maanantai 15. helmikuuta 2010

Kuopio is a Finnish city and municipality located in the region of Northern Savonia. A population of 92,642^[2] makes it the ninth biggest city in the country. The city has a total area of 1,728.54 square kilometres (667.39 sq mi), of which 604.51 km² (233.40 sq mi) is water^[1] and half forest. The population density is only 82 /km² (210 /sq mi), but the city's urban areas are populated very densely (urban area: 1 617.6 /km²^[6]), nationally second only to capital Helsinki (urban area: 1 690.0 /km²^[6])^[7]. The population of the entire Kuopio region is 119,472.^[8]

Kuopio was founded in 1653 by Governor Peter Brahe, but the official date is recognized as November 17, 1775, when King Gustav III of Sweden ordered the establishment of the city of Kuopio. The municipality of Vehmersalmi joined the city of Kuopio on January 1, 2005 like the municipality of Kuopion maalaiskunta in 1969 and the municipality of Riistavesi in 1973. Karttula will join Kuopio in 2011^[9].

Kuopio is almost completely surrounded by lake Kallavesi.

The city is surrounded by lake Kallavesi, and several parts of it are built on islands. Kuopio's ample waterfronts and islands are also utilized in the Saaristokaupunki (lit. Archipelago city) -project, the biggest residential area currently being built in Finland^[10]. Saaristokaupunki will accommodate a total of 14,000 inhabitants in 2015. All houses will be situated no more than 500 meters from the nearest lakeshore^[11].

Kuopio is known for its association with a national delicacy, Finnish fish pastry (Kalakukko), and the dialect of Savo, as well as the hill of Puijo and the Puijo tower. Besides being a very popular outdoor recreation area, Puijo serves also as a stage for a yearly World Cup ski jumping competition.

The city has a nationally unique feature in its street network, where every second street is practically a pedestrian and cycle street^[12], so called "rännikatu" (lit. rain gutter street). These streets provide pedestrians a calm environment aside from the main street traffic^[13]. This setup dates back all the way to 1776 and the first town plan by Pehr Kjellman. Originally rännikatu, gränd (in Swedish) were created as a fire barrier to prevent a possible fire escalating in a city mostly built with wood.^[14]

The Finnish Orthodox Church is headquartered in Kuopio, where its primate, archbishop of Karelia and all Finland Leo (Makkonen) is seated. The largest church of Finland, Evangelical Lutheran Church has a diocese in Kuopio, which is shepherded by bishop Wille Riekkinen.

Transport connections to Kuopio include Pendolino trains and air service from Kuopio Airport with Finnair, Blue1 and Finncomm (domestic, to Helsinki-Vantaa), and airBaltic Riga^[15]). (international, to

Biggest Employers as of Jan 1, 2008^[16]
Employer	Staff
City of Kuopio	5 905
Kuopio University Hospital	3 898
University of Eastern Finland	1 732
PeeÄssä Co-op	734
Savo Consortium for Education	706
Niuvanniemi Hospital	629
Itella	553
ISS A/S	490
Savonia University of Applied Sciences	439
Honeywell	370
Keskisuomalainen	296
Kesko	296
Tieto	288
OP-Pohjola Group	265
Lemminkäinen Group	263

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[edit] Education and business

Higher Education in Kuopio
University	Students
University of Eastern Finland	6 229^[17]
Savonia University of Applied Sciences	5 000^[18]
HUMAK University of Applied Sciences	~150
Sibelius Academy	~100

Kuopio City Hall (built 1882–1886) on a fair day.

Kuopio has always been a city of education. Some of the first schools offering education in Finnish (such as the School for the Blind in 1871, and the Trade School in 1887) were established in Kuopio. Currently the most important institutions are the University of Eastern Finland, the Savonia University of Applied Sciences, Vocational College of Northern Savonia and the Kuopio department of the Sibelius Academy.

