Southwest Finland

Southwest Finland,[2] calqued as Finland Proper (Finnish: Varsinais-Suomi, IPA: [ˈʋɑrs̠inɑi̯s̠ˌs̠uo̞̯mi]; Swedish: Egentliga Finland), is a region in the southwest of Finland. It borders the regions of Satakunta, Pirkanmaa, Tavastia Proper (Kanta-Häme), Uusimaa, and Åland. The region's capital and most populous city is Turku, which was the capital city of Finland before Helsinki.

Southwest Finland
Varsinais-Suomi (Finnish)
Egentliga Finland (Swedish)
Finland Proper
Region
Region of Finland Proper
Varsinais-Suomen maakunta
Landskapet Egentliga Finland
Coat of arms of Southwest Finland
Coat of arms
Finland Proper on a map of Finland
Finland Proper on a map of Finland
CountryFinland
Historical provinceFinland Proper
CapitalTurku
Area
 • Total10,910.05 km2 (4,212.39 sq mi)
Population
 (2022)
 • Total485,567
 • Density45/km2 (120/sq mi)
GDP
[1]
 • Total€16.219 billion (2015)
 • Per capita€34,252 (2015)
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)
ISO 3166 codeFI-19
NUTS183
Regional animalRed fox
Regional birdWestern jackdaw
Regional fishBaltic herring
Regional flowerOak
Regional stoneRed granite
Regional lakePyhäjärvi
Websitevarsinais-suomi.fi

The area comprising the Southwest is largely the same as the historical province of Finland Proper, so named because it is the original home of the tribe known as the Finns proper.

Origin of the name Finland Proper
The seal of Finland Proper from 1326

The name of Finland Proper has a historical function. In historic times, in the area of the present Southern Finland lived three tribes, which were the Finns proper, the Tavastians and the Karelians. The southwestern part of the country, the province where the Finns proper lived, was simply called Finland (Finnish: Suomi). In the 17th century the name began to be used to refer to the whole land and a specified name for the lesser Finland was required. The first notes Fennigia specialiter dicta and Fennigia presse dicta were recorded in Latin in the 1650s, and the Swedish Finland för sig sielft and Egenteliga Finland later in the 18th century. The modern form Egentliga Finland was in official use at the end of the century, and the Finnish term Varsinais-Suomi became established only around the 1850s.[3]

Geography

Southwest Finland's nature differs from other regions. The most notable biotopes are the Archipelago Sea and groves. 80% of Finland's insect species can be found in Southwest Finland.[4] There are around 20,000 islands near the coast.[5]

The southernmost point of Southwest Finland and the southernmost inhabited island is Utö.[6] Its highest point is 164 meters in Kiikala.[7]

Historical provinces
Main article: Finland Proper (historical province)

Heraldry

The region uses the coat of arms of the historical province of Finland Proper.

Municipalities

The region of Southwest Finland consists of 27 municipalities, 11 of which have city status (marked in bold).

Municipalities on the map
Cities and municipalities of Southwest Finland.
Turku
Salo
Kaarina
Raisio
Naantali
Loimaa
Uusi-kaupunki
Lieto
Lieto
Pargas
Paimio
Paimio
Somero
Masku
Laitila
Pöytyä
Pöytyä
Mynämäki
Mynämäki
Kimitoön
Kimitoön
Rusko
Nousiainen
Aura
Aura
Sauvo
Sauvo
Koski Tl
Vehmaa
Pyhäranta
Pyhäranta
Marttila
Taivassalo
Taivassalo
Oripää
Oripää
Kustavi
Gulf of Finland
Archipelago Sea
Turku Archipelago
Turku Archipelago
BothnianSea
Sata-kunta
Pirkan-maa
Kanta-Häme
Uusi-maa
Municipalties
Municipalties
  Over 100 000 inhabitants
  Over 100 000 inhabitants
  Over 30 000 inhabitants
  Over 30 000 inhabitants
  Over 10 000 inhabitants
  Over 10 000 inhabitants
  Over 3 000 inhabitants
  Over 3 000 inhabitants
 < 3 000 inhabitants
 < 3 000 inhabitants
Cities and municipalities of Southwest Finland.

