Ostrobothnia (region)

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Ostrobothnia
Österbottens landskap
Pohjanmaan maakunta
Region
Coat of arms of Ostrobothnia
Coat of arms
Ostrobothnia on a map of Finland
Ostrobothnia on a map of Finland
Country Finland
Historical province Ostrobothnia
Area
 • Total 7,932.36 km2 (3,062.70 sq mi)
Population (2013)
 • Total 180,384
 • Density 23/km2 (59/sq mi)
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
ISO 3166 code FI-12
NUTS 195
Regional bird Common swift (Apus apus)
Regional fish Common whitefish (Coregonus lavaretus)
Regional flower European meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria)
Website osterbotten.fi

Ostrobothnia (Swedish: Österbotten; Finnish: Pohjanmaa) is a region of Finland. It is located in Western Finland. It borders the regions Central Ostrobothnia, Southern Ostrobothnia, and Satakunta and is one of the four modern regions making up the historical province of Ostrobothnia.

Ostrobothnia is one of the two Finnish regions with a Swedish-speaking majority (the other being the constitutionally monolingual province of Åland); Swedish-speakers make up 51.2%.[1] The region contains both bilingual municipalities and ones that are exclusively Finnish or Swedish-speaking.

Geographically, Ostrobothnia has little topographical relief, because it is mostly former seafloor brought to surface by post-glacial rebound and the accumulation of alluvial sediment. Ostrobothnia has both vast expanses of cultivated fields (lakeus) as in Southern Ostrobothnia, and the archipelago of Kvarken (Finnish: Merenkurkku). Glacial transport has deposited large quantities of glacial erratics (rocks) in the area. Like elsewhere in Pohjanmaa, rivers are a prominent part of the landscape. The major rivers that discharge into the Gulf of Bothnia in Ostrobothnia are Kyrönjoki, Lapuanjoki and Ähtävänjoki.

The regional tree is the black alder (Alnus glutinosa), the regional mammal is the common elk (Alces alces alces), the regional stone is the Vaasa granite and the regional song is "The march of Vaasa" (Swedish: Vasamarschen, Finnish: Vaasan marssi).

In local circles or communities, Ostrobothnia is often referred to as "Pampas" and a person from Ostrobothnia is called a "Pampees".[2] The word derives from the similarities in the flat landscape with the Pampas area in South America.

Municipalities

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Main article: Municipalities of Ostrobothnia

There are 15 municipalities in Ostrobothnia region. Cities and towns are marked in bold, and the links are only in the majority language names.

Name in Finnish Name in Swedish Population[3] Swedish speakers[4] Finnish speakers[4]
Isokyrö Storkyro 4,766 0.6% 98.9%
Pietarsaari Jakobstad 19,464 56.4% 40.2%
Kaskinen Kaskö 1,301 28.1% 68.1%
Mustasaari Korsholm 19,308 70.2% 28.7%
Korsnäs Korsnäs 2,206 91.2% 3.2%
Kristiinankaupunki Kristinestad 6,798 56.6% 42.2%
Kruunupyy Kronoby 6,654 83.3% 15.6%
Laihia Laihela 8,121 1% 98.3%
Luoto Larsmo 5,132 92.5% 6.5%
Maalahti Malax 5,520 88.2% 9.1%
Närpiö Närpes 9,392 88.4% 5.8%
Uusikaarlepyy Nykarleby 7,559 89.3% 8.1%
Pedersöre Pedersöre 11,098 90.1% 9%
Vaasa Vasa 67,495 24.8% 69.8%
Vöyri Vörå 6,691 84.6% 13.6%

Former municipalities:

  • The current Vörå is the result of consolidation of Maxmo (Finnish: Maksamaa) and Oravais (Finnish: Oravainen).
  • Nykarleby (Finnish: Uusikaarlepyy) has been merged with Jeppo (Finnish: Jepua).
  • Korsholm (Finnish: Mustasaari) has been consolidated from the five municipalities of Korsholm, Solf, Replot, Björköby and Kvevlax.
  • Pedersöre has the former Finnish name Pietarsaaren maalaiskunta (see maalaiskunta).

Gallery

  • Vaasa Market Place with the "Statue of Liberty" on the right

  • A street view from Kristinestad, one of best preserved wooden towns in the Nordic Countries

  • A view towards Kvarken from Norrskär Lighthouse, Korsholm

  • A view of Jakobstad town from the water tower

  • Kristinestad Old Church from 1700

  • An Ostrobothnian expanse in Laihia

  • Larsmo Church

  • Church stables at Närpes Church

  • An old tobacco factory in Jakobstad

  • University of Vaasa Main Building

  • Kronoby Church

  • Jakobstad Town Hall

  • Vörå Church from 1626, oldest preserved wooden church in Finland

  • A street in Finland's smallest town Kaskinen with typical Jugendstil buildings in the foreground

  • A view from Nykarleby town

  • A view of City of Vaasa

  • Isokyrö Old Church from early 16th century

  • Replot Bridge, the longest bridge in Finland

  • There are daily ferry connections to Umeå, Sweden from Vaasa

  • An old bridge in Korsnäs

Heraldry

The sprouting wheatsheaf is a symbol of the Royal House of Vasa; a Vasa king established the city of Vaasa, the capital of the region. The running weasels are a symbol of Ostrobothnia.

See also

References

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External links

Media related to Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. at Wikimedia Commons

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  1. ↑ Väestö iän ja sukupuolen mukaan alueittain 31.12.2008. Tilastokeskus: demography.
  2. ↑ http://urbaanisanakirja.com/word/pampees/
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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