Kuopio is known as a strong center of health (e.g. it has the biggest yearly enrollment rate of medical students in Finland), pharmacy, environment, food & nutrition (all legalized Clinical and Public Health Nutritionists in Finland graduate from the University of Eastern Finland), safety (education in Emergency Services is centered in Kuopio^[19]) and welfare professions, as the major organisations University of Kuopio, Savonia University of Applied Sciences and Technopolis Kuopio are particularly oriented to those areas.

Technology centre Technopolis Kuopio is situated in Kuopio Science Park.

There are about 4,200 enterprises in Kuopio^[16], of which approximately 180 are export companies^[20]. These provide about 45,000 jobs^[20].

[edit] People and culture

Kuopio is known as the cultural center of Eastern Finland. A wide range of musical (from kindergarten to doctorate-level studies) and dance education is available and the cultural life is active. Notable events include ANTI – Contemporary Art Festival, Kuopio Dance Festival, Kuopio Rockcock, Kuopio Wine Festival and Finland Ice Marathon. A notable place, however, to enjoy the local flavor of Kuopio life and food is Sampo, a fish restaurant loved by locals and tourists as well.

In Finland the inhabitants of Kuopio have a special reputation: they are known as jovial and verbally joking. Within the Savo culture, the onus is placed on the listener to interpret the story. People of Kuopio region and Eastern Finland have always had many health problems and the mortality has been higher than on an average in Finland. Because of this, Eastern Finland has been a sweetspot for Public Health studies. The North Karelia Project by the University of Kuopio in coordination with the National Public Health Institute and the World Health Organization, beginning in the 1970s was one of its first steps towards world class research.

During the 2000s, Kuopio has placed very well in a number image, popularity and city-attractiveness surveys. In 2007 it was placed third, behind Tampere and Oulu.

Puijo tower, built in 1963 (3rd; 2nd from 1906 was demolished when this was completed; 1st was built in 1856)

Kuopio is the seat of the Finnish Orthodox Church. This is an autonomous cell within the autocephalous jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. It is the only mainstream Orthodox faction to celebrate Easter on the Latin date. The late Archbishop Paul had been successful in producing literature of popular theology.

[edit] Notable persons

Paavo Lipponen
Pertti "Spede" Pasanen
Wille Riekkinen
Juho Rissanen
Aarno Ruusuvuori
Aulis Rytkönen
Tuomo Saikkonen
Johan Vilhelm Snellman
Kimmo Timonen
Fridolf Weurlander
Demilich, a death metal band
Brothers von Wright, Magnus, Wilhelm and Ferdinand

The Fighting Capercaillies by Ferdinand von Wright in 1886 is one of Finland's best known paintings.

[edit] Sports in Kuopio

Kuopio bid for the 2012 Winter Youth Olympics, a youth sports festival in the tradition of the Olympics. It became a finalist in November 2008, but ultimately lost to Innsbruck, Austria. Kuopio's image as a small city with a large University and many active young people was considered a model of what the International Olympic Committee seeks for the Games.^[21]

KalPa (ice hockey)
KuPS (football)
Puijon Hiihtoseura (skiing, ski jumping, nordic combined, biathlon)
Puijon Pesis (pesäpallo)
Kuopion Reippaan voimistelijat (gymnastics)
Finland Ice Marathon (ice skating event)
Kuopio Steelers (american football)

[edit] International relations

[edit] Twin towns — Sister cities

Kuopio is twinned with:

WHICH EUROPEAN FLAGS?

