world.wikisort.org - Finland

Ostrobothnia (Swedish: Österbotten; Finnish: Pohjanmaa) is a region in western Finland. It borders the regions of Central Ostrobothnia, South Ostrobothnia, and Satakunta. It is one of four regions considered modern-day Ostrobothnia, hence also referred to as Coastal Ostrobothnia to avoid confusion.

Ostrobothnia Österbotten  (Swedish) Pohjanmaa  (Finnish)
Region
Region of Ostrobothnia Landskapet Österbotten Pohjanmaan maakunta
Coat of arms
Ostrobothnia on a map of Finland
Country	Finland
Historical province	Ostrobothnia
Capital	Vaasa
Area
• Total	7,932.36 km2 (3,062.70 sq mi)
Population  (2019)
• Total	180,445
• Density	23/km2 (59/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
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 is one of two Finnish regions with a Swedish-speaking majority (the other being the constitutionally monolingual province of Åland); Swedish-speakers make up 51.2% of the total population.[1] The region contains thirteen bilingual municipalities and one that is exclusively Finnish-speaking. The capital of Vaasa is predominantly inhabited by Finnish speakers, whereas smaller towns and rural areas are generally dominated by the Swedish language. The three municipalities with the largest number of Swedish speakers are Korsholm, Jakobstad and Pedersöre.

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 rocks in the area.[2] 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.

Kaskinen, a coastal town located in the southern part of the region, is the smallest town in Finland in terms of both area and population.[3]

Name and symbols

Prior to the officialization of the names of the Finnish regions, Ostrobothnia was also known as Vasa kustregionen in Swedish and Vaasan rannikkoseutu in Finnish, both of which translate into "[the] coastal region of Vaasa". The Institute for the Languages of Finland recommended that the region be named Kustösterbotten in Swedish and Rannikko-Pohjanmaa in Finnish, meaning "coastal Ostrobothnia" in English. However, upon the confirmation of the names of the Finnish regions on 26 February 1998, the current name of the region was officialized instead, according to the wishes of the regional government. The central government cited the Swedish language's prevalence in the region, as well as the lack of a common consensus on an alternative name the reasons for its decision.[4] In local circles or communities, Ostrobothnia is often referred to as "Pampas". The word derives from the similarities in the flat landscape with the Pampas area in South America.[5]

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

Coat of arms

Gules, a sheaf Or; on chief countercharged four ermines 2+2 courant.

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 stoats are a symbol of Ostrobothnia.

Municipalities and languages

The region of Ostrobothnia is made up of 14 municipalities, of which six have city status (marked in bold), and the links are only in the majority language names. The greater Vaasa region has about 40% Swedish native speakers and a Finnish majority, whereas the Jakobstad region has about 70% and the southern region about 57% Swedish speakers. The rural part of the Vaasa region has a sizeable Swedish-speaking majority, with the majority of native Finnish speakers in Ostrobothnia as a whole living in Vaasa city proper. Isokyrö is a former unilingually Finnish municipality of the region, but was transferred to South Ostrobothnia in 2021.

Ostrobothnia is similar to German-speaking South Tyrol in Italy, in that the main language spoken in its capital is the majority language of the country, but the main language spoken in the region as a whole is a minority language. The main difference is that Swedish is an official language throughout Finland, but German is an official language only within South Tyrol.

Name in Finnish	Name in Swedish	Population[6]	Swedish Speakers[7]	Finnish Speakers[7]	Sub-Region
Pietarsaari	Jakobstad	19,096	56.4%	40.2%	Jakobstad
Kaskinen	Kaskö	1,288	28.1%	68.1%	Sydösterbotten
Mustasaari	Korsholm	19,529	70.2%	28.7%	Vaasa
Korsnäs	Korsnäs	2,050	91.2%	3.2%	Vaasa
Kristiinankaupunki	Kristinestad	6,375	56.6%	42.2%	Sydösterbotten
Kruunupyy	Kronoby	6,439	83.3%	15.6%	Jakobstad
Laihia	Laihela	7,916	1%	98.3%	Kyrönmaa
Luoto	Larsmo	5,626	92.5%	6.5%	Jakobstad
Maalahti	Malax	5,486	88.2%	9.1%	Vaasa
Närpiö	Närpes	9,570	88.4%	5.8%	Sydösterbotten
Uusikaarlepyy	Nykarleby	7,493	89.3%	8.1%	Jakobstad
Pedersören kunta	Pedersöre	11,171	90.1%	9%	Jakobstad
Vaasa	Vasa	67,631	24.8%	69.8%	Vaasa
Vöyri	Vörå	[6]	84.6%	13.6%	Vaasa

