Russian during 18th and 19th centuries Savonlinna Opera Festival is held annually in the city of Savonlinna in Finland. The capital city of Helsinki, on the other hand, is famous for its Grand Duchy era architecture, which resembles that of imperial St. Petersburg. The Grand Duchy of Finland (Magnus Ducatus Finlandiæ Великое княжество Финляндское ' Velikoe knjažestvo finljandskoe) was the Predecessor Saint Petersburg ( tr: Sankt-Peterburg,) is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River

Culture

Main article: Culture of Finland

Throughout Finland's prehistory and history, cultural contacts and influences have concurrently, or at varying times, come from all directions. The Finnish sauna is a substantial part of Finnish culture. There are five million inhabitants and over two million saunas in Finland - an average of one per The culture of Finland combines indigenous heritage as represented for example by the country's rare Finno-Ugric national language Finnish and the Sauna As a result of 600 years of Swedish rule, Swedish cultural influences are still notable. Today, cultural influences from North America are prominent. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Into the twenty-first century, many Finns have contacted cultures from distantly abroad, such as with those in Asia and Africa. The 21st century is the current century of the Christian Era or Common Era in accordance with the Gregorian calendar. Beyond tourism, Finnish youth in particular have been increasing their contact with peoples from outside Finland by travelling abroad to both work and study.

There are still differences between regions, especially minor differences in accents and vocabulary. Minorities, such as the Sami, Finland Swedes, Romani, and Tatar, maintain their own cultural characteristics. The Sami people are the Indigenous people of northern Europe inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of northern Sweden, Norway Swedish -speaking Finns (often called Finland-Swedes, Finnish Swedes, Fennoswedes or Swedish Finns, see below ( Swedish The Finnish Tatar community about 800 people is recognized as a national minority by the government of Finland, which considers their language as a non-territorial language Many Finns are emotionally connected to the countryside and nature, as urbanisation is a relatively recent phenomenon.

Literature

Main article: Finnish literature

Though Finnish written language could be said to exist since Mikael Agricola translated the New Testament into Finnish in the sixteenth century as a result of the Protestant Reformation, few notable works of literature were written until the nineteenth century, which saw the beginning of a Finnish national Romantic Movement. Finnish literature bears evidence of the strong influence of the country's tumultuous history. Mikael Agricola ( (c 1510 &ndash April 9, 1557) was a Finnish clergyman who became de facto founder of written Finnish and The Protestant Reformation was a reform movement in Europe that began in 1517 though its roots lie further back in time The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar Romanticism is a complex artistic literary and intellectual movement that originated in the second half of the 18th century in Western Europe, and gained strength during the This prompted Elias Lönnrot to collect Finnish and Karelian folk poetry and arrange and publish them as Kalevala, the Finnish national epic. Elias Lönnrot ( ( April 9, 1802 – March 19, 1884) was a Finnish Philologist and collector of traditional Finnish The Kalevala is a book and epic poem which the Finn Elias Lönnrot compiled from Finnish and Karelian Folklore in the nineteenth A national epic is an epic poem or similar work which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular Nation; not necessarily a The era saw a rise of poets and novelists who wrote in Finnish, notably Aleksis Kivi and Eino Leino. Aleksis Kivi ( born Alexis Stenvall, ( October 10, 1834 – December 31, 1872) was a Finnish author who wrote the Eino Leino ( July 6, 1878, Paltamo, Finland - January 10, 1926, Tuusula, Finland) was a Finnish

After Finland became independent there was a rise of modernist writers, most famously Mika Waltari. Mika Toimi Waltari ( ( September 19, 1908 – August 26, 1979) was a Finnish Historical novelist, best known for his Frans Eemil Sillanpää was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1939 – so far the only one for a Finnish author. Sillanpää redirects here For other meanings see Sillanpää (disambiguation. The Nobel Prize in Literature (Nobelpriset i litteratur is awarded annually since 1901 to an author from any country who has in the words from the will of Alfred The second World War prompted a return to more national interests in comparison to a more international line of thought, characterized by Väinö Linna. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Väinö Linna ( ( December 20, 1920 – April 21, 1992) was one of the most influential Finnish authors of the 20th century Literature in modern Finland is in a healthy state, with detective stories enjoying a particular boom of popularity. Ilkka Remes, a Finnish author of thrillers, is very popular. Ilkka Remes (born December 13, 1962) is a Finnish Author of thrillers and young adult literature An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created The thriller is a broad Genre of Literature, Film, Gaming and Television.

Visual arts

See also: List of Finnish architects

Finns have made major contributions to handicrafts and industrial design. The following is a list of well-known architects from Finland. Handicraft, also known as craftwork or simply Craft, is a type of work where useful and decorative devices are made completely by hand or using only simple tools Industrial design is an Applied art whereby the Aesthetics and Usability of mass-produced products may be improved for marketability and Finland's best-known sculptor of the twentieth century was Wäinö Aaltonen, remembered for his monumental busts and sculptures. Wäinö Valdemar Aaltonen ( 8 March 1894 - 30 May 1966) was a Finnish artist and Sculptor A bust is a sculpted or cast representation of the upper part of the human figure depicting a person's head and Neck, as well as a variable portion of Finnish architecture is famous around the world. Among the top of the twentieth century Finnish architects to win international recognition are Eliel Saarinen (designer of the widely recognised Helsinki Central railway station and many other public works) and his son Eero Saarinen. Gottlieb Eliel Saarinen ( August 20, 1873, Rantasalmi, Finland &ndash July 1, 1950, Bloomfield Hills Michigan Helsinki Central railway station (Helsingin rautatieasema Helsingfors järnvägsstation is a widely recognised landmark in central Helsinki, Finland, and the Eero Saarinen (eːro saːrinen (August 20 1910 Kirkkonummi, Finland – September 1 1961 Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States) was Alvar Aalto, who helped bring the functionalist architecture to Finland, is also famous for his work in furniture and glassware. Hugo Alvar Henrik Aalto ( February 3, 1898 — May 11, 1976) was a Finnish Architect and Designer, sometimes Furniture is the Mass noun for the movable objects which may support the human body (seating furniture and beds, provide storage or hold objects on horizontal Glassware usually refers to Glass items used as Tableware, such as dishes cutlery flatware and Drinkware used to set a table for eating a meal