JYVÄSKYLÄ-FINLAND

JYVÄSKYLÄ-FINLAND 2008

keskiviikko 20. tammikuuta 2010

JYVÄSKYLÄ-FINLAND

Jyväskylä

— City —

Jyväskylän kaupunki

Ylistö Bridge, towards Mattilanniemi campus

Coat of arms

Coordinates:

62°14.5′N 025°44.5′E / 62.2417°N 25.7417°ECoordinates:

62°14.5′N 025°44.5′E / 62.2417°N 25.7417°E

Jyväskylä sub-region

Government

Area (2009-01-01)^[1]

- City

1,466.48 km² (566.2 sq mi)

- Land

1,171.23 km² (452.2 sq mi)

- Water

295.25 km² (114 sq mi)

Area rank

66th largest in Finland

Population (2009-12-31)^[2]

- City

129,634

- Density

110.68/km² (286.7/sq mi)

- Metro

172,100

Population rank

7th largest in Finland

Population by native language ^[3]

- Finnish

96.7% (official)

- Swedish

0.2%

- Others

Population by age ^[4]

- 0 to 14

16.4%

- 15 to 64

69.8%

- 65 or older

13.8%

Time zone

EET (UTC+2)

- Summer (DST)

EEST (UTC+3)

Municipal tax rate^[5]

19%

Website

www.jkl.fi

Jyväskylä (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈjyvæsˌkylæ]) is a city and municipality located in Central Finland, 147 kilometres (91 mi) north-east of Tampere and 270 kilometres (170 mi) north of Helsinki, on northern coast of lake Päijänne. It is the capital of Central Finland. The site of many education-related firsts in Finland, Jyväskylä is known as a city of schools, the Athens Finland. It is also famous for its many buildings designed by Alvar Aalto. The city hosts Neste Oil Rally Finland, which is part of the World Rally Championship. It is also home of the annual Jyväskylä Arts Festival. of

As of 31 December 2009, Jyväskylä had a population of 129,634.^[2]

The Jyväskylä sub-region includes Jyväskylä, Laukaa, Muurame, Petäjävesi and Toivakka.

As of 2006, the city mayor is Markku Andersson.^[update]

[hide]

History

In Jyväskylä region there are archeological findings from the stone age and cultivation has started already 3500 years ago. According to the oldest available taxation documents (maakirja) there were seven estates in the Jyväskylä region in 1539. One of them, the estate of Mattila, alone possessed the areas stretching from the village of Keljo to the villages of Vesanka and Palokka. The oldest estate in Jyväskylä that has been held continuously by the same family is the estate of Lahti which emerged when the estate of Mattila was split for two brothers in 1600. The history of the estate of Lahti and the family of Lahti have had a significant impact on the development of Jyväskylä region. Lahdenrinne in the south-west corner of Jyväsjärvi lake belongs to the old heartland of the estate of Lahti.

The City of Jyväskylä was founded on 22 March 1837 by Czar Nicholas I of Russia and the infrastructure was essentially built from scratch. The original town was built between Lake Jyväsjärvi (which is connected to Lake Päijänne) and the Jyväskylä ridge (Harju), and consisted of most of the current grid-style city centre. In the early 20th century, the town expanded several times. Most of today's Jyväskylä was built after the Continuation war, when refugees from Karelia and other parts of the country moved to the city and housing was badly needed. Today, Jyväskylä is growing fast - by approx. 1,000 inhabitants/year.

Säynätsalo was consolidated with Jyväskylä in 1993. Jyväskylän maalaiskunta and Korpilahti were consolidated with Jyväskylä on January 1, 2009.

Geography

Climate

[hide]Weather data for Jyväskylä
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	−5.3 (22)	−5.0 (23)	0.2 (32)	6.0 (43)	14.5 (58)	19.3 (67)	21.3 (70)	18.4 (65)	12.3 (54)	6.0 (43)	0.2 (32)	-3.5 (26)	7.0 (45)
Average low °C (°F)	−12.3 (10)	−12.9 (9)	−8.4 (17)	-3.2 (26)	2.4 (36)	8.1 (47)	10.4 (51)	8.9 (48)	4.2 (40)	0.3 (33)	−4.9 (23)	−10.0 (14)	-1.4 (29)
Precipitation mm (inches)	43 (1.69)	31 (1.22)	37 (1.46)	37 (1.46)	38 (1.5)	59 (2.32)	79 (3.11)	88 (3.46)	63 (2.48)	60 (2.36)	57 (2.24)	47 (1.85)	638 (25.12)
Source: Climatological statistics for the normal period 1971–2000^[6] 2009-07-07

