Facts about Finland
The arrival of the Cord-Ceramic Culture in southern coastal Finland around 3200 B.C.E.
Establishing trade with the Western powers, such as the Great Britain, and the reparations to the Soviet Union caused Finland to transform itself from a primarily agrarian economy to an industrialized one.
According to international treaties and Finnish laws, the regional government for Еland handles some matters that would belong to the provincial authority in Mainland Finland.
The 200-member unicameral Parliament of Finland is called the Eduskunta (Finnish) or Riksdag (Swedish).
Finland started planning the introduction of nuclear power in the 1950s.
Peacekeeping under the auspices of the United Nations is the only extra-national military responsibility Finland undertakes.
In 1991, Finland experienced an economic collapse leading to a severe recession caused by economic overheating, depressed foreign markets, and the dismantling of the barter system between Finland and the former Soviet Union.
Finland is near enough to the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic Ocean to explain the unusually warm climate, considering the absolute latitude.
Finland is not a member of NATO, but does participate in its Partnership for Peace.
Governor General Per Brahe the Younger founded ten cities and the first university in Finland, the The Royal Academy of Turku.
According to Transparency International, Finland has had the lowest level of political corruption in all the countries studied in its survey for the last several years.
Except for timber and several minerals, Finland depends on imports of raw materials, energy, and some components for manufactured goods.
Finland is a place rich in culture for history, tradition, and religion.
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 in winter.
Treaties signed in 1947 and 1948 with the Soviet Union included obligations, restraints, and reparations on Finland vis-а-vis the Soviet Union as well as further Finnish territorial concessions.
Granite is ubiquitous throughout Finland, visible wherever there is no soil cover.
The President of Finland is responsible for foreign policy outside of the European Union.
The Finnish-Russian border was formalized, but the relationship between Finland and the Soviet Union remained tense.
The exonym Finland has resemblance with the Scandinavian placenames Finnmark, Finnveden and Finnskogen and all are thought to be derived from finn, a Germanic word for nomadic "hunter-gatherers."
In 2006 a University of Leicester psychologist ranked Finland as the 6th "happiest nation in the world" through an independent scientific study.
Football (soccer) is also very popular in Finland, though the national football team has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup or the UEFA European Football Championship Finals Tournament.
Under Swedish occupation, Finns maintained traditional freedoms; Russia sought to impose the more oppressed life of the Russian peasants on the areas of Finland it controlled.
The largest minority languages in Finland are Swedish (5.5 percent), Russian (0.8 percent) and Estonian (0.3 percent).
Much of the music of Finland is influenced by Karelian traditional tunes and lyrics, as represented in the Kalevala.
Following the 1917 Russian Revolution, Finland declared itself independent.
According to the Ministry of Transport and Communications, by August 1998 Finland was the first country in the world to exceed 50 percent mobile phone penetration.
Finland maintained its autonomy from the Soviet Union throughout the Cold War era.
The historically verifiable date of conquest is 1249 when Birger jarl conducted the Second Swedish Crusade to Finland.
Finland numbers 5,276,571 inhabitants and has an average population density of 44 inhabitants per square mile (17/kmІ).
Finland is bounded by the Baltic Sea with the Gulf of Finland to the south and the Gulf of Bothnia to the west.
Finland has a public health care system in which 18.9 percent of health care is funded by households, 76.6 percent is publicly funded, the remainder coming from elsewhere.
The Sami live in Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Russia, totaling about 75,000 to 100,000, sharing a cultural identity.
Finland ceded about 10 percent of its land area, 20 percent of industrial capacity and 400,000 evacuees, mainly women and children.
In 2001, 18 percent of all electricity consumed in Finland was produced by the country's four nuclear power plants.
Pesдpallo (reminiscent of baseball) is the national sport of Finland, but the most popular sports are ice hockey and Formula One.
The number of cellular phone subscribers and Internet connections per capita in Finland are among the highest in the world.
Immediately following the Second World War, Finland lay in the grey zone between the western countries and the Soviet Union.
Finland also refines imported oil to cover domestic needs and has developed widespread use of renewable energy resources, most notably wood-based, which accounts for about one-fifth of energy consumption.
According to archaeological evidence, the area that is Finland was settled around 8500 B.C.E.
Finland has a growing film industry with a number of famous directors such as Aki Kaurismдki, Timo Koivusalo and actors such as Mikko Leppilampi.
Finland was one of the 11 countries joining the euro monetary system on January 1, 1999.
Similarly, Finland has a diverse range of fauna that arrived about 10,000 years ago, following the last retreat of the glaciers and re-appearance of vegetation.
Finland is one of the few countries in the world that is still growing.