Music

Main article: Music of Finland

Folk music

Much of the music of Finland is influenced by traditional Karelian melodies and lyrics, as comprised in the Kalevala. The music of Finland can be roughly divided in the following three categories Karelia ( Karelian and Finnish Karjala, Карелия ( Kareliya) Karelen the land of the Karelian peoples, is an area in The Kalevala is a book and epic poem which the Finn Elias Lönnrot compiled from Finnish and Karelian Folklore in the nineteenth Karelian culture is perceived as the purest expression of the Finnic myths and beliefs, less influenced by Germanic influence, in contrast to Finland's position between the East and the West. Finnic peoples ( Fennic) are a historical linguistic group of peoples Baltic Finns who are Native speakers of Baltic-Finnic The Germanic peoples are a historical group of Indo-European -speaking peoples originating in Northern Europe and identified by their use of the Germanic The term Eastern world refers very broadly to the various Cultures social structures and philosophical systems of " the East " The term Western world, the West or the Occident ( Latin: occidens -sunset -west as distinct from the Orient) can have multiple meanings Finnish folk music has undergone a roots revival in recent decades, and has become a part of popular music. Folk music can have a number of different meanings including Traditional music: The original meaning of the term "folk music" was synonymous A roots revival ( folk revival) is a trend which includes young performers popularizing the traditional musical styles of their ancestors Popular music is Music belonging to any of a number of musical styles that are accessible to the general public and are disseminated by one or more

Sami music

Main article: Sami music

The people of northern Finland, Sweden and Norway, the Sami, are known primarily for highly spiritual songs called Joik. Traditional Sami music revolves around singing The only traditional instruments are the flute "fadno" (made from Angelica archangelica) and Drums and purely The Sami people are the Indigenous people of northern Europe inhabiting Sápmi, which today encompasses parts of northern Sweden, Norway Yoik, Joik or juoiggus is a traditional Sami form of Song. Originally yoik referred to only one of several Sami singing styles but in The same word sometimes refers to lavlu or vuelie songs, though this is technically incorrect. The music of Finland can be roughly divided in the following three categories

Classical and opera

The first Finnish opera was written by the German composer Fredrik Pacius in 1852. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. Fredrik Pacius (or Friedrich Pacius) ( March 19, 1809 Hamburg – January 8, 1891 Helsinki) was a German Pacius also wrote Maamme/Vårt land (Our Land), Finland's national anthem. Our Land, Maamme ( Finnish) or Vårt land ( Swedish) is the title of Finland 's National anthem. A national anthem is a generally patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogizes the history traditions and struggles of its people recognized either by a nation's In the 1890s Finnish nationalism based on the Kalevala spread, and Jean Sibelius became famous for his vocal symphony Kullervo. The term nationalism can refer to an Ideology, a sentiment, a form of Culture, or a Social movement that focuses on the Nation Kullervo Op 7 is an early Symphonic poem for soloists chorus and orchestra written by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius (1865–-1957 He soon received a grant to study runo singers in Karelia and continued his rise as the first prominent Finnish musician. In 1899 he composed Finlandia, which played its important role in Finland gaining independence. Finlandia Op 26 is a Symphonic poem by the Finnish Composer Jean Sibelius. He remains one of Finland's most popular national figures and is a symbol of the nation.

Today, Finland has a very lively classical music scene. Finnish classical music has only existed for about a hundred years, and many of the important composers are still alive, such as Magnus Lindberg, Kaija Saariaho, Aulis Sallinen and Einojuhani Rautavaara. Magnus Lindberg (born June 27, 1958) is a Finnish Composer. Lindberg was born in Helsinki. Kaija Saariaho (ˈkɑijɑ 'sɑːriˌɑho (born October 14, 1952) is a Finnish Composer. Aulis Sallinen (born April 9, 1935) is a Finnish contemporary classical music Composer. Einojuhani Rautavaara ( (born October 9, 1928) is a Finnish Composer of Contemporary classical music, and is probably the best-known The composers are accompanied with a large number of great conductors such as Sakari Oramo, Mikko Franck, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Osmo Vänskä, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Susanna Mälkki and Leif Segerstam. Sakari Markus Oramo (born October 26, 1965 Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish conductor. Mikko Franck (born Helsinki, 1 April 1979 is a Finnish conductor. Esa-Pekka Salonen ( (born June 30 1958 is a prominent Finnish orchestral conductor and Composer. Osmo Vänskä (born 28 February 1953 Sääminki, Finland) is a Finnish orchestra conductor. WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Jukka-Pekka Saraste (born April 22, 1956) is a Susanna Mälkki (born Helsinki, Finland, 13 March 1969) is a Finnish conductor. Leif Segerstam (born March 2, 1944 in Vaasa) is a Finnish conductor and Composer. Some of the internationally acclaimed Finnish classical musicians are Karita Mattila, Soile Isokoski, Kari Kriikku, Pekka Kuusisto, Réka Szilvay and Linda Brava. Karita Mattila (pronounced KAH-ree-tah MAHT-ee-lah is a leading opera Soprano. Soile Isokoski (born February 14, 1957) is a Finnish lyric soprano Kari Kriikku (born 1960 is a Finnish classical Clarinetist He studied at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki, and later with Pekka Kuusisto (born in 1976 in Espoo, Finland) is a Finnish classical Violinist. Linda Brava, real name Linda Lampenius (born on February 26, 1970 in Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish classical

Popular music

Modern Finnish popular music includes a renowned heavy metal music scene, in common with other Nordic countries, as well as a number of prominent rock bands, jazz musicians, hip hop performers, and dance music acts such as Bomfunk MCs and Darude. A musical ensemble is a group of two or more Musicians who perform instrumental or vocal Music. Jazz is an American Musical art form which originated in the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States Hip hop is a cultural movement which developed in New York City in the 1970s primarily among African Americans and Latinos. This article is about music for dancing in general You may also be looking for Electronic dance music. The Bomfunk MCs are a robot hip hop and Hip hop act formed in 1997 in Finland. Ville Virtanen (born July 17, 1975) better known by his Stage name Darude is a trance producer and DJ Finnish electronic music such as the Sähkö Recordings record label enjoys underground acclaim. Electronic music is music that employs Electronic musical instruments and Electronic Music technology in its production Sähkö Recordings is a Record label in Helsinki, Finland. Sähkö ("electricity" in Finnish was founded by Tommi Grönlund in Iskelmä (coined directly from the German word Schlager, meaning hit) is a traditional Finnish word for a light popular song. Schlager ( German Schlager, literally "hitter" or more loosely translated "a hit" is a style of Popular music that is prevalent in Finnish popular music also includes various kinds of dance music; tango, a style of Argentinean music, is also popular. This article is about music for dancing in general You may also be looking for Electronic dance music. Tango is a style of music that originated among European immigrant populations of Argentina and Uruguay. Argentina is known mostly for the tango, which developed in Buenos Aires and surrounding areas as well as Montevideo, Uruguay. One of the most productive composers of popular music was Toivo Kärki, and the most famous singer Olavi Virta (1915–1972). Olavi Virta (originally to 1926 Oskari Olavi Ilmen) ( 27 February 1915, Sysmä, Finland Among the lyricists, Sauvo Puhtila (born 1928), Reino Helismaa (died 1965) and Veikko "Vexi" Salmi are the most remarkable authors. Reino Vihtori "Repe" Helismaa ( 12 July 1913 - 21 January 1965) was a Finnish The composer and bandleader Jimi Tenor is well known for his brand of retro-funk music. Jimi Tenor (born Lahti 1965 as Lassi Lehto) is a Finnish musician

Dance music

Notable Finnish dance and electronic music artists include Jori Hulkkonen, Darude, JS16, DJ Proteus and DJ Orkidea. Jori Hulkkonen, born 28 September 1973, is a Finnish DJ and a producer of House music, originally from Kemi, Finland Ville Virtanen (born July 17, 1975) better known by his Stage name Darude is a trance producer and DJ JS16, real name Jaakko Salovaara, is a Finnish musician and Record producer. DJ Proteus, also known as Harri Andersson, (born 1977) is a Finnish Hard dance DJ DJ Orkidea, or sometimes just Orkidea, is the artist name for the Finnish Electronic music artist Tapio Hakanen.