Economy

Main sources of livelihood in Jyväskylä are educational and health care services, paper machinery production, information technology and energy sector. Most important private employers are paper machinery producer Metso ltd., retail trade company Keskimaa, real estate service company ISS, wind turbine gear manufacturer Moventas and IT service company Tieto. [1]

The unemployment rate in Jyväskylä is 14.7% (7/2009), which is higher than average in Finland (10,7% in 7/2009), due to high number of students. [2]

Sports

The University of Jyväskylä is the only university in Northern Europe with a faculty of sports. The faculty has been a key player to develop a strong sports culture in the city.

List of successful sport teams from Jyväskylä

JYP is the current Finnish Champion in ice hockey.
Jyväskylän Jalkapalloklubi (FC JJK) plays in the Finnish Football League the top division of Finnish football.
Jyväskylän Seudun Palloseura, or just JPS, plays in the highest bandy division.
Jyväskylän Kiri is the most successful Finnish baseball team in history. Currently they play in the top division Superpesis.
Kirittäret holds ten Finnish Championships in women's Finnish baseball league. Latest championship is from summer 2009.
Jyväskylän seudun Jaguaarit plays in the top division of Finnish American football league.
Happee plays floorball in the Finnish top division both in men's and women's league.

Education

Jyväskylä is a traditional education city. A number of firsts in Finnish education have taken place in Jyväskylä:

The first Finnish-medium lyceum (high school) (1858) (lyceum being a Finnish equivalent of high school). Today the school is named Jyväskylän Lyseon Lukio
The first Finnish-medium teacher training college (1863)
The first Finnish-medium school for girls (1864)
Finland's first Summer University (1914)

Due to this, among other things, the city earned the nickname Athens of Finland.

The teacher training college later evolved into the College of Education (1934) and further into the multidisciplinary University of Jyväskylä (1966).

Fireworks in Jyväskylä

The University of Jyväskylä is one of the most popular universities in Finland. Almost 16,000 students are enrolled to study for a Bachelor's or Master's degree, and the university also offers PhD programs in most of its subjects. Historically, the university has excelled in the study of education, but in the last few decades it has also gained respect in the sciences. It is the only university in Finland offering university-level education in sports, training sports teachers and coaches. Its IT program is the largest in the country in terms of attendance. Including school children, and the students in high schools, vocational schools, the university of applied sciences, known also for its IT program, and the university, the number of students and pupils in the city reaches 44,000, boosting Jyväskylä's reputation as a "student city".

Transport

Jyväskylä railway station is served by VR direct trains to Helsinki, Pieksämäki, Tampere, Turku, Vaasa and many other destinations in Finland. The station was extensively modernised in 2002.

Jyväskylä Airport was expanded in 2004. It's situated in Tikkakoski, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) north of Jyväskylä. It has direct flights to Helsinki-Vantaa Airport.

The city is on crossroads of many main roads of Finland. European route E75 passes the city from South to North and E63 from Southeast to Northwest.

Jyväskylä harbour is home for many passenger ships operating on lake Päijänne.

Public transportation system is operated by Jyväskylän liikenne and it is based on bus lines.

People

[edit] Artists

Alvar Aalto, Architect.
Tauno Hannikainen, Cellist, conductor.
Mikko Ijäs, visual artist and researcher.
Sofi Oksanen, Contemporary writer.
Jack Smack, guitarist for Private Line.
Laura Voutilainen, pop singer.
Lars Eikind, singer and bass player for Before the Dawn.