Most of the islands are found in the Archipelago Sea, as part of the archipelago of the Еland Islands, and along the southern coast in the Gulf of Finland.
Sweden and Russia struggled to gain control of the area that by then was known as Finland.
Tourism is an expanding industry in Finland and has become a significant aspect of its economy in recent years.
Finland's policy of neutrality is, effectively, "military non-alignment" with an emphasis on maintaining a competent independent defense; military policy is strictly self-defensive.
Finland has a diverse array of flora and fauna, ranging throughout the various climatic zones.
Swedish language has official status in Finland; other minority languages are also protected by law.
Finland is considered one of the most advanced information societies in the world.
Over 20 languages are now spoken in Finland by immigrant groups of significant size (at least a thousand speakers).
Karelian culture is perceived as the purest expression of the Finnic myths and beliefs, reflecting Finland's position between the East and the West.
Finland has two levels of democratic government: the state, and 416 municipalities (as of January 1, 2007).
Finland has a highly industrialized, largely free-market economy with a per capita output equal to that of other western economies such as Sweden, UK, France, and Germany.
Finland, in 2005, had a total main road length of 8,238 miles (13,258 km), and is mainly centered on the capital city of Helsinki.
Finland was previously part of the Swedish kingdom and later an autonomous Duchy in the Russian Empire, until it declared its independence on December 6, 1917.
Sports became a prominent part of their culture, leading to the creation of the Olympic Games, which in ancient times were held every four years in a small village in the Peloponnesus called Olympia.
Finland's population has always been concentrated in the southern parts of the country, where the major urban areas are.
The Еland Islands, off the south-western coast, are an autonomous, demilitarized administrative province of Finland.
Finland is a country of thousands of lakes and islands; 187,888 lakes (larger than 5,382 square feet or 500 mІ) and 179,584 islands.
The post-war era was a period of rapid economic growth and increasing wealth and stability for Finland.
Finland has been declared the most competitive country in the world for three consecutive years 2003–2005 (four times in the last five years) by the World Economic Forum.
Finland has no fossil fuel resources, but high demand for energy, both due to the cold climate and the nature of its industry.
During the past century, Finland and Sweden have been rivals, mostly in ice hockey and athletics.
The Sami of northern Finland have their own musical traditions as well.
The people of Finland are well prepared to use high technology and information services.
Finland's history since 1100 has been characterized by its relationships with Sweden to the west and Russia to the east.
May 23, 2007 was the 100th anniversary of the first plenary session of Finland's unicameral parliament.
A quarter of Finland's territory lies above the Arctic Circle, and as a consequence the midnight sun can be experienced—for an increasing number of days the farther north one goes.
Finland is one of the few countries in the world that is still growing.
Finland became an Autonomous Gran Duchy of the Russian Empire, which it remained until 1917.
Finland furthered its integration into Europe by joining the European Union, with Sweden and Austria, in 1995.
Finland is divided into six administrative provinces that are further divided into 90 state local districts.
The culture of Finland combines indigenous heritage, as represented for example by the country's Uralic national language Finnish and the sauna, with common Nordic, Russian and European culture.
These are some of the best things to buy in Finland which are hard to find anywhere else and which make for memorable souvenirs.Salmiakki. The most popular sweet in Finland is an odd choice. ... Iittala Glassware. ... Moomin Merch. ... Kantele. ... Sauna Items. ... Puukko. ... Fazer Sweets. ... Karelian Pastries.More items...
The blue colouring is said to represent the country's thousands of lakes and the sky, with white for the snow that covers the land in winter. This colour combination has also been used over the centuries in various Finnish provincial, military, and town flags.
Doze off under the Northern Lights. In Finland, nature's most spectacular light show, the Aurora Borealis, can be viewed in a range of purpose-built spaces from glass igloos to luxury suites. The Northern Lights are visible on roughly 200 nights a year – or every other clear night – in Finnish Lapland.
In northern Lapland the lights shine about every other clear night between September and March. In southern Finland they are visible on about 10-20 nights a year. Look to the stars. If you notice that the night sky is clear and starry, your chances of seeing the northern lights are good.
Finland is the 3rd most expensive country in the EU. Of the countries participating in the Price Comparison Programme of the EU Commission, only Denmark, Norway, Switzerland and Ireland are more expensive than Finland. ... Sweden was 9 per cent more affordable than Finland.Jul 24, 2009
The Personal Income Tax Rate in Finland stands at 51.60 percent. Personal Income Tax Rate in Finland averaged 52.96 percent from 1995 until 2016, reaching an all time high of 62.20 percent in 1995 and a record low of 49.00 percent in 2010.