Rock and heavy metal music

Main article: Finnish rock

Finnish rock-music scene emerged in 1960s with pioneers such as Blues Section and Kirka. Blues Section is considered a seminal and ground-breaking band in Finnish rock music Kirill "Kirka" Babitzin ( September 22, 1950 &ndash January 31 2007) was one of Finland 's most famous popular In the 1970s Finnish rock musicians started to write their own music instead of translating international hits into Finnish. During the decade some progressive rock groups, such as Tasavallan Presidentti and Wigwam, gained respect abroad but failed to make a commercial breakthrough outside Finland. Progressive rock (often shortened to " progressive " " prog " or " prog rock " is a form of Rock music that evolved Tasavallan Presidentti (in English President of the Republic) was a Finnish Progressive rock band Wigwam is a Finnish Progressive rock band formed in 1968 after the split of the seminal Blues Section, with whom drummer Ronnie Österberg had This was also the fate of the rock and roll group Hurriganes. Rock and roll (also known as rock 'n' roll) is a form of Music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s with roots in mostly African Hurriganes are a Finnish rock band that formed in the early 1970s The Finnish punk scene produced some internationally acknowledged names including Terveet Kädet in 1980s. Terveet Kädet are a legendary Finnish Hardcore punk band the first in Finland. Hanoi Rocks was a pioneering 1980s-glam rock act that left perhaps a deeper mark in the history of popular music than any other Finnish group, giving inspiration for Guns N' Roses. Hanoi Rocks are a Finnish Glam punk band formed in 1979 whose most successful period came in the early 1980s Glam rock (also known as glitter rock) is a sub-genre of Rock music that developed in the UK in the post- Hippie early 1970s which was "performed by Guns N' Roses is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1985

In 1990s Finnish rock and metal music started to gain international fame with bands such as The 69 Eyes, Amorphis, Children of Bodom, Ensiferum, HIM, Lordi, Negative, Nightwish, The Rasmus, Sentenced, Sonata Arctica, and Stratovarius. The 69 Eyes are a Finnish rock band They are signed to EMI / Virgin Records Finland Amorphis is a Finnish metal band started by Jan Rechberger Tomi Koivusaari and Esa Holopainen in 1990 Children of Bodom is a Finnish Melodic death metal band from Espoo, Finland formed in 1993 Ensiferum (Latin ensĭfĕrum (neuter adjective meaning "sword bearing" is a heavy metal HIM is a rock band from Finland formed in 1991 by vocalist Ville Valo, guitarist Mikko Lindström, Lordi is a heavy metal quintet from Finland. The concept for Lordi was devised in 1992 however the band was not formed until 1996 by Tomi Putaansuu (known Negative is Serbian pop - rock band established 1999 in Belgrade. Nightwish is a symphonic Power metal band formed in 1996 in the town of Kitee, Finland. The Rasmus is a Finnish rock band that formed in 1994 in Helsinki while the band members were still in high school Sentenced was a doom / Gothic metal and in the beginning Melodic death metal band formed in 1989, in the town of Muhos, Finland Sonata Arctica is a Finnish Power metal band from the town of Kemi, originally assembled in 1996 Stratovarius is a Finnish Power metal band that formed in 1983 In the later 1990s the cello metal group Apocalyptica played Metallica cover versions as cello quartettos and sold half a million records worldwide. Cello rock and cello metal are subgenres of Rock music characterized by the use of Cellos (as well as sometimes also other bowed string instruments such Metallica is an American heavy metal band that formed in 1981 in. In Popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition ( Performance or Recording) of a previously recorded commercially released The violoncello (abbreviated to cello, or 'cello, plural cellos or celli —the c is tʃ Some of the Finland's most domestically popular rock groups are CMX and Eppu Normaali. CMX, originally Cloaca Maxima, is a Finnish rock band They started with English language Hardcore punk, but later moved to a Eppu Normaali is one of the most popular bands in Finland. The band was formed in 1976 in the small town of Ylöjärvi, near Tampere.

In the 2000s, other Finnish rock bands started to sell well internationally. The Rasmus became more known in Europe (and other places, like South America) in the 2000s. The Rasmus is a Finnish rock band that formed in 1994 in Helsinki while the band members were still in high school Their 2003 album Dead Letters sold 1. For actual dead letters see Dead letter. Dead Letters (sometimes known as Feeling Guilty within the 5 million units worldwide and garnered them eight gold and five platinum album designations. But so far the most successful Finnish band in the United States has been HIM; they were the first band from Finland to ever sell an album that was certified gold by the RIAA. HIM is a rock band from Finland formed in 1991 by vocalist Ville Valo, guitarist Mikko Lindström, Most recently, the Finnish hard rock/heavy metal music band Lordi won the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest with a record 292 points, giving Finland its first ever victory, and the band Nightwish have sold world wide with their album Dark Passion Play. Lordi is a heavy metal quintet from Finland. The concept for Lordi was devised in 1992 however the band was not formed until 1996 by Tomi Putaansuu (known The Eurovision Song Contest 2006 was the 51st Eurovision Song Contest, held at the OAKA Indoor Hall in Athens, Greece on the Nightwish is a symphonic Power metal band formed in 1996 in the town of Kitee, Finland. Dark Passion Play is the sixth studio album of Finnish quintet Nightwish, released on September 26 2007 in Finland, September 28 in As of 2008, Finland has, according to some surveys, the most heavy metal bands in the world per-capita. ^[89]

The Tuska Open Air Metal Festival, one of the largest open-air heavy metal music festivals in the world, is held annually in Kaisaniemi, Helsinki. Tuska Open Air Metal Festival, shortly Tuska (pain agony is the largest Music festival dedicated only to metal and related styles of music in the Kaisaniemi ( Kajsaniemi) is a part of the centre of Helsinki, Finland. Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. ^[90] Ruisrock and Provinssirock are the most famous rock festivals held in Finland. Ruisrock is a Rock festival held annually on the island of Ruissalo in Turku, Finland. Provinssirock is one of the biggest Rock festivals in Finland.

