The Finland Portal
Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, opposite Estonia. Finland covers an area of 338,145 square kilometres (130,559 sq mi) and has a population of 5.6 million. Helsinki is the capital and largest city. The vast majority of the population are ethnic Finns. The official languages are Finnish and Swedish, of which 84.9 percent and 5.1 percent of the population speak the first as their mother tongue. Finland's climate varies from humid continental in the south to boreal in the north. The land cover is predominantly boreal forest biome, with more than 180,000 recorded lakes.
Finland was first settled around 9000 BC after the last Ice Age. During the Stone Age, various cultures emerged, distinguished by different styles of ceramics. The Bronze Age and Iron Ages were marked by contacts with other cultures in Fennoscandia and the Baltic region. From the late 13th century, Finland became part of the Swedish Empire as a result of the Northern Crusades. In 1809, as a result of the Finnish War, Finland was captured from Sweden and became a Grand Duchy of Finland, an autonomous state ruled by the Russian Empire. During this period, Finnish art flourished and the idea of full independence began to take hold. In 1906, Finland became the first European state to grant universal suffrage, and the first in the world to give all adult citizens the right to run for public office. Following the Russian Revolution of 1917, Finland declared its full independence. In 1918 the young nation was divided by the Finnish Civil War. During World War II, Finland fought against the Soviet Union in the Winter War and the Continuation War, and later against Nazi Germany in the Lapland War. As a result, it lost parts of its territory but retained its independence. (Full article...)
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Tarja Kaarina Halonen (pronounced [ˈtɑrjɑ ˈkɑːrinɑ ˈhɑlonen] ; born 24 December 1943) is a Finnish politician who served as the 11th president of Finland, and the first and to date only woman to hold the position, from 2000 to 2012. She first rose to prominence as a lawyer with the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK), and as the Prime Minister's parliamentary secretary (1974–1975) and a member of the City Council of Helsinki (1977–1996). Halonen was a Social Democratic Party member of parliament from 1979 until her election to the presidency in 2000. She also served as a minister at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health from 1987 to 1990, as Minister of Justice from 1990 to 1991, and as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1995 to 2000.
Halonen was an extremely popular president, with her approval ratings reaching a peak of 88 percent in December 2003. She was re-elected in 2006, defeating National Coalition Party candidate Sauli Niinistö in the second round by 51% to 48%. Ineligible to run in the 2012 presidential elections because of term limits, Halonen left office on 1 March 2012 and was succeeded by Niinistö. (Full article...)Selected image -
Did you know (auto-generated)
- ... that Finnish-American model Selene Mahri married three millionaires and is credited with inventing the saying "Marriage is a question of give and take. You give. I take"?
- ... that Finnish linguist Eeva Leinonen was one of four women to be inaugurated as heads of Irish universities in 2021, the others being Maggie Cusack, Linda Doyle and Kerstin Mey?
- ... that Theodolinda Hahnsson is the first known Finnish-language female author?
- ... that Matti Lehtinen, a baritone of the Finnish National Opera and professor of singing at the Sibelius Academy, was the voice of God at age 93?
- ... that Plevna in Tampere, Finland, was the first building in the Nordic countries and the Russian Empire (of which Finland was part at the time) to be lit by electric lights?
- ... that Kimmo Leinonen helped establish both the Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame and the IIHF Hall of Fame?
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You are invited to participate in Finland WikiProject, a WikiProject dedicated to developing and improving articles about Finland.
More did you know -
- ...that the Finnish company YIT was responsible for the construction of the Finnish National Opera house, the Helsinki Fair Centre and Cirrus, the tallest high-rise building in Finland?
- ...that the paintings in the Espoo Cathedral were painted over in the 18th century, as they were thought to be "crude and superstitious'?
- ...that there are three unilingually Swedish municipalities in one province of mainland Finland?
- ...that Maria, the Finnish form of Mary, is the most popular Finnish name used during the modern era?
- ...that Finnish film director Valentin Vaala was reportedly so disappointed with his first film that he dumped the original camera negatives into the sea?
Teemu Ilmari Selänne (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈteːmu ˈselænːe]; born 3 July 1970) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey winger. He began his professional career in 1989–90 with Jokerit of the SM-liiga and played 21 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Winnipeg Jets, Anaheim Ducks, San Jose Sharks, and Colorado Avalanche. Nicknamed "the Finnish Flash", Selänne is the highest scoring Finn in NHL history, and one of the highest overall; he retired in 2014 11th all-time with 684 goals and 15th with 1,457 points. He holds numerous team scoring records for both the Winnipeg/Arizona franchise and the Anaheim Ducks. His jersey number 8 was retired by the Ducks in 2015. In 2017 Selänne was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history. On June 26, 2017, Selänne was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame as the second Finn after Jari Kurri.
Selänne was a first-round selection of the Jets, tenth overall, at the 1988 NHL Entry Draft, but initially remained in Finland. He led the SM-liiga in scoring as part of Jokerit's Kanada-malja winning team in 1991–92 before moving to North America. He broke into the NHL by scoring 76 goals and 132 points in the 1992–93. It remains the league record for most goals and points by a rookie and earned him the Calder Memorial Trophy as the top first-year player in the NHL. He has scored 50 goals in a season three times and topped 100 points on four occasions. He played in 10 NHL All-Star Games, was named to four post-season All-Star teams and won the inaugural Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy in 1998–99 as the league's leading goal scorer. He was named recipient of the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy in 2005–06 for perseverance and dedication to the game and was a member of the Ducks' 2007 Stanley Cup championship team. (Full article...)General images
In the news
- 22 May 2024 – Russia–NATO relations
- The Russian Ministry of Defence proposes to unilaterally adjust Russia's maritime border in the Baltic Sea, prompting comments of concern made by Baltic members of NATO, including Finland and Lithuania. The Ministry of Defense later retracts the proposal. (Reuters) (BBC News)
- 2 April 2024 – Viertola school shooting
- A student is killed and two others are injured in a shooting at a school in Vantaa, Uusimaa, Finland. A 12-year-old student is detained. (AP) (Yle)
- 1 March 2024 – 2024 Finnish presidential election
- Alexander Stubb is sworn in as the 13th President of Finland. (Reuters)
- 11 February 2024 – 2024 Finnish presidential election
- Alexander Stubb is elected President of Finland with 51.6% of the vote.(Yle)
- 27 January 2024 – Israel–Hamas war
- The United Kingdom, United States, Australia, Italy, Canada, Finland, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Germany suspend humanitarian aid to UNRWA over allegations that some UNRWA staff members were involved in the Hamas-led attack on Israel. (BBC News) (CBS News)
- 14 December 2023 – Finland–United States relations
- Finland announces the creation of a defense cooperation agreement with the United States. The agreement will grant Finland access to American military resources for use in defensive operations, while the US will gain military access to Finland in the event of conflict. (Reuters)
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