[edit] Politicians

Minna Canth, writer, social activist, early women's right activist
Mauri Pekkarinen, Senior centrist politician, minister in four different cabinets since 1991
Matti Vanhanen, Prime Minister of Finland (2003–).
Väinö Voionmaa, Senator, Minister, Professor, member of Finnish Parliament

[edit] Athletes

Mikko Hirvonen, rally driver.
Samppa Lajunen, three times Olympic glod metalist in Nordic combined.
Tuuli Matinsalo, world champion in aerobics.
Tommi Mäkinen, four times World Rally Champion.
Matti Nykänen, four times Olympic gold metalist in ski jump.
Sirkka Polkunen, Olympic gold metalist in cross country skiing.
Harri Rovanperä, rally driver.
Jani Soininen, Olympic gold metalist in ski jump.
Raimo Summanen, ice hockey player and coach.
Henri Toivonen, rally driver.
Sinuhe Wallinheimo, ice hockey player.

International relations

Main article: List of twin towns and sister cities in Finland

Twin towns — Sister cities

Jyväskylä is twinned with:

Esbjerg, Denmark (1947)
Eskilstuna, Sweden (1947)
Debrecen, Hungary (1970)
Fjarðabyggð, Iceland (1958)
Niiza, Japan (1997)
Potsdam, Germany (1985)
Poznań, Poland (1974)
Stavanger, Norway (1947)
Yaroslavl, Russia (1966)^[7]

Friendship cities

References

^ "Area by municipality as of 1 January 2009" (in Finnish and Swedish) (PDF). Land Survey of Finland. http://www.maanmittauslaitos.fi/Pintaalat_kunnittain_1.1.2009.pdf. Retrieved 20 February 2009.
^ ^a ^b "Population by municipality as of 31 December 2009" (in Finnish and Swedish). Population Information System. Population Register Center of Finland. http://www.vrk.fi/vrk/files.nsf/files/4AD425C09E8E9093C22576AA001D7112/$file/091231.htm. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
^ "Population according to language and the number of foreigners and land area km2 by area as of 31 December 2008". Statistics Finland's PX-Web databases. Statistics Finland. http://pxweb2.stat.fi/Dialog/varval.asp?ma=060_vaerak_tau_107_fi&ti=V%E4est%F6+kielen+mukaan+sek%E4+ulkomaan+kansalaisten+m%E4%E4r%E4+ja+maa%2Dpinta%2Dala+alueittain++1980+%2D+2008&path=../Database/StatFin/vrm/vaerak/&lang=3&multilang=fi. Retrieved 29 March 2009.
^ "Population according to age and gender by area as of 31 December 2008". Statistics Finland's PX-Web databases. Statistics Finland. http://pxweb2.stat.fi/Dialog/varval.asp?ma=050_vaerak_tau_104_fi&ti=V%E4est%F6+i%E4n+%281%2Dv%2E%29+ja+sukupuolen+mukaan+alueittain+1980+%2D+2008&path=../Database/StatFin/vrm/vaerak/&lang=3&multilang=fi. Retrieved 28 April 2009.
^ "List of municipal and parish tax rates in 2010". Tax Administration of Finland. 24 November 2009. http://www.vero.fi/download.asp?id=5853;25512. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
^ Climatological statistics for the normal period 1971–2000
^ ^a ^b ^c "Twin cities". International relations. http://www3.jkl.fi/international/intrelations/twin.shtml. Retrieved 2006-08-02.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jyväskylä

City of Jyväskylä – International version of the official website
Map of Jyväskylä
Region of Jyväskylä Tourist Information
University of Jyväskylä
An artistic photography gallery of the city

[show] v • d • e Municipalities of Central Finland

Municipalities	Äänekoski · Hankasalmi · Jämsä · Joutsa · Jyväskylä · Kannonkoski · Karstula · Keuruu · Kinnula · Kivijärvi · Konnevesi · Kuhmoinen · Kyyjärvi · Laukaa · Luhanka · Multia · Muurame · Petäjävesi · Pihtipudas · Saarijärvi · Toivakka · Uurainen · Viitasaari

Former municipalities	Jämsänkoski · Jyväskylän maalaiskunta · Konginkangas · Korpilahti · Koskenpää · Leivonmäki · Pihlajavesi · Pylkönmäki · Säynätsalo · Sumiainen · Suolahti

Central Finland · Finland