Cinema

Main article: Cinema of Finland

See also: List of Finnish films

In film industry, famous directors include Aki Kaurismäki, Timo Koivusalo, Aleksi Mäkelä and Klaus Härö. The Finnish cinema has a long history with first public screenings starting almost as early as modern motion picture technology was invented (the first screening in the world was in 1895 A list of films produced in Finland ordered by year of release The film industry consists of the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking i Aki Olavi Kaurismäki ( (born April 4, 1957 in Orimattila, Finland) is a Finnish script writer and Film director. Timo Johannes Koivusalo (born October 31, 1963 in Pori, Finland is a Finnish actor director Hollywood film director/producer Renny Harlin (born Lauri Mauritz Harjola) was born in Finland. Renny Harlin (born Renny Lauri Mauritz Harjola on March 15, 1959 in Riihimäki, Finland) is a Finnish American

Media and communications

See also: Communications in Finland, List of newspapers in Finland, and List of Finnish television stations

Until economic liberalization in the early 90s, media and communications were highly restricted. Finland has excellent Communications, and is considered one of the most advanced information societies in the world Below is a list of Newspapers in Finland with their respective cities of publication Morning newspapers Aamulehti ( Tampere) This is a list of Television channels broadcasting to Finnish- and Swedish-language audiences in Finland Self-censorship was common among allowed newspapers and private television channels were not allowed at all until 1993. Today there are 200 newspapers; 320 popular magazines, 2,100 professional magazines and 67 commercial radio stations, with one nationwide, five national public service radio channels, three digital radio channels. A newspaper is a written Publication containing News, information and Advertising, usually printed on low-cost paper called Newsprint. Magazines, periodicals or serials are Publications generally published on a regular schedule containing a variety of articles, generally This article is about radio broadcasting for other uses see Radio (disambiguation. Public broadcasting refers to radio television and other electronic media outlets that receive some or all of their funding from the public Digital radio describes Radio technologies which carry Information as a Digital signal, by means of a Digital modulation method Each year around twelve feature films are made, 12,000 book titles published and 12 million records sold. In the Film industry, a feature film is a Film made for initial distribution in theaters and being the "main attraction" of the screening A Book is a set or collection of written printed illustrated or blank sheets made of Paper, Parchment, or other material usually fastened together ^[91]

SanomaWSOY publishes the newspaper Helsingin Sanomat (the circulation of 434,000 making it the largest newspaper), the tabloid Ilta-Sanomat, the commerce-oriented Taloussanomat, and the television channel Nelonen. SanomaWSOY is the leading media group in the Nordic countries with operations in 20 European countries based in Helsinki. Helsingin Sanomat is the biggest Subscription Newspaper in Finland. A tabloid is a Newspaper industry term which refers to a smaller newspaper format per spread to a weekly or semi-weekly alternative newspaper that focuses on local-interest Ilta-Sanomat is one of Finland's two prominent Tabloids and the second largest Newspaper in the country Taloussanomat is a commerce-oriented newspaper in Finland. It is owned by SanomaWSOY. Nelonen is a Finnish commercial TV channel It started out as Helsinki's local television channel PTV in 1989 on the HTV cable network which name was changed The other major publisher Alma Media publishes over thirty magazines, including newspaper Aamulehti, tabloid Iltalehti and commerce-oriented Kauppalehti. Alma Media ( is one of the largest media companies in Finland. Aamulehti is a Finnish Newspaper published in Tampere. It has the second largest circulation of Finnish dailies with an average circulation Iltalehti is a daily Tabloid Newspaper and the third largest newspaper in Finland. Kauppalehti (English "Trade Newspaper" is a commerce-oriented newspaper in Finland owned by Alma Media. Finns, along with other Nordic people and the Japanese, spend the most time in the world reading newspapers. The terms Finns and Finnish people ( Finnish: suomalaiset, Swedish: finländare) are used in English to The are the dominant Ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent of these approximately 127 million are residents of Japan The politically-controlled National Broadcasting Company YLE has five television channels and 13 radio channels in two national languages. YLE (Full name Finnish: Yleisradio Oy, Swedish: Rundradion Ab) is Finland 's national broadcasting company founded YLE is funded through a mandatory license for television owners and fees for private broadcasters. Television licences around the world The Museum of Broadcast Communications in Chicago notes that two-thirds of the countries in Europe and half In the 1990s politicians made a controversial decision to transform to a digital television standard, which has now been completed. Digital television (DTV is the sending and receiving of moving images and sound by discrete ( digital) signals in contrast to the analog signals used by The most popular television channel MTV3 and the most popular radio channel Radio Nova are owned by Nordic Broadcasting (Bonnier and Proventus Industrier). MTV3 is a Finnish commercial television station owned by Bonnier. Radio Nova is a radio channel in Finland. It was a major radio industry milestone when it launched in 1997. Bonnier (also the Bonnier Group) is a Privately-held Swedish Media group of 150 companies operating in 21 countries International newspapers such as Aftonbladet or Financial Times are available, but according to the sole importer the readership is only around 600,000 copies per year or around 2,000 on average day. Aftonbladet ( Swedish for The Evening Sheet) is a Swedish Tabloid founded by Lars Johan Hierta in 1830 during the The Financial Times ( FT) is a British international business Newspaper. ^[92]

Around 79 percent of the population use the Internet. The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks ^[93] Finland had around 1. 52 million broadband Internet connections by the end of June 2007 or around 287 per 1,000 inhabitants. Broadband Internet access, often shortened to just Broadband, is high-speed Internet access—typically contrasted with dial-up access over a Modem ^[94] All Finnish schools and public libraries have Internet and a few computers. Most residents have a mobile phone. It's used mostly for contact and value-added services are rare. ^[95]

Cuisine

Main article: Cuisine of Finland

Traditional Finnish cuisine is a combination of European, Fennoscandian and Western Russian elements; table manners are European. The cuisine of Finland is notable for the use of Wholemeal products ( Rye, Barley, Oats and berries (such as blueberries Cuisine (from French cuisine, "cooking culinary art kitchen" ultimately from Latin coquere, "to cook" is a specific set Fennoscandia and Fenno-Scandinavia are geographic and geological terms used to describe the Scandinavian Peninsula, the Kola Peninsula, Karelia The food is generally simple, fresh and healthy. Fish, meat, berries and ground vegetables are typical ingredients whereas spices are not common due to their historical unavailability. Fish are aquatic Vertebrate animals that are typically ectothermic (previously Cold-blooded) covered with scales, and equipped with two In modern English usage meat most often refers to Animal tissue used as food mostly Skeletal muscle and associated Fat, but it may also refer The word berry has two meanings one based on a botanical definition the other on common identification The term " vegetable " generally means the edible parts of Plants The definition of the word is traditional rather than Scientific, however A spice is a dried Seed, Fruit, Root, Bark or vegetative substance used in Nutritionally insignificant quantities as a Food additive In years past, Finnish food often varied from region to region, most notably between the west and east. In coastal and lakeside villages, fish was a main feature of cooking, whereas in the eastern and also northern regions, vegetables and reindeer were more common. The prototypical breakfast is oatmeal or other continental-style foods such as bread. Breakfast cereal health benefits There has been increasing interest in oatmeal in recent years due to its beneficial health effects Bread is a Staple food prepared by Baking a Dough of Flour and Water. Lunch is usually a full warm meal, served by a canteen at workplaces. Luncheon, commonly abbreviated to lunch, is a midday Meal. In English-speaking countries during the eighteenth century what was originally called " InfosysElectronicCityCafeteriaJPG|thumb|250px|right|One of a number of cafeterias at Electronic City campus Infosys Technologies Ltd Dinner is eaten at around 17. Dinner is the main Meal of the day The meal normally consists of a combination of cooked or sometimes uncooked proteins (meat fish or legumes with vegetables and/or 00 to 18. 00 at home.

