For more official information about Finland, please see Virtual Finland pages.

Finland in a Nutshell

Finland is a country of a little over 5,3 million inhabitants in the northern part of Europe. The neighboring countries are Sweden, Norway, Estonia and Russia. The majority of Finnish people speak Finnish as their native language but a minority of approximately six percent speak Swedish. As a visitor you do not need to speak and understand Finnish or Swedish, since most Finns, at least young people, speak English and many other foreign languages.

Climate

Finland has a long coastline, and two-thirds of the country is covered by forest. Finland is a land of lakes, and there are almost 200,000 lakes in the country. Finland is also a land of four really different seasons, with warm weather and long days in the summer, cold weather and long evenings in the winter. In the opinion of many Finns, the best thing about Finland is the unspoiled natural countryside with its lakes and forests, still relatively untouched by serious pollution. Although two-thirds of the population nowadays live in towns and urban areas, many Finns travel at weekends to their country cottages, scattered along the lake shore or seashore, among the trees, perhaps on a small island. And many Finns, at the country cottage or in the city, enjoy the Finnish sauna, one of the most famous products of the Finnish people.

The climate in Finland is milder than in many other areas of the same latitude, partly because of the warming influence of the Gulf Stream. Summer temperatures encourage sunbathing, and short but spectacular spring and autumn seasons help to counterbalance the effect of the winter. Although the mean temperature may exceed +25 degrees Celsius in the warmest summer months, the long-term average is between +15 and +18 degrees Celsius in July, and between -6 and -15 degrees Celsius in February. Snow usually arrives in the end of November and lasts till April. There are good opportunities for winter sports even in the south of the country.

During the summer it never gets really dark, and in the north the sun does not set at all for some time. During the winter months there are six hours of full daylight in the south while for two months far in the north the sun never rises above the horizon. Although the sun is out of sight for weeks, Lapland does not fall into total darkness even in the deepest depths of winter. The snow on the ground enhances the light of the moon and the stars, and sometimes the aurora borealis (or northern lights) flickers across the Arctic sky in many nuances of green, red and yellow.

If you are going to stay in Finland during the winter months, i.e. between November and April, you will need a good pair of warm, insulated shoes or boots, a warm winter coat and hat as well as woolen sweaters and long underwear. Otherwise, normal European clothing will be enough.

Historical survey

Finland and the Finnish national consciousness have been molded by the country's location between East and West. Ever since the Middle Ages, when many young Finnish men studied at the most important universities of Europe, the Finnish lifestyle has undeniably been enriched by its proximity to European Russia. Finland today is, as it has always been, in close contact with both St. Petersburg and Stockholm.

From the 13th century, Finland was part of the kingdom of Sweden. Finns fought in many a Swedish army and, in 1809, after Sweden had lost the war against Russia, Finland was ceded to Russia and became an autonomous Grand Duchy within Imperial Russia, its Grand Duke being the Tsar himself. During the 19th century, Finnish national consciousness grew stronger. In 1906 Finland succeeded in establishing a new constitution based on equal and universal suffrage, Finnish women being the first in Europe to be given the vote.

After the October Revolution in Russia in 1917, Finland declared itself independent. During World War II Finland managed to retain its independence in the Winter War and the Continuation War against Russia. Since the war, Finland has pursued a policy of neutrality and military non-alliance. Finland is a parliamentary republic with a multiparty political system.

Economy

Before World War II, Finland was predominantly an agricultural country with a rather narrow industrial sector; exports came only from the wood-processing industry. Alongside the wood industry, the main manufacturing areas today are the metal industry, chemicals, textiles, and construction. Certain high-tech fields, such as computers and telecommunications equipment, of which Nokia is a great company example, have also made spectacular growth. Services employ 65 per cent of the labor force, industry and construction 27 per cent, and agriculture and forestry 8 percent. Finland's most important trading partners are Germany, Sweden, Great Britain, the United States, and Russia.

Education

The educational system in Finland is made up of the comprehensive school, general and vocational secondary education, and higher education. The comprehensive school covers compulsory education for all children aged 7-16. After completing their compulsory education, students may go on to the upper secondary school, which provides three years of general education, or to vocational education lasting from two to six years. One out of every two Finns has completed post- comprehensive school education and 14 per cent have a university degree or equivalent.

Language

Finland is a bilingual country, both Finnish and Swedish being official languages. Around six percent of the population speak Swedish as their native language. Most of the Swedish speakers live along the south and west coasts. Sam is spoken by about 2,200 people living in Lapland. The most widely studied foreign language is English, followed by German and French. You will be able to deal with all your official business in English, and of course in Swedish.

Cost of living

The cost of living in Finland is comparable to rest of Europe on average. As an index for comparing the cost-level can be used so called BicMac-index. In Finland a BicMac costs 3,90 EUR. By comparing it to the price in your country you will find out if food is expensive in Finland for you, or not. Alcohol is, because of high taxes, expensive in Finland. A bottle (0.33L) of beer costs about 1 EUR in a department store and 3-6 EUR in a restaurant/disco. For basic student expenses such as food, rent and transportation a student typically spends something like 600 EUR per month. Of course the amount depends the person. Some people tend to spend much more for partying etc...

The Finnish way of life

Finns are said to be relatively quiet and shy, but straightforward and honest. Finland did not become urbanized until the 1960's. This means that many middle-aged Finns still have roots in the countryside. Their former close ties with nature may well be the reason why nature, and the now increasingly sparsely populated rural areas, mean a lot to Finns. Many city-dwellers have a summer cottage out in the country, where they spend most of their summer.

The four distinct seasons mould the Finnish character. Life in general is much more relaxed in the summer than in the winter. Bathing in the sauna and boating form an essential part of summer cottage life. In the autumn, people visit their cottages and go out into the forest to pick berries and mushrooms. In the countryside, most Finnish families have a sauna of their own, in the cities there is usually a common sauna in every block of flats for the residents.

It should be pointed out that about 50 per cent of women with children under 18 years of age have a regular job, and well over 50 per cent of university students are female. In practice, however, women's pay is lower than that of men. Legislation has been enacted to promote equality between the sexes.

Finns have a special passion for sports, such as ice-hockey, cross-country skiing, javelin throwing, and of course the king of the sports, football. Ski-jumping, motor-racing, orienteering and Finnish baseball also belong to the national pastimes.