Former municipalities:

• The current Vörå is the result of consolidation of Maxmo and Oravais.
• Nykarleby has been merged with Jeppo, Munsala and Nykarleby landskommun.
• Korsholm has been consolidated from the five municipalities of Korsholm, Solf [sv], Replot, Björköby and Kvevlax.
• Vaasa has been merged with parts of Solf and Korsholm.
• Pedersöre has been merged with Esse and Purmo.
• Malax has been consolidated from the municipalities of Malax, Petalax, Bergö and the northern part of Pörtom.
• Närpes has been merged with Övermark and Pörtom.
• Kristinestad has been consolidated from Kristinestad, Tjöck, Lappfjärd and Sideby.
• Kronoby is consolidated from Kronoby, Nedervetil and Terjärv.
• Isokyrö is joined to the South Ostrobothnia region.

Climate

Ostrobothnia is located in the borderlands between the humid continental and subarctic climates (Köppen Dfb/Dfc). Its winters are moderated by prevailing westerly winds from the mild North Atlantic Current travelling across Norway, Sweden and the Bay of Bothnia. Although the sea tends to easily freeze over in winter during prolonged spells of cold weather due to the low salinity, winters seldom get severely cold.

In general during latter decades, the southern Bothnia Bay coastlines of central Norrland in Sweden across the strait and Ostrobothnia mostly range from slightly above 20 °C (68 °F) average highs in summer to about −3 °C (27 °F) highs and −10 °C (14 °F) lows in winter. Due to the vastness of the region from north to south, this will vary by a bit from one place to another depending on latitude.

Precipitation is quite variable but is enough to build up a reliable snowpack all through the region during winter months. In summer, Ostrobothnia experiences perpetual civil twilight due to its high latitude with the sun angle never falling below -3° at summer solstice in Vaasa and -2° in Jakobstad.[8][9] During that time of the year, daylight remains bright enough to permit daytime outdoor activities without artificial lighting especially under clear skies. As a result, days are short during winter although all areas of Ostrobothnia are far south of the Arctic Circle.

Politics

Results of the 2019 Finnish parliamentary election in Ostrobothnia:

• Swedish People's Party 47.23%
• Social Democratic Party 15.09%
• Finns Party 11.19%
• National Coalition Party 7.38%
• Christian Democrats 6.74%
• Centre Party 4.16%
• Left Alliance 3.54%
• Green League 3.51%
• Seven Star Movement 0.24%
• Blue Reform 0.20%
• Other parties 0.72%

See also

• Finnish national road 8 (E8)
• Swedish dialects in Ostrobothnia

References

External links

Media related to Ostrobothnia at Wikimedia Commons

• Regional Council of Ostrobothnia

На других языках

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[de] Österbotten

Österbotten [.mw-parser-output .IPA a{text-decoration:none}ˈœstərˌbɔtən] (schwedisch), finnisch Pohjanmaa [ˈpɔhjɑnmɑː] (deutsch auch Ostbottnien), ist eine Landschaft (sv. landskap, fi. maakunta) in Finnland. Die heutige Verwaltungsregion umfasst nur einen sehr kleinen Teil der gleichnamigen historischen Landschaft, die zusätzlich die heutigen Regionen Südösterbotten, Mittelösterbotten, Nordösterbotten, Kainuu sowie den südlichen Teil Lapplands (Peräpohjola) einschloss. Die heutige Landschaft Österbotten benennt dagegen nur den kleineren, überwiegend schwedischsprachigen Küstenstreifen nördlich und südlich der Stadt Vaasa. Die Fläche der Region beträgt 7932 km², die Einwohnerzahl liegt bei rund 180.000.

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- [en] Ostrobothnia (region)

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[ru] Остроботния (провинция)

Остробо́тния (швед. Österbotten), или По́хьянма́а (фин. Pohjanmaa) — область на западе Финляндии на территории бывшей губернии Западная Финляндия. Административный центр — город Вааса.

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