Modern Finnish cuisine combines country fare and haute cuisine with contemporary continental cooking style. Haute cuisine (literally "high cooking" in French) or grande cuisine refers to the cooking of the grand restaurants and hotels of Cooking is the process of preparing Food by applying Heat, selecting measuring and combining of ingredients in an ordered procedure for producing safe and edible Today, spices are a prominent ingredient in many modern Finnish recipes, having been adopted from the east and west in recent decades. A recipe is a set of instructions that show how to prepare or make something especially a culinary dish.

Public holidays

Main article: Public holidays in Finland

See also: Flag days in Finland

All official holidays in Finland are established by acts of Parliament. All official Holidays in Finland are established by acts of Parliament. By law the Finnish flag must be flown from public buildings on the following days February 28, day of Kalevala; the occasion is also celebrated The Eduskunta (in Finnish) or the Riksdag (in Swedish) is the Parliament of Finland. The official holidays can be divided into Christian and secular holidays, although some of the Christian holidays have replaced holidays of pagan origin. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings The main Christian holidays are Christmas, Epiphany, Easter, Ascension Day, Pentecost, and All Saints Day. Epiphany ( Greek for "to manifest" or "to show" is a Christian Feast day which celebrates the "shining forth" or revelation of Easter ( Greek: Πάσχα Pascha or Pasxa) is the most important religious feast in the Christian Liturgical year. The general and most common understanding of the Christian Doctrine of Ascension holds that Jesus bodily ascended to Heaven in the presence Pentecost (πεντηκοστή, pentekostē, "the fiftieth day" is one of the prominent feasts in the Christian Liturgical year, celebrated the For the British girl group see All Saints (band. All Saints' Day (also called All Hallows or Hallowmas) often The secular holidays are New Year's Day, May Day, Midsummer Day, and the Independence Day. New Year's Day is the first day of the Year. On the modern Gregorian calendar, it is celebrated on January 1, as it was also in ancient Rome (though May Day occurs on May 1 and refers to any of several Public holidays In many countries May Day is synonymous with International Workers' Day, or Labour Midsummer may simply refer to the period of time centered upon the summer solstice, but more often refers to specific European celebrations that accompany the actual solstice Finland 's Independence Day (Finnish itsenäisyyspäivä, Swedish självständighetsdag) is a national public holiday held on Christmas is the most extensively celebrated holiday: usually at least 23rd to 26th of December are holidays.

In addition to this, all Sundays are official holidays, but they are not as important as the special holidays. The names of the Sundays follow the liturgical calendar and they can be categorised as Christian holidays. When the standard working week in Finland was reduced to 40 hours by an act of Parliament, it also meant that all Saturdays became a sort of de facto public holidays, though not official ones. Easter Sunday and Pentecost are Sundays that form part of a main holiday and they are preceded by a kind of special Saturdays. Retail stores are prohibited by law from doing business on Sundays, except during the summer months (May through August) and in the pre-Christmas season (November and December). Business locations that have less than 400 square metres of floor space are allowed Sunday business throughout the year, with the exception of official holidays and certain Sundays, such as Mother's Day and Father's Day. M^2 redirects here For other uses see M². CM2 redirects here Mother's Day is a day honoring Mothers celebrated on various days in many places around the world Father's Day is a celebration inaugurated in the early twentieth century to complement Mother's Day in celebrating Fatherhood and male Parenting, and

Sports

Main article: Sport in Finland

Various sporting events are popular in Finland. Sport is considered a national pastime in Finland and many Finns visit different sporting events regularly Sport is an Activity that is governed by a set of rules or Customs and often engaged in competitively Pesäpallo (reminiscent of baseball) is the national sport of Finland, although the most popular sports in Finland in terms of media coverage are Formula One, ice hockey and football. Pesäpallo (Boboll also referred to as " Finnish baseball " is a fast-moving Ball Sport that's quite often referred to as the national sport Baseball is a Bat-and-ball Sport played between two teams of nine players each Ice hockey, often referred to simply as hockey, is a team Sport played on Ice. Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered The Finnish national ice hockey team is considered one of the best in the world. 2008 World Championship team Olympic record 1952 - Finished in 7th place 1956 - did not participate During the past century there has been a rivalry in sporting between Finland and Sweden, mostly in ice hockey and athletics (Finland-Sweden athletics international). Finnkampen ( Swedish, literally The Finn Battle) Suomi-Ruotsi-maaottelu ( Finnish, literally Finland-Sweden-international) or Jari Kurri and Teemu Selänne are the two Finnish-born ice hockey players to have scored 500 goals in their NHL careers. Jari Pekka Kurri (born May 18 1960 in Helsinki, Finland is a retired Finnish professional Ice hockey right winger Teemu Ilmari Selänne (ˈteːmu ˈilmɑri ˈselænːe (born July 3, 1970) is a Finnish professional Ice hockey right winger who currently The National Hockey League ( NHL) is a professional Ice hockey league composed of 30 teams in North America Football is also popular in Finland, though the national football team has never qualified for a finals tournament of the World Cup or the European Championships. The Finland national football team represents Finland in international football competitions and is controlled by the Football Association of Finland. The FIFA World Cup, occasionally called the Football World Cup, but usually referred to simply as the World Cup, is an international Association football The UEFA European Football Championship is the main football competition of the men's national football teams governed by UEFA (the Union of European Jari Litmanen and Sami Hyypiä are the most internationally renowned of the Finnish football players. Jari Olavi Litmanen ( (born February 20 1971 in Lahti) is a Finnish footballer, widely considered the country's greatest ever Sami Tuomas Hyypiä (born 7 October 1973 in Porvoo) is a Finnish footballer who currently plays for Liverpool F