Sub-regions

Loimaa sub-region:

Turku sub-region:

Åboland–Turunmaa sub-region:

  • Kimitoön (Kemiönsaari)
  • Pargas (Parainen)

Salo sub-region:

Vakka-Suomi sub-region:

List of municipalities
Coat of
arms		 Municipality Population Land area
(km2)		 Density
(/km2)		 Finnish
speakers		 Swedish
speakers		 Other
speakers
Coat of arms of Aura, FinlandAura3,9619542 97 %1 %3 %
Coat of arms of KaarinaKaarina36,339151241 89 %5 %6 %
Coat of arms of Koski TlKoski Tl2,20719212 95 %0 %5 %
Coat of arms of KimitoönKimitoön6,4626879 30 %66 %4 %
Coat of arms of KustaviKustavi9491666 93 %2 %5 %
Coat of arms of LaitilaLaitila8,44153216 88 %0 %12 %
Coat of arms of LietoLieto20,63730169 94 %1 %5 %
Coat of arms of LoimaaLoimaa15,42084818 94 %0 %6 %
Coat of arms of MarttilaMarttila1,93019510 96 %1 %3 %
Coat of arms of MaskuMasku9,61917555 96 %1 %3 %
Coat of arms of MynämäkiMynämäki7,51552014 95 %1 %4 %
Coat of arms of NaantaliNaantali19,99931364 95 %1 %4 %
Coat of arms of NousiainenNousiainen4,69519924 96 %1 %3 %
Coat of arms of OripääOripää1,31511811 91 %1 %9 %
Coat of arms of PaimioPaimio11,23623947 94 %1 %5 %
Coat of arms of PargasPargas14,99988417 41 %54 %5 %
Coat of arms of PyhärantaPyhäranta1,93014413 96 %1 %3 %
Coat of arms of PöytyäPöytyä8,13075011 94 %1 %5 %
Coat of arms of RaisioRaisio25,33149520 87 %1 %12 %
Coat of arms of RuskoRusko6,43612751 95 %2 %3 %
Coat of arms of SaloSalo51,1001,98726 90 %1 %8 %
Coat of arms of SauvoSauvo2,97425312 91 %2 %7 %
Coat of arms of SomeroSomero8,41066813 94 %1 %5 %
Coat of arms of TaivassaloTaivassalo1,70514012 92 %1 %7 %
Coat of arms of TurkuTurku201,863246822 79 %5 %15 %
Coat of arms of UusikaupunkiUusikaupunki14,93850330 92 %0 %8 %
Coat of arms of VehmaaVehmaa2,24518912 94 %0 %5 %
Total490,7869,09754

84 %

6 %

 10 %

Demographics
Historical population
YearPop.±%
1980406,360—    
1985415,899+2.3%
1990425,282+2.3%
1995435,119+2.3%
2000447,103+2.8%
2005455,584+1.9%
2010465,183+2.1%
2015474,323+2.0%
2018478,582+0.9%
2020481,403+0.6%
Source: Statistics Finland

As of 2020, Southwest Finland had a population of 481,403, making it the third most populated Finnish region after Uusimaa and Pirkanmaa. 86.45% speak Finnish, 5.68% Swedish and 7.86% speak other languages, the most common being Russian, Estonian, Arabic, Kurdish and Albanian.

It has the most summer cottages out of any Finnish region, with 49,000 as of 2012.[8]

Significant foreign resident groups [9]
31 December 2020
1 Soviet Union6,153
2 Estonia4,092
3 Iraq3,775
4 Yugoslavia2,934
5 Iran1,964
6 Somalia1,807
7 Vietnam1,023
8 Romania960
9 Poland948
10 Thailand914
11 Afghanistan834
12 China816
13 Russia757
14 Syria669
15 Turkey624
16 Germany555
17 Ukraine550
18 Sweden511
19 United Kingdom477
20 Latvia458

Politics

Results of the 2023 Finnish parliamentary election in Southwest Finland:

See also
  • Finns proper
  • Southwest Finnish dialects

References
  1. Regions and Cities > Regional Statistics > Regional Economy > Regional GDP per Capita, OECD.Stats. Accessed on 16 November 2018.
  2. "Alueluokitusmuutokset 1.1.2019 | Tilastokeskus" [Changes in regional classification on 1 January 2019] (in Finnish). Stat.fi. 7 January 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
  3. Suomalainen paikannimikirja. Jyväskylä: Gummerus. 2007. ISBN 978-951-593-976-0.
  4. "Essay Writing Help at Its Finest".
  5. "Saaristoon – Saaristoon". Archived from the original on 4 December 2020. Retrieved 4 June 2019.
  6. Turun Sanomat
  7. "Hyypp r nharju, Kultal hde ja S r m ki - Salon kaupunki". www.salo.fi. Archived from the original on 6 May 2013.
  8. "Tiesitkö tätä kesämökeistä? 10 faktaa".
  9. Statistics Finland
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Finland Proper.

Finland Proper travel guide from Wikivoyage

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