Relative to its population, Finland has been a top country in the world in automobile racing, measured by international success. Auto racing (also known as automobile racing, motor racing or car racing) is a Motorsport involving Racing Cars It Finland has produced three Formula One World Champions – Keke Rosberg (Williams, 1982), Mika Häkkinen (McLaren, 1998 and 1999) and Kimi Räikkönen (Ferrari, 2007). The Formula One World Drivers' Championship (WDC is awarded by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile ( FIA) to the most successful Formula One Keijo Erik Rosberg ( (born 6 December 1948 in Solna, Stockholm County, Sweden) nicknamed "Keke" is a Not to be confused with Frank Williams Racing Cars, formed by Frank Williams 1967 The 1982 Formula One season was the 33rd FIA Formula One World Championship season Mika Pauli Häkkinen ( (born September 28, 1968 in Helsingin maalaiskunta) is a Finnish racing driver and two-time Formula McLaren, founded in 1963 by New Zealander Bruce McLaren (1937&ndash1970 is a Formula One team based in Woking, Surrey, UK The 1998 Formula One season was the 49th FIA Formula One World Championship season The 1999 Formula One season was the 50th FIA Formula One World Championship season Kimi-Matias Räikkönen (ˈkimi ˈmɑtiɑs ˈræikkønen born October 17, 1979 in Espoo) is a Finnish Formula One race car driver currently Scuderia Ferrari is the name for the Gestione Sportiva the division of the Ferrari automobile company concerned with racing Pre-season testing Pre-season testing began in November 2006 at the Circuit de Catalunya, with ten of the eleven teams participating in the test sessions Along with Räikkönen, the other Finnish Formula One driver currently active is Heikki Kovalainen (McLaren). Heikki Johannes Kovalainen (born October 19, 1981 in Suomussalmi, Finland) is a racing driver. McLaren, founded in 1963 by New Zealander Bruce McLaren (1937&ndash1970 is a Formula One team based in Woking, Surrey, UK Rosberg's son, Nico Rosberg (Williams), is also currently driving, but under his mother's German nationality. Nico Rosberg (born June 27, 1985) is a Racing driver for the Williams Formula One team Not to be confused with Frank Williams Racing Cars, formed by Frank Williams 1967 The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as Other notable Finnish Grand Prix drivers include Leo Kinnunen, JJ Lehto and Mika Salo. Leo Juhani "Leksa" Kinnunen (born August 5, 1943 in Tampere) is a Finnish former car racer the first Formula One driver Early career Like many racing drivers he began in karts at age 5 winning numerous events before graduating to Formula Ford at the early age of age 14 Mika Juhani Salo (born November 30, 1966 in Helsinki) is a Finnish Racing driver. Finland has also produced most of the world's best rally drivers, including the ex-WRC World Champion drivers Marcus Grönholm, Juha Kankkunen, Hannu Mikkola, Tommi Mäkinen, Timo Salonen and Ari Vatanen. Rallying is a form of motor competition that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road-legal cars History Early The World Rally Championship was formed from well-known international rallies nine of which were previously part of the International Championship The World Rally Championship Drivers' Championship is awarded by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile ( FIA) to the most successful World Rally Championship Marcus "Bosse" Grönholm (born February 5 1968 in Kauniainen) is a former Finnish rally driver Juha Matti Pellervo Kankkunen ( born in Laukaa, Finland on April 2 1959, made his name principally as a rally car driver Hannu Olavi Mikkola (born 24 May 1942 in Joensuu, Finland) is a retired world champion rally driver Tommi Antero Mäkinen (ˈtommi ˈmækinen is a now retired Finnish rally driver born in Puuppola, Finland near Jyväskylä in June Timo Salonen (born October 8 1951) is a Finnish former rally driver and the 1985 world champion for Peugeot. Ari Pieti Uolevi Vatanen ( (born April 27, 1952 in Tuupovaara) is a Finnish rally driver turned politician and Member of the The only Finn to have won a road racing World Championship, Jarno Saarinen, was killed in 1973 while racing. Road racing can be a term involving Road running, road bicycle races, or Automobile races The following is a list of Grand Prix motorcycle racing FIM World Champions, from 1949 to 2007, in order of year and Engine displacement. Jarno Karl Keimo Saarinen ( December 11, 1945 in Turku, Finland – May 20, 1973 in Monza, Italy)

Among winter sports, Finland has been the most successful country in ski jumping, with former ski jumper Matti Nykänen being arguably the best ever in that sport. A winter sport is a Sport commonly played during Winter. As a formal term it refers to a sport played on Snow or Ice, but informally can refer Ski jumping is a Sport in which skiers go down an "inrun" with a take-off ramp (the jump attempting to go as far as possible Matti Ensio Nykänen ( (born July 17, 1963 in Jyväskylä, Finland) is a former Finnish ski jumper, arguably the best Most notably, he won five Olympic medals (four gold) and nine World Championships medals (five gold). Among currently active Finnish ski jumpers, Janne Ahonen has been the most successful. Janne Petteri Ahonen ( (born May 11, 1977 in Lahti, Finland) is a Finnish ski jumper who competed from 1992 to 2008 Kalle Palander is a well-known alpine skiing winner, who won the World Championship and Crystal Ball (twice, in Kitzbühel). Kalle Markus Palander (born May 2, 1977 in Tornio) is a Finnish alpine skier, the most successful male Finn ever in the sport Alpine skiing (or downhill skiing) is a recreational activity and Sport involving sliding down Snow -covered hills with long Skis attached Kitzbühel is a medieval city in Tyrol, Austria, situated along the river Kitzbühler Ache. Tanja Poutiainen has won an Olympic silver medal for alpine skiing, as well as multiple FIS World Cup races. Tanja Poutiainen (born 6 April 1980 in Rovaniemi) is a Finnish alpine skier who won the silver medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics The Olympic Games is an international Multi-sport event established for both summer and winter games A Silver medal is a Medal awarded to the second place finisher of contests (typically athletics competitions such as the Olympic Games,

Some of the most outstanding athletes from the past include Hannes Kolehmainen (1890–1966), Paavo Nurmi (1897–1973) and Ville Ritola (1896–1982) who won eighteen gold and seven silver Olympic medals in the 1910s and 1920s. Juho Pietari "Hannes" Kolehmainen ( ( 9 December 1889 &ndash 11 January 1966) was a Finnish long-distance Paavo Johannes Nurmi ( ( 13 June 1897 &ndash 2 October 1973) was a Finnish runner. Vilho ("Ville" Eino Ritola ( 18 January 1896 &ndash 24 April 1982) was a Finnish athlete, specialised in Gold Medal is an Album by American band The Donnas, released in 2004 (see 2004 in music) This page indexes the individual year in sports pages This page indexes the individual year in sports pages They are also considered to be the first of a generation of great Finnish middle and long-distance runners (and subsequently, other great Finnish sportsmen) often named the "Flying Finns". Middle distance track events are track races longer than sprints up to (and arguably including 3000 Metres. Long-distance track event races require runners to balance their energy This is a list of people from Finland, ie of noted Finns: Actors Ida Aalberg (1858 &ndash 1915 Aino Ackte (1876 "The Flying Finn " (Lentävä suomalainen was a nickname given to several Finnish middle and long-distance runners Another long-distance runner, Lasse Virén (born 1949), won a total of four gold medals during the 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics. Lasse Artturi Virén (born July 22, 1949) is a former Finnish athlete, winner of four gold medals at the 1972 Summer Olympics and The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were an International Multi-sport event held in Munich, in what was The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, were an International Multi-sport event held in Montreal, Quebec

Also, in the past, Riku Kiri, Jouko Ahola and Janne Virtanen have been the greatest strength athletes in the country, participating in the World's Strongest Man competition between 1993 and 2000. Riku Kiri (born 1963 Kotka Finland is a Finnish sportsman best known for competing in the World's Strongest Man competition Jouko Ahola (born 1 December, 1970, Hämeenlinna, Finland) is a strongman and actor Janne Virtanen is a strongman from Finland. Virtanen was the World's Strongest Man champion in 2000. In the 19th century the term strongman referred to an exhibitor of strength (before strength sports were codified into Weightlifting, Powerlifting etc The World's Strongest Man is perhaps the best-recognized annual international event in Strength athletics.

The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were held in 1952 in Helsinki, Finland. The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an International Multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. Other notable sporting events held in Finland include the 1983 and 2005 World Championships in Athletics, among others. The inaugural World Championships in Athletics were run under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations and were held at the The 10th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF were held in the Olympic Stadium

Some of the most popular recreational sports and activities include floorball, Nordic walking, running, cycling and skiing. Floorball is an indoor Team sport that was developed in Sweden in the late 1970's Nordic walking, also known as ski walking, pole walking or fitness walking, is a form of exercise consisting of Walking with poles similar Running is a means for an animal to move on Foot. It is defined in Sporting terms as a Gait in which at some point all feet are off the ground Cycling is the use of Bicycles or - less commonly - Unicycles Tricycles Quadricycles and other similar wheeled Human powered vehicles Snow skiing is a group of sports utilizing Skis as primary equipment

Finnishness

• List of Finns
• Suuret suomalaiset – a list of the "100 Greatest Finns" of all time as voted by the Finnish people in 2004. This is a list of people from Finland, ie of noted Finns: Actors Ida Aalberg (1858 &ndash 1915 Aino Ackte (1876 Suuret suomalaiset ( Great Finns) was a 2004 television show broadcast in Finland by YLE (the Finnish Broadcasting Company which determined

Below are listed some of the characteristics of Finnishness. The term "Finnishness" is often referred to as the national identity of the Finnish people and its culture. The terms Finns and Finnish people ( Finnish: suomalaiset, Swedish: finländare) are used in English to The culture of Finland combines indigenous heritage as represented for example by the country's rare Finno-Ugric national language Finnish and the Sauna

See also

Main article: List of Finland-related topics

Lists List of cities and towns in Finland List of Finns List of Finnish companies List of Finnish television stations List of newspapers in Finland List of universities in Finland List of bands from Finland List of Finnish wars History History of Finland Finlandization Finnish Railway Museum Politics Foreign relations of Finland Military of Finland Gun politics in Finland

Runeberg's tart is a Finnish pastry available on the poet Johan Ludvig Runeberg's birthday on February 5. The Maiden of Finland ( Suomi-neito) is the National personification of Finland, much as Marianne in France, Britannia in A national personification is an anthropomorphization of a Nation; it can appear in both Editorial cartoons and Propaganda. The Kalevala is a book and epic poem which the Finn Elias Lönnrot compiled from Finnish and Karelian Folklore in the nineteenth A national epic is an epic poem or similar work which seeks or is believed to capture and express the essence or spirit of a particular Nation; not necessarily a Finnish mythology, that of the Finnish people, has many features shared with fellow Finnic Estonian mythology and its non-Finnic neighbours the Balts and Kantele (other names kannel, sormikantele) is a Finnish traditional Plucked string instrument. Mämmi (ˈmæmmi is a traditional Finnish Easter Dessert. The Swedish name for it is memma Kalakukko is a traditional food from the Finnish region of Savonia made from fish baked inside a loaf of bread Mustamakkara ( black sausage) is a type of Blood sausage. Nowadays available in most stores across Finland it is originally a Local food speciality Tampere ( ˈtɑmpɛrɛ Swedish: Tammerfors or) is a city in southern Finland located between two lakes Näsijärvi and Pyhäjärvi Karelian pasties or Karelian pies ( South Karelian dialect of Finnish: karjalanpiirakat / karjalanpiirakka Karelia ( Karelian and Finnish Karjala, Карелия ( Kareliya) Karelen the land of the Karelian peoples, is an area in Joulupukki is the Finnish name for Santa Claus or Father Christmas. Finlandia Op 26 is a Symphonic poem by the Finnish Composer Jean Sibelius. A sauna (ˈsɔːnə or as Finnish) is a small room or house designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions or an establishment with one or more of these and auxiliary The Finnish sauna is a substantial part of Finnish culture. There are five million inhabitants and over two million saunas in Finland - an average of one per Sisu is a Finnish term that could be roughly translated into English as strength of will determination perseverance and acting rationally in the face Perkele is a god associated with thunder in Finnish mythology. A puukko is the Finnish word for the traditional Finnish or Scandinavian style woodcraft belt- Knife that is a tool rather than a weapon Talkoot (from Finnish: talkoo, almost always used in plural talkoot) is a group of people gathering to work together for instance to build or repair Ice swimming is swimming in a body of Water with a frozen crust of Ice, which requires cutting a hole in the ice Nordic walking, also known as ski walking, pole walking or fitness walking, is a form of exercise consisting of Walking with poles similar Salty liquorice or salmiak ( salmiakki in Finnish) is a variety of Liquorice (confectionery that contains a relatively large amount of Sahti is a traditional Beer from Finland made from a variety of grains Malted and unmalted including Barley, Koskenkorva Viina (also known simply as Koskenkorva, or Kossu) is the most common clear spirit drink (38% in Finland, produced by Altia in the "The Flying Finn " (Lentävä suomalainen was a nickname given to several Finnish middle and long-distance runners Juho Pietari "Hannes" Kolehmainen ( ( 9 December 1889 &ndash 11 January 1966) was a Finnish long-distance This is a collection of articles relating to Finland, a country in Northern Europe This is a list of towns in Finland. In the year 1977 the juridical difference between cities towns and municipalities were removed This is a list of people from Finland, ie of noted Finns: Actors Ida Aalberg (1858 &ndash 1915 Aino Ackte (1876 This is a list of Finnish Corporations Ahlstrom, pulp and paper Alma Media, media Amer Sports, sport This is a list of Television channels broadcasting to Finnish- and Swedish-language audiences in Finland Below is a list of Newspapers in Finland with their respective cities of publication Morning newspapers Aamulehti ( Tampere) Institutions of higher education are designated universities by Finnish legislation most importantly the University Act ( Yliopistolaki, 645/1997 The following is a list of bands from Finland: Ajattara, Dark Metal Alamaailman Vasarat, Avant-garde/Progressive Rock Altaria This is a list of Wars fought by independent Finland between 1917 and 1945: The Civil War ( 1918) The "kinship Finlandization (suomettuminen finlandisering Finnlandisierung is the influence that one powerful country may have on the policies of a smaller neighboring country The Finnish Railway Museum ( Finnish "Suomen Rautatiemuseo") is located in Hyvinkää, Finland. According to the latest constitution of 2000 the President (currently Tarja Halonen) leads foreign policy in cooperation with the government (currently Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen The Finnish Defence Forces is responsible for defence of Finland. In Finland there are 32 privately owned firearms per 100 civilians according to the Finnish Ministry of the Interior Runeberg's tart ( Finnish: Runebergintorttu Swedish: Runebergstårta is a Finnish pastry that is seasoned with Almonds and This article describes Pastry in food For the Distributed Hash Table system see Pastry_(DHT. A poet is a person who writes Poetry. Etymology From the Ancient greek: ποιέω, poieō: "I make or compose" Johan Ludvig Runeberg (5 February 1804 Jakobstad &ndash 6 May 1877 Porvoo) was a Finnish poet and is the National poet of Finland Events 1576 - Henry of Navarre converts to Roman Catholicism in order to ensure his right to the throne of France. Infrastructure Education in Finland Communications in Finland Crime in Finland Transport in Finland Fire fighting in Finland VR Group (Finnish State Railways) Culture and sports Cuisine of Finland Music of Finland Football in Finland Ethnic issues in Finland Miscellaneous Protected areas of Finland Tourism in Finland

International rankings

The following list contains international comparisons of national performance. The Finnish education system is an egalitarian Nordic system with no Tuition fees for full-time students Finland has excellent Communications, and is considered one of the most advanced information societies in the world Crime in Finland. In Finland 101 crimes per 1000 people are reported annually which is per capita third highest in the world. The transport system of Finland is well-developed The extensive road system is utilized by most internal cargo and passenger traffic Fire fighting in Finland is regulated by the Ministry of the Interior. VR or VR Group (VR-Yhtymä Oy VR-Group Ab is a state-owned Railway company in Finland, and formerly known as Suomen Valtion Rautatiet The cuisine of Finland is notable for the use of Wholemeal products ( Rye, Barley, Oats and berries (such as blueberries The music of Finland can be roughly divided in the following three categories Football in Finland, unlike in most European countries is not the most popular Sport, as it falls behind to Ice hockey, which enjoys a huge amount of popularity Finland is one of the most Ethnically homogeneous countries in Europe where Immigrants constitute a small part of Finnish society The protected areas of Finland include National parks Nature reserves and other areas with a purpose of conserving areas of all of Finland 's Ecosystems Finland attracted over 4 million Tourists in 2005, with most coming from Sweden. Country specific See:CategoryInternational rankings Economic IMD International: World Competitiveness Yearbook World The list has a maximum of three years per survey. For a more complete list, see International rankings of Finland. This table contains international rankings of Finland, including previous years when available

References

Further reading

• Jason Lavery – The History of Finland (The Greenwood Histories of the Modern Nations), Greenwood Press 2006 (ISBN 0-313-32837-4) (ISSN 1096-2905)
• Deborah Swallow – Culture Shock! Finland: A Guide to Customs and Etiquette (ISBN 1-55868-592-8)
• Richard D. An International Standard Serial Number ( ISSN) is a unique eight-digit number used to identify a print or electronic Periodical publication. Lewis – Finland: Cultural Lone Wolf (ISBN 1-931930-18-X)
• Max Jakobson – Finland in the New Europe (ISBN 0-275-96372-1)
• William R. Trotter – A Frozen Hell: The Russo-Finnish Winter War of 1939-1940 (ISBN 1-56512-249-6)
• Eino Jutikkala, Kauko Pirinen – A History of Finland (ISBN 0-88029-260-1)
• Chris Mann – Hitler's Arctic War: The German Campaigns in Norway, Finland, and the USSR 1940-1945 (ISBN 0-312-31100-1)
• Insight Guide: Finland (ISBN 981-4120-39-1)
• Matti Klinge – Let Us Be Finns: Essays on History (ISBN 951-1-11180-9)
• Lonely Planet: Finland (ISBN 1-74059-791-5)
• Jaakko Rusama, Ecumenical Growth in Finland. Max Jakobson (born in Viipuri, Finland, (now Vyborg, Russia) in 1923 is a retired Finnish Diplomat and Journalist William R Trotter (born 1943 is an American Author and Historian. Hi and welcome to Wikipedia! Please understand that this article is frequently vandalized and vandalism is reverted immediately Matti Klinge (born August 31, 1936, Helsinki) is a Finnish historian Lonely Planet Publications (usually known as Lonely Planet or LP) is one of the largest travel Guidebook publishers in the world (ISBN 951-693-239-8)
• Fred Singleton – A Short History of Finland (ISBN 0-521-64701-0)
• Allen F. Chew – The White Death: The Epic of the Soviet-Finnish Winter War (ISBN 0-87013-167-2)
• Eloise Engle and Lauri Paananen – The Winter War: The Soviet Attack on Finland 1939-1940 (ISBN 0-8117-2433-6)
• Jean-Jacques Subrenat – Listen, there's music from the forest; a brief presentation of the Kuhmo Chamber Music Festival (ISBN 952-92-0564-3)

External links

• The Finnish Government – Official governmental site
• The President of Finland – Official site of the President of the Republic of Finland
• Parliament of Finland – Official Parliamentary site
• Virtual Finland – Main portal to Finland (administered by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland)
• Visit Finland – The official travel and tourism guide by the Finnish Tourist Board
• Helsinki.fi – Capital of Finland's city portal
• Today's weather by the Finnish Meteorological Institute
• Finland travel guide from Wikitravel
• WikiMapia [3] and Google Maps [4] satellite view of Finland

Templates

Jean-Jacques Subrenat ( 1940 – is a French Diplomat who served as the Ambassador to the WEU in Brussels (1995-1998 to The Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA is a ministry in the Finnish Government and is responsible for preparing and implementing the government's foreign policy Helsinki (in Finnish;) or Helsingfors (in Swedish;) is the Capital and largest city of Finland. Wikitravel is a Web -based project "to create a free, complete up-to-date and reliable worldwide travel guide. WikiMapia is an online Map and Satellite imaging resource that combines Google Maps with a Wiki system allowing users to add information Google Maps (for a time named Google Local) is a free Web mapping service application and technology provided by Google that powers many map-based services

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